Image Grammar

By Harry R. Noden

“An ineffective writer sees broad impressions that evoke vague labels; a powerful writer visualizes specific details that create a literary virtual reality.”

Harry R. Noden

Image Grammar

“An amateur writer tells a story. A pro shows the story, creates a picture to look at instead of just words to read. A good author writes with a camera, not with a pen.”

Novelist Robert Newton Peck

Secrets of Successful Fiction

Painting with Five Basic Brush Strokes

• The participle• The absolute• The appositive• Adjectives shifted out

of order• Action verbs

Participles = an –ing verb tagged on the beginning or end of a sentence

“The bear walked silently through the field.”

“Languishing lazily on the log, the bear thought of salmon swimming into its hungry hands.”

“Roaring vociferously and posturing for an attack, the bear scared off the unwanted intruders with its growling.”

Absolutes = a two-word combination – a noun and an –ing or –ed verb added onto a sentence

“The mountain climber edged along the cliff.”

“The mountain climber edged along the cliff, hands shaking, feet trembling.”

“Hands shaking, feet trembling, the mountain climber edged along the cliff.”

“Feet trembling on the snow-covered rocks, the mountain climber edged along the cliff.”

Appositive – a noun that adds a second image to a preceding noun

“The raccoon enjoys eating turtle eggs.”

“The raccoon, a scavenger, enjoys eating turtle eggs.”

“The raccoon, a midnight scavenger who roams lake shorelines in search of food, enjoys eating turtle eggs.”

Adjectives out of order = amplify the details of an image

“The large, red-eyed, angry bull charged the intruder.”

“The large bull, red-eyed and angry, charged the intruder.”

By eliminating passive voice and reducing to be verbs (linking verbs), writers can energize action images and write in active voice.

“The runaway horse was ridden into town by a blond-haired beauty.”

“The blond-haired beauty rode the runaway horse into town.”

“The gravel road was on the right side of the barn.”

“The gravel road curled around the right side of the barn.”

• Participles• Absolutes• Appositives• Adjectives shifted

out of order• Action verbs