Show, don't tell

(What? Two posts in two days? Yeah, yeah, don't count on this ever again.)

So, yesterday I was killing a few minutes in the car while Fozzie and Beaker were napping while we were waiting for Kermie's playschool to let out. I had the radio tuned to the Oldies station and was once again musing about how offensive it is to me that they now consider 80s music to be the Oldies.  Anyways, on comes the delectable "Raspberry Beret" by Prince. I was smiling and dancing in my seat, singing (quietly) along with the lyrics when I was struck by how one small line summed up so much about the girl he's singing about.

"She walked in through the out door."

SUCH a perfect example of show don't tell in action. It told me a lot about the kind of girl she is, while simultaneously drawing me in to question and wonder to know more about her. It occurs to me that great songs are full of this kind of genius writing (or maybe it's just more obvious to me in this format). I can see why so many authors rely so heavily on their playlists while writing.

This is an aspect of writing I know I personally struggle with and need to work on considerably. Perhaps I need my own raspberry beret to help me retain that frame of mind while writing....