1-Limit exposition. It’s important to describe the setting right at the beginning of a scene, so your reader can imagine the characters in place. Writing a book is like directing a movie in somebody else’s head, but don’t overdo it! Mix exposition and dialogue.
2-Use all five senses. What does it look like? Any sounds? Smells? Taste will be more rare. What does it feel like?
3-Limit adjectives. The rule is to never use more than three adjectives to describe a noun. I rarely use more than one. One great adjective is much better than a list that will only distract the reader. Give them enough to set up the canvas, but let their imagination paint. Pick the one adjective that is more informative and conveys a better sense of the place.
Ex. The alley, was dark, humid, and cold.
Better: The alley was dank and smelled of urine.
4-Select verbs and nouns. The more specific the better! Read a lot and help yourself with thesaurus, but before you use some ass-backward archaic word that does not jive with your narration do your research! Not all synonyms are created equal, get the flavor of a word, read it in context, google it.
5-Avoid adverbs. Most of the time there’s a better verb to describe what you’re trying to say. Don’t walk slowly, crawl. Don’t say loudly, yell. Don’t look intently, scrutinize.
6-Show don’t tell. Rather than saying that Annie was annoyed, let the reader infer that from a roll of her eyes. Rather than saying Jenny was beautiful, have someone blush and lower their gaze when they see her. Convey descriptions through gestures, emotions, and reactions.
In the following example I only made up one character, which is harder, because I can’t have dialogue to help me. So I put in Italic her thoughts, to break the narration :)
Bad description- Annie walked slowly in the tall, gray deserted building. The floor was ruined and uneven, littered with garbage and debris. She was scared. She had never been there before. The musty walls were covered in musk and felt like they were closing in. She knew there were fifteen floors above hear head and she had to climb them all on an old, rusty stair that missed several steps. She walked toward it faster. Blah blah blah.
This description is jarring. As I read it, I feel like every sentence is a piece of a puzzle building the scene in my head. I am trying to see Annie and her location and the description keeps getting in the way of me becoming Annie. Bad, bad, bad!
Better description- Annie crawled into the deserted building, her heart racing. As her eyes adjusted to the dim light she was overpowered by the dank smell dripping from the walls. Oh, god, is this cursed place shrinking? She took a deep breath and stumbled to the rickety stairs. Fifteen floors, and several missing steps. I can do it. I can do it.
I am Annie. I know what she thinks, what she feels, smells, sees. I want Annie to be okay. I want to keep reading.
Who am I to give you advice?
I am the author of The Italian Saga (#TIS) A series of YA novels taking place in Italy. Book 3, Forget Nico, will be available on May 1st!!!!