🏺 Creative Writing Notes: Describing Objects
1. More than a Thing
● Don’t just list what it is, show what it means.
○ It wasn’t just a key; it was a promise, heavy with unspoken “what ifs.”
2. Sensory Spotlight
● Touch: weight, texture, temperature
● Smell: old, metallic, fresh, dusty
● Sound: creaks, clinks, silence
● Example: The book smelled of rain-soaked attics and forgotten afternoons.
3. Personification
● Give the object life.
○ The chair sulked in the corner, offended by years of neglect.
○ The pen refused to cooperate, coughing ink in fits and starts.
4. History & Memory
● Objects carry stories.
○ The chipped mug had survived three moves, two heartbreaks, and one very dramatic coffee
spill.
5. Contrast: Appearance vs. Truth
● The necklace glittered, but it weighed on her like a chain.
● The teddy bear looked harmless—until you saw the bite marks on its ear.
6. Symbolism
● Let the object represent something bigger.
○ The cracked phone screen was a map of all the times he dropped things that mattered.
○ The umbrella was more shield than shelter—a portable excuse to hide.
7. Imprint on the Owner
● Show how the object affects someone.
○ The guitar left calluses on his fingers, badges of stubborn devotion.
○ The locket made her shoulders tense every time it clicked shut.
✨ Quick Formula for Object Writing:
Physical detail → Hidden story → Quirk/Personification → Symbolic meaning
