“Show, Don’t Tell” Without Too Many Words

Welcome to another #WriterWarnings! Today, we're going to talk about SHOWING (not TELLING) without wordiness.

The "show, don't tell" technique is an important part of the narrative because showing facial expressions, body language, tone, and overall reactions (both physical and emotional) to what is occurring in the story all surround SHOWING.

Rather than slowing down the reading experience by writing "She was sad" or "She started to cry," SHOW readers the emotion behind your character. For example, "Tears rolled down her cheeks" would be a way to SHOW action/reaction/feeling, while also getting to the point and avoid TELLING.

❌ TELLING: She was sad.

❌ TELLING: She started to cry.

✅ SHOWING: Tears rolled down her cheeks.

SHOWING without filler words that slow down the pace reduces word count and helps keep readers active within the story as they read.

Hope it was helpful to some! 🤎