Learn to Observe and Analyze! Tip#1

Dear Storyteller,

Learn to Observe and Analyze is Tip#1!

An unconventional idea perhaps. And perhaps you’re wondering why this would even be important at all, or what use this particular skill set would ever have in relationship to being a writer?

Well, for starters, please keep in mind, I am still learning myself. And learning is a life-long skill. Yet, this particular tip is one I’ve considered including in The Writer’s Nook for a long time, and I wanted to share it with you because I’ve discovered over the years that a good number of books I love have these exact two skills at the heart of their stories.

Let’s start with a couple of reasons why I feel honing this skill set will aid you in your own storytelling…

Number one…

It is, most assuredly, the foundation of a good writer. Of course, you may take my advice with a grain of salt, for this is, without doubt, advice stemming wholly from my own personal opinions and convictions. It is also quite unconventional advice at that. Nobody talks about it or touches on it…at least that I’m aware of, and I have watched a lot of writing videos over the years. Yet, I quite firmly believe, if you asked any writer you admire whether or not this skill set is in their writer repertoire of essential tools for the craft, they would undoubtedly have to say yes-whether or not they’re fully aware of the fact that they do utilize this skill set on a daily basis.

Number two…

Honing your skills on observing and analyzing your environment and the people you meet on a daily basis provides the groundwork to eliciting the best reader experience you can provide. Inevitably, good writing, per my own personal experience in reading novels and now penning them, is the innate ability to fully describe and relate a scene to the reader in such a way that it evokes the most emotionally moving responses in your readership. It’s what draws them in and keeps them wanting to read more. This…and dialogue…but I’ll touch on that later…

Specific examples of Observing and Analyzing…

So, ask yourself, what do you notice about your surroundings? The weather? In particular, what do you notice about the people you pass in the grocery store, at the library, at church, or in a restaurant or cafe? How do they act? What do they say? What are their quirks and mannerisms? What do they look like? Eye color, hair color, hair texture (curly, wavy, straight), skin color, face shape, etc. What colors/highlights do you see reflected when the sun strikes someone’s hair? Reds, golds, etc. How does their eye color change in the sunlight? How does it change depending on what clothing they wear? (This is more observable in family members. I wouldn’t suggest doing this necessarily with a stranger…that’s just kinda weird, unless it just naturally happens during conversation or something. Lol.). Look at other details. How do they hold a pencil? What are their nervous habits?

An aside:

You may remember from one of my Random Story Facts that I included in my story the mesmerizing eye color of a young Breton man I noticed in a cafe when I was visiting family overseas. I’ll link that here so that you can read it in full if you’re interested. It was he who made me want to include his eye color in my debut medieval trilogy. It was such a beautiful and unique color, I knew it had to fit one of my character’s. And it did.

Now what?

After your observation of people, go ahead and repeat this same exercise for the weather. Watch how the seasons change. What do you notice about them? What’s the temperature feel like? Describe the cold. Is it sharp, biting, or stinging? Describe the heat. Is it dry, moist, or intense? How does the sun feel on your skin, face, or back? Are its rays penetrating, heavy, firm, light, gentle, soft and warm? What does the air smell like? (Oftentimes, you may notice the air smells like many things all at once, or you catch whiffs of other scents when the wind shifts. What are they?). How do the colors vary and change? Describe them. Is it a Picasso effect? Jackson Pollock? Monet? Do the colors bleed into one another? Rebuff each other? What are the sounds you hear in nature? Do they come from birds? Squirrels? Crickets? Tree frogs? What do the sounds sound like? (No pun intended there!). Loud? Soft? Whirring? Trilling? Clucking? Purring? Screeching? What time of day do you hear each sound? When you hear them, is the animal happy, sad, or irritated with another animal?

Expand your horizons even more!

Include an observation and analysis of sunsets. Sunrises. Clouds. Storms. Landscapes: hills, valleys, deserts. What do you see? How do you feel when you see them? Do you feel enraptured by the beauty of God’s creation? What does that feel like to you? Does it open your heart in praise to Him? Are you grateful, thankful? How does an open meadow or a beautiful forest make you feel? Do you feel free? What makes you know you’re actually there in that landscape or season at that particular time?

And lastly, one of my favorites in nature…water. How does it move? Slow? Fast? Steadily? Does it sing, chortle, or gurgle? Does its surface ripple? Shiver? Ruffle? Flatten? Roll? If it does any of these things, why? Was it because of the wind? A duck landing on it? What are the effects on water when a stone is thrown in versus a stick?

Anything else?

Don’t forget emotions. This is what really connects your audience to your story! How do you feel when you’re angry? Do you clench your jaw, your fists, your teeth? Do you have a nervous habit you lean toward, such as biting your nails? Have you observed someone else get angry? What do they do? How do they look? Consider all the same things for moments of sadness, loneliness, embarrassment, anxiety, disappointment, shame, happiness, being in love, having a crush, etc. The list could go on and on.

