5 Instances When You Need To Tell (Not Show) In Your Writing
Learn when to break the ‘show don’t tell’ rule. Discover five instances where telling can improve your writing and strengthen your story.
Writers know that showing is better than telling. They also know that a good story needs some telling.
Sometimes your characters need a break. They may need time to think, reflect, or retreat for a moment. Time moves forward, and many events in a character’s life are not important enough to show in detail. Sometimes it is better to simply tell your readers what happened.
Telling is sometimes called summary mode. It is one of the few times you get to tell the reader what happens, but it should be used sparingly. If overused, it can become boring because it distances readers from the viewpoint character’s goals and actions.
Try to keep telling to a few paragraphs, or, in rare cases, a short chapter. Too much telling can lead to author intrusion.
5 Instances When You Need To Tell (Not Show) In Your Writing
1. To connect scenes, introduce characters, or gloss over unnecessary conversations.
Sometimes you need to make your readers comfortable with a brief transition that shows them where they are in the story. You may also need to introduce a character without allowing their arrival to distract from the main plot. Characters might have travelled to another city, moved to a different room, or a short period of time may have passed.
Example: ‘Jeremy waited until five minutes past eight the next morning before he marched into The Michelangelo Towers. He had spent the night obsessing about his future. Kirsten’s demands echoed in his head and he could barely think straight. He walked to the check-in counter and asked the concierge to call Room 303.’
2. To report events or gloss over unimportant characters.
You can tell readers about events in your character’s life that are not important enough to show in the story.
For example, if your story is set in a school environment, you can briefly tell us how the characters spent their Christmas holidays. Don’t introduce a series of characters who have nothing to do with the main story. simply say: ‘After a quiet Christmas with their families, the students returned to school relaxed and ready for the new term.’
3. To show that time is passing.
Books can span days, years, or even decades. Readers do not need to experience every moment. Use telling to reveal that time has passed, seasons have changed, or people have aged so that you can move the story towards the next important part of the story.
Example: ‘Summer slipped into autumn. By the time Emma harvested the last tomatoes, the fence had weathered, the trees had turned gold, and she had almost forgotten the letter that changed everything.’
4. To focus on emotion when showing is impossible.
Sometimes a character is so isolated or immobile that telling is the best way to explore their emotions. Bear in mind, though, that this is an older style of writing. Madame Bovary would not be published today. Move your character back into the action of the story as soon as possible.
Example: ‘Daniel lay motionless in the hospital bed. For the first time in his life, he felt completely powerless. Every hour seemed longer than the last, and the silence gave him too much time to think about everything he had lost.’
5. To add backstory.
Sometimes a little telling is necessary. When there is no other way to introduce the past, you can add it, but reveal these details gradually. Keep backstory brief, and remember that you should not begin a novel or memoir with a long explanation of what happened before the story starts.
Example: ‘When Sarah was eight years old, her parents divorced. She moved to three different schools before she turned twelve. She never made close friends, and by the time she graduated, she trusted no one.’
The Last Word
‘Show don’t tell’ is an important writing principle, but it is not an unbreakable rule. Understanding when to tell allows writers to control pacing, provide important information, and create a stronger connection with readers. The best stories use both showing and telling, with each technique serving a clear purpose.
If you enjoyed this post, read:
- Show! Don’t tell. Avoid these 10 verbs when you write
- 3 Simple Ways To Show And Not Tell
- Show Don’t Tell: 5 Simple Techniques Every Writer Should Know
by Amanda Patterson
© Amanda Patterson
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1 thought on “5 Instances When You Need To Tell (Not Show) In Your Writing”
Thank you very much for this unconventional writing tips. I have always known that the best writers are those who learn the rules, know the rules, bend the rules and purposefully break the rules when necessary.