By Lynette M. Burrows

Writers are told to use the five senses to create vivid scenes. But without further information, they struggle to follow that advice. Their use of the five senses is often basic. But our senses are complex, with many descriptive components for each. With judicious use, these descriptive components can immerse the reader in the world and characters you created. 

Let’s take the senses one at a time and get some ideas on how to train yourself to use your five senses to their fullest.

Take Advantage of Your Assets

What are your assets? Most people think their assets are their talent and their experiences. But there’s more. Your thoughts, emotions, your energy and your inborn senses are an author’s most important assets. But learning to use those things in a story isn’t always easy. How can you use them better? Train yourself to be aware of the world around you as it really is. Learn to truly see, to listen intently, to experience touch, identify smell and taste in all their complexities.

Training

Train yourselves to understand the complexities of our perceptions of sensory input, seek experts who can help you, understanding the complexities of our perceptions of things we sense, and to choose to make some of your sensory details layered and specific to immerse your readers in your story world..

There may be people near you who have extraordinary senses. For example, miners spend their day in the dark underground caves, but when they emerge, they have a keen sense of color and sound. Artists not only see colors as varied and layered, they notice how shadow and light affect what our eyes perceive. Bird watchers can identify the unique qualities of each species’ song. Naturalists know which animals live in which environments, and psychologists and criminologist know that certain human behaviors result in certain events. 

Understand the complexities of our senses. Remember, your character’s physical and emotional health affects what they sense and how intensely they feel that. Core beliefs, experiences, and our environment are key to figuring out how your characters experience the world. 

Use the complexity of our senses in your stories. Sprinkle in sensory descriptions that are layered and specific by using a mix of the items listed below.

The Sense of Sight

Color:

Use the full-spectrum of colors both natural and man-made .

Shapes:

There are some shapes that are in nature and some shapes that are man-made.

Motion:

We can perceive motion with our eyes, such as a stalking panther, a fly buzzing around a room, or a leaf that flutters in the wind. 

Patterns:

Look for patterns around you. Find both natural, like zebra or tiger stripes and man-made patterns, like how neighborhood houses all look the same.

Brightness:

Include the differences between bright sunny day, the glare of a spotlight, and the glow of the moon in your writing.

Light and Shadow:

Shadows change with movement, outside vs inside, evoke emotion and mood. Our personal experiences, our gender, or the expectations we have influence our perceptions of shadows. 

Depth:

When we experience depth, we are perceiving the distance between two objects. 

Contrast:

The difference between light and dark or colors he sees can reveal things about your characters.

Clarity:

The acuity and detail of what our characters see. Not all characters will have 20/20 vision.

Size:

We make judgments of how big or small an object is by sight alone. The reality can sometimes surprise us.

Visual Texture:

Science has determined there’s no difference between visual and touch perceptions of rough or coarse objects, but touch is superior to vision for finer surface textures. So go ahead. Have your characters recognize textures.

Facial Expressions:

Learn about micro expressions. Use them to deepen the connection your characters have. 

Reflections:

Yes, people overuse this one, but reflections often draw our attention in real life. Have a specific reason (other than description) for using reflections.

Distance:

This one most of us are familiar with. We judgement of how far or close something is based on sight.

Visual Illusions:

Illusions are images that differ from reality. They can occur in various states of physical and emotional health and in certain environmental conditions (think beyond desert illusions).

The Sense of Smell

We take our sense of smell for granted. It’s not like we can turn our sense of smell off and on. But we often ignore input from our noses. Remember to have your character experience the world through their nose.

Floral:

These scents range from light to heavy, from pleasant to unpleasant. Think about which scents your character knows and ones she doesn't know.

Fruity:

There are fruity scents that are pleasing and ones that are overpowering and some are unpleasant. 

Spicy:

Keep in mind that your character’s cultural foods and past experiences will influence what smells spicy.

Earthy:

This is more than the scent of freshly turned soil or rain on dry ground. Think about what smells earthy to you.

