After reading this great advice, I revisited my posts about examples of sensory-input writing and found 17, including a recipe and a survey for the literary foodies among us. I write long-form fiction that has plenty of room for comprehensive sensory involvement, but as phantomwriter143 suggests, every story can benefit from sense-appeal: “Which one would draw you in the most as a reader?”
Smell:
Don’t Give Me the Stink Eye, But…
Sight:
Hearing:
Taste:
Fire Burne, and Cauldron Bubble.
Novel Nibbles & Celtic Connections.
Survey: Recipes from Irish Firebrands.
Touch:
…
Writers draw readers in to their imaginary worlds, their characters’ lives, and the driving story that ultimately leaves the reader wanting more.
And one way successful writers do this is by including every single one of the senses in their writing.
We all know the five senses: sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell.
While there is debate over other non-traditional senses including balance, proprioception and kinesthetic awareness, heat detection, and pain, I’m gong to talk about the big five today.
Too often, writers focus on the sights and sounds in their creative works, but they miss out on the touch, taste, and smell aspects.
Sight and sounds are crucial, of course. We need to see what the characters see, but the other senses get left behind too often.
For example, did you know that smell evokes more forgotten memories than any other sense?
Yep. It’s true. I use this very…
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Thanks for the reblog! I love all your posts on the senses. A woman after my own heart. 🙂
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So much of sensory writing must be done with adjectives and adverbs, but the “professional” writing gurus and gatekeepers have terrified writers about using those parts of speech. I hope writers can return to loving the whole lexicon, and using it confidently to communicate all human feelings and sensory experiences, which people invented those words to express.
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I concur. There are too many people spouting too many “rules” and “guidelines” for quality writing. But when I read writers who follow all those guidelines, I’m left bored and uninspired. I’ll never give up my adverbs. Never! 🙂
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