IT WAS A DARK AND STORMY NIGHT...

'If I read one more description of clouds racing across a summer sky, I will throw the book. Just get to the damned story.'

Quote from a friend of mine.

Says it all doesn't it?

Don't get me wrong I do like the colour purple, I have it in t-shirts, cardigans, jumpers and even pyjamas...and I do love my amethysts...and let's face it, it is divine in the garden.

But purple in your prose? 

Mostly it's because a writer wants to show off. Put in as many twenty dollar words as they can, to impress, to show how great their vocabulary is. 

The days of a novel beginning with a page and a half of description is gone. Today's reader wants the story. Now. Don't mess about with fanciful overly vivid description because it will draw attention to the writing. Yes the writing, not the story.

Some writers seem not to be able to help themselves. They have to add flowery ornate phrases. They want to be extravagant with words, they want to have 'fun'. And purple prose is subjective. What I think is purple, others may think is fantastic and be merely a shade of lilac.

To me writing is about conveying an idea, a concept or a story...either via a page in a book, on the screen or hearing it being read aloud. And it's not that easy to capture exactly what you want to say...so often parts get lost in the process...tiny particles that alone don't matter but in a whole segment are noticed in their absence. 

So why would you want to further complicate the matter with padding? 

Cloud the meaning of what you are trying to say? Most times it will force the reader to either skip a few pages, if not chapters, to tune out and begin to compile a mental shopping list.

I think it is best to put away the purple pen, the quill, crayon, paint, texta....and definitely the prose.

If like me you do like the colour purple, then wear it or best yet....let it shine in your garden.

Bye for now

Vicki