AboutSusan Rand Expertise Questions about writing in general, creativity (how to make your writing totally YOU - unique as you are); how to make it stand out from the competition; how to spark your creative juices; how to make it flow; how to make your characters seem like real people; how to control emotion in the reader and much more! Please no homework questions.
Experience I have been writing and teaching writing for several decades. I have written 5 books and several short stories. Over the years I have read and studied many books on "how to write." I can correct spelling and usage mistakes, and I know punctuation.
Education/Credentials BA in the Humanities, with an emphasis on Written Communication, 1982
Expert: Susan Rand Date: 5/2/2008 Subject: Detail level...
Question I am writing a book. When I wirte it, I always find a sort of blandness in my writing that I think is due to lack of detail. How do I make myself write in more detail.
I also find that the level of emotion, tone, mood, etc. are lacking. Do you have any tips for increasing my characters' relationships and manipulating the way the reader reacts?
Answer Hello Kincaid:
You raise a number of significant questions (way too many to answer in this space!). I cannot tell whether your prose is bland and if so, why, without having a look at it. The same goes for the other elements you mention. At my website, http://pygmypress.com, I offer assessments at $2 per page. Please contact me there if you are interested.
Adding detail will not necessarily rescue your manuscript; the trick is to choose the right detail, put it in the right place and the right situation. It generally takes years of practice, study, and reading "good" books to achieve this. Proper instruction/guidance can cut this time in half. I also offer mentoring services at my website, you may want to take advantage of those.
I would recommend that you go to my favorite writing site, worddistillery.com, put some of your scenes up there and ask for opinions. The people there are both experienced and wise in the ways of the craft, and will give you good advice.
I hope this helps. If it does, a nice rating would be greatly appreciated. I am proud of my high score over 1350 questions.
