Now that I have gotten used to the level of work involved in getting good grades, I feel like I can finally start blogging again and not have to worry about taking time away from schoolwork. Although my schooling will always come first, I feel confident now that I can get back to my regular posting schedule.
For my first post back, I wanted to share something valuable I just learned.
I've talked about the "show, don't tell" rule. But if you are a reader like I am, you can see that not every author follows that rule.
So how do we know when to show and when to tell?
In her book, "This Is Not A Writing Manual: Notes for the Young Writer In the Real World," writer Kerri Majors tells us about how much she hated hearing from her instructors and peers that she needed to show more and tell less. She tells us:
The fact that I was hearing this "show, don't tell" comment on my writing drove me nuts not just because I'd been hearing it forever, but because 1) plenty of writers told as much if not more than they showed (hello, people...Philip Roth?) so why couldn't I? and 2) I thought I showed plenty.
I'd been working to change this so-called problem for years. Why didn't my peers get what I was trying to do?
Her teacher responded, kindly but firmly, "You can tell the hell out of any story you want, as long as it's working. What you're hearing is that your telling isn't working. Not as well as your scenes. You write good dialogue. When your characters interact with each other on the page we can see and hear them. We want more of that."
Finally, it stuck. For Kerri, and for me. We can tell, as long as it works. It isn't that we should never tell. It's just that, more often than not, we are better off showing. Especially if our telling isn't very good.
No one has put it this way before so when I read this it stuck with me. Hopefully it will stick with you too.
Until next time!
Kelly
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