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Discover the power of visualizing specific details to create a literary virtual reality in your writing. Learn five basic brush strokes of image grammar to bring your stories to life.
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“Image Grammar” By Harry R. Noden
“ An ineffective writer sees broad impressions that evoke vague labels; a powerful writer visualizes specific details that create a literary virtual reality.” Harry R. Noden Image Grammar
“ An amateur writer tells a story. A pro shows the story, creates a picture to look at instead of just words to read. A good author writes with a camera, not with a pen.” Novelist Robert Newton Peck Secrets of Successful Fiction
Painting with Five Basic Brush Strokes • The participle • The absolute • The appositive • Adjectives shifted out of order • Action verbs
Painting with Participles Participles = an –ing verb tagged on the beginning or end of a sentence
“Hissing, slithering, and coiling, the diamond-scaled snakes attacked their prey.” “Hissing their forked red tongues and coiling their cold bodies, the diamond-scaled snakes attacked their prey.”
Painting with Absolutes Absolutes = a two-word combination – a noun and an –ing or –ed verb added onto a sentence
“The mountain climber edged along the cliff, hands shaking, feet trembling.” “Hands shaking, feet trembling, the mountain climber edged along the cliff.” “Feet trembling on the snow-covered rocks, the mountain climber edged along the cliff.
Painting with Appositives Appositive – a noun that adds a second image to a preceding noun
“The raccoon, a scavenger, enjoys eating turtle eggs. The raccoon, a midnight scavenger who roams lake shorelines in search of food, enjoys eating turtle eggs.
Painting with Adjectives Shifted Out of Order Adjectives out of order = amplify the details of an image
Painting with Action Verbs By eliminating passive voice and reducing being verbs, writers can energize action images.
The runaway horse was ridden into town by a blond haired beauty. The blond haired beauty rode the runaway horse into the town.
The gravel road was on the right side of the barn. The gravel road curled around the right side of the barn.