Description - how much is too much? -

AERichards Reading The Turn of the Screw by Henry James

19 Sep 2012, 11:12 AM | Post: #1

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Description - how much is too much?

As a reader, I like to get stuck into the action straight away. Writing needs to be fluid and fast-moving but not too simple. Description is important but I don't want to notice that the author is spending time describing things. I love rich language but if it distracts from the story, it's a no no for me. Someone who I think handles description well is Dean Koontz, although occasionally I think he overdoes it a bit.

I'm interested to know other people's views, both in terms of the amount of description needed and authors who handle this well.

Abby

Avid reader, author of Blackened Cottage and taking an MA in Creative Writing at Nottingham Trent University starting October 2012

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LindaGruchy Reading The Chandelier Ballroom by Elizabeth Lord

19 Sep 2012, 11:26 AM | Post: #2

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RE: Description - how much is too much?

This post was last modified: 19 Sep 2012 11:26 AM by LindaGruchy.

I read The Little Friend by Donna Tartt a while ago, and at first thought how wonderfully atmospheric it was. Then, as I struggled with the story I realised I was choking on the atmosphere. It slowed the pace right down and, I felt, needed a scythe to remove the jungle of words.

Sometimes description is a self-indulgernce by the author.

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jennyp19

19 Sep 2012, 11:59 AM | Post: #3

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RE: Description - how much is too much?

I must admit I feel the same - too much description is, well, just too much.

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Susanne Reading I Woke Up This Morning by Stuart Ayris

19 Sep 2012, 12:33 PM | Post: #4

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RE: Description - how much is too much?

Some authors manage to weave the descriptions into the story so that you hardly notice, and yet you have a very clear mental picture of the places and people. A favourite author of mine, Barbara Kingsolver, goes into great detail about the area where the story takes place and you learn a lot about a particular subject, but it never detracts from the story. Two of her books that stand out for me are The Poisonwood Bible and Prodigal Summer.

So, if done well, I like it.

A book is like a garden carried in the pocket. ~Chinese Proverb

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Damien J. Nash Reading Flux by Mark. R. Faulkner

19 Sep 2012, 12:36 PM | Post: #5

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RE: Description - how much is too much?

I think there should be just enough for the reader to form their own mental picture of what the author is trying to form say. Too much and I skip whole paragraphs. Too little and it can be frustrating.

I read a book recently and the author gave a character an English name but neglected to mention until much later on in the book that she was Asian. My mental image of the character, destroyed in one sentence.

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