Do you have a rule of thumb for how much showing you do?

scribbledoutname · Mar 7, 2013

Every now and again I suddenly lose the ability to tell whether or not I'm "showing" enough to immerse people. It's fine when everything just flows... but then I go out and return and I have to get back into the groove all over again, which is a pain.

I was hoping that someone here had some tips I can use (something as useful as i before e except after c lol).

Is there some mental measure you use to tell if you're going deep enough when you're showing? Sometimes it's a bit tricky for me to tell if I'm being too expositoryy when I'm describing stuff. I can't always tell if I'm close enough to "show" on the show/tell spectrum and how exactly to get there.

Dreity · Mar 7, 2013

Most of the time when I revise my descriptive parts, I find I have to do more to involve the POV character in the description. My first attempt is like entering a room, standing at the threshold, and making a list of what they see. In a revision I have more of a sense of motion because they're interacting with the environment instead of just looking at it. Sort of blends POV and description in one technique.

leversandpulleys · Mar 7, 2013

I often ask myself whether or not the level of showing vs telling is working in terms of pacing and less in terms of desired reader involvement. I mean, I care about both, but I'd love for them to be involved in all of it. Since that's impossible, I often focus on the pacing.

The exception is usually this: am I cheating the reader by telling? Is the tell just me ducking out of something challenging but super-loaded? If so, I usually have to kick myself in the butt and turn that tell into a show.

So, I try not to hurt the pacing by over-showing, and I do my best not to cheat anyone out of a great scene by telling.

Hope that helps!
Craig

thehundreds · Mar 7, 2013

I find that a little bit of time is the biggest help with this problem. First draft I don't worry about showing . . . My bets always that it'll pop off the page at me when I circle back and reread it.

rwm4768 · Mar 7, 2013

Not really. I do everything by feeling. If it's boring, I'll often tell it just to get it out of the way. If it's interesting, though, it's usually best to show it.

Kerosene · Mar 7, 2013

Focus on conveying the scene so you don't have to use telling. A correctly conveyed scene (like watching a movie) will bring the reader everything they need to understand your story.

I can't even do that.

Find what to show and how is both trial and error and using what works for your while reading.

Do this: Take an author you see that lays great scenes, that create a vivid image in your mind and copy what they do.
Stick with that author and use them as a standard to assess your own writing.

Chris P · Mar 7, 2013

I agree it all has to do with pacing (which is a big problem with me). Showing is better than telling, but that doesn't mean you can never tell. Telling is a tool that is sometimes the right tool. When showing starts to bog things down, tell. When telling starts to cheat the reader of a great scene, show.

I also think seeing how others do it is helpful. No two authors are going to do it the exact same way, so look at examples then find a way that works for you for that story.

Jon M · Mar 7, 2013

Chris P said:
Showing is better than telling

Nah.

To answer the OP's question, exactly 42%.

Bufty · Mar 8, 2013

refresher.

http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=248535

SpinningWheel · Mar 8, 2013

I'm with Thehundreds on this one.
It's something that becomes clear as you revise. The places that start to drag can sometimes be speeded up or varied by replacing showing with narrative summary, and you start to have ideas for interesting ways to show things that you told first time round. For the first draft I follow instinct.

scribbledoutname · Mar 8, 2013

Thanks everybody!

Bufty said:
refresher.

http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=248535

I'd forgotten I'd asked that question! This is what solved my problem to begin with. Thanks, Bufty!

Jamesaritchie · Mar 8, 2013

I show everything unless I have a good reason to tell. For me, show is always the standard, and tell needs a reason to exist.

Do you have a rule of thumb for how much showing you do?

scribbledoutname

Nobody said I couldn't.

Dreity

leversandpulleys

Thick Fish; Learning About New skin

thehundreds

rwm4768

practical experience, FTW

Kerosene

Your Pixie Queen

Chris P

Likes metaphors mixed, not stirred

Jon M

I against I

Bufty

Where have the last ten years gone?

SpinningWheel

scribbledoutname

Nobody said I couldn't.

Jamesaritchie