In FICTION AND THE FIGURES OF LIFE, Wm. Gass said--among many other things that quietly shaped my attitudes about craft--"In fiction there is no such thing as description, there is only construction."
Every detail exists because you put it there, and you put it there because it created the reality lived by your character in that moment. Leave out what readers supply on their own; don't show off by being more eccentric in your choice of details that is necessary; answer, to your own satisfaction, the question: what does someone need to know to make sense of this one moment, what it looks like, its relationship to the interior weather of the character; decide how much of it you need--based on the position of that spot in your artifact and whether you need to juke along quickly or eddy for a little while. But, basically--back to Gass--you're making a world.
Great setting exercises.
Thank you, Laura. ❤️
In FICTION AND THE FIGURES OF LIFE, Wm. Gass said--among many other things that quietly shaped my attitudes about craft--"In fiction there is no such thing as description, there is only construction."
Every detail exists because you put it there, and you put it there because it created the reality lived by your character in that moment. Leave out what readers supply on their own; don't show off by being more eccentric in your choice of details that is necessary; answer, to your own satisfaction, the question: what does someone need to know to make sense of this one moment, what it looks like, its relationship to the interior weather of the character; decide how much of it you need--based on the position of that spot in your artifact and whether you need to juke along quickly or eddy for a little while. But, basically--back to Gass--you're making a world.
Much good inspiration in these wonderful passages, Christine, thanks.