Image Grammar “Brushstrokes”

“The writer is an artist, painting images of life with specific and identifiable brush strokes, images as realistic as Wyeth and as abstract as Picasso. In the act of creation, the writer, like the artist, relies on fundamental elements.”

Harry R. Noden

Absolute Brush Stroke

Absolute Brush Stroke •Noun + ing verb•Function: adds to the actionCore: The car went into the parking lot.

Engine smoking, gears grinding, the car went into the parking lot

•Noun + ing verb•Function: adds to the actionCore: The car went into the parking lot.

Engine smoking, gears grinding, the car went into the parking lot.

Add an :Absolute BrushstrokeInstead of: The man bungee jumped off the bridge.

Write:

Appositive Brushstroke

• A noun that adds a second image to a preceding • noun, restate the noun • Function: expands detail in the reader’s imagination

Core sentence: The car went into the parking lot.

The car, a 1936 Ford, went into the parking lot.

Add an Appositive Brushstoke

Instead of:The tornado swept across the land.

Write:

Painting with Participles

• Function: evokes action, makes the reader feel a part of the experience.

• Core: The car went into the parking lot. • Sliding on the loose gravel, the car went into

the parking lot.

Add a Participle Brushstoke

Instead of:

The lion roamed the savannah.

Write:

Painting with Adjectives Out-of-Order

• Shift two adjectives after the noun • Function: intensifies an image, gives it rhythm • (Avoid 3 adjectives in a row)• Core: The car went into the parking lot. • The old car, rusty and dented, went into the • parking lot.

Add Adjectives Out-of-Order

Instead of:The man swung over the crocodile-infested lagoon.

Write:

Add Action Verbs Brushstrokes

• Verbs that do action • Function: effective image tools, energize images•

•Core: The car went into the parking lot.•The car chugged into the parking lot.

Add Action Verbs Brushstrokes

Instead of:The ferocious shark jumped out of the water.

Write:

Ask: How does it feel? What does it look like? How does it sound? How does it taste?How does it smell?

Observation Impression Add a Brushstroke

Practice “Zooming In”

Practice “Zooming In”