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The simple answer to this is that this stuff works when it is revelatory, when it shows the reader something they care about, when it draws them in. That is not about quantity, it is about aptness....
Answer
#4: Attribution notice removed
by
System
·
2020-01-03T20:41:53Z (almost 5 years ago)
Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/27773 License name: CC BY-SA 3.0 License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
#3: Attribution notice added
by
System
·
2019-12-08T06:23:54Z (about 5 years ago)
Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/27773 License name: CC BY-SA 3.0 License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
#2: Initial revision
by
System
·
2019-12-08T06:23:54Z (about 5 years ago)
The simple answer to this is that this stuff works when it is revelatory, when it shows the reader something they care about, when it draws them in. That is not about quantity, it is about aptness. Is the hatred of a green sweater or the need to fix the lock on the front door revelatory? Not in themselves, but perhaps in context. Sometimes the detail itself does not matter but the context in which a detail of this type occurs to them. Does it reveal distraction or avoidance or sentimental attachment? Merely cataloguing a scene will be tedious. There needs to be significance to the details. They need to reveal something, or build towards something, or move the arc of the story forward in some way. How do you know if they are doing this? Only, I think, by being ruthlessly honest with yourself. Are you being self indulgent or lazy? Can you justify exactly why every word, every image, is just what it is? Do you understand exactly what it contributes to the picture you want to build for the reader? If not, you are rambling.
#1: Imported from external source
by
System
·
2017-04-27T03:52:20Z (over 7 years ago)
Original score: 9