Paint a picture in words

I was with some friends last night, one of whom is a writer, and I was amazed at my friend’s ability to be descriptive in her writing. This reminded me of how important it is in creative writing to be able to “paint a picture” in words for the reader.

She had written a persuasive essay about art in education. In the beginning paragraph she began her essay with a few sentences describing the memories of the art and music room in elementary school. She described the smell of Elmer’s glue and construction paper, the smell of colored clay, and the faint sounds of band instruments from the music room down the hall. The picture she painted with her words immediately took me back to those memories—I really enjoyed the trip her words took me on.

  3411 Hits