A Little Fat in the Fiction is Healthy

Specific details are important in story writing. This sounds obvious, which is why I have to talk about it now.

I am usually attuned to conciseness, sometimes only concerned with telling the key details of a story, avoiding saturating the text with the obvious. But, working through my Mukoma manuscript, a collection of connected short stories, which I should not be talking about because I am still working on it, I have noticed that I am happier with drafts that are generous with details. The stuff of life in Mazvihwa, in Harare, in Gweru.

I even find myself describing "these people", the people in the world of my characters. I am aware that these are details which will not sound obvious to a lot of my readers, including those who know the context and setting of my stories. The stories are informed by my experiences, and when I share them, I have to give sufficient details for my readers.

It feels great to add a little fat to the fiction.

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