A simple exercise to do is to visualise a picture in your head and then write it out. Once you have done this to your own satisfaction, and portrayed the full sensory and emotional expression you wish to, give the piece to someone else to read and ask them questions about the impact it has on them regarding your personal intent within the piece. For example you may wish to express disgust, beauty or any other vast arrays of homogeneous or contrary ideas. Adding depth with some cross-sensory perception is also another technique that can elevate a phrase in wondrous ways. You could say something like this ... a smell that screams up the nostrils tearing out hairs with sickly green ribbons of putrid malaise. Overuse of this technique can sometimes be fun for yourself but not for the reader so err on the side of caution if you are writing for anyone else but yourself. A great example of this emotionally potent technique is H. P. Lovecraft. Also if you read some much older novels you find various forms of descriptive technique used because they had no access to television. I am not exactly a fan of the Bronte sisters but there are some good examples of this in Jane Eyre that I recall admiring some years ago. Stream of consciousness is also another good technique for experimenting with abstract structures. It also helps expand your knowledge of vocabulary because we all tend to know a lot of words but not what they mean exactly. And of course just read more and underline any new word you come across to help explore and expand your descriptive scope.
