Visualization

I have been thinking about the importance of visualization. Some writers offer very lean descriptions of their characters and settings. Others fill in every detail. I tend to do the latter. Perhaps it is because I want my readers to envision a place or a person exactly as I do. I want my settings to be vivid and distinct; I want my characters to be as real as possible with descriptions that allow the reader to see clearly, as if a photograph were placed in front of him or her.

I believe details allow for deeper perceptions and insights into just who a character is, going beyond physical aspects to reveal personality traits and quirks. Maybe I’m mistaken, but it seems to me that the “tall, dark, and handsome man” is likely to be better understood if I describe his slightly tousled, thick, ebony hair; the cobalt eyes rimmed with dark, straight lashes; the chiseled face with high cheekbones and a sturdy jaw softened by a two-day growth of blackish-grey whiskers; the wisp of a smile, mouth parted slightly revealing startlingly white teeth and a tongue that quickly moistens his upper lip. I want to know him better.

So, visualization . . . how important is it? I suppose a writer can offer only so much; the rest is up to the reader, and it is probably accurate to say that some of us are better at visualizing than others. Perhaps it’s a gift.