How to improve your writing: A Basic Technique

Words are a powerful tool. When you give a writer who really knows how to use words to create a beautiful picture a pencil, he'll be able to influence a wide range of people. Take Uncle Tom's Cabin for example. Uncle Tom's Cabin was written back before the Civil War. It was an anti-slavery piece of fiction, and it did wonders in firing up people. Abolisionists grew in numbers, and anti-slavery beliefs spread. When Abraham Lincoln first met the author of Uncle Tom's Cabin, he said, "So, this is the little lady who made this big war." That's how powerful words can be.

And let's be honest, fiction has a way of creating a deep connection with people. I personally found Night by Elie Wiesel to be much more riveting than any text book could ever hope to be. Books can help promote an understanding of certain topics, whether it be the horrors (A Child Called It by Dave Pelzer), the triumphs (Chicken Soup for the Soul Series), or maybe even the future (The Giver by Lois Lowry).

So, how do you go about making your pieces of writing more intriging? This is a technique I use called snapshots. It's a very basic tecnique, but it can do wonders for stories.

A snapshot is a basic tecnique, yet a tremendous aid to any piece of fiction when implimented correctly. A snapshot is basically a moment in a story where you take a temporarily stop from the plot to describe something specific in a story. Generally this can be used to create suspense or draw strong emotions out of the reader. It's a bit hard to explain, but you'll understand in once I give an example in a moment. For the sake of this example, I'm going to show you some before and after stuff.

This is an excerpt from a short story I wrote before revision and adding a snapshot:

I anxiously glanced around the room I was in. There was not much to see, just an old ripped bed with a washed out blanket. I continued to survey the room, trying to find something. Anything. After a bit of searching, I found a camera. I gazed at it for a moment, but felt unsettled by its stare. I diverted my gaze back to the blue walls, hoping to find some relief.

Now, the excerpt I gave you above was a bit dull. In that specific excerpt, I tried to use the camera to add an eerie atmosphere to the story. Now, after I snap shot the camera:

I anxiously glanced around the room I was in. There was not much to see, just an old ripped bed with a washed out blanket. I continued to survey the room, trying to find something. Anything. After a bit of searching, I found a camera. Helplessly I glanced into its lens, hoping for some hint of emotion. Yet its stare was not affected by mine, and it still continued to watch me intently. I squirmed, trying hard not to think about it. Yet whenever I looked up, there it was. Its watchful eyes never faltered. Within a few minutes I regretted discovering it and I diverted my gaze back to the blue walls, hoping to find some relief.

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Not the best, but even if you don't like my writing I'm sure you'll agree it did a much better job of conveying the atmosphere I was aiming for. The camera had no significance later in the story, but at the time it did a great job of expressing emotion. This can apply to any story. Maybe your character's walking down a road and finds a flower. Snap shot that flower for a realistic and potentially emotional (depending on how deep you go) moment. Or you can snap shot a major twist in your story you feel didn't convey enough suspense.

If the example didn't clarify what a snapshot is, I'll try to articulate further:

Take a scene from your story that you feel didn't have enough emotional impact, suspense, or realism. Once you have that sentence, expand on it. Try to get down every sense you can think of. My example didn't do a good job with this. How it made you feel, how it smelled, etc. It should be picture perfect. Depending on what emotion you want to convey will directly impact how you write your snapshot. Play around with it and find your own style - I've found that I do best working with emotions and sights in snapshots. There are others that write simply haunting snap shots on sound alone. Find where you write best!

Anytime you feel you need to! Once you master this, you'll find it becomes easier and easier. I admit I am still mastering it, but its a fun little tool that can expand your writing and entice readers.