The Famous Five – one of the most powerful tools for any writer – the five senses.
If you want to engage your reader, ensure you’ve engaged the five senses – smell, taste, touch, seeing, hearing. I like to go one better and use the sixth sense too whenever possible.
Jack doesn’t simply walk into a room.
Think about what he sees and hears as he enters, what he might encounter when he does – the cold marble counter under his fingers – what might he hear – hushed voices, someone shouting angrily? Is there a fragrance in the air, an odour – something burning in the kitchen? Does the room bring back a memory that makes him taste something bitter, something sweet?
The sixth sense can be engaged by how he feels – what his experiences lead him to expect from the environment he is now in, for example. Does he sense danger maybe or have a sense of coming home perhaps?
The senses are all important and can be used in almost any writing to inform and engage your reader.
Tags: five senses, sixth sense, Writing Tips
