More Sketching

I can hear ice pelting against my study window. Brrr … I suspect that going into work will be delayed this morning. Yes, Texans can’t go to work if it ices. Nope. Alas, my work’s delayed opening is usually not posted until ~ 6:45AM. I guess I’ll still go ahead and get ready to go in once I finish here.

Yesterday we talked about the similarities between drawing and writing. I want to continue that line of thought as I continue to improve upon what I learned while writing “PHAIAKIA” …

I’ve watched artistic friends sit down and noodle out a recognizable character with a few quick pen strokes. If it were me drawing, I would take lines and lines and hours trying to replicate what they did in a moment. Even then, my rendition of the character would probably resemble more a zombie blob than a person.

Ever read a book where you get into it and have trouble visualizing the characters, setting, etc.? Maybe the problem is that the author never really learned to sketch. I’m certain a seasoned agent spots this immediately. The amateur author takes voluminous words to express a single character’s appearance where a professional integrates the same into dialogue or a few words. For the accomplished writer, descriptions flow with much less effort and much more confidence.

Granted, the accomplished writer had to start somewhere. Where, eh? Practice. Activity time -- Choose a famous person and write a quick, confident sentence describing him/her. Can’t think of anyone? Try Obama. His picture is on everything these days.