SPECIFIC, CONCRETE,
VIVID DETAILS
Judging Creative Writing
DETAILS
are small pieces of information that speak about people,
events, things, time, objects, circumstances, situations, and
manner.
the individual features, facts or particulars in the text that
help paint a picture in the readers’ minds
SPECIFIC DETAIL
the exact, precise fact or information of something mentioned in
the text
SPECIFIC DETAIL
“As a first lieutenant and platoon leader, Jimmy Cross carried a
compass, maps, code books, binoculars, and a .45-caliber pistol
that weighed 2.9 pounds fully loaded. He carried a strobe light and
the responsibility for the lives of his men."
--"The Things They Carried” by Tim O'Brien
SPECIFIC DETAIL
“Macondo was a village of twenty adobe houses, built on the
bank of a river of clear water that ran along a bed of polished
stones, which were white and enormous, like prehistoric eggs.”
--“One Hundred Years of Solitude” by Gabriel Márquez
CONCRETE DETAIL
a specific description of a particular item, person, or setting that is
grounded in a tangible idea, example and/or description
it appeals to the senses and emotion
CONCRETE DETAIL
Red stepped over the threshold of her grandmother’s
Little Red Riding Hood was a young girl who decided
small cabin. Something smelled off—had Grandma left the
to pay her grandmother a visit. On her way to her
eggs out on the counter again? Red wrinkled her nose.
grandmother’s house, while passing through the woods, she
No, it wasn’t eggs; the smell was wilder and more gamey
encountered a big, bad wolf who tried to eat her. She ran off,
than that. Red clutched the basket tighter in her hands,
but he was faster and got to her grandmother’s house first,
where he promptly ate the old woman and dressed in her feeling the wicker press into her fingers.
clothing. When Red arrived with her basket of treats for She looked over to her grandmother’s bed, and her
grandma, she saw the wolf and was immediately suspicious. stomach flipped. Grandma looked worse than she
“My, what big eyes you have,” she said. remembered. The old woman was wearing her favorite
floral cap and matching gown, but the cap was pulled
“The better to see you with, my dear,” the wolf said. down so low that Red could barely make out her face.
“Grandma, what big teeth you have!” Red said, feeling From the sides of her cap protruded two long ears,
scared. covered with wiry black and gray hair. Her ears stood
straight up, pressing in the sides of the cloth cap and
“The better to eat you with, my dear!”
twitching slightly as Red spoke.
The wolf grabbed Red.
“Grandma… your ears. Are you all right?”
CONCRETE DETAIL
Tips on how to use concrete details in creative writing:
Lean on sensory details (the key senses are sight, hearing, smell,
touch, and taste)
Paint pictures with words
VIVID DETAIL
are descriptive details that allow sensory recreations of
experiences, objects, or imaginings
a writer uses senses such as sights, sounds, smells, tastes, feelings,
and textures to create vivid details in the readers’ minds.
VIVID DETAIL
Grandmother Workman lurched over and grabbed the pale skin of Randal's thin forearm
with her leathery hand. The folds and creases beneath her skin coiled themselves out like
electrical wiring, like the bloated, roughly-textured relief map of the world that his
mother just posted above his bedside table. Randal looked ahead toward the winding
spiral staircase, fidgeted with a small hole in his baseball jersey, and bit his lip. His
mouth filled with the sweet, coppery taste of blood as she leaned in closely toward him,
breathing her hot breath on the damp hair at the base of his neck. She smelled of wet
cigarettes and bacon. As they slowly climbed the long, steep staircase, the only sound was
his grandmothers' labored breathing and the mournful creak of the wooden stairs.
a work of fiction does not necessarily have
to have a lot of details
the writer has to be prudent in knowing
when it’s required and why
the right amount of carefully selected
details can bring one’s writing to life
What details to include?
Tnx.
