Young Writers Society

(my keyboard is still tight so i might have some typo's...get over it XD)

Is it easier to write out a full decription of a character
Method A:Like when you explain your character personalty and appearence in a paragraph or two.

Method B: Or is it better to lay it out over time, letting the readers figure it out for them selves
or is there another way

I have problems with character discription so thats why i am asking
I think mehtod A for my style of writing...Help

B


Method A should never ever ever be used. Explaining your characters personality and appearance in a subparagraph or two is called info dumping. Think of it like this: when you first meet a person, you won't know everything about them right away.

Of course, you will know what they look like. But it witting you cannot say, "Her hair was brown, her eyes were green, and she never cut her nails." It stops the action. I've always hated physical descriptions because they're so hard to get in, but you have to do it naturally, and unobtrusively. What most people do is hide it in an action. "She pushed her black hair back and tied it into a pony tale." Another way you could get around descriptions is if one character is admiring another. XD But that is also an infodump. I don't know. I'm really bad at this because I feel like any way I do it, it fails and stops the train tracks with a loud screech-bang. Most of the literature I read is vague-ish on physical descriptions, and of course, Dostoevsky can infodump all he wants because it sounds beautiful, but now with current writing, it isn't accepted, though you could certainly try. So I find that it sometimes works for me to not say anything about physical description, and let my reader imagine the character how they want, which I was actually complimented for once. (Strangely enough, when my writing wasn't as good as it is now...) If you do that, though, your characters need to be strong and developed. If we can tell the girl is rough and tough, and we know she went to prison once, or that she is dainty, and hates stepping into puddles of any kind, we can conjure up our own ideas of what they look like. Sometimes it's better to let the reader rule in that area.


Edit: While I was gone I thought up some unobtrusive, beautiful, info dumps, haha.

"A butterfly suffocated itself in her curls, until she pulled it out and repined it in place. She never realized that a broach wasn't for her hair."

"Her emerald dress was covered in sequins and from afar she looked like a fish that had escaped the grips of the sea and had decided to dine with the rich for just an evening."

So you can see, even though they would be obvious in your paragraph, they're beautiful. It's different to say one of those, instead of saying, "She had a butterfly clip in her hair and wore a shiny, green dress."

ooooh...
*is jealous of Suzanne's pretty descriptions*

I agree with method B. If it helps, this is the first paragraph of my story - not really an infodump, but it gives you an idea of who she is and what she looks like.


"I was fourteen again, bouncing along the back roads to the beach in our puke-green Suburban. Against Dad’s better judgment I sat behind the wheel, watching with amusement as he yawned and ran his hands through coffee-colored curls sprinkled with gray. My loose ponytail was a few shades darker, a double espresso to his caramel latte, shot through with bold streaks of red and blond. I liked bold colors back then; black and navy and maroon and turquoise – hardcore colors that electrified the eyes. Things had changed."

Dialogue is also good for describing characters. For example, two girls might be discussing prom - what they want to wear or what compliments their skin tone or hair, blah blah blah. There's a scene in "Firebrand" where another girl is insulting Marcella for having "the figure of a twelve-year-old guy." In other words, Marc is very tall and thin - but I didn't come out and say that. Just a few ideas.

Always method B for me... Readers are always a bit smarter than you think they are, or alternatively, they are stupider than you give them credit for. Confusing? You betcha.

Give your readers a chance. I am trying out a style right now where I am not describing the character's specific appearances at all, just how they move or their mannerisms or how old they look. I don't care about hair color or whatever. (Skin color, yes.) So far, I have had no complaints from the people I have shown it to, though there haven't been very many of those as of yet.

Ultimately, the reader is going to come up with their own image of the character anyway, despite descriptions. I don't know if I am the only one, but I tend to think of the character a certain way, regardless of what the author says.

But if you are going to give them an idea of what you want, then always use gradual methods. One of my biggest, if not THE biggest, pet peeves in writing is that method of description in the first person (and sometimes the third) where the character looks in the mirror and describes themselves. Please don't ever do that. It is a majorly huge info-dump and just brings the narration to a screeching halt.

Good luck with your writing. I hope that it all works out for you.

Choice A would drive me into insanity. No, I'm very serious. IF, and that's a big if, I have to describe it's in only four to six lines or sentences. Going over six sentences, I edit because it's too much over-description.

I love Choice B to no end. It's my preferable decesion, and I would venture to guess, besides, Suzzy, it is others prefered writing style when in regards to Char Description.

eek! method A drives me crazy. a pointless paragraph explaining about the character. it leaves nothing for the reader to figure out by themselves.

Method B is a better way i think. spread the descriptions out gradually and it will make it more interesting.

I personally am a strong believer in the fact that you should--if possible--not describe your characters at all. Of course, there are exceptions. One of my characters is really tall, and the fact that he has red hair is important to the story. But besides that, I don't list skin tone, eye color, shape of the eyebrows...

Also, don't describe in detail what the character is wearing, unless it's important. This is because description often weakens a story. You know how Godzilla isn't very frightening, because you can see the monster, but a more psychological movie like The Shining is terrifying, where you only get brief glimpses of the scary stuff. If I were to tell you that one of my characters was really beautiful, you'd picture the most beautiful person you've ever seen. But if I were to say, "She had brown hair and blue eyes and jeans from the Gap and big lips", that might not be your idea of pretty. If the clothing or the marking is important to the story, say it. But if it's not important to the plot, don't use it.

You have to take into account that readers are weird. I stopped reading a story once because one of the guy characters had a ponytail, and guys with ponytails really bug me. It might have been an okay book, but it bothered me that they mentioned in every paragraph his "pushing his hair behind his shoulder". No guys with ponytails--please?

*hugs Sam* You're hilarious.


I remembered something again! What characters look like and where is a reflection of who they are. Take the advantage to characterize--rater than paint a picture. For example, the description I posted above about a butterfly I had made up on the fly, but I made it up for a story I'm working on now, as well. It's perfect for my character because it shows how stupid she really is though she tries to look good and hide it. Don't describe someone because you want your reader to see it--do it because it will make them more alive. Brown hair doesn't make someone alive but someone with crooked bangs because they cut their hair themselves on a dare does add character.

I think method B is better, although I have written a few exercises using method A just for fun.

I think it's a little hard to digest when you describe the character all in one paragraph because they see it all in their mind at once, and then... ack, I don't know how to explain myself. But it is info-dumping to put it all these descriptions in one paragraph. Plus, you'd be doing a whole lot of telling (rather than showing) if you described their personality all at once. I think it's better to show their character through their actions, their thoughts, their dialogue, etc.

I actually like to describe the characters, but I do it gradually, and I try not to just say: She had black hair and amber eyes. Its better (in my opinion) to say something like 'She brushed her long, dark hair out of her eyes and looked ahead' or something. Because then you can mention their eyes later.

It's also useful to describe your character from another character's point of view. I mean, you shouldn't say, 'She was so beautiful' but rather say something a little more subtle, such as 'Adrenaline spiked through his veins at the sight of her' and then show what she looks like. You know?

Anyways, I'm rambling now. I should stop xD

Cheers,
Camille

I sort of did what Ayra said with one of my characters. I described a pretty girl from a guy's point of view.

Method B, definitely. I used to try to do method A when I was younger, but now I let it develop and I find that sometimes I can write whole scenes just to bring out one trait in a person.

Definately option B for me, as I find I'm usually only descovering my character's real personality as the piece develops and the plot takes off. Even though I do try and outline everything in my own notes about them before I start, they always tend to wander.

One thing you never EVER do is describe your character by having them look in a mirror!