Show Me… Don’t Tell Me
Often times when we write we tell our audience our story, ideas, reflections, etc. Most people write in the way that they would have a conversation with someone. The aim of this workshop is to get you too “SHOW” your audience what you are trying to say, rather then telling them about it. Your goal is to create a word picture. Descriptive words are used to help the reader imagine a person, place, object, idea, or emotion. The description gives exact details of how something looks, feels, tastes, sounds, smells, or behaves. After reading your thoughts they can see the image in their minds. When you write a “showing” paragraph, the details should be given in some organized way. Some begin by showing the reader what you noticed first and walk them through the image. Authors will often use metaphors and similes to create IMAGES.
Assignment: Choose a picture that represents a part of your narrative. You will be writing 2-3 paragraphs and inserting these into your narrative "showing" your picture by writing. As you are writing, ask yourself, "Can my audience visualize the picture?" Once you have completed this, you will then begin to write and rewrite your narrative doing the same thing to the rest of your writing.
Due date: Your entire narrative with all paragraphs completed is due on, Wednesday, September 5.
