tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6727653.post5666659605072826620..comments2023-10-27T00:42:05.512+13:00Comments on Books and Writing: Setting the Burke WaySherrylhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04405534589743973581noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6727653.post-7417319786622056792008-01-13T23:40:00.000+13:002008-01-13T23:40:00.000+13:00It's interesting how different people respond to d...It's interesting how different people respond to different things, isn't it? I must say I didn't like any of the first three examples you quoted, and for two of them it had nothing to do with the description itself. (I'm not saying they're not good examples -- just that they didn't grab me.)<BR/><BR/>The first contained that dreaded (for me) use of second person. As I'm reading I'm going "Who me? I'm seeing the bream? Or someone else?" Rip. I'm out of the story. Makes me want to throw a book against a wall when I see this -- that's how strongly I feel about it. (And yet I love stories written totally in second person... Go figure.)<BR/><BR/>In the second, I found the POV switch from inside his head to outside in one sentence distracting. And maybe it's meant to be omniscient. Even so, I'd prefer a single viewpoint in one sentence.<BR/><BR/>The third -- I just found that imagery odd. Don't know why. (Maybe it works better for all you visual people. Sometimes I feel so alone in how I see the world.)<BR/><BR/>I did, however, love the fourth -- and it even conveys what's happened. Very succinct. Very strong.<BR/><BR/>Alafair and Alafair -- is this the new way to plug your friends' novels perhaps?Traceyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10932807900624163063noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6727653.post-75584697625179256852008-01-13T10:30:00.000+13:002008-01-13T10:30:00.000+13:00Yes, that's always important, isn't it, rather tha...Yes, that's always important, isn't it, rather than just a few lumps of nice description. In one of the bits I quoted about the fish, later in that scene the character catches an enormous bass and then quietly lets it go. It's a reflection of how he's feeling at the time about events in his life - very symbolic action but also the language and setting all contribute.<BR/>An argument between two characters can take place in a kitchen (predictable) or at a wedding or in the middle of a hedge maze. Each setting can add a different dimension to what's going on.Sherrylhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04405534589743973581noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6727653.post-84220616383765326772008-01-13T04:42:00.000+13:002008-01-13T04:42:00.000+13:00At the Jane Yolen workshop, she talked a lot about...At the Jane Yolen workshop, she talked a lot about setting and the impact it needed to have on the characters. Not just the main character moving through the setting and describing it, but interacting with it, having it impact the main character's actions, etc. Do you look for that in books you read? If so, do you often find it?Kristi Hollhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01480214912307187314noreply@blogger.com