In your first draft, you might not think a lot about how to format onomatopoeia, and that’s okay so long as you revisit it in the editing stage. The author and I worked together to get this right because if done correctly, onomatopoeia can put the reader in the setting as if it’s happening in real time, regardless of the book being written in first person or third person (and, rarely in fiction, in second person). When working on this scene, it was important to not only incorporate the sound of the ball, but build up the tension. Readers can almost feel the frustration build as the ball repeatedly hits the wall and experience reliefs as the noise stops. In the scene where sound is a crucial element of storytelling, a character throws a tennis ball against a wall repeatedly during a conversation until his brother knocks it away in annoyance. One of my favorite examples from over the years working as an editor for fiction writers comes from Jeff Altabef’s SHATTER POINT (no spoilers below). Adding in sensory elements using onomatopoeia assists this. That participation is essential to your success, so it’s important to incorporate it as often as you can. There is no better place to be as a writer than when a reader feels like they’re part of the action. You want your readers to engage the story, and applying onomatopoeia helps with the idea of “show, don’t tell” many writers adopt in order to enrich their stories. Using the concept of onomatopoeia in your storytelling helps your readers use other senses to understand what is taking place. Words like sizzle and snap and ping are perfect examples of onomatopoeia you can use not only to describe the sound within description, but the words also stand alone as verbs.įor instance, the word sizzle works well here: “The sizzle of the fajita dish and brightly colored peppers adorning the plate piqued his interest as his mouth began to water.”Īre you hungry yet after reading that? I sure am! Onomatopoeia is a term that describes when a word is formed from the sound associated with what it’s named. Can you smell the sugar and flour hanging in the air or visualize the glowing horizon? In the same way that smell and sight memories trigger our senses, so too can the description of sound help us relate to the action in a story. Think about the last time you smelled a freshly baked cake coming out of the oven or watched the tangerine glow of a sunset. No matter if you write in first person or third person, your story (and ultimately, your readers) benefit when you bring in other senses. Many writers are familiar with the ways in which sounds can improve their storytelling. Boom! Pow! Whoosh! No, this is not an episode of Batman in the making, but the essential elements of sound every fiction writer must incorporate into their writing.
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