I just recently got to work on typing up a story I had in mind for quite some time when I noticed something. I am no good at descriptions. From trying to describe the weather to the way the character looked and even the weight I cannot describe to save my life. Anyone know how to change that? Many people have suggested I get to reading other books which I've done. Any other ideas? Any techniques that work for anyone?
I've always read (and agree) you should describe only a few attributes of something and let your readers "fill in the blanks." For instance, Harry Potter has green eyes, wild black hair and a lightning shaped scar. That's all J.K. Rowling ever said about him. Your mind creates a completely different Harry than mine, at least before the movies came out... I find it helpful to create a profile for every character I write about, and come up with a few unique features to mention to the reader. Features that will help the reader form their own interpretation of what I see. Ex; black eyes, pot belly, robotic arm, spaghetti noodles for hair, etc. After the reader has a few key features and starts to understand your characters personalities their minds should automatically create their own version. For me simple descriptions work best. I tend to find extremely descriptive literature damn near impossible to read, especially when it comes to landscapes. Do you know what a crag or bluff is? Because I sure as hell don't. I don't want to put the book down to look them up either.
Take a note book around with you and start jotting down observations. Anything that catches your eye. Try to make them as interesting as possible - sounds difficult but sometimes doing comparisons can help - A girl with freezie blue hair, leaves crunching under my feet. etc. The jottings might never been used but it gets you in the mood of 'seeing' and 'feeling' things and putting them in words even when you're just sitting down at the computer.
Start People-watching (from behind sunglasses) and as they do things, describe their actions in your head.
