Sharpen Your Prose With Simile

If you want to sharpen your next novel, use simile.

No, not on every page (unless you're writing humor), but anywhere it's appropriate to make your meaning clearer and deeper.

Your readers will thank you for making your novel more memorable with such images, and you'll thank yourself when it makes your novel more popular, too.


As Alike As Two Peas...

If you've ever read a passage comparing two things with "like" or "as" to connect them, you've seen a simile.

Like it's cousins the metaphor and analogy , you're transferring the characteristics of one thing to another thing. Making a connection your reader has not yet made, and by doing so, making your description more vivid.

A metaphor actually equates two things, while similes allow the two things to remain distinct from each other, even while creating a connection between them.

Some examples include sayings such as "you're crazy as a loon" and "The beard on his chin was as white as the snow!" (From "The Night Before Christmas"). "That idea is clear as crystal" (or if it's not, it's "clear as mud") is another good example.

You've probably heard many of these. Which is good - and bad - if you want to use them yourself. If they're too well known, they become cliche, and turn readers away, instead of drawing them deeper into the world you're creating.

If, on the other hand, you can create fresh ones yourself, wonderful! Not only are you ahead of the pack (which is lazier and uses any old figure of speech they see or hear), but you're well on your way to being a better writer.


He Speaks Like An Angel

I've always thought it would be fun to create a character who speaks in simile, alliteration or metaphor most of the time. Clearly, this wouldn't be appropriate for all genres (or would it fit right into horror...?), but for some, it will make a memorable character.

That's one way to use simile. Probably kind of tough, but, as I said, it might be fun to try.

More often, it will be used in your description. From character's looks to the setting to the action, these descriptive phrases can enrich your prose.

"Her smile is as bright as a beam of sunlight, lighting up a whole room on the rare occasion it's used."

This gives your readers a vibrant image they'll remember much longer than "she had a great smile" will.

And you want them drooling for more of your books, so using such literary devices will help (in moderation, remember).


A Way With Words

You can create your own arsenal of similes by keeping an idea file, just like you do for novel ideas. When something strikes you as two things that are similar (while maintaining their differences), jot it down, and use it next time you have the right place for it.

If you write about a particular subject a lot (like police dramas, high-tech thrillers, magic...) try to incorporate that into each figure of speech you create.

I write a fantasy series with a music guild as the main setting. When I want to create a more vivid image, I try to find something that relates to music.

For example, He loved listening to Damon murmur in Kynanscean while he worked. It sounded like music to his untrained ear.

I've compared a (made-up) language to music.

You should do the same. Use your novel's setting as fodder for your figures of speech. Use your hero's line of work. Just find something to connect them to your novel more deeply, so they really add to your prose.

Then you can laugh like a lunatic, all the way to the bank!