“Don’t say the old lady screamed. Bring her out and let her scream.” - Mark Twain

Telling: It started to snow.

Showing: “Now he became aware of an entirely new sensation: pinpricks? No, because they were soft and without pain. Tiny, cold, featherlike feelings peppered his body and face. He put out his tongue again, and caught one of the dots of cold upon it. It disappeared from his awareness instantly; but he caught another and another.” - Lois Lowry, The Giver

Six strategies writers use to show us: · Detailed description… · What was said by a character/person… · What was said about a character/person… · What was thought or felt… · What was done… · How other character/people reacted to them…

Who? What? When? Where? How? Why?

Appeal to the senses... Sight Sound Smell Taste Touch

The witch was scary. Up close her skin was cracked and putrefying. The smell of rotten flesh seared my nostrils. Clutching my finger she cackled, “My what a plump little girl you are!” Her touch sent shivers across my skin. She licked her lips with a dry lizard tongue.

The kid’s costume was cute. Halloween is fun. Bob is weird. It’s not easy being a mummy.