Tuesday's Inspiration - Detail the lifeblood of fiction

"Detail is the life blood of fiction." While reading On Becoming a Novelist by John Gardner I came across this quote and started to ponder on what it meant. Detail is part of the Writer's Eye. So what does it mean?

As a writer developing characters is an important part of what a storyteller does. That means seeing the world through a person crafted for the story. How does the character developed see what's happening around them? How do they react in any situation? What are the little tells that show the invented character could be someone the reader knows and either loves or hates?

The writer has to become that character in some way. Putting oneself aside when writing is often hard but with practice it becomes easier. I often find when I'm writing a scene from a character's point of view I may smile, laugh, shrug my shoulders at a particular point and these words appear on the paper. That's exactly how the character should react. This doesn't happen over night but often when I'm rereading, rewriting or revising a particular scene. Suddenly I'm not myself but I'm the character I've brought to life.

Having this happen is magical and sometimes funny, especially when I've managed to stay in the character. There are times when the real people in my life look at me and think I've slipped off the edge of reality. But those times fill me with joy for I know at least for me and hopefully for the readers, the character has become a person. So work hard to become the people you're creating to tell the story. This is the Writer's Eye.