Paint
a Picture -- Experiment #1 -- Experiment
#2 -- Other Lessons
Paint
a Picture with Your Words
Let’s
face it. The old proverb, a picture is worth a thousand words, is true.
A visual image is powerful. We can’t however, write book reviews
by handing our readers a book cover. (Book covers can be an immediate
sell or turn-off, though, but let’s pretend for now that we still
need to write an informative review even if we could just get people
to look at an arresting cover.)
So,
how do we paint a picture of our book with words? We need to create
visual imagery in our writing. Easy, right? Well, it’s not all
that bad. Try one of the following experiments to get yourself started.
These experiments will not write the whole review for you, but they
will move you toward your goal.
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Experiment #1: Using Those Funky Metaphors
from the Last Lesson
1. Get out a sheet of paper and make three columns. At
the top of one column write the name of a significant character from
the book. At the top of another column write the name of a significant
place or setting from the book. At the top of the third column write
the name of a significant event from the book.
2. Get out that list of word pairs you made in the last lesson and start
placing them in one of the three columns, no matter how weird they might
seem.
3. Make up original word pairs and place them in appropriate columns.
4. Attaching metaphors to specific characters, settings, or events can
help you describe these elements more colorfully. You will paint a picture
with your words.
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Experiment
#2: Getting Inspired by the Book Cover
1. We’re not supposed to judge a book by its cover,
right? Wrong. Not right now, anyway. We’re going to look at the
cover and think about it and judge it and use it to write.
2. Look at your book’s cover. Pretend you haven’t read the
book and you know nothing about it.
3. Set a timer for three minutes and write down every word or phrase
that comes to mind when you look at this book cover. Example (for Hope
Was Here): Blue, sunset, cityscape of New York, the Twin Towers, U-Haul,
looks like a painting, wistful, leaving something behind, looking behind,
remembering, sad, glowing lights, etc.
4. Now use these words to shape a couple of descriptive sentences about
your book. Incorporate some of the metaphors from the above exercise.
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Other
Lessons
