{"id":22333,"date":"2019-10-31T03:00:14","date_gmt":"2019-10-31T10:00:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/?p=22333"},"modified":"2019-10-31T15:47:38","modified_gmt":"2019-10-31T22:47:38","slug":"metaphors-and-similes-improve-precision-and-clarity-by-kay-keppler","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/2019\/10\/31\/metaphors-and-similes-improve-precision-and-clarity-by-kay-keppler\/","title":{"rendered":"Metaphors and Similes Improve Precision and Clarity by Kay Keppler"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Metaphors<\/a>Let\u2019s welcome back monthly columnist, editor, and novelist, Kay Keppler<\/a>, as she shares with us \u201cMetaphors and Similes Improve Precision and Clarity.” Enjoy! <\/em><\/p>\n

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Your book needs to grab your reader from the first paragraph<\/strong>, and however you do that is fair game. Using description that grounds the reader in time and place can make a powerful opening\u2014and metaphors and similes can help readers see and feel more precisely what you want them to experience.<\/span><\/p>\n

Metaphors and Similes are Descriptive Figures of Speech<\/b><\/h2>\n

A <\/span>simile<\/span><\/i> is an overt comparison\u2014it compares<\/span> one thing with another thing of a different kind, usually by employing \u201clike\u201d or \u201cas.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s as brave as a lion.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

A metaphor<\/i>, on the other hand, is an implied comparison\u2014it\u2019s not literally true.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s the black sheep of the family.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

An <\/span>extended metaphor<\/span><\/i> carries the implied comparison through the paragraph or even the book.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cHe might be the black sheep of the family, but she\u2019s the mule of the bunch.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Lending Authority<\/b><\/h2>\n

In addition to boosting description, similes and metaphors add authority to your writing. By using them, you tell the reader, <\/span>I know this, I understand this, and it is this way.<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

For example<\/strong>, let\u2019s say your book is set in the winter, and your protagonist goes to the frozen river to skate.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe ice was glassy and sheer\u201d tells the reader what conditions are like.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But you can push this description with a metaphor: \u201cThe ice was glassy and sheer, an overlying tissue of frozen crystalline molecules.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The ice has the qualities of glassiness and sheerness, but the metaphor adds a sense of fragility and perhaps mystery of what lies beneath.<\/span><\/p>\n

Find the Essential<\/b><\/h2>\n

Some similes have become clich\u00e9s — \u201cShe\u2019s as beautiful as a rose\u201d — and thus are meaningless.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

A good metaphor or simile reverberates with the essential.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

In \u201c<\/a><\/span>A Good Man is Hard to Find,\u201d Flannery O\u2019Connor<\/span>\u00a0describes the mother as having a face \u201cas broad and innocent as a cabbage.\u201d Many objects are about the same size and shape of a cabbage (a bowling ball, streetlamp, or globe, for example), but by using the comparison to a cabbage, O\u2019Connor suggests that the woman is rural, maybe also heavy and dense.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

An Alien Image<\/b><\/h2>\n

But beware. By definition, metaphors and similes introduce an alien image into the flow of the story.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Consequently, they are always to some degree self-conscious.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Don\u2019t try to be clever or flashy.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Badly handled, metaphors and similes call attention to the writer rather than the meaning you want to convey and thus will pull readers out of the story.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

A good metaphor or simile fuses and illuminates the meaning you want to express.<\/span><\/p>\n

Use as Needed to Hook Readers\u00a0<\/b><\/h2>\n

Metaphors and similes should be used sparingly and only as needed. Don\u2019t force them. Let them come organically.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Less is more, and when in doubt, don\u2019t.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

They shouldn\u2019t call attention to your prose, but help readers see more clearly.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Your goal is precision and authenticity, and when you achieve these, your readers will follow through.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Editor\u2019s Note: <\/b>Post your favorite great or worst metaphors and similes in the comments below.<\/span><\/p>\n

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR<\/h2>\n

Kay Keppler<\/a>\"Kay<\/a> is an author Zero Gravity Outcasts<\/a><\/em>, Betting on Hope<\/a><\/em>, Gargoyle: Three Enchanting Romance Novellas<\/a><\/em>, and editor of fiction and nonfiction \u2013Angel\u2019s Kiss<\/a><\/em> and Outsource It<\/em>!<\/p>\n

She lives in northern California. Contact her here at Writer\u2019s Fun Zone in the comments below, or at kaykeppler@yahoo.com<\/a> to ask questions, suggest topics, or if you prefer, complain.<\/p>\n

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More popular articles by Kay Keppler on Writer’s Fun Zone:<\/strong><\/p>\n