Wednesday Writing & #ThursdayDoors — Sometimes you need to open the door

Posted on by Teagan Riordain Geneviene

Wednesday, June 28, 2023

Library inside books open door Pixabay
Pixabay

Writing for the Senses: Hearing

As many of you know, for the past ten years, my shtick in the blog-verse has been writing serial stories that are spontaneously driven by random “things” from readers. While I didn’t do it intentionally, when I finished Episode 15 of my weekend serial Atonement in Zugzwang, I used the sense of hearing a lot in that installment.  It helped to escalate the tension in the segment.  This post is a door to how my mind worked.

A sound drew Pepper’s attention to a chess piece she found on the roadside.  There, all the birds and animals were silent.  Later, inside the Magnolia Skies facility, her heels clicked on the floor, accentuating how intimidated she felt.  In the lobby, she heard someone behind her.

Image collage by Teagan
Image collage by Teagan

Brief descriptions, or simple mentions of sounds enhance the story without bogging it down.  This can be done with the way a character talks.  The strange Dr. Goens has a creamy voice that is in contrast to her less than pleasing appearance.  It makes her odd behavior seem even stranger.

A barely audible, murmured remark can be a way of letting a character “think out loud.” That’s particularly useful when the narrative is told from the point of view of a different character, and we need to know more about what the other person might be thinking or planning.

Sometimes You Have to Open a Door

Image collage by Teagan
Image collage by Teagan

There are times when what you hear is more than just a way of adding life to the story.  Sometimes the sound itself is important.  It might allow you to do some foreshadowing or give a clue.  On the other hand, you might use it for a red herring.

At first glance, having Tracey Tipton make a cameo appearance in the episode seemed to have no purpose.  However, if someone had not opened the door, Pepper wouldn’t have heard that motorcycle race away.  That also might not seem important, but we’ve heard and seen that kind of motorcycle before.  It was a clue to the wider goings-on of the many things Pepper isn’t able to know in the story.

I love to hear from you.  Friendly comments are encouraged. 

Thanks for opening this door.  Hugs.

♦ ♦ ♦

The Atonement Series

The Glowing Pigs: Snort Stories, image by Teagan
The Glowing Pigs: Snort Stories, image by Teagan

Atonement, Tennessee

Full series of e-books with one click:  relinks.me/B087JV25JT

Kindle:  rxe.me/HGSVA8A

Paperback: relinks.me/1481826948

Also in Spanish, translated by Olga Núñez Miret! The title for the Spanish-speaking market is Expiación y Magia

Atonement in Bloom

Kindle:  rxe.me/5RRBLH

Paperback:  relinks.me/1726882128

The Glowing Pigs, Snort Stories of Atonement, Tennessee

Kindle   rxe.me/LTBDNH

Paperback   relinks.me/1725891972

♦ ♦ ♦

Thursday Doors is a weekly feature allowing door lovers to come together to admire and share their favorite door photos from around the world. It’s hosted by Dan Antion.  Feel free to join in on the fun by creating your own Thursday Doors post each week and then sharing your link in the comments below, anytime between 12:01 am Thursday morning and Saturday noon (North American eastern time).

2023 Badge Thurs doors teresa-my-camera-and-i

Thanks for opening this door.  Hugs!

 

This is a work of fiction.  Characters, names, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, locales, or events is entirely coincidental.

Copyright © 2023 by Teagan Ríordáin Geneviene

All rights reserved. 

No part of this work may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission.  Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights.

All images are either the property of the author or provided by free sources, unless stated otherwise.

 

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69 thoughts on “Wednesday Writing & #ThursdayDoors — Sometimes you need to open the door”

    1. Hi, Janet. Sorry. I should probably define that in the captions, but I try to keep them brief. A computer generated images (CGIs) are done by software applications. However, they depend on input from the human, sometimes called search terms. You also choose what “filter” you want to use. The filters are sets of artistic effects. Even with all that, the results are unpredictable, often weirdly distorted (like extra arms coming out of strange places or thin air, twisted faces). I usually “generate” 20 or more images to get one that’s acceptable.
      As for my collages, they are composed of several images (I’ve used up to 18 images in one book cover collage for Dead of Winter) sometimes they include a CGI, but not very often.
      I’m glad you liked them. Thanks for opening this door. Hugs.

      Like

      Reply

  7. Teagan, thanks for explaining the importance of using sound in the telling of a story. It’s as important as describing the characters or their surroundings. How does an author open a can of soda without sharing the pop of the lid and the fizziness that ensues?

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Ohh… such a welcome sound during these very hot days, Mary! Great choice. I think most people have an immediate and positive reaction to the description of that particular sound. Thanks so much for this comment. I appreciate you opening this door. Hugs.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  9. Neta post, Teagan. Your CGI’s are really great.
    Sound is definitely important. I’m thinking of all the horror movies when it’s dark, there’s no dialogue, just strange noises and wide eyes.

    Now…. “Neta” was supposed to be “Neat”, but when I went to correct, I liked the looks, so kept it.
    I declare it a word, not an acronym.
    I’m not sure exactly what it means, yet. It has something to do with “unanswered”.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. LOL, “Neta” — maybe that’s the feminine of “neat-o.” Or maybe a future term for Internet. “Let me check the Neta.” 😀
      I agree that horror can make wonderful use of sounds. Thanks for reading and commenting. Hugs on the neta. 😉

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  11. Great post and insight, Teagan! A lot can be inferred by s suddenly quiet forest. Sounds or lack of them can add do much to the setting and story. Hugs xo

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Thanks, Denise. Once in the mid 1980s I was in the direct path (or whatever the term should be) of a total eclipse of the sun. That moment startled my awareness of how profound that kind of quiet is. Thanks for reading and commenting. Hugs winging back to you.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

        1. They’re teasing us with the prospect of rain today, and only 100.
          John, I enjoyed your Story Empire post. (I was reading from my phone and didn’t manage to comment, meaning to come back and say something today.) It was a kind of encouragement I’m always needing. Thank you.

          Liked by 1 person

          Reply

  16. Your sound analysis is quite sound (punintended). The quick tapping of otherworldly pig trotters speeding along the dirt path of Atonement, is a sign that my favorite characters are about to make an appearance.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  18. You are right, Teagan. Some genres seem to pay more attention to sound than others, like horror, for example. But the use of sound in a story can make a big difference. Thanks for the tips.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  21. I agree that sound is important in fiction. What sounds the POV character hears (or doesn’t hear) and how she experiences that sound can be a good way to show a character’s view of the world and/or her emotional state in a particular moment.

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

    1. Thanks, Dan. It’s difficult to be conscious of doing it, especially when we’re in the zone of needing to get all the ideas down quickly, or in the middle of a struggle to write at all. I was lucky with this episode, and did it without realizing — until about the third time I proofread it.
      Try to keep cool. Hugs.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  25. Excellent points about using sounds to help a reader get a better feel of the environment, Teagan. I see authors effectively use sounds as beats during dialogue exchanges.

    Liked by 2 people

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