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: About one minute I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. I write today about similes from Yoko Ogawa…. Yoko Ogawa is a Japanese writer who has published more than 20 works of fiction and nonfiction, and has won every major Japanese […]
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Reading time: About 1 minute I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. I write today about similes and metaphors from Mary Choi…. I have three sisters so I’m always up for novels exploring the often-crazy dynamics of family relationships. The delightful novel Yolk,
The figurative language of Mary Choi… 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 Stephen McCauley… American novelist Stephen McCauley (pictured above), started his working life by teaching yoga, working at a hotel,
The figurative language of Stephen McCauley… 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 from Lisa Brennan-Jobs…. When I read the rave reviews of Lisa Brennan-Jobs’ memoir, about her life with her father Steve Jobs, I
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Reading time: Less than 1 minute I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. I write today about several similes from Candian writer Wayne Grady…. A translator, writer and writing teacher, Wayne Grady, is also the son of an African-Canadian father who passed for
The figurative language of Wayne Grady…. 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 R.O. Kwon…. R. O. Kwon (pictured above) is an American novelist. She was born in Seoul, South Korea, and
The figurative language of R.O. Kwon…. 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 from Stacia Pelletier…. The plot of the novel The Half Wives by American writer Stacia Pelletier (pictured above), did not sound promising to
The figurative language of Stacia Pelletier…. Read More »
Reading time: About 1 minute I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. I write today about similes and metaphors from Canadian novelist David Chariandy…. A Canadian writer, who won the Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize in 2017, David Chariandy (pictured above), grew up in Toronto and
The figurative language of David Chariandy… Read More »
Reading time: Just over 1 minute I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. I write today about metaphors and similes from Rachel Syme… A New York Times Magazine article by Rachel Syme about the movie A Star Is Born, had me ready to
The figurative language of Rachel Syme…. Read More »
Reading time: About 2 minutes I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. I write today about similes and metaphors from Jonathan Rosen… I have mixed feelings about a new memoir by Jonathan Rosen. On the one hand, I believe The Best Minds explores
The figurative language of Jonathan Rosen… Read More »
