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: 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 David Bergen… I had searched for the book The Case of Lena S. by David Bergen (pictured above) since its publication in 2012. The novel […]
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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 a series of similes from Rebecca Kauffman… I love it when I book I pull randomly from a library shelf, written by an author I’ve never heard of before, turns out to
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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 simile from Kurt Palka… I had high hopes for the novel The Piano Maker by Kurt Palka. By all appearances, it should have been a finely written literary novel. An
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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 figurative language from Joyce Carol Oates… I generally consider myself pretty well-read, in part because I received a good education and also because I’m a voracious reader. Nevertheless, I recognize there are huge
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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 a series of metaphors from American writer Elif Batuman… Elif Batuman (pictured above) was born in New York City to Turkish parents. She graduated from Harvard College, and received her doctorate in comparative literature from Stanford University. She
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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 metaphors relating to time… I just about gave up on the podcast S-Town, produced by the same team who brings us This American Life and Serial. Initially, the story of John B McLemore
The figurative language of time… 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 British writer Claire Fuller… I recently finished the exquisitely written novel Swimming Lessons by British writer Claire Fuller. To be fair, I don’t think she wrapped up
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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 and metaphors from Nell Stevens… One of my favourite books so far this year has been the memoir/travel book/novel Bleaker House by Nell Stevens. It tells the story of her three-month,
The figurative language of Nell Stevens… 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 Rose Tremain… I hadn’t read anything by British author Rose Tremain until I happened to pick up her most recent book, The Gustav Sonata, at my
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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 personification from Amy Krouse Rosenthal… Amy Krouse Rosenthal, an American children’s book author, memoirist and public speaker died of ovarian cancer this week in Chicago. She was 51. I had never heard of
The figurative language of Amy Krouse Rosenthal… Read More »
