Keeping it Real – Adding the Right (write!) Details

Which of these is more intriguing:

“Sally wore red shoes”, or “Sally’s converse, once bright crimson but now dingy maroon, dropped flakes of mud with each step she took, making a mess and hinting at adventures of times past”?

Details hint at untold stories.

Readers like stories.

Stories well told keep readers hooked.

So how do you know what details to include? How do you keep your readers interested and asking for more?

This is where we get into some fun. There are three types of details: the type you see, the type you create, and the type that combines the two.

The Things You See

 Details are everywhere if you know how to look for them.

My dog sheds. But how does she shed? She deposits these tan, wiry little hairs everywhere. They aren’t straight; rather, they have kinks in them that combine with a stiff texture to make them cling to everything.

You may not think about these kinds of details or recognize them, but once you get in the mindset, they are everywhere (just like my dog’s hairs!): dust paths on your desk, a cabinet door that won’t stay completely shut, the wrinkle on your son’s sleeve that won’t come out no matter how often you iron it.

Each tells a different story.

Those dust paths could say that you never clean your desk. Is it because you don’t have time? Or is there a darker underlying reason?

Perhaps that cabinet door wasn’t designed well. Or perhaps your brother banged into it trying to catch a runaway football. You never know!

The Things You Imagine

But what if you’re writing a story about an alien? This is where you get to imagine everything!

What color is it? Do aliens have wrinkles? What texture is its skin? What makes it other-worldly? Is it wearing clothes? If so, what is unique about its clothing that tells a story, perhaps not explicitly, but implicitly?

It’s your story. The possibilities are endless. Create details that pique your reader’s interest and draw him/her further into the work.

The Things You See with Your Mind’s Eye

Now combine the two. Maybe you’re writing a medieval novel. You have to imagine what it would have been like to live in that time, but you can also use your own experience.

You know that hair that keeps tickling your cheek because it won’t stay tucked behind your ear? It happens to you, but maybe it also happens to your heroine.

Or how uncomfortable it is when your pantofle keeps sliding off and leaving a red, blistery mark on your Achilles tendon? It happens to you, but maybe it also happens to your protagonist.

Or that scratch on your leather jacket that bothers you, but at the same time gives you a homey feeling of ownership and belonging? It’s on your leather jacket, but perhaps it’s also on your maniacal villain’s velvet mantle, and he strokes it when he’s having an emotional breakdown.

Give them Plenty but Make them Ask for More

Whatever the amount of detail you include, always leave just a little bit out so the reader has to keep reading.

Satisfy but mystify.

You can’t give all the answers right away; you have to keep them coming back for more.

What details in your life might you include in your story? Share your ideas in the comments below!