Sweet:

Candy isn’t the only thing that smells sweet. 

Savory:

Savory smells are rich and complex. This scent includes things like roasted meat or simmering soup.

Woody:

This includes the scent of cedar trees, a pine forest, or freshly sawn wood. 

Herbaceous:

Things like basil, mint, rosemary have an herbaceous aroma.

Burnt:

Different substances have specific odors when they are burnt. It's okay to start with an awareness of that burnt smell but be specific when it's pertinent to your character or story.

Musty:

Damp and earthy are often used to describe a musty odor. You don’t have to describe it. You can inject a memory, a simile, or a metaphor to make your description specific.

Clean:

We all know what this smells like, but it’s not the same for all of us. How is it unique to your character?

Chemical:

There is a wide variety of chemical smells. Some are organic, many are man-made. 

Metallic:

Each metal has a distinct smell. Think about the differences between iron and aluminum and copper.

Oceanic:

The ocean air is not always salty, briny, or fishy. Check your assumptions and find out what conditions exist to create those odors.

Personal:

We each have a unique scent. It’s based on the soaps and perfumes we use, but it’s also based on our personal chemistry, what we’ve eaten, and how often we wash our clothes and our bodies, and what soaps and perfumes we use.

The Sense of Hearing

Sounds are all around us all day, every day. But there are unique groupings of sound. 

Music:

Melodies, harmonies, instrumental, and musical genres have unique sounds. Remember, the music your character hears doesn’t need to be instrumental or vocal.

Voices:

Timber, inflection, pitch, quality, volume and rate of speech can be helpful in reducing a sing-song he said-she said.

Nature Sounds:

There are sounds of nature even in cities, but they differ from the sounds on a farm or in a jungle. 

City Noises:

There are tons of city noises. Consider the hum of traffic, the chatter of crowds, the thundering footsteps of people moving, the sounds of machinery. Some cities have a sound unique to that location. 

Animal Calls:

Use more than the birdsong or the howl of a lone wolf. Research animals native and invasive to the location of your story (or create them).

Footsteps:

Think about the surface walked upon, the type of footwear, the speed, rhythm, and weight of footsteps. 

Mechanical and Electronic Sounds:

These sounds depend upon locations and level of technology and the materials used to make the mechanical devices. 

Water Sounds:

Think about all the sources of water around your characters and what sorts of water sounds those things might make. 

Impact Sounds:

These sounds can come from multiple sources at different loudnesses and pitch. They include things like the sigh or slam of a door or glass breaking or a ball bouncing, an open-hand slap.

Wind:

The location of your scene, the weather, a fan, an open window or a vent all could mean your character hears a wind sound. Consider how loud or soft it is. Is it sustained or sporatic?

Silence:

Total silence is rare, but depending upon your character’s location, experience and expectations, silence can be disorienting. In silence, your characters will automatically strain to hear something. They might hear their own heart beat, oceanic-like sounds, or imagined sounds. 

Ambient Sounds:

Think about what sorts of background noises surround your character. These will change if your character changes location.

Speech Patterns:

Accents tones, inflection rhythm, and word choices are part of what makes your characters’ voices different from one another.

Animals Sounds:

The animal sounds your character notices and their reaction to those noises can be key to your reader connecting with your character.

The Sense of Taste

Taste is one of the most underutilized senses in stories. What we can taste depends on our physical makeup and our experiences. Taste isn't limited to the places on your tongue (in the illustration above.) Remember, taste doesn’t just come from food and drink. Certain smells can have tastes as well.

Sweet:

Fruits or candy or sweetbreads

Salty:

Remember many things beyond the ocean’s breeze and potato chips can taste salty including some minerals.

Bitter:

Some people enjoy the taste of bitter things. Some people definitely do not. There are some people who cannot taste bitter things and certain medications create a constant bitter taste.

Umami:

This is the savory flavor of soy sauce, or mushrooms or aged cheese.

Spicy:

We often describe the heat from chili peppers, hot sauce or spicy foods spicy Indian foods as spicy. Is your character accustom to high heat foods or do they cause pain and profuse sweating?

