As any number of writing gurus suggest, and rightly so, details are crucial in quality fiction. But why? What makes a "telling" detail telling? What makes an evocative detail evocative?
I think there are several reasons. Today, let's analyze one.
1) Concrete details serve as triggers.
The human brain is fearfully and wonderfully made...far more complex than our most sophisticated computers. It has an amazing capacity to record--in detail--the events and experiences that make up our lives. But, as time goes by, our unused memories are shifted...first, piled haphazardly on the table of our minds. Later, tucked in folders and filed away. Finally, crated up and shoved into the back row of the dusty warehouse. Beyond that? Some shadowy Goblin drags them off to The Deep Vaults.
Where they are...lost?
No, not lost.
Maybe you've heard of discoveries during the early days of brain surgery, when doctors touched certain portions of the cortex with a probe, and clear, detailed memories pop back to the surface from long-term storage: "Oh, yeah. I remember my first day of kindergarten. I had pancakes with blueberry syrup that morning. My teacher wore a red blouse and a ladybug pin. The room was hot, and the blond-haired boy next to me had a runny nose and B.O. And a girl named Stacy with buck teeth was crying so hard, she threw up, and it looked like cottage cheese until the janitor came in and put that sawdusty stuff on it."
All that from touching a spot in the brain.
Why can't you remember all that information on your own? For that matter, why can't you remember where you put your car keys? The problem with memory is not Storage...It's Retrieval.
When we include specific, concrete detail in fiction, we figuratively "touch" a spot in the reader's brain, and trigger a synaptic burst. "Wires" that haven't connected in years pass a message from neuron to neuron, and dredge up a response from the vaults.
You, as the writer, won't often know exactly what the response will be. For each person, the associations and memories attached to that detail will be unique. Sometimes, a detail that means little (emotionally) to you, sparks a strong reaction in another. Or vice versa.
Show you how it works:
If I say, "cereal," does that do anything for you? Get your juices flowing?
Probably not. Unless you're hungry. As a stimulus, it's not likely to evoke much--too vague, too abstract, and I doubt if it lights up your cortex like a Christmas tree.
But if I say, "Freakies cereal," some of you break into a broad smile. If you were a kid in the early seventies...or if you were a parent then...you may remember Boss Moss, Hamhose, Gargle, and the rest of that wacky gang that lived in a tree--and you will associate that detail (the name of a now-defunct cereal brand) with emotions/recollections from that period of your life. You may suddenly remember details about a kitchen, or a breakfast table, or something that happened at that breakfast table, you haven't thought of in thirty-five years.
I mostly remember eating twelve thousand boxes of it, in the effort to gain a complete set of the plastic figurines. Oh, and I also ordered a Gargle t-shirt.
Memories and emotions are triggered by specific detail. And reaching the emotions is one of the primary goals of fiction--getting your readers to feel something.
Sometimes, the response is dramatic--the "aha" experience of hearing a forgotten song and being flooded with memories from that time period, or revisiting the exact place where you first heard the news about 9/11. More often the response is subdued, sitting below the threshold of perception, and it impacts the reader "below the waterline" as a hint or suggestion of mood.
Thunderstorms would be a good example: Most of us associate thunderstorms with drama or danger. Why? Even if you wouldn't describe yourself as "afraid of thunderstorms," you've probably witnessed intense, even frightening, storm cells. A nearby lightening bolt that made you jump and put your heart in your throat. Or that angry green sky boiling overhead and the swish of damaging winds.
Those memories, of which you may have no specific recall, are still down there in the vaults. Thus, Snoopy...along with countless other writers of Thrillers and Chillers, take full advantage of "dark and stormy night" settings to evoke something in the reader.
"Light up" your reader's brains with fascinating detail...then next time, we'll dissect another reason why details count.
Friday, April 30, 2010
Welcome!
I'm glad you stopped by.
The focus of this blog is the intersection between Psychology and Fiction...two interests that have played a central role in my life journey.
At root, the disciplines of both Psychology and Fiction share a common concern: To better understand the human condition.
As such, the discipline of psychology is full of insights that can benefit the thoughtful writer...and the vast legacy of fiction illuminates the struggles and challenges and joys of what it means to be human.
I'm interested in exploring what Psychology has to tell us about: 1) The creative process in general; 2) The craft of writing in particular; and 3) Fictional people and what makes them tick.
I approach this as a learner...and hope that you'll find something of value as we think through these issues. By all means, add your voice...and you'll find honest disagreement welcome here, provided it's wrapped in the spirit of cooperation and civility.
Caveat Lector (Let the Reader beware!):
1) Psychopathology will not be the primary topic here (although we may touch on some issues from time to time). If you're looking for the scoop on Schizophrenia, affective disorders, Post-Traumatic Stress Syndrome, attachment disorders, the Autistic Spectrum, and so forth, there are a number of good sources for writers out there, both online and in the bookstores.
