March 2008
The Devil's In The Details
What kind of pocketbook does your heroine carry? Is it a $37,000 Hermes Birkin bag or a knockoff sold on a street corner for $37? Does she wear Birkenstocks or Manolo Blahniks? How about the car she drives? Minivan or 2-door red convertible?
These mini-descriptions of the clothes your characters wear, the cars they drive, even the snacks they devour (pork rinds or pate?) neatly encapsulate the essence of each person you've drawn. Use these details carefully to give your readers a fuller understanding of what makes your characters tick, as well as what makes each one distinctive. Here are some tips to make sure that the details you give are the details that work.
1. When only a brand name will do. Sometimes a specific brand name becomes the perfect description of a character. For Sex and the City fans, the fact that Carrie Bradshaw worshipped her Manolo Blahniks told us (1) that she was a shoe whore, (2) that money was no object when it comes to footwear (average pair costs $650), and (3) comfort was not as important as fashion. Please check the Evelyn David web site to see how we come out on that equation.
2. Generics are fine too. On the other hand, generally speaking you don't have to tell your reader that your heroine prefers Hellman's Mayonnaise instead of Kraft's. Unless it's Death by Mayo (or clogged arteries), it really doesn't matter. Bottom line: name drop judiciously.
3. Don't get lost in the details. Vivid descriptions allow your readers to picture your characters, but too much detail can be overwhelming. By the time you've finished describing a red-haired, blue-eyed, big- eared, 120-pound Burberry-raincoat wearing heroine - who cares if she killed somebody. Less is more.
4. Leave something to the reader's imagination. Draw each character with broad strokes so that the readers have a good idea of the type of person and personality you're describing. But also let your readers fill in their own conceptions of a character. They'll use people from their own lives to fill in the details - which make the characters even more realistic.
Evelyn David
