I chose a single, strong image over a long list of details for my opening scene.

I was stuck between describing a whole messy kitchen to show a character's stress or just focusing on the single cracked coffee mug she was white-knuckling, and picking the mug made the next 500 words flow straight out. Has anyone else found that a simpler prompt detail actually unlocks more story for you?

3 comments

3 Comments

clairem8124d ago

Ever notice how trying to describe a whole feeling just makes you freeze up? Like when my car makes a weird noise, I could list every rattle, but just saying "it sounds like a dying robot" gets the point across and gets me to call the mechanic. That one detail cuts through the noise. Your cracked mug does the same thing, it tells us everything about the stress without the clutter. Makes total sense it got you writing.

ryanscott24d ago

Yeah, the "dying robot" noise is perfect. It's like @clairem81 said, that one detail cuts through all the clutter and just works. Honestly, my brain freezes if I try to list everything, but give it one broken thing to focus on and the story writes itself.

fiona3326d ago

Honestly, my old laptop fan makes that same dying robot sound and it stresses me out every time. Tbh it's probably why I keep my writing short now.