Side note:

Definitely don’t dwell on these things and make yourself sick, but do consider them; and while God tells us in His Word not to fret and worry and to be “anxious for nothing” (Philippians 4: 6), we’re all still guilty of having this invade our lives at one time or another. Use this as a chance to convey to your audience how this feels and follow up with what your character’s appropriate response should be, i.e. the realization that they need to trust the Lord. And when you’re sitting at your computer and getting ready to pound out that riveting, high-stakes scene or that gut-wrenching love story, draw on the various experiences you’ve had so you can make your story that much more authentic and relatable. If you haven’t experienced any of these particular things, then actually, that’s awesome! Consider yourself fortunate, and just do your best to convey them to your reader.

How does this skill help my writing?

As briefly mentioned in the previous section, the takeaway is to convey emotions, surroundings, weather, and people in such a poignant way that your readers feel they’ve not just begun a story, they’ve entered a whole new world. A “real” world full of “real” people, both of which are amazingly relatable-a place of escape.

All of your observations and analytical moments can now lend themselves toward inspiring your readers into feeling like they’ve actually, personally, entered any realm you’ve created…and, hopefully, they won’t ever want to leave. Hopefully, they’ll feel so intensely and readily connected with your world-building and your characters that they’ll feel like they’ve just met not only kindred spirits but a place made solely for them.

What if I don’t have that skill?

Maybe you’re concerned now that you might not have what it takes to observe and analyze everything around you with such precision. Let me allay your fears and say, don’t be. Most likely, if you’re interested in penning your own stories, then you’re already acutely aware of your surroundings and the people in them; you just may not have recognized you already have that skill set.

A quick test to see whether or not this defines your current practice is to consider whether your parent or a teacher, a beloved friend or a grandparent, hasn’t remarked what a great eye for detail you have. Or how observant you are. Or maybe even remarked on how intuitive you are, or how well you describe the things and people around you. All these are markers of an individual who already possesses the skill set and foundation to be a great writer. IMHO anyway.

Can I learn it?

And yes! If you find no one in your life has told you this yet, I do believe you can teach yourself to become more observant and analytical…this skill also kinda comes with age; the more you mature, the more this skill kinda comes into play. In the meantime, it might take some time and effort, but like any skill, I do believe you can improve what skill sets you already have and make them that much better, if you put in the work. : )

Disclaimer:

All this being said, while I do heartily encourage you to hone your observational and analytical skills, I also highly encourage you not to be creepy when it comes to observing and analyzing others. Please don’t stare or draw other unwanted attention to yourself! This isn’t an exercise in becoming a weirdo. Lol. So don’t stress yourself out and focus so much on observing and analyzing others that it becomes an obsession. Just be casual about it. Learn to observe and analyze with class!

Where do I start if I need to improve my skill set?

I’d definitely recommend starting out with the weather and nature, buildings and settings. Then gradually add in people watching. Use your siblings to hone your skills first when observing humanity, and then branch out to people you meet outside the home.

Another disclaimer:

Mmm, I also feel like I need to say, please respect your family members as well! Don’t use every mannerism they have to create a character in your book! And don’t make them uncomfortable and be creepily stalking them either. They are your sibling after all, and you don’t want to damage that relationship! Be creative. Just use the observations you naturally derive from honing your skill set as a sort of palette to work off of. And if observing and analyzing doesn’t come naturally to you after some practice, then discard it from your writer tool kit! I’m sure there’ll be plenty of other skills you can add to it besides this one. Or write me, and we’ll try to problem-solve it together!

Book Examples of the use of observing and analyzing

Without a doubt, Jane Austen would be the primary example of people watching. She is a great descriptor of a variety of different personalities and character traits-good and bad. She also gives a good reflection of society at the time she penned her novels and gives good insight into how the whole of society and humanity has not really changed over the centuries.

The Brontë sisters and Dickens are additional examples of the depiction of humanity at its most fragile and darkest moments. Dark and brooding, the Brontë sisters reveal the hopelessness of mankind without God (Emily Brontë’s Wurthering Heights) or what a tender love can overcome if allowed to blossom and grow (Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre), while Dickens’ gives us the touching moments of humanity and how kindness, love, and trust in God can strengthen a person in difficult times (Nicholas Nickelby) or change a person in A Christmas Carol.

Additional book examples:

Or if you want an amazingly rich and descriptive dialogue of chivalry, virtue, character, true love, and faith, immerse yourself in The Scottish Chiefs by Jane Porter.

You may also find some very intriguing descriptions of nature in S.D. Smith’s The Green Ember. I particularly liked this story for Sam’s description of the rabbits rowing down a stream. The fantastic way he wove dialogue in amidst the task and sounds of rowing were very insightful. I loved how immersed I felt in the scene!

What are your thoughts?

How do you feel about this first official tip in The Writer’s Nook? Do you agree with Tip#1 Learn to Observe and Analyze? Why or why not? Why do you think a lot of writers never overtly touch on this subject? Do you think they feel like it’s so basic and widely understood that it doesn’t need to be addressed? Let me know!

Until next time…I hope your observational and analytical exercises go well! Feel free to share with me how it’s going. I’d love to hear all about it! God bless…xoxo