Descriptive Writing

What Is Descriptive Writing? Descriptive writing creates a picture of a person, place, thing, or event. A well-written description should arouse a particular response or emotion in the reader's imagination. Description tells what something looks, sounds, smells, tastes, or feels like. It works with all of the senses, i.e., Sight, smell, taste, touch, hearing. Descriptive writing is the only type of writing which can be and should be used in all other forms: Expository, Narrative, and Persuasive. Your goal as a writer is to describe something so well that your reader will see, in his or her imagination, what you have experienced in life!

Good Descriptive Writing Includes… Vivid sensory details-details appealing to one or more of the five senses. This is often best achieved by using vocabulary that includes specific nouns, active verbs, adjectives, and adverbs. A clear, consistent organization using either spatial, chronological, or thematic order. To make an imaginary world seem real, an author often makes use of words and phrases that appeal to the senses. These words and phrases, are called images, and help a reader mentally experience what the characters in the literary selection are actually experiencing.

How to Write a Descriptive Essay Before writing the Descriptive Essay, you have to think about 3W. What, Why, and How. 1)What do you want to describe? It’s an important step for you to know what are you describing:. a person , a place , a memory, an experience , an object .

How to Write a Descriptive Essay 2)Why are you writing your descriptive essay? Usually, you have a particular reason why you need to write this descriptive essay. Getting in touch with this reason can help you focus your description and imbue your language with a particular perspective or emotion. Example Imagine that you want to write a descriptive essay about your grandfather. chose to write about his physical appearance the way that he interacts with people. However, rather than providing a general description of these aspects, you want to convey your admiration for his strength kindness. This is your reason for writing the descriptive essay. To achieve this, you might focus one of your paragraphs on describing the roughness of his hands, roughness resulting from the labor of his work throughout his life, but you might also describe how he would hold your hands so gently with his rough hands when having a conversation with you or when taking a walk.

How to Write a Descriptive Essay 3)How should you write your description? As you write your descriptive essay, the best way to create a vivid experience for your readers is to focus on the five senses: sight, sound, smell, touch, taste. When you focus your descriptions on the senses, you provide vivid and specific details that show your readers rather than tell your readers what you are describing.

Elements of Descriptive Writing Good descriptive writing is comprised of five elements; Sensory Details, Figurative Language, dominant impression, precise language, and Careful Organization.

Elements of Descriptive Writing 1) Sensory Details     Good descriptive writing includes many vivid sensory details that paint a picture and appeals to all of the reader's senses of sight, hearing, touch, smell, and taste when appropriate. Descriptive writing may also paint a pictures of the feelings the person, place or thing invokes the writer. 2) Figurative Language   Good descriptive writing often makes use of figurative language to help paint the picture in the reader's mind. There are many ways to use figurative language, and it is a talent that should be practiced until perfected.   -A simile uses like or as to compare two unlike things. Example: Her smile was like sunshine. -A metaphor compares two unlike things without using like or as:  Example: Her smile was a light that lit up the room. -Personification suggests comparison between a nonliving thing and a person by giving the nonliving thing human traits.

Elements of Descriptive Writing 3) A Dominant Impression  When you plan a descriptive essay, your focus on selecting details that help your readers see what you see, feel what you feel, and experience what you experience. Your goal is to create a single dominant impression, a central theme or idea to which all the details relate-for example, the liveliness of a street scene or the quiet of a summer night. This dominant impression unifies the description and gives readers an overall sense of what the person, place, object, or scene looks like(and perhaps what it sounds, smells, tastes, or feels like). Sometimes _ but not always_ your details will support a thesis making a point about the subject you are describing.

Elements of Descriptive Writing 4) Precise language  Good descriptive writing uses precise language. Using specific words and phrases will help the reader “see” what you are describing. If a word or phrase is specific, it is exact and precise. The opposite of specific language is language that is vague, general, or fuzzy. 5) Careful Organization  Good descriptive writing is organized. Some ways to organize descriptive writing include: chronological (time), spatial (location), and order of importance.  

Ways Of Organizing Facts:

Transition Words and Phrases that Signal Description. Transitions used in descriptive writing vary depending on whether you are describing a person, a place, or a thing. Here are some examples of transitions that might be used in descriptive contexts:

To show spatial order or direction

To show order of importance

To show time order

Types of Descriptive Writing: Descriptions of people or places : These portray the physical appearance of a person or place and show readers why the subject is important or special. Remembrances : Capture a memorable experience in the writer’s life, either a specific moment or a longer period. Observations : Describe an event the writer has witnessed. Vignettes : Capture a single moment in the writer’s life, painting a picture with words.

