Thursday, October 6, 2011

Squirrels: Show Me, Don't Just Tell Me

Many of you were very light in offering quotes. Why?

Quotes are good. Quotes allow us to elaborate on things and to put a human voice in the conversation and to give readers the confidence that they're not just taking your word for it; there's somebody else saying something to support what you're claiming.

Look at the way a quote graf helps support and build upon the first graf in this sequence:

After pulling into a gas station to get help, Kasparov said the attendant found a nest containing three baby squirrels under Kasparov's hood.

"The attendant put up the hood and then jumped back exclaiming, 'My God, what have you got in there?'" Kasparov said.

The first graf tells your readers, based on your summarization of events. The second graf shows your readers, via the direct words of a direct particpant.

Don't just tell readers. Show them.

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