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Hellooo, everybody! Last week we talked about show versus tell, with an emphasis
on show. And this week we're talking about show versus tell, with an emphasis on tell,
as opposed to show. So it's really just tell, and not the show part of show versus tell...
Anyway, for those who don't know, when it comes to fiction writing, ‘showing’ means evoking emotion
and painting vivid imagery, so that your reader can perfectly visualize the scene and connect to
the moment. You're triggering their senses, and getting them involved in the content. ‘Telling’
means providing information or stating facts. For example, showing would look something like this.
‘A burly oiled man strutted into the room, his slick skin carrying the scent of musk and sweat,
black leather chaps were strapped to his legs to match the spiked collar around his neck,
complete with a long braided leash.’ On the other hand, telling looks like this. ‘A guy walked
into the room, and homeboy is definitely into some kinky shit.’ Showing allows the reader to
visualize the moment and relate to the content. Telling just kinda delivers facts, that's it.
But the truth is, there are situations where telling is the way to go, and wouldn’t know it,
that's what we're talking about today. Here are the five moments when writers should tell in their
stories. Number One (1): Transitions. Think back to the last book you read, can you remember any of
the transitions? Of course not, cuz no one gives a fuck. Transitions serve one exclusive purpose,
to move the story from one scene to the next in a clear, efficient manner. This is not the time to
show, no one is invested in your transaction. They just wanna get back to the story. “But Jennaaa,
I got to transport the reader.” Why? The character is literally doing nothing. So the next time you
need to transition between scenes, consider a sentence like this: Calculus class flew by. Day
turned into night. Short, simple and effective. Number Two (2): When you're being redundant. Say
three chapters ago you introduced a brunette doctor, and you showed the shit out of her.
Now you gotta mention her again. Instead of boring the reader with a rehash of all that
showy goodness you already delivered, this might be an appropriate moment to just tell the reader
who she is: a brunette doctor. Showing is really effective for creating memorable imagery, that's
kind of the appeal. So you don't need to repeat the same descriptions again and again to drive the
point home. If you're faced with a situation where you have to remind the reader of certain details,
telling is your friend. Say your character entered a wondrous garden in chapter one,
and then again in chapter three, and five, and a bunch of other chapters after that. Can you
imagine how boring it would be to read a book that sets the same scene over and over again? Now say
there's been a modification, this vast garden now has fresh roses blooming. You can just, you know,
say that. You don't have to show in meticulous detail whatever change has occurred, because no
matter the alteration, it's still going to read us redundant. These minor changes are not important.
You've done your due diligence already. Now back to the story. Number Three (3): When the emotion
is too damn high. “But Jennaaa, you said we have to show during emotional moments.” Yes my child,
you should show during emotional moments. To an extent. Show enough to get the reader invested,
show enough for them to be moved by the content, and then calm the fuck down. Sometimes writers
take beautiful, impactful moments and ruin them by showing them to death. “Her body quaked as
salty tears rolled from her eyes like rivers of anguish, endlessly cascading down raw cheeks as
she howled and wailed. Her insides screaming from mercy. Her heart mangled and destroyed,
like the pitiful carcass that was her life and—” Oh my god, we get it! Over showing an emotional
moment takes it from impactful, to annoying and whiny. The moment loses its power, the reader
stops being invested in the characters struggle and starts to lose their patience. He dumped you,
okay? We've all been there. Dry your eyes and move on. So when you write an emotional moment,
read through it and ask yourself: am I being melodramatic? Are there endless descriptions
of sobs, and tears, and shattered hearts? If yes, then tone down the show a bit and maybe
throw in a telling line or two. “Her sorrows overwhelmed her.” See? Much less obnoxious.
Number Four (4): When you want to drop a bomb. Say you want to deliver hard hitting news that will
slap your reader right across the face. A popular tactic is to lead up to the moment with suspense
and intensity, then hit the reader with a singular line of brief, to the point, telling. She was
dead. He was her father. The donkey could talk? Now this is certainly a tactic you don't want to
overuse. If you're using it every other paragraph, calm down. But sometimes hitting the reader with a
line of fact, gives the scene that extra oomph it needs. A few things to keep in mind. These
sort of moments usually occur before or after a paragraph of showing. The showing either builds
the suspense before the bomb is dropped, or add some clarity afterwards. You can’t escape showing,
it's everywhere. But this singular moment of telling will not only ensure that there's zero
confusion among readers, it'll also deliver that ‘Oh shit’ reaction so many writers crave.
And Number Five (5): When it's just not important. More often than not, telling sends a clear message
to your reader. This shit right here is not a big deal. And this doesn't just mean that the content
isn’t important to the story, telling can also mean that the content isn't important to your
character. For example, if you're introducing the love interest, and your MC is insanely attracted
to her, you're gonna want to show the shit out of her because she's a big deal, she's the love
interest. But if you're introducing some side character who doesn't mean a whole lot to the MC,
you can easily just say: she was beautiful. Boom, instantly the reader knows that she's a dish,
just not a dish, the main character’s looking to eat. See what I did there? Bottom line,
if you're not sure if you should show or tell in a particular moment, ask yourself this. Is it vital
that the reader is engrossed in this moment? Does this moment further the plot or subplots?
How important is this character, setting, or situation to the MC? How important is it to the
overall plot? If your answer to all of this is ‘meh’ then telling might be a reasonable thing
to do. So there you have it. Those are the five situations when telling is the way to go. Showing
is evocative and transporting. But sometimes you just need to cut the crap and get to the point,
and that's when telling comes into play. If you haven't checked out last week's vlog about
showing, what is wrong with you? I've got a link to that sucker listed in the description, get on
it. And with that said, don't forget to subscribe to my channel. I post new videos on Wednesdays.
Eve: The Awakening is still available in ebook and paperback on Amazon right now. You can also order
a signed copy, all the links are listed below. And if you have any questions or if there's
something you'd like me to talk about in my next video, be sure to tweet me @JennaMoreci! Bye!