I know I risk sounding like an English teacher when I use the words “figurative language.” The phrase may sound frightening but figurative language will make your writing more interesting evocative and memorable. And who doesn’t want that –even in non-fiction? Here are some examples of figurative language:
• allusion
• hyperbole
• metaphor
• oxymoron
• personification
• paradox
• simile
I read widely and follow many forms of media, keeping my eyes and ears attuned to figurative language so I can share a piece of it with you each week.
Reading time: Less than 1 minute I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. I write today about a metaphor from a New York Times review of Benedict Cumberbatch playing Hamlet… I’m a big fan of the actor Benedict Cumberbatch. I find his acting to […]
Such whispery, self-effacing presences… Read More »
Reading time: Less than 1 minute I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. I write today about a series of metaphors and similes from Susan Jane Gilman… The non-fiction memoir, Undress Me In the Temple of Heaven, by Susan Jane Gilman, was recommended to me
The figurative language of Susan Jane Gilman… Read More »
Reading time: Less than 1 minute I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. I write today about a series of similes and metaphors from Gillian Flynn… I don’t typically read mysteries or thrillers (call my habit a character flaw if you like) but I
The figurative language of Gillian Flynn…. Read More »
Reading time: Less than 1 minute I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. I write today about a metaphor relating to a new book about the writer Joan Didion… I’m a huge fan of the writer Joan Didion. Two of her books — The
The figurative language of Joan Didion… Read More »
Reading time: Less than 1 minute I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. I write today about a metaphor from Ruth Pennebaker. Both my grandmothers and two of my aunts had breast cancer. I’ve stopped my endless to fretting about my risk, but I still
The figurative language of Ruth Pennebaker… Read More »
Reading time: Less than 1 minute I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. I write today about a simile from Helen Humphreys… I’m not typically a fan of “war” books but for some reason I’ve read two of them in the last few months and,
The figurative language of Helen Humphreys… Read More »
Reading time: Less than 2 minutes I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. I write today about a series of metaphors from Rachel Cusk. I wasn’t terribly impressed by the plot of the novel Saving Agnes by Rachel Cusk. The story of a young naive young
The figurative language of Rachel Cusk… Read More »
Reading time: Less than 1 minute I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. I write today about some metaphors and similes from Kimberly Cutter. As a child I became obsessed with the Tudor family and with Joan of Arc. I’m not sure to what I should attribute this interest
The figurative language of Kimberly Cutter… Read More »
Reading time: Less than 1 minute I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. I write today about a series of metaphors and similes from Hector Tobar… Over my summer holidays I read the novel The Barbarian Nurseries by Hector Tobar, a Los Angeles-based writer and journalist. The story
The figurative language of Hector Tobar… Read More »
Reading time: Less than 1 minute I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. I write today about two metaphors from Julian Barnes. The best book I read this summer was a true but fictionalized account of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (creator of Sherlock Holmes) and
The figurative language of Julian Barnes… Read More »
