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Making Stories Live

very where a writer turns or reads, she runs into the phrase, "Show, don't tell." But what does "show" mean? To me, to show means to allow the story to live through words into the mind of the reader. Unless the story is alive in the reader's imagination, the author hasn't written as well as needed.

According to Monette Louise Bebow-Reinhard, Byline September 2007, "Show is a way of writing that gives your readers enough visuals to see and feel the action. Tell means you've described the situation as an observer -- a second hand account that leaves a lot of stuff out ... Good for quick movement but not emotion."

In other words, the writer is reporting or lecturing, not allowing the reader's imagination to take flight. When an author allows herself to use words to excite her imagination and that of the reader, the words and story come alive. The writer literally puts herself into the character's skin. She feels what she imagines the character does, allowing the reader to imagine also.

Another element needed so that the reader's imagination can be utilized enough for the story to live is that of using only enough detail. Only enough detail, what does that mean? Too much detail takes away the reader's imagination, and perhaps even stops the flow of the story. Let's read a "tell" section from a story first:

The mirror-filled room didn't allow Nancy to escape the face staring back at her. The man's jagged teeth, dirty hair, and scared face reminded her of the monster from a horror movie. He stared at her. She stared back. Both seemed afraid of the other.

The paragraph gives quite a bit of detail, but the words simply "tell." Now, let's work the details so that the story comes alive.

Nancy swallowed and closed her eyes, but when she opened them the same face appeared in the mirrored walls. The man stared back at her, blinked, and swallowed noisily. Nancy tried to smile, but the results were more a twist of lips than a smile. The mouth around his jagged-teeth attempted an answering grimace. When she brushed her bangs off her forehand with a trembling hand, he raked shaking fingers through his oily locks. Nancy opened her mouth to scream, but only a squeak escaped. The frown on his face puckered the scars as a tear slid down his cheek.

Actually the second paragraph contains more words, but the reader can "see" the actions: The author doesn't report them.

By the way, those paragraphs are an assignment for one of the on-line writing conference workshops.

Bebow-Reinhard ends her article with the following observation, one that I think sums up this editorial very well, "Lose yourself in someone else for awhile, and it could be scary, but that's the risk that makes writing -- and reading -- rewarding."
About the Author

After teaching composition for twenty-five years and becoming an author on http://www.Writing.Com/ a site for Stories, Vivian Gilbert Zabel produced Hidden Lies and Other Stores, Walking the Earth:, The Base Stealers Club, and Case of the Missing Coach, found on Amazon.com.