Debi Alper

This forum is a great idea, Andrew.

Re show-or-tell, I can’t add much to what’s already been said so well. The only thing I can think of is that sometimes, even with telling, you might want to write quite descriptively. Emma Darwin gives an example in the showing and telling post Jane mentions.

Good point, Squidge. It can also help if your think about how you perceive things in real life. When someone becomes angry, for instance, no one tells you ‘this person is angry.’ It’s shown to you as you see their brows come down, as you hear their voice rise.

And for all ‘novices’ reading this, another plug for Emma Darwin’s blog, the finest…[Read more]

Wot everyone else said! My rule of thumb to determine when I should show is to put myself in the MC’s shoes and write from their experience – if I can portray something through what they are seeing/hearing/feeling, then it’s probably more of a ‘show’ moment than a ‘tell’ one. For me, it’s linked with people and actions rather than descriptions -…[Read more]

What a brilliant set of answers and examples to a most important question, I’ve been writing fiction ten years now but still forgetting how this one works. Thaks fir asking it, Andrew. And well done Jane for mentioning Emma’s blog – taught me so much.

Showing and telling is a tricky one and there are many situations where telling something is 100% right and others where showing is 100% right. The reverse is also true.

Jake was acting suspiciously when I met him at the cafe. He looked cagey and only told me about Jane when he was sure nobody else could hear him.

Jake sidled through the cafe…[Read more]

Hi Andrew. The only stupid questions are the ones you don’t ask and it doesn’t matter how ‘far’ along the learning the craft of writing journey you are, there are still more things to find out about and old things to be reminded about.

Emma Darwin’s blog The Itch of Writing has a host of useful blogs if you haven’t come across it already. This…[Read more]