If you want to draw realistic characters with serious psychological/psychiatric disturbances, a little research on your own will take you there...but you may be disappointed by my lack of emphasis on that side of Psychology.
On the other hand, I hope to open your eyes to the quieter, less glamorous side of Psychology.
Personality psychology, Social psychology, Cognitive psychology, Developmental psychology, Positive psychology (the study of the best, healthiest qualities in human beings), Sports psychology...Research from all these areas provides something of value for fiction writers. But they don't garner as much attention as a shower scene in the Bates Motel.
2) Following on the coattails of #1, this is not an online forum for psychotherapy.
After more than twenty years' work in various aspects of Human Services, I'm acutely aware of the pain and heartache and pressure that individuals everywhere suffer.
Years ago, Dr. Scott Peck began his popular work The Road Less Traveled with a simple declarative sentence:
"Life if difficult."
It was true then, and it's still true today...
Simply put: We can't fix that here.
There are resources for hurting people, both online and in your community. If you need some TLC in the midst of personal struggles (and we all do, at times) please seek out these options. As a last resort, there are even Call-In shows...but don't get me started.
3) My goal is to dig into the research, find some neat stuff, and talk about how it might apply to fiction. But please remember, Psychology, like all areas of study, is founded on controversy. Economists argue endlessly over economic theory. Physicists still debate today whether Einstein got it right. The same is true for Psychology.
This is how true science works...over time, the evidence accumulates. Some theories are supported, others fall by the wayside. That's a healthy and needed process.
But this is not a forum designed to argue the relative merits of various psychological theories.
That would steer the conversation away from practical application, make this a purely academic exercise, and bore most people to tears. If serious psychological debate is your cup of tea, gratify your needs elsewhere...please and thank you.
Ground rules sound fair?
Let's get started!
The focus of this blog is the intersection between Psychology and Fiction...two interests that have played a central role in my life journey.
At root, the disciplines of both Psychology and Fiction share a common concern: To better understand the human condition.
As such, the discipline of psychology is full of insights that can benefit the thoughtful writer...and the vast legacy of fiction illuminates the struggles and challenges and joys of what it means to be human.
I'm interested in exploring what Psychology has to tell us about: 1) The creative process in general; 2) The craft of writing in particular; and 3) Fictional people and what makes them tick.
I approach this as a learner...and hope that you'll find something of value as we think through these issues. By all means, add your voice...and you'll find honest disagreement welcome here, provided it's wrapped in the spirit of cooperation and civility.
Caveat Lector (Let the Reader beware!):
1) Psychopathology will not be the primary topic here (although we may touch on some issues from time to time). If you're looking for the scoop on Schizophrenia, affective disorders, Post-Traumatic Stress Syndrome, attachment disorders, the Autistic Spectrum, and so forth, there are a number of good sources for writers out there, both online and in the bookstores.
If you want to draw realistic characters with serious psychological/psychiatric disturbances, a little research on your own will take you there...but you may be disappointed by my lack of emphasis on that side of Psychology.
On the other hand, I hope to open your eyes to the quieter, less glamorous side of Psychology.
Personality psychology, Social psychology, Cognitive psychology, Developmental psychology, Positive psychology (the study of the best, healthiest qualities in human beings), Sports psychology...Research from all these areas provides something of value for fiction writers. But they don't garner as much attention as a shower scene in the Bates Motel.
2) Following on the coattails of #1, this is not an online forum for psychotherapy.
After more than twenty years' work in various aspects of Human Services, I'm acutely aware of the pain and heartache and pressure that individuals everywhere suffer.
Years ago, Dr. Scott Peck began his popular work The Road Less Traveled with a simple declarative sentence:
"Life if difficult."
It was true then, and it's still true today...
Simply put: We can't fix that here.
There are resources for hurting people, both online and in your community. If you need some TLC in the midst of personal struggles (and we all do, at times) please seek out these options. As a last resort, there are even Call-In shows...but don't get me started.
3) My goal is to dig into the research, find some neat stuff, and talk about how it might apply to fiction. But please remember, Psychology, like all areas of study, is founded on controversy. Economists argue endlessly over economic theory. Physicists still debate today whether Einstein got it right. The same is true for Psychology.
This is how true science works...over time, the evidence accumulates. Some theories are supported, others fall by the wayside. That's a healthy and needed process.
But this is not a forum designed to argue the relative merits of various psychological theories.
That would steer the conversation away from practical application, make this a purely academic exercise, and bore most people to tears. If serious psychological debate is your cup of tea, gratify your needs elsewhere...please and thank you.
Ground rules sound fair?
Let's get started!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)