When writing, much like in art, a writer must use two different types

of perception:the visual eye

and the imaginative eye

The visual eye is what the writer actually sees

The imaginative eye is what the writer imagines

Many times writers must use the imaginative eye to provide extra

details and create a stronger image

Most writers only use the visual eye, however, good writers mix the visual and imaginative eye as they

write.

Good writers…Appeal to the five senses:

touch, feel, sound, smell, and taste

We will work on doing this using brushstrokes.

•We will begin all examples with a core sentence.•A core sentences simply describes what we can see is going on in the picture or in the moment.

•It should be rather literal•For example, a good core sentence for the picture below would be: The girl went horseback riding.•After we have our core sentence, we can begin to improve our writing by applying brushstrokes.

How we will begin using brushstrokes

Image Grammar Writing Prompt 1Choose One

Describe a scene from your favorite movie.

Describe the last public place you went to.

Describe your favorite place to go.

Absolute Brush Strokes

Absolute: noun + -ing word

The car went into the field.

Noun: person, place, thing or idea

Engine smoking, gears grinding, the car went into the field.

The car went into the field, wheels squeaking, bumper dragging.

The mountain climber edged along the cliff.

Lips quivering, hands shaking, the mountain climber

edged along the cliff.

Now write your own sentence based off this

picture with two absolutes!

1. Create a core sentence describing the image.2. Paint two absolutes at the beginning and the end of

your sentence. Activity 1: Description 1

Activity 1: Description 2

1. Create a core sentence describing the image.2. Paint two absolutes at the beginning and the end of

your sentence.

Activity 1: Description 3

1. Create a core sentence describing the image.2. Paint two absolutes at the beginning and the end of

your sentence.

Activity 1: Description 4

Picture a nature scene in your mind. Imagine the sensory details – the sounds, the smells,

the feel of items you touch. Using two absolute brush strokes, write a sentence

describing what you imagine.

Now it’s your turn!

Go back to the writing prompt you did and add absolutes where you can.

You MUST add absolutes to your response.

Note: You may have to rework the way you wrote your response.

Creating a mood using absolutesActivity 1: Description 5

Appositives Brush Strokes

Appositives: add a second image of the subject to the sentence.

The car went into the field.

The car, a 1936 Ford, went into the field.

Brainstorm nouns that could be a substitute for the word volcano.

God Beast Creature Weapon Machine

The volcano ravaged the mountainside.

The volcano, a vicious beast with claws of molten lava, ravaged the mountainside.

1. Create a core sentence about the soldier.2. Now add a second image of the soldier with an appositive.

Activity 2: Description 1

Activity 2: Description 2

1. Create a core sentence about the little girl.2. Now add a second image of the soldier with an appositive.

Activity 2: Description 3

Think of an interesting place that you saw on television or in an advertisement. Picture the

scene and write two sentences describing what you saw, using an appositive brush

stroke in the description.

Participle Brush Strokes

an ing phrase

A phrase is a group of related words that does not contain both a verb and a subject; therefore, it isn’t a complete sentence.

What is a phrase?

Participle Brush Strokes – an ing phraseThe car went into the field.

Sliding on the loose gravel, the car went into the field.

The skier raced down the steep slope.

Leaping high over jagged ice rocks, the skier raced down the steep slope.

The skier raced down the steep slope.

Jumping high, breathing hard, thinking fast, the skier raced down the steep slope.

Develop a core sentence about this image.

Add a Participle Brush Stroke to your core

sentence.

Activity 3: Description 1

If you used a long participial brush stroke to

describe this image try painting the same image

with three short participles.

If you used three short participles, try one long participle brush stroke.

Activity 3: Description 2

Think of a dramatic event you observed or were in: an athletic event, a car crash, an argument.

Describe the event in a sentence that includes a participle brush stroke.

Activity 3: Description 3

Think of an action scene in a movie or television show that you recently watched.

Use a participle brush stroke in a sentence that captures a snapshot of that scene.