Structuring a Descriptive Essay A descriptive essay simply describes something or someone by appealing to the reader’s senses: sight, sound, touch, smell and taste. Here are the basic steps to writing an effective descriptive essay: 1. Select a subject Observation is the key to writing a good description. For example, if you are writing about a place, go there and take notes on the sights, sounds, and smells. A descriptive essay paints a picture for the reader, using descriptive devices and the senses. Create a thesis statement that informs the reader who or what you are describing. Examples: “The wooden roller coaster in Coney Island is a work of art.” “My bedroom is an ocean sanctuary.” 2. Select dominant details Select only the details that support the dominant impression (your thesis statement). 3. Organize details The paragraphs in a descriptive essay can be structured spatially (from top to bottom or from near to far) or chronologically (time order) or from general to specific. Descriptive essays can also use other patterns of organization such as narrative or exemplification. 4. Use descriptive words Do not use vague words or generalities (such as good, nice, bad, or beautiful). Be specific and use sensory, descriptive words (adjectives). For example: I ate a good dinner. OR I devoured a steaming hot, cheese-filled pepperoni pizza for dinner. Provide sensory details: Smells that are in the air (the aroma of freshly brewed coffee) Sounds (traffic, honking horns) Sights (“The sun scattered tiny diamonds across dew-covered grass as it peeked out from beyond the horizon.”) Touch (“The texture of the adobe hut’s walls resembled coarse sandpaper.”) Taste: sweet, sour, salty, bitter, tart (“Giant goose bumps formed on my tongue when I accidently bit into a sliver of lemon.”) 5. Draw a logical conclusion The conclusion may also use descriptive words; however, make certain the conclusion is logical and relevant. Structuring a Descriptive Essay A descriptive essay simply describes something or someone by appealing to the reader’s senses: sight, sound, touch, smell and taste. Here are the basic steps to writing an effective descriptive essay: 1. Select a subject Observation is the key to writing a good description. For example, if you are writing about a place, go there and take notes on the sights, sounds, and smells. A descriptive essay paints a picture for the reader, using descriptive devices and the senses. Create a thesis statement that informs the reader who or what you are describing. Examples: “The wooden roller coaster in Coney Island is a work of art.” “My bedroom is an ocean sanctuary.” 2. Select dominant details Select only the details that support the dominant impression (your thesis statement). 3. Organize details The paragraphs in a descriptive essay can be structured spatially (from top to bottom or from near to far) or chronologically (time order) or from general to specific. Descriptive essays can also use other patterns of organization such as narrative or exemplification. 4. Use descriptive words Do not use vague words or generalities (such as good, nice, bad, or beautiful). Be specific and use sensory, descriptive words (adjectives). For example: I ate a good dinner. OR I devoured a steaming hot, cheese-filled pepperoni pizza for dinner. Provide sensory details: Smells that are in the air (the aroma of freshly brewed coffee) Sounds (traffic, honking horns) Sights (“The sun scattered tiny diamonds across dew-covered grass as it peeked out from beyond the horizon.”) Touch (“The texture of the adobe hut’s walls resembled coarse sandpaper.”) Taste: sweet, sour, salty, bitter, tart (“Giant goose bumps formed on my tongue when I accidently bit into a sliver of lemon.”) 5. Draw a logical conclusion The conclusion may also use descriptive words; however, make certain the conclusion is logical and relevant.

The Structure of a Descriptive Essay

Quick Tips for Writing Your Descriptive Essay Planning your descriptive essay: What or who do you want to describe? What is your reason for writing your description? What are the particular qualities that you want to focus on? Drafting your descriptive essay: What sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and textures are important for developing your description? Which details can you include to ensure that your readers gain a vivid impression imbued with your emotion or perspective? Revising your descriptive essay: Have you provided enough details and descriptions to enable your readers to gain a complete and vivid perception? Have you left out any minor but important details? Have you used words that convey your emotion or perspective? Are there any unnecessary details in your description? Does each paragraph of your essay focus on one aspect of your description? Are you paragraphs ordered in the most affective way?

Description Sample:

Thank you so much for your attention