How to Stop Over-Describing in Your Novel
Make Your Writing Tighter, part 3
Newer authors often fall into the trap of over-describing, but how do you avoid over-describing (and generally overwriting) in novels?
You might have heard the phrase ‘make every word count’. And you might have heard that ‘tight writing is good writing‘. But what do these phrases actually mean? What constitutes ‘tight writing’? And what words might not be necessary? What exactly is over-describing?
There are four main areas where novelists fall into the trap of OVERWRITING, particularly when new to the craft:
– Over-direction
– Excessive timeline nudges
– Over-description
– Repetition and Redundancy (telling twice)
Many authors imagine scenes in their heads in a visual way. They see the characters as they move and interact. As a result, when they cast these imaginings into words they frequently over-describe the detail of what they are seeing. They underestimate the reader’s ability to work things out for themselves. In this third part of a four-part blog series, I offer a quick guide to understanding (and dealing with) the third of these issues – OVER-DESCRIPTION.
If a passage in your manuscript doesn’t serve to move the story forward, should it be there at all? A degree of description is necessary to orientate your characters in their surroundings, so the reader can see what the character is seeing, so they can be inside a character’s head – sharing their experiences.
However, does the reader need to know every single observable detail? To some extent, it depends on the genre. If you are writing an Agatha-Christie-style investigative murder novel, then it may be important to know that the large bookcase is to the right of the small bookcase. Maybe the murderer rearranges the room after the crime, and a detail is overlooked or a bookcase not returned to its original position. However, it’s more likely that this fact is completely irrelevant. It’s probably not even necessary to mention how many bookcases there are, let alone their physical relation to each other.
When writing scenes to build tension, it’s particularly important to not get bogged down in details. This will slow the pace, reduce the build-up of tension, and may even annoy the reader who is desperate to understand what happens next.
When a character enters a room, it may be necessary to describe it so that the reader can imagine how the room looks. If you are writing a story where it’s necessary for the reader to imagine the room, then go for it (within limits). However, ask yourself whether removing the passage completely has any impact at all on the story.
If you decide that a degree of description is necessary (and genuinely, sometimes it is most definitely necessary), then consider what you are describing. Be selective about what you choose to describe. And only describe things that aren’t obvious.
Give me an example of over-describing?
See below:
He opened the door and stepped into the room. To his right, a light switch was beside the door. He flicked it and a large chandelier on the ceiling stuttered into life.
Firstly, it’s customary for a light switch to be next to the door, so this information isn’t necessary. The fact that it’s to the right of the door may be important, but it’s unlikely. And aren’t all chandeliers generally on the ceiling?
So this passage could be reduced to:
He opened the door and stepped into the room. He flicked the light switch and a large chandelier stuttered into life.
Removing the position of the light switch and the position of the chandelier has not taken anything away from the passage (except for reducing the word count!).
Why does Over-Describing happen?
Overwriting (including over-describing, excessive timeline nudges and over-directing) often happens when the author is not trusting the reader to work things out for themselves. The aim is to provide the reader with just enough information, but not too much. When overwriting happens, the reader will switch off, skim-read or (even worse!) fall asleep. Every single word on the page needs to count.
How to fix it?
Look out for descriptive passages in your manuscript and ask yourself the following questions:
- Is it necessary to describe this detail? Does it further the plot?
- Have I included this description in order to develop one of my characters? If so, can I do it in another way? Can I weave it into the narrative in a less obtrusive way?
- Have I described something that is already obvious?
- If I remove it, what difference will it make?
In conclusion
Trust your reader. Reduce unnecessary description. And make every word count.