Sighting a wild moose, deep-brown lips sloshing with river water, I rest my damp canoe paddle on my lap, the end drip-dripping like the liquid from her hairy neck. I am afraid to breathe. She watches our canoe; we watch her. My gaze moves from her dark eyes to her muscular shoulders, her height above us. The deep-moving, green-black water below brings us close. We tense. She dips her head again to drink, my dad dips his canoe paddle slowly into the river, and I follow, falling into the smooth motion, giving thanks for a moment of peace with the wild.
The Power of Imagery with Nina Schuyler
September 12 & 13 on Zoom
Enrollment closes Thursday, September 3 at 7:00 PM Pacific
If your descriptions are vivid but your stories still feel thin, this workshop is for you.
Join award-winning author Nina Schuyler to learn the difference between description, which tells a reader what things look like, and imagery, which carries plot, character, and meaning at the same time.
In just two days, you'll learn to choose images that hold emotion without naming it, pair them so each one deepens the other, and build patterns that gather meaning as the story moves.
This is a beautiful still piece.
Thank you so much!
Oh that really is lovely. You’ve given me a moment with my morning coffee too – thank you!
You’ve made my day! Thank you so much!
Nice tension! My family had a similar experience while kayaking the Crooked River in Maine, the difference being, this mama moose had a baby by her side. Talk about a sweat-drenched few seconds of fear??! She turned and marched baby into the woods. Whew!
Poetic and atmospheric.
I love the descriptive detail about the moose. A well-written account.
Thank you!