Young Writers Society

Hello!

I've written a few sketches these past weeks and noticed only one of them had description while the others had hardly enough. Didn't think it mattered much as the sketches were more about the characters than the actual setting.

So: is description important or does dialogue, which I mostly use, carry off a sketch?

Myth

Mmmm. I think a little description is important, but only in the sense of a little personality to begin with. If you are too strict with the sketch and description then it doesn't allow for variations in the character while you are writing. Know what I mean?

Yes, I think so.

I just don't write too much description anymore, annoys me to death.

I'm not really sure what you mean by "sketch," (like a drabble or flashfic?) but I think that if the intent is a short character-driven plot, then dialog is what really matters. If you're particularly good with dialog, you don't need any description (sometimes not even he said/she said) because the characters will have a distinct way of talking that will fill the readers in about who they are.

When you're using description in sketches, it often feels awkward because you sort of feel the impulse to write, "Harry, a stout-fifteen year old boy with blue eyes and brown hair and a slight tan and bowlegs he inherited from his mother..." and so on. That's not good.

Perhaps as important- or more important- is how the character acts. Are they nervous? Describe the effects: jittering hands, shifting eyes, etc. Are they confident? Then they'd probably stand up straight and look people in the eye.

Description's very important, but you need to know what to describe. Avoid the list of physical descriptions- hair color and all that- and go for the character's personality. How does that make them act? and so on.

Without it, dialogue's kind of like actors sitting and doing a reading. You can sort of get an idea of a character, but you don't really get the full picture.

In a sketch, a few adjectives are sufficient for description while dialogue is necessary so you have your priorities right. Just remember that description helps to bring your characters alive and you can't rely solely on dialogue and I'm sure you'll do fine.