How to get the reader immersed into this scene/story?
Well, my only piece of advice is to not be TOO descriptive. When people think about bringing the reader into the story, they think they should bombard the reader with descriptions. That's not the case. You've probably heard about showing and not telling. What NOT to do: He took a bite of the steak. It was warm and chewy and tasty. He swallowed the steak and a bit of barbeque sauce dripped down his lip, it was spicy and taguey. He put his fork down and picked the remaining bits of meat out of his teeth. The music was really loud but, boy, that was a delicious steak! What to do: The grilled piece of meat busted with flavor as soon as it came in contact with his mouth. He flicked his tongue over his bottom lip and lapped up the little bit of steak sauce. Someone sat down and patted his shoulder, the obnoxious techno music making it hard to hear what he was saying. "Good steak, ain't it?" He didn't answer, too busy picking pieces of heaven out from between his teeth. They both around the same length, but the second example is obviously better because you're SHOWING that the music was loud, that the food was good, etc. instead of telling.
How to be more descriptive when writing? ?
Some considerations: * Know who's point of view the reader should be experiencing the event. Should we be experiencing it from the wolf-boy's POV or a bystander (like his girlfriend). This will help you pick which details you want to explore. If the POV is the boy then he may describe the sensation he's feeling (like his fingernails falling off or something). If it's the girl POV you might focus on describing the sounds he was making when changing. * What emotions do you want the reader to have when reading this passage? Sympathy, pain, fear, horror. Keeping these in mind can help you with your word choice and imagery. * Be specific/use details. "The pain was unbearable" - doesn't tell us much. Where was the pain? Exactly what does unbearable mean? * Use literary techniques - simile, metaphor, allegory to describe the events rather than piling on adjectives. (Keeping in mid the emotions you're trying to convey.) * Show don't tell - instead of telling the reader what is happening, describe the event in a way that allows the reader to conclude what he's feeling or what's happening. * Avoid the verb forms of "to be" (is, was, were, has been, will be, etc) - pick stronger verbs and vivid adjectives. * Rather than have the goal of letting the reader see the scene - have the goal of feeling as if they are at the scene. You can do this by drawing on all 5 senses (sight, hearting, smell, touch and taste) * Examine the adverbs you use - is there a more specific verb you can use in it's place. Instead of "screaming loudly" maybe "howled".
Tips for writing vivid descriptions when writing short stories?
My best advice is DON"T. Most of what I read here is so badly overwritten and filled with purple prose that when I finish reading it, I need insulin. It is a short story. Keyword - short. Skip the color of the sunsets and waves dashing against the rocks. Remember what Shakespeare said "Imagine when we speak of horses that you see them". Everyone knows the colors in the sunset. You can choose one or two interesting words to describe the sky - cotton candy clouds or some other metaphor or simile. But please stay within reason. You do not need to tell me in great detail about your character Wakuli's torn and patched pants or wild black hair ... You aren't writing for Elle Magazine. Find brief, interesting metaphors or similes and let it go at that. I have probably read a thousand prologues here that go into great detail about the sky, the person's clothes, the water, the freezing rain. None of which have a lick to do with the plot. Remember the plot? What I'm looking for when I read a story is content, not long chains of purple prose over describing the sky. Over description is a total turn off. You will find editors love to red pen that stuff - with little notes next to it saying "meaningless". After a while you will learn to write tightly and conservatively. You will know when to toss in a simile and when to let it go for your readers to imagine. Don't take that joy away from your readers. That is why they read and don't watch movies. I defer to Ernest Hemingway here. "The most essential gift for a good writer is a built-in, shock-proof sh!t detector.” ---- They're, Their, There - Three Different Words. Careful or you may wind up in my next novel. Pax - C
Help with the start of a horror story?
Not relatively the begin for a horror story but i've some tips and recommendations you should use! 1. Suppose of the time while you've randomly watched some thing rather freaky like on youtube or a time you've got watched a horror movie. Express those same feelings! 2. Supply communicate, lots of humans speakme. Three. Put down tons of 'WOW' phrases and onomatopoeia e.G BANG WOOSH increase! 4. Be very descriptive - seize the readers concentration from the first sentence. Hope it helped and i'm going to provide an illustration of my made up one at the backside: The autumn mists had been gathering early and the night time was developing dark when all of a sudden a ghostly sound clanged in my ears, my heart beating supersonic - sweat trailing from my face and the sensation of horror and warmth wrapped around my coronary heart. The trees that appeared gray in the darkness shook and damage my ears. Then i seemed ahead...My heart distracted with one factor and my mind distracted from an additional...I might suppose my soul leaving me... It's not that good however hope you get the idea.
