I’d be surprised if there isn’t a writer out there who hasn’t sucumbed to this one – mistake number two – showing off.
There are times showing off is like chocolate or wine -simply impossible to resist. You’ve done the research, you’re captivated by what you’ve discovered so it simply has to go in the book. Whist your reader may not have the faintest interest in the dying art of Urdu Callingraphy you are determined she will know in detail how each letter is deftly carved, has its own individual shape and curvatures – the major styles being- Arabic, Persian and Kufic – the designs many: Asloob, Tughra, Suls, Aseer, Riqa, Ghalib, Nataliq, amongst others – I could go on. Now some readers, and I am one of them, enjoy the richness and texture of this kind of detail – so it’s a question of taste, but also of balance. I think it might be rather like a recipe where too much of a special ingredient is overkill, leaving your tastebuds unable to enjoy the whole, whereas just enough is tantalisingly good. I’m sure my friend Debora http://lickedspoon.blogspot.com/ ,where you will find both gorgeous writing and recipes, could confirm.
But a note of caution on mistake number two- it is important to remember that detail is key in writing – it is important to name places and objects, to be specific and not just let them float about in a generalised haze. It is much more powerful to give the flowers in the garden their name – ‘flowers’ is not good, ‘cornflowers and poppies,’ is. So when considering the ‘showing off’ problem don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater!
However, too much information will inevitably slow your story down and description too will slow the pace. This is a problem I wrestle with all the time. It’s important to consider, not just for your reader, but also because agents and publishers (readers of course) are in my experience, very keen on pace.
Writing Tip – All of the six mistakes I will be talking about are useful to consider when writing your novel BUT there are NO recipes for writing and writing the novel you want to write and that you believe in is absolutely the BEST thing you can do.
On the subject of showing off – this is wallpaper designed, last year, by my daughter Katie who is now studying at the Royal College of Art.
Katie’s evocative and haunting art sits nicely in your blog – all of a piece with your garden and flower images and lyrical words – some genes must be charging around in that household, distilling beautiful world-views!
I love your list of Middle Eastern words – exotic poetry in a list.
You are so wise to point out the tough challenge of keeping a balance betwen pace and beauty. Maybe we should take tips from beautiful racehorses.
Wendyx
Life Twice Tasted
Hello Avril,
Thank you so much for mentioning my blog! I do think that great writing and great cooking have similarities – it’s all about balance, thoughtfulness and allowing your intended star to shine. When you get too complicated, too contrived, the result is a confusing jumble. As the great Escoffier said, ‘Faites simple’. Keep it simple – it holds as well for writing as for cooking, but it takes confidence born out of experience and practice to have such courage.
Debora x
PS Katie’s wallpaper is BEAUTIFUL!
‘Faites Simple,’ – for writing also – its a brilliant mantra Debora – but you are so right about the courage and experience it takes to do this.1
Your comment about ‘balancing the amount of detail to use’ struck a cord. I’m writing about a Scottish family in the Victorian era. Working with a sea of research material, deciding what is useful and what is not, it feels like laying stepping stones for the reader. Hopefully the balance will be right and nobody will drown.
Love the site; found it both informative and stimulating.
Thank you Hilary – I really do think this ‘balancing,’ act is one of the trickiest things when writing a first novel, or it certainly was for me. It seems to me that awareness is the thing – that rather than just fall in love with our detail, research etc we have to keep the reader in mind. I think ‘stepping stones’ is a wonderful metaphor – lots of space between the stones for the reader to do the work and for the story to flow.