Using senses to set a scene One of the big things I do in all of my books is incorporate the five senses, especially when I’m introducing setting. For example, in the opening pages of Nothing But Sky we meet the main character, Grace as she is standing in a wide-open field in rural Nebraska. As I was developing that scene, I knew I had to let the reader know what she was feeling (fear, elation, anticipation) but also what her senses were telling her. Which direction the wind blew her hair and how it felt sticking to her cheeks. The smell of dry grass and thick manure around her. How her ears buzzed with the sounds of both a speeding car and a plane drawing closer. Using those defining senses helped me to build that opening scene in my head and then transfer it to the page. It took several revisions to get it right, but if I go back and look at those pages now I’m really proud of how that scene came together due to the addition of several sensory details. Next time you are starting to write the setting for a scene, think about how your MC feels standing in that place. What does she see, feel, smell, taste, hear? By including these small details, you can really make the reader feel like they are standing right next to your MC. #nothingbutsky #saturdaysnippet #saturdayscene #writetip #writingcraft #author #authorlife #writer #writinglife #storyteller #storytelling #writingcommunity #writinganovel #writerslife #writersofinstagram #writingcommunity #writerscommunity #writersnetwork #writersofinstagram #writing #amwriting #authorsofinstagram #yalit #iwriteya #youngadultfiction #yahistorical #yafiction https://www.instagram.com/p/CMX3MuMgWNf/?igshid=1xr5wlxfwb6g8
