Tuesday, December 7, 2010

A Little Salt


I love chocolate! I mean, probably to the point of obsession if I let myself get that far. From an early age, I have had a love affair with chocolate, and my youngest daughter seems to have picked up the same preference for chocolate above everything else. She will devour a whole six-pack of Hershey's chocolate bars if I don't put them waaaay up, out of her reach.

But I can't fault her because whether through heredity or environment, she gets it honest.

Lately though, I've found another obsession that still involves chocolate. Sweet and salty blended in layers of flavor, I'm talking about chocolate covered pretzels. Just when the luscious chocolate melts over my tongue, I get hit with another layer and crunch--salt. Ooooh! Big whoop! Chocolate covered pretzels. Why am I talking about flour, salt, and cocoa? How boring, right? But before you click away, let me say that I had an epiphany while scarfing some down today.

My writing is like chocolate to me. Now bear with me. To me, it's rich and smooth, and I love the "taste" of it in my mouth (if you will). But often I find, in comparison to published work, it is one-layer when it comes to the flavor. It needs a little salt, a little deeper flavor profile when it comes to the characters (no stereotypes), the plots (not the same old), the word choice (Mo' Urban Dictionary, anyone?), the pacing, the conflict, the sexual tension, etc.

So now that I've finished a novel draft and a short story draft, I'm going back to add the salt. I'm adding just enough to create some crunch and a whole different layer of flavor. Maybe I just need to grab a snack. Then I can get back to revisions without distractions.
Happy writing!

2 comments:

  1. Writing is like food for the soul, isn't it? I love your chocolate analogy, and I, too, am a chocaholic! All the best with your short stories, and other WIP's! :)

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  2. Thanks for stopping by Kellie. It's funny how much I relate food and writing. My creative juices flow at the keyboard and at the stove.

    Thanks for the well wishes and good luck with your poetry!

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