Savory:

This is a dish taste similar to roasted meats, broth, some cheeses, or certain breads.

Sweet and Sour:

This exists in more than just the sauce. How well does your character discern the difference between sweet and sour? 

Earthy:

Root vegetables and certain mushrooms have an earthy taste. To me, Brazil nuts have an earthy taste. Maybe your character considers a food to have an earthy taste that isn’t usually described that way.

Creamy:

This is the smooth, rich taste of cream or cheese or yogurt.

Tangy:

Consider the sharpness of food like yogurt or certain dressings, sauces, or fruits.

Complex Flavors:

Complex flavors usually include multiple foods or spices, such as beef stew or sauced dishes and certain wines.

Herbal:

These are often subtle flavors herbal like basil or thyme.

Fruity:

Think of all the fruit flavors, certain wines or sauces or marmalades.

Nutty:

Be specific. Not all nuts or nut butters taste the same. 

The Sense of Touch

Our sense of touch is as complex as any of our other senses. 

Texture:

The range of textures in our daily lives runs from rough versus smooth, coarse versus fine, and everything in between. 

Temperature:

• Temperature perceptions can be quite complex. We can experience temperature with our skin, by our fingers, and in our mouths. Extreme temperatures can affect our vital organs. 
• Temperature Gradient: Most indoor and outdoor locations have temperature gradients. These are the places where the temperature change is gradual or only slight. 
• Temperature Changes: This references those quick temperature changes, such as walking out of the blazing sun into an air-conditioned space.

Pressure:

Touch often includes sensations of pressure from gentle and soft, to bear hugs, to painful crushing pressure.

Pain:

The variety of ways we can express pain is nearly endless. Explore the world of descriptions like sharp, dull, cramps, achy, needle-like, and chronic pain. (No, I’m not saying experience the pain. I’m saying read about it)

Vibrations:

From earthquakes to wind, to a heavy bas beat, many things can cause vibrations your characters experience.

Softness:

Think of plush fabrics, silk, or the softness of a mattress, or a mat on the gymnasium floor.

Firmness:

Consider more than how firm a mattress is. Notice the firmness of wood versus concrete, muddy earth versus solid rock, and so on.

Moisture:

This can range from the damp of high humidity to the dryness of a desert or a fire to an immersion in water. 

Movement:

his seems self-explanatory, but it is not about moving your body. Remember the feel of movement when someone or something approaches and the feel of mechanical or assisted movement versus the feel of your own movement. 

Ticklishness:

Not everyone is ticklish and those who are may not experience being tickled as a fun or positive thing.

Weight:

This is another one that seems self-explanatory, but there is more to it than how much something weighs. Include the sense of how difficult or easy lifting it is and the feel when something is heavier or lighter than expected.Elasticity: For this, think about how rubber bands are very stretchy, but iron is pretty rigid and inflexible. 

Consistency:

This can be a very subtle part of touch. Consider things like how the feel of a creamy lotion differs from the grittiness of sand. 

Kinesthesis and Proprioception

No, kinesthesis and proprioception are not technically senses, but they are sensations we perceive in relation to our own bodies. 

• Proprioception is the awareness we have of the location and position of our body parts without looking. This awareness allows us to stand, walk, sit, touch and picking up objects. 
• Kinesthesis is an awareness of the position of our body parts in movement without visual aid.

Link Sensory Details

People don’t experience sight, smell, taste, touch, or sound in isolation. We experience our senses linked to each other and linked to our memories and experiences. Link specific sensory details with your character’s emotional reactions or memories and you have a greater chance of engaging your readers.

Brain science has shown that when a reader is engaged in a story, their brain processes the story as if they were experiencing the story in real life. Help them experience your story with layers of sensory details.

Ways to Train Your Senses

With a little thought, you can train your writer's brain to be more aware of the sensory details of your story.

