Friday, January 20, 2017

Show, Don’t Tell (unless you’re in Kindergarten).

Another guest-post by K. Alan… sort of. The thing about sudsy water is that it keeps clothes from growing diseases, but causes timber floors to grow them. With apology, I only have time for a reblog.

This is one of the posts from my series exploring some of the most common (and sometimes baffling) advice that writers hear. The other posts in the series are about Writing What You Know, Starting in the Middle of the Action, and Knowing your Target Audience.

Let me know your thoughts!

Words from K. Alan

Continuing my series, ‘How to Follow Writing Advice that Makes No Sense,’ please comment with your ideas of when it is better for writers to ‘show’ and when to ‘tell.’

showntell Children were never expected to interpret the trauma in a budgie’s past.

Do you remember your favorite part of kindergarten? While I am tempted to name ‘Nap Time,’ memory forces me to acknowledge that naps only became precious to me later in life. No, my favorite part of kindergarten—and probably yours—had to be ‘Show and Tell.’ These were the moments that I could bring in my tricycle, greeting cards or guinea pigs, and allow my classmates to gawk enviously at them while I supplied detailed narrative about their mechanical, emotional or bodily functions. In kindergarten, detail and clarity were rewarded, and Mrs. Arbuthnott would confirm with her warmest smile as she fought to keep from nodding off during the fourteenth minute…

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