Writing FAST - Jeff Bollow 2012

Placement and emphasis
Techniques that command attention
Tweak

You can crank your visuals up a notch by deliberately focusing on the placement and emphasis of your words — how and where they appear on the page.

Let’s say, for example, you were writing a story about two kids that wouldn’t talk to the old man living in the crumbling old house at the end of the block.

Let’s focus on the old man. By creating strong visual imagery, you can paint a very scary picture of him. You can use metaphors and mystery to build your image.

But if you place the words poorly, the real impact of that image will be lost. For example, if you first showed the old man as a nice old guy pruning roses in the garden, and then have the kids walk terrified up the front walkway, then when he answers the door, it won’t have any impact! We knew he wasn’t scary because of the way you revealed it.

But instead, what if you hide the old man, and we never see him? The kids hear strange noises coming from inside the house. They tremble cautiously up the walkway. The anticipation builds. As they go to press the doorbell, they notice there isn’t one. It’s only a hole filled with spider webs. They knock on the door, but it’s ajar, and it creaks slowly open. It’s pitch black inside. And just as the boys are about to slink in...

Which way you go with it is up to you. But if the old man is gentle and warm, you’ve created an effect with your placement of that information. By emphasizing the images that play against it, you control the ride. And the reader keeps reading!

All writing has an effect. The more deliberately you place your words, the more you control that effect.

As you Tweak, watch for the placement and emphasis of your words. Control the sentences to paint the images that most effectively express your idea.