Show, Don't Tell
How many
times have you heard that piece of advice? Easy to say, harder to remember and
apply.
My husband
bought the first book of George R. R. Martin's Game of Thrones series a few weeks ago and before I knew it I was on
book four, A Feast of Crows.
Although the storyline involves numerous characters that are children, it isn't
a children's book. But the following snippet is such fun that I'm slipping it into our blog.
The novel's Queen
Cersei is amazingly beautiful – even if she's not quite as young as she used to
be -- and totally self-centered. She
lacks nothing in the self-esteem department and can justify any cruelty she
dishes out to people who displease her. Readers also know that Cersei, who always criticized her husband, the king, for heavy drinking, has become a big fan of the grape since his death. Now the author
slips in this gem:
"Dorcas helped the queen into
her new gown. It had stripes of shiny green satin alternating with stripes of
plush black velvet, and intricate black Myrish lace above the bodice. Myrish
lace was costly, but it was necessary for a queen to look her best at all
times, and her wretched washerwomen had shrunk several of her old gowns so they
no longer fit. She would have whipped them for their carelessness, but Taena
had urged her to be merciful. 'The smallfolk will love you more if you are
kind,' she had said, so Cersei had ordered the value of the gowns deducted from
the women's wages, a much more elegant solution."
I remember
thinking 'wait a minute' – you can't wash velvet and satin gowns so there's no
way the old dresses shrunk. That's when it hit me.
What a clever way to 'show' us that Cersei has
packed on a few pounds!
No comments:
Post a Comment