Description; the 6th Sense–Part 3 the Sense of Smell

Next we move on to the sense of smell. (If you missed that I am doing a series on description, take a look at Description; the 6th Sense–Part 2 the Sense of Sight and Description; the 6th Sense–Part 1 the Sense of Sound) The senses of sight and sound are sometimes the easiest of the senses to describe. Because when we first encounter something, first our eyes take it in, then we listen, then, once we have noticed it in those ways, we move on to smell, touch, and often lastly, taste. And because of that, often these last 3 senses can be left out when you describe things in your writing, for sake of slowing the story line down and leaving your reader uninterested. Though at times it is necessary to add them, and if you are able to discern those times, it will make your story on the whole much deeper.

Patience sat amidst the tall grass in the meadow. A lark whistled its shrill cry, as it swooped into the violently waving grass, before soaring back into the quickly darkening sky, with a cricket gripped tightly in its thin beak. Patience turned her eyes to the horizon, where a large black monster crept silently over her once peaceful surroundings. Lightning flashed inside it's belly, as it reared up it's angry head with a rumbling growl that shook the air and disarmed it of all silence.

Smell is quite interesting when you think about it. You don't even have to have a bouquet of flowers in front of you, but when you think about one your nose immediately picks up the memory, and you can smell it. But lets just focus on what IS in front of you. In a meadow, like the one that Patience is sitting in, you would most likely smell grass, earth, and flowers. With the storm coming on (I love this smell) you would catch the scent of rain in the air. If your by a fire however, the smells are altogether of a different sort. You may smell ashes, and and smoke, intermingled with the scent of the wood that is being burned. Some wood types have stronger, sweater aromas then others, so if your portraying a place of comfort, peace, and beauty, you may pull that out in your writing. Where as, if you are in some place different, such as a dungeon, or the camp of the enemy, then you might have it be wood of a more foul sort being burnt. Like I said before, the smell of things, is so small, that we often don't make ourselves conscious of it, but our bodies take it in, and it is part of our surroundings. Part of what makes us feel alert, or relaxed. It weaves through our senses, and directs the path that our emotions take.

Patience sat amidst the tall grass in the meadow. A lark whistled its shrill cry, as it swooped into the violently waving grass, before soaring back into the quickly darkening sky, with a cricket gripped tightly in its thin beak. The smell of on coming rain taunted Patience's nose, and she turned her eyes to the horizon, where a large black monster crept silently over her once peaceful surroundings. Lightning flashed inside it's belly, as it reared up it's angry head with a rumbling growl that shook the air and disarmed it of all silence.

Assr vísa ykkarr or∂.

~ElizabethMarieKauffman~