The workshop in Portland that made me stop using 'show, don't tell' as a rule

I was at a writing workshop in Portland about three years ago, and the instructor said 'show, don't tell' was the worst advice for new writers. He argued it makes people write 30 pages of pointless description just to avoid a simple sentence like 'he was angry.' I used to follow that rule like a law, but now I just ask if the sentence moves the story forward. Has anyone else found that strict writing rules actually hold them back more than help?

3 comments

3 Comments

taylor_flores2mo ago

Rules are just training wheels, really.

-1

the_tara2mo ago

Training wheels for what, a free-for-all?

jackson.jenny1mo ago

Used to believe rules were just there to slow us down. Then I saw how they actually let people try new things without everything falling apart. @taylor_flores really nailed it with the training wheels idea. They're not about holding you back forever, they're about giving you the balance to start. Once you get going, you might not even need them, but they sure help at the beginning. It's the structure that makes the free-for-all possible later on.