The deal with showing vs telling
This topic has been discussed to death, but I have had some requests for it. So, I thought I’d add my two cents:
1. Forget the “always show” rule
I’ve heard this advice so many times: don’t tell when you can show. The problem is that this gets interpreted as meaning that you should never use telling.
That’s not true. Every story will have its tell moments and that’s how it should be.
So, let’s move on to when you should use which technique.
Showing means that you relay events/things that happen as they happen, making the reader feel like an observer.
This means that you do not spoon-feed the reader information. You show them what is happening so they can make their own deductions.
This should be the primary technique in a novel, since it immerses readers into the story and allows them to feel all the feels right along with your characters.
You should use this for scenes that are important for the plot or characterisation. Things that are worth spending time on and you want the reader to experience first-hand.
Telling is when you relay information to the reader in a straight-forward way.
This means that the reader isn’t as involved. They are passive receivers of the information.
This is great for things you want the reader to know, but don’t necessarily want to spend a lot of time on. A great example is the transition to a new scene.
This should be used only when necessary.
Important: telling doesn’t have to be boring. Think of the old fairytale formula of “once upon a time” or the very entertaining telling by Lemony Snicket. You can use your unique voice to make telling as quirky/entertaining as possible.
As is clear from my point above, this is not monotonous exposition. It’s strategic disclosure coupled with good use of voice.
4. Scenes you should show
Don’t tell your fight scenes. Fight scenes have to be shown as they happen. Otherwise, your readers will feel robbed of the action.
If you’re writing in a risqué genre, don’t tell your love scenes. Of course, with books for younger audiences or genres where vivid love scenes aren’t necessary, you can use the simple single-sentence tell.
Never tell your climax. This is the height of the conflict of your novel. The reader should experience this blow for blow.
That’s all I have for you on showing and telling. If you have any questions or would like to request a post, pop by my DMs and asks.
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