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: Just over 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 Polish writer Olga Tokarczuk… Named as the winner of the 2018 Nobel Prize for Literature, Polish writer and activist Olga Tokarczuk …
The figurative language of Olga Tokarczuk… 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 a series of similes and metaphors from Ocean Vuong…. Ocean Vuong is a young Vietnamese-American poet, essayist and novelist, who was born on a rice farm in …
The figurative language of Ocean Vuong… 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 similes and metaphors from Aminatta Forna…. Aminatta Forna (pictured above) was born in Scotland, raised in Sierra Leone and Great Britain and spent …
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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 a series of similes and metaphors from Brit Bennett…. Brit Bennett (pictured above) was born and raised in Southern California and graduated from Stanford University. Later, …
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Reading time: Just over 1 minute I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. I write today about such writing from Tejal Rao… I have been a bagel fan since 1980. That year, I made a trip to visit a friend in the East, …
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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 some metaphors from Rachel Friedman… The book’s subtitle says it all: On Creativity, Potential and the Imperfect Art of Adulthood. A tiny, perfect book by Rachel …
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Reading time: Less than 2 minutes I like to share interesting pieces of figurative language I encounter in my reading. I write today about similes and metaphors from John le Carré… I don’t read much “genre” fiction so it might surprise you that I consider myself a John le Carré …
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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 similes from Suleika Jaouad… Suleika Jaouad (pictured above) was just 22-years-old when she was given the grim statistic that her odds of survival …
The figurative language of Suleika Jaouad… 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 a series of similes and metaphors from Gene Fowler…. Gene Fowler was always eminently quotable. My favourite line of his is: “Writing is easy. All you …
The figurative language of Gene Fowler… 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 Francis Spufford…. I can no longer remember where I heard about the marvellous work by Francis Spufford, The Child …
The figurative language of Francis Spufford… Read More »
