As I read Kristin Hannah’s new book, I was struck anew by her descriptive writing, but especially her use of color to convey tone. Descriptions of bright colors seemed to leap off the page. Judicious use of color can add pop and sparkle, enhance the mood, reflect emotion, and provide concrete details that help the reader picture a scene.
Here are a few examples.
White and pink are lively, fun, calm colors:
“…wallpapered in roses and white baskets, held twin beds ruffled in pink bedding” (10)
Alliteration accompanies vivid descriptions:
“…gleaming gold of her hardwood floors…” (16)
“…long ago painted in bright blues and greens and pale pinks to reflect the Victorian fishing village theme” (22)
Gray is often used to create a somber or depressed tone:
“…the Pacific Ocean was a windblown gray sail that stretched to forever…” (22)
“The sky was an ominous gunmetal gray…” (80).
Color can be used to denote changes:
“…those tiny green leaves would curl and blacken…” (4)
“The shingles, once a cedar red, had aged to the color of driftwood, silvery soft. The white trim was barely a contrast at all” (23)
This is a veritable riot of colors, showcasing the personality of Angie’s sister Livvy through her furnishings and fashion:
“Pale blue velvet sofas faced each other, separated by a glossy wood table. The accent chairs were ornately gilt; the fabric was pink and blue flowers. The sculpted carpet was orange” (68).
“…she looked like a Bic pen in her black silk sheath…” (7)
Contrast the first description of Angie’s mother with the subsequent description of her rich boyfriend David’s home:
“She was porcelain pale; blue-black mascara smudged around her eyes. The faintest hint of her once-great beauty remained, like a glimmer of gold trim on a dirty china plate, peeking through” (36).
“Beautiful, translucent bone china rimmed in gold sat on ivory silk placemats. Gold flatware glinted in the light of a single candle” (64).
As I revise my historical novel Remnant, I am cognizant of using color to convey mood, emotion, and detail. Here are a few examples. When the main character and her brother are kidnapped in Africa, the mood is solemn, traumatic, and the colors need to reflect and match the mood:
“…the woman tied a dirty gray rag across my mouth and around the back of my head, forcing my tongue to the back of my throat, and then did the same to Ledu…”
When I visited Magnolia Gardens, a plantation in South Carolina, I was struck by the juxtaposition of beauty and ugliness. Slavery existed in the south in some stunningly beautiful places. I wanted to convey this sense of dissonance in my novel.
“I looked back at the pen where men and women were being sold, and ahead to the ocean, swelling in all its glory. How could this world be so ugly and so beautiful? As the sun began to set over the horizon, we were momentarily stunned at the beauty of it. The reds and yellows were shot through with purples and pinks, painting the sky with uneven swaths of bright color.”
What have you read lately where color was used to great effect? Or, what are you writing now, and how are you incorporating colors in your writing? I look forward to your comments.
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