tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1939271308870333669.post8788221157235335584..comments2024-03-05T22:12:23.918-08:00Comments on Karen Woodward: Two Ways To Introduce Setting Quickly And EffectivelyKaren Woodwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05497346859460691324noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1939271308870333669.post-36102667512349999552014-03-11T09:21:43.997-07:002014-03-11T09:21:43.997-07:00Thanks Michael! I'm glad I'm not the only ...Thanks Michael! I'm glad I'm not the only one who has wrestled with this trade-off, action vs description. I love your analogy, of snippets of description inserted here and there as verbal commas and semicolons. It works! Karen Woodwardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05497346859460691324noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1939271308870333669.post-57705170340438603962014-03-11T05:43:59.203-07:002014-03-11T05:43:59.203-07:00Nice post, Karen! I'm also guilty of believing...Nice post, Karen! I'm also guilty of believing I have to stick to the action for fear of losing the reader and have been watching (in my reading-as-a-writer mode) how other authors do it. One thing I've noticed is how they use the insertion of shorter and longer description bits to manage the tension/suspense. Kinda of like verbal commas and semicolons :-)Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01086228037314913493noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1939271308870333669.post-31827649079502448982014-03-10T22:25:28.137-07:002014-03-10T22:25:28.137-07:00"... it took me four times as long to explain..."... it took me four times as long to explain it as it did for her to write it!" <br /><br />Yes! I know what you mean. Thanks for the link, just what I was looking for. :-)Karen Woodwardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05497346859460691324noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1939271308870333669.post-44120734000129597362014-03-10T21:59:42.400-07:002014-03-10T21:59:42.400-07:00Hi Karen! These two setting techniques are exactly...Hi Karen! These two setting techniques are exactly what Lois McMaster Bujold does so well. She rarely stops to describe things; we always see them as we're rushing past solving the current crisis (whether it's saving the world or salvaging a crumbling dinner party). I tried to analyze one of her descriptive paragraphs once in a blog post; it took me four times as long to explain it as it Kim Aippersbachhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02556947405633680410noreply@blogger.com