Description- important to the story, right? Well, my problem is actually doing enough of it to count. I get bored with things like "her blond hair flowed in the breeze, offsetting sky-blue eyes," and so on, but I often get to caught up in writing the action to add, "He impatiently flicked dark hair out of his eyes". Does anyone know how I can solve this?
You know, I kind of have the same problem myself. I have weird nitpicky pet peeves when it comes to description (both in reading and writing it) and so a lot of the time, I usually skimp on writing it.
In my current project, I've sort of dumped description all together, or at least, the conscious effort of writing it. Really the only character that's gotten description is the one with dreadlocks, since they are such a great way to illustrate what he is thinking - he fiddles with them a lot.
So, a few tips from me, not in any particular order:
- Don't worry about it too much. Just write. You can always insert more description in later if you get too "caught up in writing the action" as you say. That's part of what editing is for.
- Personally, I think character description is overrated unless it is absolutely necessary. It doesn't really matter what color the character's hair is unless it is important to the story. Is the character a blonde who is trying to fight stereotypes? Then it's important. Is the character a fantasy hero? Usually, it doesn't matter worth squat what color their hair is.
- If you want description (as it sounds like you do) then think outside the box in how to bring it in. Have another character mention it in a dialogue ("Oh, I love your new highlights, Barbara!" "Forsooth, Titus, no young maiden shall ever glance thy way with such copious freckles upon thy nose." etc, etc.). Have the tall character stoop when they enter a doorway, or have a *ahem* round character grunt uncomfortably as they try to sit in a chair with arms. Show, rather than tell. Generally, it's the things other than eye/hair/skin color that people remember about a character. Think bigger in terms of what to describe. You're more likely to remember Wolverine's claws that the color of his eyes (I honestly myself don't recall the color) or the fact that John Wayne is built like a barrel than the color of his hair. Of course, I'm using movie examples, when you really see a character. In novels, description is supposed to make up for the lack of visual aid and really that's all. Give the audience the big picture and they'll fill in the gaps. Unless it is vital to the story, you can usually get away with skimpy character description.
(Description of setting and whatnot is usually a little bit more important, since it can set the mood of the story. If the house is tall and spooky, describe it. If the story takes place in a high tech space ship, or the arena is going to be the setting for a major way-awesome/jumping off balconies/ducking behind pillars "Final Fantasy"/"The Matrix"/"Star Wars" type duel, you're going to have to describe it so that the reader is totally confused. You don't want them pausing in the middle of the epic battle going "huh? where did that row of statues come from?" Personally, I like place descriptions far more in reading/writing than character descriptions.)
One more thing: please don't ever, for the love of the quill and ink, have your character look in the mirror and observe themselves for the simple sake of the author describing them. Seriously, that is my biggest pet peeve and I see it done so often. It seems convenient, but it really is not a good idea.
Anyway, I hope I was some help. If you want more help *cough ranting cough*, feel free to PM me.
Don't ever lump all your description in one place. Spread it out, like so: "People stared at his gold eyes..." (exposition, action.) "His long, black hair swayed in the wind."
You have to people-watch. Jot down what fascinates you, what repulses you. If you see a beautiful woman, analyze what makes her beautiful. See people's gestures, their signs, their twitches. Try to describe them as you copy them in the mirror. That will be a wonderful way to cure description.
Cliche, dull and blah...
