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Sometimes an author over uses words that take away from the sentence. I love descriptions that help us as a reader vision what the place or characters look like. But over using doesn’t add to a story but takes away.

I have not read this book but know exactly what you mean. It annoys me when there is too much description.i have a great imagination and that is why i like to read.when an author over describes, it takes away from the book and i tend to skip over some of it.i never skip parts of a story either.

I found the detailed descriptions useful especially because I'm not from Australia and therefore am not familiar with some of what she was describing. As far as the writing style and would Natalie have really noticed that much detail, I think the answer may be 'yes' to both. In addition to the author maybe writing in that style, there may have been the perspective that Natalie was telling the story from her adult self reflecting back. In addition, she had described in the story how, as part of her learning to paint landscapes, she was also learning to observe those kinds of details.

There were times when a novel gets too descriptive I get lost in it and it tends to make me lose the real essence of the paragraph. Thus, the continuity of the feelings and emotions that I should experience is cut in the process.

On occasion, I do find excessive description to be frustrating. If there is too much, it can really get in the way of the story. I don't mind it if it is necessary to the plot and its purpose is revealed as the story evolves. But I hate it when an author starts describing in detail the dimensions of a room or the type of material the drapes are made of if it has no bearing on what is going on in the plot. Recently, in a mystery that I was reading, every time a character entered the scene the author found it necessary to detail what the character was wearing. It became so distracting that I decided I could not finish the book and I gave it away. I mean, unless what a character is wearing is important to the plot or the atmosphere of the story, what difference does it make what they are wearing?

The author may some time may be little more descriptive than what would be optimal. It may be that, they are caught up in a doubt whether the sentences are portraying the picture fully or not.

Jbluestocking2 wrote: ↑12 May 2018, 20:12 I loved the author's writing style and use of diverse vocabulary and descriptive language. But I do read a lot of classic novels and Ironbark Hill had a very similar feel to those. Many modern authors use a much more conversational, efficient style that has a faster pace. I wonder if our generation becoming accustomed to all things in sensory overload (video, tv, film) doesn't cause us to mentally object to that slower, more ponderous manner of writing. It does take effort sometimes to slow down and really think about what I'm reading, to enjoy the use of language as much as the storytelling.

That's an excellent point.

I have read quite a few books by new authors with this problem. I know from my creative writing classes that writers are encouraged to use descriptive language to paint a picture for the reader. But sometimes a chair is just a chair.

I actually fell in love with her writing because of this. I thought it was just enough description told in unique language that didn't feel cliched or ambiguous as is a problem for most authors.

Tbunde5 wrote: ↑17 May 2018, 21:40 I have read quite a few books by new authors with this problem. I know from my creative writing classes that writers are encouraged to use descriptive language to paint a picture for the reader. But sometimes a chair is just a chair.

I love descriptive language, but I have to agree. Sometimes it is just too much. There is a difference between painting a picture and being redundant or long-winded.

Yeah, I think she was going for a classic Romantic style, so the tendency toward adjectives can seem requisite in that style. Personally, I think that if you're writing in a Romantic style, it's better to focus on how and where you use adjectives and adverbs than to just use a ton of them. Still, I was able to get into the prose of this book too.

The purpose of writing is to communicate. When you convey ideas, there is no more question as to the method if you used less or you used more, as long as the act is done. If overly descriptive? Then, the next book may be so barrenly dry. We have variety. (just kidding, I think you are right.)

maggiechap wrote: ↑18 May 2018, 11:22 I actually fell in love with her writing because of this. I thought it was just enough description told in unique language that didn't feel cliched or ambiguous as is a problem for most authors.

I definitely agree that the language was original and not ambiguously cliched but, at times, it just seemed that the author was trying a little too hard. It was almost as if she had a tight grasp on a thesaurus the entire time she was writing. I didn't find it terrible but, sometimes, less is more.

I like description in books, especially lengthy ones. So I don't think they were too descriptive at all! The more you can taste, touch, feel what the author is trying to get across the better you can try understanding the book.

kastle wrote: ↑22 May 2018, 17:12 I like description in books, especially lengthy ones. So I don't think they were too descriptive at all! The more you can taste, touch, feel what the author is trying to get across the better you can try understanding the book.

I've thought a lot about why the descriptive language bothered me. After re-reading several passages, I figured out a more specific "why." There's an overuse of descriptive adjectives. Sometimes the author chose to use 2+ adjectives to modify the noun, but both descriptive words shared the same meaning. Other times, there were adjectives used to describe actions, as a result, the descriptive language took away from the action itself. For instance:

"satisfied smirk"
"protracted leisure"
"cheerful, sanguine old fellow"
"glancing briefly"
"With startling suddenness, Slim let out a blast of alerting barks..."