Comparisons are a writing staple; they're a great way to get across a lot of information in a single sentence. Here's a example from a craft book that's a fave of my fellow Swoon author Jenny Elliott, Noah Lukeman's The First Five Pages. You could write: "The man had a long, drawn-out face. He was very pale. His forehead ran straight across. He had large dark circles below his eyes..." Lukeman carries the example much farther, but the basic point? This man "looks like Frankenstein." (Lukeman 61). This comparison gives a strong mental picture and saves a lot of the reader's time.
Now there are some cautions to this technique. You must be sure your audience understands the comparison. If your reader doesn't know who Frankenstein is, now he or she is only confused. A good comparison will be original without needing explaining. That being said, I'm about to break all the rules.
If I say VCFA (Vermont College of Fine Arts) is like Hogwarts, I hope you get the picture that VCFA is an intriguing and beautiful place where magical things happen. In the interest of fun, though, photos and explanations below.
Now there are some cautions to this technique. You must be sure your audience understands the comparison. If your reader doesn't know who Frankenstein is, now he or she is only confused. A good comparison will be original without needing explaining. That being said, I'm about to break all the rules.
If I say VCFA (Vermont College of Fine Arts) is like Hogwarts, I hope you get the picture that VCFA is an intriguing and beautiful place where magical things happen. In the interest of fun, though, photos and explanations below.
Okay, so it's not a castle but College Hall is still a very cool building, even supposedly haunted by a ghost named Anna.
The campus is full of staircases.
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Some of which impede your passage.
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There's even a forbidden forest. (This is Martin's House, not Hagrid's hut, however.
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