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I know that CIADISH readers are often interested in turning their hands, pens, keyboards to new creative challenges, and so maybe you would consider creating a sensory story. Over the coming articles I will give you more insight into how to do this, and into things you might want to consider as you do this. I’ll also tell you more about the stories and the journey they and I have been on together, but to get you started, here are the two ingredients of a truly super sensory story:
First of all you need concise text, typically a sensory story is told in 8 – 10 sentences. It might not seem like a lot but you can create atmosphere with your choice of words, you can imply style in the way that you write, you can create rhythm and rhyme, you can write as if you were a news report, you can write as if you were composing poetry for a lover, you can write in the style of 1960s sci fi and so on. 8 – 10 sentences is not a limit, it is a creative challenge. Think of sensory stories as a sibling to Haiku. In later articles I will explain more about the significance of the concise text and within that you may find wiggle room for the 8-10 sentences limit!
Keep It Concise
Once you have your 8-10 sentences you need to find your sensory experiences: not all sensory experiences are equal and in my next article for Ciadish, I will explore what makes for a rich sensory experience, so get started with the text, have a think about the sensations but maybe hold fire on those until you’ve read my next piece. For now I will tell you that you’ll need to map at least 5, preferably 7 sensory systems across your story. I find that it helps to write the story first and do the sensory mapping later, otherwise you can end up with a story dictated by sensations the author thought would be interesting, but thinking about the sensory potential of your narrative might give you new inspiration in your writing so this is not a super strict rule.
Find out more about Sensory Stories at TheSensoryProjects.co.uk
Sense Like a Synaesthesioid: Purple is a spiked thing lingering at eye level.