The document provides guidance on writing techniques for short stories, including using primary and secondary information to advance the story and develop scenes, employing evocative writing techniques like appealing to the senses and starting broadly before narrowing the focus, and ensuring the basic structure, description, and dialogue are done well before attempting more complex literary devices in order to create effective narrative layers.

1. TW5: Description
Included in this presentation:
primary and secondary information,
evocative writing, narrative layers

2. Primary/secondary info
Primary information- advances the story
Alex slipped Alex broke his leg Alex spent
three days in hospital
Secondary information- places the characters,
develops the scene
“Tuesday was an indecently cold March day. It
would seem that the weather was no respecter of
football matches as the same dreary playing
conditions had greeted Alex’s team for three weeks
running…”

3. Evocative writing
• Start wide and get narrow, but be careful
(Hemmingway is a great example)
• Appeal to the senses
• Evocative is an umbrella term, description of emotion
may be more helpful than description of scene
• Remember this is a short story, you’re unlikely to have
space for more than one descriptive theme/semantic
field

4. Narrative layers
What will stand out most if done badly:
1. Structure and format
2. Description and dialogue
3. Complex/less subtle literary devices
Conclusion: do the simple stuff well