Tips and advice when writing?
Oh, well, where to start? Give your readers questions. Make us wonder what a character meant, or when such-and-such happened. Give your girl characters significant relationships other than the love of her life. Family, friends, mentors, whoever--the girl should not be emotionally dependent on one man. Make your guys strong, not sphincters. Jack Nicholson's character in "As Good As It Gets" says, when writing women, "I think of a man--and I take away reason and accountability." Ratchet up your men's reasonableness and accountability, even when you think they're already doing this, to help give them...guy parts. :) Be in the moment. Don't skip to the parts you love. Write out the scenes where life happens, no matter what the speed, so that the reader has time to process the changes happening. Do start with dialogue. :) Not necessarily always, but opening with interaction is a lot more interesting than opening with long, involved narrative and explanations about an unusual setting. Use archetypes, but avoid stereotypes. An archetype doesn't have to lock you into a two-dimensional character. Done right, it just helps jump-start your readers empathy for a character or situation. (Scarlett O'Hara, for example, is introduced as *not* beautiful, charming, and tricksy right from the start. Given that most of the novel's demographic is women, it's not surprising that women are inclined not to like her, along with nearly all the female characters in the novel. But she's a woman "with gumption", so we're gradually drawn into seeing how her unyielding character can be both a strength and a hindrance.) Write, write, write. You won't get better by quitting. Read, read, read. You won't learn how to write what you love until you know quality fiction from junk. :) Good luck. :)
How is the start to my story...?
The air had a comforting warmth that slightly stirred with a silent breeze.The animals were resting, and the moon glistened a blanket of silvery light. I felt wonderful, letting my surroundings succumb to my senses, taking in every sound, smell, taste, and feel. I closed my eyes to a world of darkness. An owl cooed its' night lullaby and soared above to find a towering tree in the distance. The wind once again danced across the field as Jonah appereared.I slowly stood, reopening my eyes. Jonah came close and pulled my face towards his. He set his hand under my chin and I soon felt his lips form onto mine. His mouth tasted of a bliss sweetness I cannot describe. His thoughts crept into my mind, and then I knew this was the last time I was to ever see him again. He slowly released his embrace and stood back, slightly smiling. He laid down on the grassy plain and I followed. I rested my head on his chest and felt it rise and fall. His hand stroaked my hair, and then moved down to rest on my back, holding me near. Our verbal silence didn't break, and the air had a peaceful and sullen fell to it. I gazed at the stars, trying to withstand and swallow the lump that had begun to form in the back of my throat. Succumbing to my sadness, tears began to leak onto his shirt. He pulled me closer, and kissed my head. Finallly the silence was broken by my saddened curiosity, "So will I ever be able to see you again?" So my idea was to show the ending and then shoot back to the beginning of the past - if that makes any sense - basically Jonah is a ghost that my female character falls in love with. My female character can read minds, and see ghosts. Be blunt....any critic helps...thanks. I'm also 13 and this is my first book.
How to open a horror story?
Given that you have such a limited amount of words, you don't have a lot of time to build up suspense - you need to start with action, essentially. A girl running around in the woods, something like that, and then slowly build up to why she's running. Give us noises, something in the woods behind her, then shadows or rustling leaves. Don't show your reader this vampire until right before the director yells 'cut'. Remember, one of an authors' greatest tools is her readers imagination - use it. No matter how horrifying a monster you can write, your reader can imagine one ten times worse. Let her imagine it, and hold of any description of the thing until the very end. Focus on atmosphere, and suspense. Now given that I've never seen the vampire diaries, your describing how you want the story to be means basically nothing to me, but I would be very wary of writing a vampire story, as they've been very overdone lately. I'd suggest you consider ways to give your reader something new, something she hasn't seen before. Otherwise, this is just another vampire story, albeit with a twist, but not until the climax. Hopefully this helps you out a bit. Remember, horror is laden with clichés, so be very vigilant, and very careful of your words. Good luck.