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 and metaphors from Jesmyn Ward…. I’m not usually drawn to books best described as “bleak.” I usually prefer to live on the […]
The figurative language of Jesmyn Ward… 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 Alexandria Marzano-Lesnevich…. A rivetting hybrid of murder mystery and memoir, The Fact of a Body by Alexandria Marzano-Lesnevich, was named one
The figurative language of Alexandria Marzano-Lesnevich 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 the personification, similes and metaphors of scholar Tara Westover… The story of Tara Westover is almost impossible to believe. An American author living in the UK,
The figurative language of Tara Westover… 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 from Luis Alberto Urrea… I bought and read the novel The House of Broken Angels by Luis Alberto Urea (pictured above) after hearing
The figurative language of Luis Alberto Urrea… 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 Rachel Khong… Unless I take careful notes, I usually can’t remember who has recommended individual books to me. This
The figurative language of Rachel Khong… 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 Tayari Jones…. I read a couple of laudatory reviews of the novel An American Marriage by Tayari Jones (pictured above) and
The figurative language of Tayari Jones… 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 simile and personification from Jon McGregor… British novelist and short story writer, Jon McGregor (pictured above) had his first novel If Nobody Speaks of Remarkable Things longlisted for
The figurative language of Jon McGregor… 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 similies from Lisa Ko… The first of her family to be born in the US, Chinese-American writer Lisa Ko (pictured above) is the
The figurative language of Lisa Ko… 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 metaphors and similes from Kathryn Schulz… As a longtime fan of the New Yorker, I keep an eye out for writers I like.
The figurative language of Kathryn Schulz… 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 Michael Redhill… It was the promise of a doppelganger that led me to read the award-winning novel Bellevue Square by Michael Redhill.
The figurative language of Michael Redhill… Read More »
