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 Posted: Thu Mar 08, 2007 9:02 pm
Well, since I've noticed that this guild is dying a bit, I wanted to spice up the Brainstorming forum with something new. I've decided to take Rhiannon2002's 6-word acronym game and modify it a tad to help writers work on their description skills.
It works like this: Have a shape or object in mind; something common and/or simple (a cone, circle, dog, baseball bat, etc.) that everyone would know about. Then write a detailed description of the object. Beneath the description, write the object's name in white font, so others are able to guess what it is, then highlight it to see if they are correct.
The next person to post will say if they guessed right or wrong (this shows how well you described the object) and offer critiques if they feel like it. Then they make their own descriprion of an object that somehow relates to previous object. For example, if I wrote about a baseball bat, the next person could write about a sport or something relating to sports. It doesn't have to be a close relationship.Sample Post: Person 1 I was wrong. Little, beady eyes stared upwards from a mask of feathers. The sleek head cocked sideways, listening to my voice with hidden ears. Tucked periwinkle wings loosened in expectation, and the small creature, not half a foot high, used beak and claw to crawl up my shirt and onto my shoulder, perhaps to better hear my words. I'm not sure if it understood what I meant, but by its cheerful chirping it certainly seemed to enjoy my voice. Bird, specifically a small blue pet birdPerson 2 I was right. Well done.
The woman glowed, an unearthly beautiful white emanating from her rosy face. The gold trimmed cream robe floated gracefully about her, swirling as it was caressed by the wind. Her long blonde hair, far lovelier than any human's could ever be, swayed back and forth to the beating of her holy golden wings.
Angel
-Aurah
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Posted: Thu Mar 08, 2007 9:12 pm
Formerly still water rippled as the breeze brushed across its gray-green surface. Far across the water, the girl could see a small paddle boat heading towards her perch, and small, beaten wooden pier. She dropped pieces of bread into the shallows, smiling softly as tiny minnows fought over the offering. Across the algae-filled basin, a tall heron stalked through a forest of cattails, searching for a tasty freshwater snack.
A pond, perhaps a lake
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Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2007 5:18 pm
I was wrong. Sort of. I was thinking more on the actions instead of the actual object, silly me.
A cloud of seemingly infinite silver specks nervously darted from left to right across the deep blue, with such precise synchrony and grace that the most mathematical of minds would be tempted to look for the inexistent formula that expressed the fluid movement. Around them, a set of shapes of blotted black, equally fast but much larger in comparison to the condensed forms of light, circled and restricted their path to their will, lurking from within the depths untouched by the sun's rays, and waiting for the right moment to strike with a shower of bubbles.
A shoal of fishes.
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Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2007 7:52 pm
Dang it! I was wrong. I thought it was fluffy clouds that caught the light being chased away by darker storm clouds. I probably would have gotten it right had you mentioned something about water. Just a tip! ^_^
Large shapes covered in random splotches of color glittered just beneath the water's surface, occasionally breaking the elusive stillness with large, gulping mouths. Bright, round, curious golden eyes tugged at the heart of the woman crossing the bridge. The childish creatures followed her movements as best they could from their watery home as she glided to the island-like sunroom rooted in the center of the water. Smiling, the woman tossed a few pellets of food to the begging animals before sitting down in a soft recliner to listen to the soothing babble of the miniature manmade waterfall.
What is the setting? A koi pond.
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Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2007 8:50 pm
I was right! (Although I didn't know those things had a specific name, eheh...) Woot, go you! ^^
Thin and deceivingly frail-looking, the creeping plant spread its arms wide across the earthen road in its search for sun, consequently tripping the many visitors that sought to traverse it. Though, while the uncouth may think this plant's intentions were cruel or even evil, by intruding into ground claimed by humans and difficulting their passage with its thorns, one had only to look a bit closer to see the sweet fruits that it offered in return for the chance to view clear skies.
Black-berry bush, bramble.
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Posted: Wed Mar 14, 2007 6:01 pm
I got it right! Nice touch with the thorns. It really narrowed down the list of creeping ground-coverage plants that you could have described. ^_^
The giant towered over the small blue-and-white sphere, its branches cradling its precious burden like a mother's arms. From the long, wooden limbs dangled countless tiny fruits, each different, unique. Gradually, each berry grew in size and vibrancy, just a little at a time, and eventually fell off of the tree, vanishing into the nothingness below the caring branches coiled around the Earth. Some of the other fruits seemed to watch as another small red berry plummeted into the blackness, yet others did not seem to notice and continued with their lives. With time, the mourning fruits seemed to heal and continue, too, as a new blossom appeared in the place of their lost companion.
What is the "giant"? The Tree of Life.
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Posted: Mon Mar 19, 2007 6:37 pm
I honestly had no idea - some sort of fantastical tree, but that was it. The description revolved a lot around how common material items physically changed through time, so I never considered it would pertain to anything metaphysical. If this text were to be inserted in the middle of a story, perhaps context would have been enough to bridge that gap and make it clear. However, as it is posted here, it feels like it lacks some decisive line that leaves no room for doubt on whether this tree is some sort of handy species that you'd plant on your backyard or something else entirely. Personally, my first instinct is always to think of something mundane and familiar, so unless you shock me out of that, I normally won't be thinking of what's outside of the box, so to speak. I hope what I'm trying to say is making sense. I don't know how else to explain it, sorry... ^^'
Nevertheless, you chose a very difficult thing to describe in few lines, because the way the tree of life is imagined will greatly vary from one person to another, so all in all I'd have to say that you did a fair job.
Perched high above ground on limbs ready to break,
Was the messiest home that one could ever make.
But invisible from ground, no matter how you looked,
No unwelcome visitors would ever enter the little nook.
Its inhabitants were awake by the time light was hazy,
Leaping from left to right and singing like crazy.
Maturing younglings cried begging for food,
While junior parents took turns to hunt for their brood.
Hehe, a silly one... ^^
What's the place? A bird's nest.
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Posted: Tue Mar 20, 2007 2:14 pm
^_^ Yay! I got it right. Thanks for the suggestion - I'll definitely keep it in mind the next time I write. I can be a bit obscure sometimes... sweatdrop
The tiny creature floated through the darkness, a small, fluttering mass of cream wings and fluffy antennae. In the distance it saw a light and curiously flew nearer. There, near the miniature sun, were scores of its friends and family, all equally drawn to the brilliant rays that pierced the familiar night. The small insect lit on the wall, delicate lightly-patterned wings flapping slowly, and watched the glowing orb.
What is the creature? A moth.
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