How to See the World Through Writer's Eye?
“To see doesn’t mean just to register images; it means to interpret”
By Damon Knight, author of Creating Short Fiction.
And there comes a mistake I always make being a writer. I do see things as the way they are, but never interpret them. Or should I say, I never give words to them. I just see the things or events I like, snap them like a camera through my eyes, and store them in my subconscious mind. And when it comes to writing about them, I run out of words. Staring blankly at the white colored document and then complaining about writer’s block.
That doesn’t mean I never gave it a try. Luckily, my home is surrounded by trees. Sometimes I do try to interpret them but all I could verbalize is tree, dark and light green colored leaves, and trunk. That’s it. Sometimes when the wind howls, I do notice dancing leaves. That’s all. Nothing more.
Sounds boring. Right.?
This is where I am making another mistake while giving words to things.
“It isn’t the description that matters. It’s the meaning” came another quote to life from Damon Knight.
Now my words like trunk and leaves are similar to a description but they lack meaning.
I do wonder how to give meaning to a description and make it extraordinary.
This one might help:
“You can’t make sense of people in isolation. The orderly relationships of parts to a whole are deeply satisfying “
It means you have to understand how things are related in order to write them properly.
Let’s say, the trunk and leaves are in isolation. They don’t make any sense.
What about this?
When the wind howled, leaves started dancing. Matching their rhythm with the wind. The branches joined the leaves as the wind grew stronger, supporting them to perform wider moves. Birds resting under the deep branches of the trees flew away from their nest while calling their partners, using sweet chu chu sounds, to join them. Clouds collected in the sky while the wind continued to grow stronger making the trunk shake. Suddenly, the sky cracked with a blue light and started pouring big drops of water on the tree and its surroundings.
Now does it make sense.
I don’t know whether I strike your imagination or not. But all I understood is relating things with each other and interpreting them in order helps us see the world through a writer’s eye.
This article first appeared on my blog LittleTicks where I share my learning experience.
About me: I am a freelance content writer, offering services to businesses of all types. In free time, I home my writing skills.