Show, Don’t Tell

Show, don’t tell

"Show, don’t tell" means letting readers experience a story through actions, senses, and dialogue instead of outright explaining things. Here are some practical tips to achieve that:

1. Use Sensory Details

Tell: "The room was cold."

Show: "Her breath puffed in faint clouds, and she shivered as frost clung to the edges of the window."

Tell: "He was scared."

Show: "His hands trembled, and his heart thudded so loudly he was sure they could hear it too."

2. Focus on Actions

Tell: "She was angry."

Show: "She slammed the mug onto the counter, coffee sloshing over the rim as her jaw clenched."

Tell: "He was exhausted."

Show: "He stumbled through the door, collapsing onto the couch without even bothering to remove his shoes."

3. Use Dialogue

What characters say and how they say it can reveal their emotions, intentions, or traits.

Tell: "She was worried about the storm."

Show: "Do you think it'll reach us?" she asked, her voice tight, her fingers twisting the hem of her shirt.

4. Show Internal Conflict Through Thoughts or Reactions

Tell: "He was jealous of his friend."

Show: "As his friend held up the trophy, he forced a smile, swallowing the bitter lump rising in his throat."

5. Describe the Environment to Reflect Mood

Use the setting to mirror or hint at emotions or themes.

Tell: "The town was eerie."

Show: "Empty streets stretched into the mist, and the only sound was the faint creak of a weathered sign swinging in the wind."

6. Let Readers Infer Through Context

Give enough clues for the reader to piece things together without spelling it out.

Tell: "The man was a thief."

Show: "He moved through the crowd, fingers brushing pockets, his hand darting away with a glint of gold."

7. Use Subtext in Interactions

What’s left unsaid can reveal as much as what’s spoken.

Tell: "They were uncomfortable around each other."

Show: "He avoided her eyes, pretending to study the painting on the wall. She smoothed her dress for the third time, her fingers fumbling with the hem."

8. Compare to Relatable Experiences

Use metaphors, similes, or comparisons to make an emotion or situation vivid.

Tell: "The mountain was huge."

Show: "The mountain loomed above them, its peak disappearing into the clouds, as if it pierced the heavens."

Practice Example:

Tell: "The village had been destroyed by the fire."

Show: "Charred beams jutted from the rubble like broken ribs, the acrid smell of ash lingering in the air. A child's shoe lay half-buried in the soot, its leather curled from the heat."

Would you still love me if I were a worm but for a dog

Would you still love me if I were a worm,

Which is to say, would you still love me if I couldn’t take you on walks Which is to say, would you still love me if I couldn’t feed you Which is to say, would you still love me if I didn’t play with you Which is to say, would you still love me if I didn’t kiss your head and pet your fur Which is to say, would you still love me if I didn’t serve you?

If I could provide you nothing, would you still come to me tail wagging Place your head in my lap, lick at my lotioned legs, Whine when I ignore you, chase me when I run from you?

Or would you find someone new, someone who could give you all those things And more. Would it even hurt for you to leave me, or would I be an afterthought? I’d like to think you’d never leave my side, no matter what Man’s best friend and all.

We’ve been together for so long, not us two but humans and canines. When we leave for the stars will you come with us? I’d take you with, I’d take you anywhere I went.

You were made to serve us, but it is us that serve you To a dog, man is God And who would worship a God if they could give no boons, answer no prayers, quell no storms, bless no harvests Which is to say, I don’t deserve your worship

Someone once said that humans are a dog’s whole life while they’re only a chapter to us. What a terribly sad thing to say. You deserve a whole novel

You give me so much and I give nothing in return I weep into your fur and you wait patiently, I injure myself and you try lick the wound to help I lag behind you as you run and you slow and look back waiting for me, I step on your tail and you cry but immediately forgive me, I hold you as you tremble from the thunder that I can do nothing about

I know this is a Dog eat dog world, so I would not feel betrayed If you stopped loving me So I ask again, would you still love me if I were a worm?

A rabbit begs a fox to not be be eaten

Little rabbit, with soft white fur like fresh fallen snow, Where are you running to?

Big fox, I’m off to the bakers, to the beavers, to the beach by brewery lane, And you aren’t welcome.

Little rabbit, I am as kind as a cool summer wind soothing a fever, Why am I not welcome?

Big fox, with your big jowls and teeth, you will eat me whole Slurp up all my bones.

Little rabbit, never in my life for I love you so You quick footed spirit I cannot catch.

Big fox truly? Truly with your corn eyes, your bone teeth, your sunset fur Do you truly love this little rabbit?

I always have and I always will Little Rabbit. You have a big heart Fox. Bigger than you and I. ......................................................................

Big fox, where did you run off to? I couldn’t find you in the stream, in the strawberry bush, in the shadows of the sycamore tree.

Little rabbit, I was not far, not far at all. I went to see if the hedgehogs had any bread to spare during this harsh winter.

Big fox, thank you for trying, thank you loving me, Though my fur is falling out, I’m all skin and bones, and I don’t have much energy for anything these days.

Little rabbit, but of course and thank you for still loving me, Despite my yellow teeth, and patchy fur, and growling stomach

Big fox, I will always love you, You promised not to eat me and even though we have little you have yet to break your promise.

Little rabbit, I never will. Big fox, now come lets see if we can find any berries.

......................................................................

Little rabbit, I am sorry for what I must do, But my stomach can’t survive on love alone and this winter has been so cold.

Big fox, you promised to love me forever, You swore it under the eucalyptus tree, under the Everdeen bridge, under the everglowing moon.

Little rabbit, can’t you see? My stomach aches so badly, my body feels so weak, my tongue has not tasted meat in so many months now.

Big fox, eat someone else! You can’t eat me, I'm terribly thin like you and I wouldn’t taste great.

Little rabbit, you will do, you will do. Curse me not for what I do, curse my nature as a fox.

Big fox, so that’s what it is? I am the rabbit and you the fox so I must run and you must chase?

Little rabbit, yes such is our way. We were deluded to think it could be otherwise

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