Activity 3: Description 4

Adjectives Out-of-Order

What is an adjective?A word that describes a noun

Examples:

Small, giant, warm, bright, short, cute

Adjectives Out-of-OrderThe car went into the field.

The car, dented and rusty, went into the field.

Adjectives Out-of-Order Brush Strokes

The _____________, ____________, _____________ pit bull turned toward the intruders.

Brainstorm:List 6 adjectives that could describe a pit bull?

long lean gruesome

beastly strong mighty

Adjectives Out-of-Order Brush Strokes

You can also shift the placement of the adjectives in the sentence to give more of an effect.

The _____________ pit bull, ____________ and _____________ turned toward the intruders.

Adjectives Out-of-Order Brush Strokes Description 1.1

The ________, ________, ________ baby leopard listened to his father’s commanding

roar.

Brainstorm a list of 6 adjectives you might use in this sentence

Image Blanks

•Next eliminate adjectives writers call “image blanks.”

•Image blanks are adjectives that don’t create a picture in your mind.

•Examples: neat, beautiful, fascinating, and horrible•These sorts of words label how you feel, but they don’t paint an image.

•Image adjectives leave a picture in your mind.•Examples: tiny, red, furry, narrow, toothless, and sharp

Image AdjectivesDescription 1.2

•Now revise your sentences about the leopard using only image adjectives.

Image Adjectives Out-of-OrderDescription 1.3

Use this sentence template to create a sentence with adjectives out-of-order.

The ______________ baby leopard, _____________ and ____________, listened to his father’s commandingroar.

Adjectives Out-of-OrderDescription 2

Using the sentence below. Rework the adjectives to where they appear out of order.

1st: Identify the adjectives.2nd: Create a new order for them in the sentence that

will have a greater impact.

His soiled, wrinkled, calloused hands portrayed a life of hard labor.

________ _________ ___________

Adjectives Out-of-OrderDescription 3

Fill in the blanks with adjectives that create a visual image.

The _____________ jogger, _______________ and __________________, slowed from a fast sprint to a

slow walk.

“Nothing is as critical as the use of action verbs. This is

absolutely – utterly, completely, with shrieking boldface and CAPITAL

LETTERS – CENTRAL to good writing.”

- Jon Franklin, two time Pulitzer Prize winner

Being Verb:

The car WENT into the field.

•What image do you get in your head when reading this sentence?

•Is it a powerful image?

Adding an active verb:

The car CHUGGED into the field.

•What image do you get in your head when reading this sentence?

•Is it a powerful image?

Linking Verbs and Helping Verbs:

is, am, are, was, were, be, being, been, has, have, had, do, does, did, shall, will, should,

would, may, might, must, can, could

Eliminating Linking Verbs and Helping Verbs

These verbs show no emotion and give no help in adding an image.

Eliminate as many of these verbs as possible in the following passage.

You’ll have to replace these verbs with action verbs.

Eliminating Linking Verbs and Helping Verbs

I went on an African safari last year. While there, I had a scare. People were yelling and

screaming because an angry rhino was on the loose. I thought I would die. But I got

through it.

Eliminating Linking Verbs and Helping Verbs

I journeyed to Africa for a safari last year. People ran scared and screaming because

an angry rhino was on the loose. Faced with death, I forged through it.

Eliminating Linking Verbs and Helping Verbs by Combining Sentences

Sometimes you can eliminate being verbs by simply combining two sentences.

Eliminating Linking Verbs and Helping Verbs by Combining Sentences

Derek Jeter recently signed a six-year contract for $88.5 million. He is one of the

Yankees’ best short-stops.

How can we combine these sentences to get rid of the being verb?

___

Eliminating Linking Verbs and Helping Verbs by Combining Sentences

Derek Jeter, one of the Yankees’ best short-stops, recently signed a six-year contract for

$88.5 million.

Brushstrokes can Replace Linking Verbs

The storm woke me in the middle of the night. The lightning was striking. The thunder was exploding like grenades.

Any ideas???

Brushstrokes can Replace Linking Verbs

Lightning striking, thunder exploding like grenades, the storm woke me in the middle

of the night.