Descriptive Writing Activity 2

Detailing...

This is the part of the writing process that most people have trouble with. Some say they don't know how to start, or what to include in their writing. I will give you some ideas and you can try to follow. 

Remember, don't worry about how it is organised now; you just need to focus on getting the details. Later, you can edit and select more potent vocabulary and include figurative devices (literary writing tricks), to make your work sound more sophisticated.

In the first activity about flowers, we looked at 'naming' what you want to write about. This time we are moving on to the next step, detailing. 

The topic is 'Flowers'. So what do you need to write about flowers? That all depends on your reason for writing. So ask yourself, why are you writing this piece? What is it for? Who is it for? Is it supposed to inspire someone? Is it supposed to evoke some kind of emotion in them? How do you want the reader to respond?

When you have answered these questions, you will know what the purpose of the piece is and then you can decide what details you want to focus on.

But suppose you don't know why you are writing, maybe you just what to write about flowers, what do you do then? You can do one or more of the following:

1. Brainstorm - write down little notes about flowers - kinds, colours, uses, occasions for flowers, locations associated with flowers, history of certain types etc, or you can jot down little notes about your emotional connection with flowers - past experiences, hobbies, a special memory, likes, dislikes, your personal feelings about them, what flowers symbolise to you.

2. You can free write. Just get a pen and paper or sit around your computer and just write what comes to your mind about flowers. When you are ready to select the details you are most interested in and organise, then you can decide what you want to keep or let go of.

3. Record yourself talking about flowers and see if any trend develops in your recording. The trend is usually where you feel the strongest and that makes good writing.

4. Select some pictures about flowers and see if it makes you want to write about them and jot down all the thoughts that come to mind.

What to do now?

Make a draft. Write in paragraph form as much as you can, based on the inspiration from your writing tasks - naming and detailing. Don't focus on your grammar or how your work is organised, just try to get something to work with. Good luck!


Cheers....