Don George | Traveler At Large
Travel Writing and the Art of Accuracy
COLUMN #84, 10 September, 2003

A good travel story is basically the accumulation of such accuracies, such details of perception and description. But as the master storytellers at the conference reminded me, here is an
important distinction: You can't put these descriptive details into your stories unless you perceive them, live them, first.

It's a two-part process. You have to become adept at seeing, smelling, hearing, tasting, touching. You have to experience the world with a wild, hungry, fearless curiosity. And at the same time you have to learn to slow down and focus, to quiet yourself until you can truly absorb a scene. Then you have to render your discoveries in clean, clear, compelling prose. Do all of these, and you'll get somewhere.

  posted by spidergrrl @ 4:59 AM