It’s different for every writer.
Some writers struggle with dialogue. It’s easy for me,
because I hear the characters talk, and I often have to tell them it’s time to
be quiet.
I’ve had writing friends who said it’s the scenes that are the
most wrenching for their characters. For some reason, these flow for me. Maybe
because I feel the internal urge to plow through and get the characters out and
away from the pickle barrels I threw them into.
For me, it’s the quiet descriptive passages I have the
hardest time putting into words. Almost every editor I have worked with has suggested
I add more to expand and enrich these quiet moments of physical observations.
I’ve had dialogue cuts suggested and whole scenes
eliminated. But I have yet to have feedback that said “cut description.”
Could it be because I began with picture book writing, where
description should be left to the art? Maybe, but no matter. I know this is
where my storytelling needs help.
And this is the point. It’s important to know one’s Achilles
heel.
