Adding Details to Writing

In my experience as a writing teacher, writers tend to fall into two basic camps: those who write with a lot of detail from the beginning and those who add detail after they craft a basic structure. 

The first group of writers usually need to whittle down their final draft, cutting out extra material that isn’t necessary. Like sculptors, they start with more material than they end up with and chisel down as they go.

The second group of writers like to start with a bare bones frame. They begin with a skeleton and add on the layers until they have a fully developed final draft. 

This guide is mostly for the second group — those who need a little help adding details to their writing. 

If you are frequently told “add more detail here,” “flesh this out,” or simply “more” in the comments of your papers, you’re probably in this group. 

One isn’t better than the other. Both approaches can create excellent writing, and both approaches require work and effort. The important thing is knowing how you usually write so you can make sure your revisions help you get the best paper. 

If you’re someone who needs help adding details to your work, here are some tips. 

Watch the Video

Practice It

Find different writing samples. These can be things that you’re already reading for other projects (or just for fun), or you can seek out some reading specifically for this activity. Either way, try to find a variety of different types of writing. Here are some examples: 

  • Magazine article
  • News story that just reports an incident 
  • News story that offers an opinion 
  • Blog post 
  • Non fiction book or book chapter 
  • Fiction book or book chapter
  • Business email or memo 
  • Poem 
For each example, take a look at how the author handles details in the writing. Pay attention to the adjectives (descriptive words) used, how specific they get, and whether or not they use sensory descriptions. You can even rank each one on a scale of 1- Not At All Descriptive to 10- Very Descriptive.

Practice turning some sentences that “tell” into sentences that “show” — by bringing the ideas to life with sensory details. While “show” suggests visual details, you can also use taste, touch, smell, or sound. 

You can make up sentences of your own, but here are some to get you started. 

  • The only clean shirt in my closet is really ugly. 
  • This is the best cake I’ve ever eaten. 
  • The girl felt lonely. 
  • The room was cold and uninviting. 
  • The puppy is cute. 

Reflect on It

Remember that not all writing has the same level of detail. Creative writing (like a short story or novel) is almost always going to have more description and detail than professional writing (like a report or cover letter). 

On top of that, some writers are just more detailed than others. There are great writers whose personal style involves simplicity and sparse details. This doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with their writing. 

As with everything in writing, you have to make choices based on your goals and what you want your reader to get out of your work. Description and detail help to plunge the reader into your world and make them experience it. That’s an effective tool, and learning to use it well can give your writing power. 

  • What kind of writing do you usually do? How important is description to meeting the goals of that writing? 
  • When you write, does giving description come easily, or is it something you come back and do after your first draft? 
  • If you have to write something with a word requirement, do you usually have trouble meeting it? Or do you usually exceed it? How might this be connected to your experience with writing details?

 

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