A bright city scape or a sandy beach or an empty room are all possible places where a scene could take place. Of course, you’re going to have to describe these places so your readers aren’t blind, but you don’t want to over describe and bombard your reader. Here are some tips to consider when writing scenery.
Keep it relevant. Describe only the things that matter. Don’t go off describing the table cloth’s pattern unless it matters. How do you decide if it matters? Anything the characters interact with will be important and warrant some description. Also a quick introductory description is needed when a character is introduced to a new setting.
Make it real. Make sure that your descriptions are true to the place you are describing.
Don’t over do it. Keep your descriptions of a place to the point. More than a paragraph will have your readers skimming or even skipping over the description. A paragraph will probably be enough to introduce your reader to a new setting. Additional description, if needed, can come in spurts between dialogue or when the characters interact with objects.
Capture the atmosphere. Making description work is important. Try to find the right words that will convey the setting’s atmosphere or even what will happen in this setting. Clues like that will help the reader settle into the setting and give them a heads up as to what is happing or what will happen.
Be vivid. Use strong, colorful words to portray the setting. Don’t call it “beautiful” or “ugly” or “run down”. Show the shutters tapping against the sides of the house or the golden light skipping across the tops of the waves. Be as vivid as possible with the strongest words as possible. However that doesn’t mean go to a dictionary or a thesaurus and pick the longest or most complicated word. Choose words that are strong, but that fit.
Adding in colorful words to describe the story’s scenery will give the reader a clear picture of your story. Keep these tips in mind when revising so your descriptions are concise, yet vivid.
