@thestoryreading – Jean's Writing

Do you believe the eyes are windows to the soul?

Whether you believe this cliché or not, eyes are important. How you describe the eyes of a character can reveal a lot to the reader.

“Eyes that sparkled like sapphires glanced my way.”

This sentence tells us only that the person is blue-eyed.

BUT…

“Cold, blue eyes locked with mine. A chill rippled down my spine.”

Tells us the character has blue eyes and may be dangerous.

“Her blue gaze froze me in place.”

Lets us know the character is a woman and she ain’t happy.

“Lines crinkled at the corners of her sapphire eyes as they danced with mischief.”

This last one, again indicates the character is a woman and she may be laughing at or with another character.

If a body part is as important as William Shakespeare contended, we need to make certain our readers see into the heart of our characters. Through their eyes.

Thanks to Chris, my favorite Ape for directing me to a great blog post with terrific examples on how to bring a character to life through their eyes.

65 Ways to Describe Sight and Eyes in Your Writing by JACQUI MURRAY

What do you think?
Do you like the list of eye descriptions?
How would you write a sentence to show a character’s personality or attitude?

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Do you use the best word to describe an eatery?

Like everything else in the world, one word doesn’t fit every location. And that includes where your characters choose to have a meal. I mean how many times can you write “they went to a restaurant?”

If you’ve followed my blog very long, you know I love lists.

I make lists for everything. Grocery lists, to-do lists, bills due, birthday lists, belated birthday lists, and then there are my writing lists. Like special words lists, descriptive words, adjectives, character lists, names to consider, see I love lists.

The problem is I often forget a list. Like arriving at the grocery store and leaving my must-have list on the fridge.

The good thing about writing is so many of errors can be fixed or changed during rewrite and edits. Thank God for rewrites! Or not. Wish I were a great writer that could spew prose like a whale clearing its blowhole. One and done. No rewrite needed! Now that would be something.

Well, I’ve rambled on enough. Without further ado here is another list for you guys. Thanks to my favorite Ape sharing a great writing tip sheet, by Mark Nichol, listing a lot of different words for a restaurant. Click on the link below to read all 60.