Descriptive Details

Descriptive Details

Narrative Writing 

Take 30 seconds to look at this photo...think of what you would hear, smell, taste, feel, see...

Open Ended

Answer each question about the previous photo:

1.) What do you smell?

2.) What does the water sound like?

3.) How would describe the sand?

4.) What does the water feel like?

5.) What would the water taste like?

Sensory details

Writers use sensory details, or words describing touches, sights, sounds, tastes, and smells, to help draw a reader into a the world of a story. Consider the difference between “the room was crowded and loud” and “the summer heat seemed to radiate off the guests’ bodies, the din of their voices thrumming over the unending drone of the party music.” Look not only at the facts that are shared, but also at the information each phrase conveys. 

Multiple Select

What are some examples of sensory details? (Click all that apply)

• touch

• taste

• smell

• see

• sound

Why do we use descriptive details?

• In order to explain a beach scene or anything similar, we need to to paint a vivid picture for a reader, it is not enough to simply say, “I was at the beach.”  

• When we read any type of writing, and particularly narrative writing, we need details. It is the descriptions of characters, setting, actions, and emotions that transform a story from words on the page into images and sensations, even whole experiences, that are particular and special.
  

Details 

Descriptions that help a reader understand characters, for example, include details about how they look, what they are wearing, which emotions their facial expressions reveal, and what they are thinking versus what they say. Details of setting include time, location, appearance of the place, and the atmosphere, for example. 


Details of plot refer to descriptions of the conflict, including the severity of the problem and whether the problem is getting better or worse.

Open Ended

Add more descriptive words to the following sentence:

The dog went outside and slept on the grass.

Precise and Powerful Descriptions

To achieve precise and powerful descriptions, authors use adjectives and adverbs, as well as specific nouns and verbs. However, authors do not only need to paint a picture for readers. They also need to convey information. 

Examples

Consider the difference between, for example:

“the man looked mean” 

He goes from this....

Example

“the stranger’s stern mouth was lassoed by a thick, dastardly mustache.” 

To this!!!!!

Example

What do you learn from the first phrase? There is a man, and he looks mean. 

But in the second phrase, the writer conveys a person’s status (new in town, with the noun “stranger”), gender (male, from the “mustache”), and personality (not nice, gathered from “stern mouth,” and from “dastardly” and “thick” to describe the mustache). 

A strong verb such as “lassoed” suggests a Wild West setting

Multiple Choice

What is figurative language?

• Fancy language

• A word or phrase that does not have its normal everyday, literal meaning

• A type of language in another country

• WAT

Figurative Language 

Authors also use figurative language—such as simile and metaphor—to describe what characters are seeing, experiencing, or feeling. The figurative language, though, needs to be right for the moment. For example, “I was sad about it” might be just right for one narrator. For another narrator, a metaphor such as “My face became a puddle of tears” might be more appropriate. A character that likes to talk might include similes, such as “My heart felt as heavy as a quarry stone, and my head pounded like a jack-hammer.” The trick for the author, of course, is to use words that are engaging and necessary, and not to overdo it!

As we close.... 

As you write your own stories, think about how descriptive details can help you. 

How do descriptions enhance the mood or tone of the story and create a vivid experience for readers? 

How can details bring a story to life?

Open Ended

What's one type of descriptive detail you will add to your story? List one example.