Experience is the most impactful way to train your senses. There are many places one can find sensory experiences. Watch documentaries, go to the zoo, a botanical garden, audit a university or community college class. 

For my Fellowship Dystopia series, I visited the local railroad terminal and spent hours inside a limestone cave. The locations near you may not be exactly the same as the place you are writing about, but you can use elements that are the same.

Most people love to talk about themselves and their work. Find experts in your area or even online. Be upfront and honest about why you want to interview them. Have a set of general and specific questions to ask. Often you’ll get your most interesting details from open-ended questions. 

Collect descriptions you admire. Go through your favorite reads and find those phrases that rang true to you. Create a file to keep those phrases and descriptions. Set up a system so you can refer back to these examples.

This is not to encourage you to use those exact words in your own fiction, but to be a source of inspiration.

Need help to get started? Check out the examples in these WITS posts by Ellen Buikema: Sight, Smell, Sound, Touch, and Taste. Many of Margie Lawson’s posts also include stellar examples of sensory details. Check out her post on “What’s the Visual?” 

Things to Avoid

Generic Details

Non-specific details paint only a vague image in your reader’s imagination. It may be necessary to use generic descriptions for pacing or other story reasons, but without sprinkling very specific details throughout your story, your reader is less likely to feel that real life connection.

Clichès

The lone wolf howling or the train whistling in the distance are clichès. They are tired and unmemorable. If you must use a clichè, twist it with an unexpected element. 

Over-description

Too many details slow the pace of your story and overwhelm your reader. Save detailed descriptions for those times in the story where noticing those details is important to the character, plot, or situation. Also, stick to the kinds of things that would be natural for your character to notice as they relate to their circumstances.

Delete Telling Words

Telling words like he smelled, she felt, and they saw are too generic and create distance between your reader and the story. 

Too Many Adverbs or Adjectives

Verbs are stronger than adverbs. Specific nouns are stronger than adjectives. Both adverbs and adjectives are sometimes necessary in your writing, but during your editing phase, look to delete as many of them as possible. 

Sticking to the Literal

A literal description of something can be effective, but not if all the descriptions are literal. Effective similes and metaphors scattered throughout your descriptions will ring true-to-life with your reader. 

Details in the Wrong Place

In the wrong place, even stellar details can bother the reader. In times of high stress, our vision tunnels in on the object, creating that stress. If your character sees things that aren’t related, you may confuse your reader.

Favor One or Two of the Senses

We all have habits when we write. If you think you’ve avoided a specific sense or you don’t know how much sensory detail you use, try highlighting the sensory words in your manuscript. Using a specific color for each sense will help you see patterns and absences. Then, go back through your manuscript looking for opportunities to add those other senses in.

Practice, Practice, Practice

None of us are experts at all aspects of this craft we love. Not only that, but every project offers unique challenges. Read. Read outside of your genre and in your genre. Read best-sellers and books languishing on the shelf. With increased awareness and practice, we can create vivid worlds and characters that live in the hearts and minds of our readers.

Let's help one another. Please share examples of stellar sensory details from your own or other author’s stories. 

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About Lynette

Lynette M. Burrows is an author, blogger, creativity advocate, and Yorkie wrangler. She survived moving seventeen times between kindergarten and her high school graduation. This alone makes her uniquely qualified to write an adventure or two.

Her Fellowship series is a “chillingly realistic” dystopian alternate history. The story follows Miranda, one of the elite who dared to break the rules but in 1961 Fellowship America following the rules isn’t optional. Even the elite can be judged an unbeliever and hunted by the Angels of Death. Books one and two, My Soul to Keep, and  If I Should Die, are available everywhere books are sold online. Book three, And When I Wake, is scheduled to be published in late 2024.

Lynette lives in the land of OZ. She is a certifiable chocoholic and coffee lover. When she’s not blogging or writing or researching her next book, she avoids housework and plays with her two Yorkshire terriers. You can find Lynette online on Facebook or on her website.

Image Credits:

All images within the post were purchased from depositphoto.com. The photo of Lynette is a self-portrait.