A sensory experience is something that is experienced by the senses: you feel it, you smell it, you taste it, and you hear it. In creative writing, using sensory detail allows the writer to immerse the reader in an experience – be it a mood or setting – and make them feel as if they are there, in the room with the characters, experiencing what they experience. It is a fantastic tool for enhancing the narrative and allowing the reader to connect more deeply with the story.
The most common use of sensory detail in creative writing is in fiction. However, it can be applied to non-fiction as well. For example, take a look at how Mark Bittman used sensory detail in his New York Times bestseller, How to Cook a Wolf.
How To Cook A Wolf
Bittman’s non-fiction book is basically a how-to guide for transforming – or playing with – your average run-of-the-mill animal into something extraordinary. To illustrate his point, Bittman uses a lot of sensory detail to re-create the experience of cooking an animal. He starts by describing how the wolf feels – its fur, its muscles, its scent – before moving on to the actual process of cooking. This allows the reader to really get a sense of what it is like to cook an actual wolf down. Bittman’s book is full of vivid descriptions, such as:
“The wolf started barking… It kept barking for a while, and then it stopped, because the sound was hurting my ears. The smell was worse. It smelled of decaying meat. When it started up again, it was lower and deeper, like a growl… I kept looking over my shoulder and expecting to see the head of a masked hunter pounding on the back door.”
The Advantage Of Using Sensory Detail In Creative Writing
Apart from the enjoyment of connecting with a fictional character, using sensory detail in creative writing can have several advantages. First, it can make your writing more authentic. If you want your reader to believe that they are actually in a forest, smelling the damp earth and the rotting vegetation, then by all means, go for it.
Second, it can make your writing more interesting. People love stories with an interesting twist. In fiction, a common technique is to change things up at the last moment, so the reader does not recognize the original plot. This is called a twist and it can be used to keep the story fresh. If you want to spice things up a bit, consider using a twist.
Finally, it can make your writing more memorable. It is a well-known fact that humans have a tendency to remember things that they have experienced themselves. If you want your writing to stick in the reader’s head after they’ve finished it, consider using sensory detail in your descriptions. Think of all those times when you’ve been to a restaurant and the food was great but the service horrible. You’ll be able to picture the restaurant in your head and the horrible service that you remember. Using sensory detail in your writing will help the story stay fresh in your reader’s mind. It is a good technique for keeping the imagination running wild.
How To Use Sensory Detail In Creative Writing
So you want to use sensory detail in your creative writing, how do you do it? There are a few different techniques that you can use, depending on what genre you are working in. Let’s take a look.
Imaginary Places
If you are writing in the form of a narrative, such as a novel or a short story, you can use imaginary places in your writing. This is where you create a setting that does not exist and use your sensory details to give it life. It is often used in combination with time travel, where the action takes place in a different place and at a different time. When writing a narrative, you have all the time in the world to set the scene and paint it in vivid colors. You do not have to worry about keeping the story tight, because you have all the time in the world.
Change The Season
In case you are wondering, you can change the season in which the story takes place by simply changing the temperature. For example, if you are writing about the summer, your characters will sweat and whine about the heat, but the air will be breathable. You can use this technique to make your writing more authentic. If you want your character to truly feel as if they are in a different season, then you should consider changing the temperature to allow for a better connection with the reader.
Change The Weather
You can use the weather as a tool to make your writing more authentic. If you want to change the temperature, but you do not want to change the season, then using the weather is another solution. For example, if you want your setting to be cold, but the story to be set in the summer, you can change the weather by having a blizzard or an ice storm. Your readers will never know that it is not actually summer in your story, because of your use of sensory detail.
There are many different ways in which you can use sensory detail in your creative writing. If you want to work with a professional, experienced writer to help you bring your idea to life, contact us today!