Thursday, July 16, 2009

Why it's important to write visually

I've been trying to work out why visual writing is so powerful and here's what I've come up with. Please feel free to agree or disagree.

Visual means recognisable
recognisable means real
real means universal
universal means profound

Therefore, visual writing is profound.

8 comments:

Ailish said...

Well, that's a profound statement within itself. I don't know that I quite understand entirely.

wagstheauthor said...

Not sure that I get it either?! Nice to hear from you again, Ailish!!

Ailish said...

Hah.
Likewise, Michael.

Timothy said...

What does this mean?? :-)

wagstheauthor said...

Hmm? I don't know that my little suggestion, makes much sense. I hope the rest of the blog is easier to understand. :^)

Nice to hear from you again, Timothy.

Richard Millership said...

I agree entirely, Michael. I think you can also use visuals to evoke popular images, from film, for example, which can be terrifically powerful.

Of course, my visuals - well, you know all about those (have you recovered, yet?).

Richard said...

Timothy asked...

"What does this mean?? :-)"

Maybe I can help a bit: it means the writer can put the reader's imagination to work to write part of the story for him/her.

By evoking images (writing visually), by starting that brush painting the scene in your reader's mind's eye, the story starts taking on a new dimension - it starts to become real.

If done really well, it's a little like a film starts playing in your head.

wagstheauthor said...

Yeah, two years of therapy has really calmed me down, Richard!! :^)

Actually, your writing is extremely vivid, which is why when I think of your short stories, I recall little moving pictures - as opposed to words, phrases, emotions, characters or vague impressions like, 'Yeah it was great'. I get little films as thought I watched your stories rather than read them. I'm aiming for the same thing with my stories.