tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post7569913112343880216..comments2024-03-29T05:45:39.184-06:00Comments on Blood-Red Pencil: The Art of Word-Painting, Part TwoDanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14471919576687777886noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-14750600402221374012015-08-31T01:50:01.094-06:002015-08-31T01:50:01.094-06:00A pinch of metaphor, a dash of simile -- great pos...A pinch of metaphor, a dash of simile -- great post, Debby. This one's a keeper. :)<br />Linda Lanehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16056682992943171805noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-30446606138313582492015-08-29T14:18:29.997-06:002015-08-29T14:18:29.997-06:00Great thoughts, Debby. Your cat metaphor called up...Great thoughts, Debby. Your cat metaphor called up another one that I love, from the Carl Sandburg poem The Fog: "The fog comes on little cat feet..." I find that one of my biggest jobs is to monitor myself to ensure I'm not mixing my metaphors. There are just so many options...Carahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04051728774050516027noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-39268625429085110512015-08-28T15:41:24.950-06:002015-08-28T15:41:24.950-06:00Great post, by the way.Great post, by the way.Polly Iyerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05729656119287702191noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-20719172850186393212015-08-28T15:41:02.959-06:002015-08-28T15:41:02.959-06:00Ha, I have one of the hackneyed ones in my latest....Ha, I have one of the hackneyed ones in my latest. Made me laugh. I hate when simile stop me in a story. I strikes me as someone trying too hard, and it shows. The other overused phrase is "as if." I don't use them much, and when I do, I try to make it sound natural. Polly Iyerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05729656119287702191noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-76463283522135983752015-08-28T09:47:40.498-06:002015-08-28T09:47:40.498-06:00That is an excellent point, Diana. I, too, recentl...That is an excellent point, Diana. I, too, recently had to put down a book that was overwrought with spice. A dash of cayenne pepper works so much better than a tablespoon. LOLMaryannwriteshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09479027709233807149noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-52052884174556921242015-08-28T09:05:20.376-06:002015-08-28T09:05:20.376-06:00And be careful not to mix them things ... it ain&#...And be careful not to mix them things ... it ain't rocket surgery, ya know.Christopher Hudsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03667548312923348614noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-15954588961255462722015-08-28T07:33:16.142-06:002015-08-28T07:33:16.142-06:00Rhetorical devices should be used as a dash of spi...Rhetorical devices should be used as a dash of spice, not overwhelm the dish. When I go through a revision, I do a special layer looking at descriptions with an eye toward quality, but also purpose. Knowing when to add the spice is just as important as knowing what spices you have in your spice rack. A recent book I picked up by a new writer is stuffed so full of descriptions filled with metaphors and similes, I gave up trying to wade through them to get to the point of the story.Diana Hurwitzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18216220574149672733noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-87676596674900952092015-08-28T06:56:30.929-06:002015-08-28T06:56:30.929-06:00Another factor to bear in mind is that the element...<i>Another factor to bear in mind is that the elements you bring together in your metaphors and similes should be appropriate to your narrative context. </i><br /><br />So true -- and true to the character as well. I've got a cowboy and a cook in the current manuscript, and what works for one doesn't fit the other. Terry Odellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11610682530545306687noreply@blogger.com