Like all forms of exposition, your goal is to deliver this information without pulling the reader out of the story. Only when youre keeping secrets in fiction, you can make them even darker and deeper than any you might ever have in real life. Let your mind fill in the details, always checking back in with your adjectives to make sure the concept is moving in the right direction. When shes not writing, Abi is most likely hiking, reading, or texting her mother pictures of her houseplants to ask why they look like that. Then this is their category. Imagine your own armored knights storming through the battlefield like iron giants. Or it could be that they want to be charmed by their own image when they look in the mirror. The unsung hero of so many stories. Some wore a trapper a covering of full chain mailand down the line, some horses even had their own plated armor. Those warriors came from the people who lived on the lands under the watch of the knights. One reason clothing descriptions can start to feel like a tedious laundry list (see what I did there?) Because it actually is possible. Whats the respected uniform, and does your character wear it? Of course there are more ways to alter historic designs and the middle ages aren't the only period to draw inspiration from. To create a more futuristic looking style an easy way of doing it is to incorporate technology into the clothing itself. If you want futuristic fantasy simply follow the sci-fi/futuristic tips more or mix and match both sides. Your articles are always very informative. Give your wealthy character a pair of Louboutins and dress your non-wealthy characters in hand-me-downs. At the end of the day, they were professional slayers, swords for hire. Even things like tattoos, hair colors, eye colors and so on can help with this. Arrows will bounce off steel crafted in such a wayunless from close range, as we discussed, We mentioned gambesons above. Other elements you could include are mood-based changes (exists today), clothing that uses lights or glowing elements (exists today), clothing that can be repaired or changed on the go (exists today), smart technology woven into the fabric of clothing (exists today), changing colors (think chameleons) whenever you feel like it (exists today, kind of). It can genuinely be tough to come up with cool ideas for epic fantasy armor without drifting back to things that weve seen in the likes of Dungeons and Dragons, The Elder Scrolls and movies like Lord of the Rings. Sometimes the simplest changes are enough to create something completely new and ideal for a particular universe. If done right you could even use these elements alone with clothing of today to sell a futuristic look. Or are you writing a spy character who dons Lululemon to infiltrate an upscale yoga studio? And ninety-nine percent of the clothing descriptions in your first draft are just jeans. I get it. 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It took leaving the Midwest to recognize it. Designing fantasy armor for your characters can be an awful lot of fun. Not a Dabble user? Wearing a suit of armor was like being in your own private world. Once quenched, the steel was re-heated to make it more resilient. (Cough-cough-cough.) Amalias dress thus comes across as insensitive to her; malicious even. Clothing description in a story is useful because it often gives additional information about a character that you might otherwise tell. Think noble King Arthur and his knights of the roundtable. Or one who was forever wearing poorly-fitted clothing that appeared to be handed down from friends? Adding them with intention can help increase tension, make twists hit that much harder, and keep your reader engaged., How to Describe Clothing in Writing Without Boring Everybody, Tertiary Characters: Giving Your Background Players Life, Sidekicks: The Loyal Companion Your Hero Needs. Chapters 1 and 2 were pretty decent and I started chapter 4 with him dressing for the party. Here are some classic characteristics you can draw out through clothing description. However, you can show and imply a characters intention without spelling it out: Theyd agreed to meet downtown at six. The important thing to remember is to remain in the character's point of view. Blunt, Once quenched, the steel was re-heated to make it more resilient. And if you were skilled at surviving and killing, it was a good way to make a living. And medieval warfare was a bloody affair. Pre-empt this by illustrating everything in layers and completing each layer of clothing. or the world theyre desperately resisting. Blades hacking, slicing and puncturing, cutting open gaping wounds and severing limbs and heads from bodies. You can weave clothing description into your process when using our story planner for writers. Maybe your character heads out on the town wearing a daring leopard print jumpsuit, only to have their best friend immediately ask where they got the kitty costume.. The novels protagonist Rodion gives Katerina the last of his money to host a funeral. Not to mention the social status of a person. Compare this, then, to Dickens description of Gradgrinds wife in the following chapter (Gradgrinds wealthy but poverty-claiming friend has just told Mrs. Gradgrind he was born in a ditch): Mrs. Gradgrind, a little, thin, white, pink-eyed bundle of shawls, of surpassing feebleness, mental and bodily; who was always taking physic without any effect, and who, whenever she showed a symptom of coming to life, was invariably stunned by some weighty piece of fact tumbling on her; Mrs. Gradgrind hoped it was a dry ditch? Such coats were made from brass or iron, though steel was deemed best due to its toughness. You can use visual description to make a character more vivid in the readers minds eye. Were trying to avoid, Isabell gazed out the window, and by the way, she was wearing a white terry cloth robe.. Choose A Chapter The Fantasy Genre And Medieval Armor Chain Mail Plated Armor Helmets Other Types Of Armor The Medieval Knight Another type of cheap armor, one up from gambesons, was boiled leather, also known as cuir bouilli. Clothes can betray our greatest joys and our deepest insecurities. He's had over a dozen short stories published in various magazines and journals, with one adapted for BBC radio. On the other hand you may wish to add layers for the same purpose. But as the show moved forward the suit got more ragged the jacket was open, then gone, the shirt cuffs undone, half the buttons undone and I think by the end when he was on the cross the shirt was gone. As with body armor, great efforts were made with the designs of helmets. Another similar and perhaps way more popular example of this is Steampunk. Consider whether your characters attire might serve as a symbol, highlight a theme, or represent a conflict. She also writes for film and television with her brother and writing partner, Phil Wurdeman. - Change lengths. Instead of a nobleman being described as wearing red silk slippers, parachute pants, a bejeweled cloth belt, a flowing blouse and an ascot; you can simply describe him as wear very fancy and extravagant clothing befitting his high status in society. But it can also be fun to play with the confidence and ease that comes with wealth. If youre trying to learn how to describe clothing in writing, youre probably like me: Youve only pretended to know what organza is. In one single piece of clothing description (a pink-eyed bundle of shawls), Dickens conveys how timid and ailing Mrs. Gradgrind is in contrast to her bullish, overbearing husband. Finally there's the aspect of fashion to take into account. is because we get stuck on what things look like. Mantel creates a vivid sense of the wealth that the church amassed in these times. 70s-inspired. One of the first things I learned when I moved to L.A. is that writers do not dress professionally for big meetings in Hollywood. This is often enough to make something look more futuristic, especially if used on something that looks glossy, shiny and/or smooth. Think armor, bulletproof vests, and bandoliers. I sincerely hope youve found some inspiration for your fantasy medieval armor. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts Be specific and accurate. Here, for example, Hilary Mantel describes a Cardinals residence being plundered by the Kings men in 1529 England, in her historical novel Wolf Hall. Every time we got separated in a public space, I discovered myself in a sea of mature women with the same haircut and pastel tops. - Taboos and nudity. When describing clothing in writing, consider: You can also use this aspect of clothing description to paint a vivid picture of the world you imagined. This can be a very effective way if your universe is based on an existing culture. In most cases simply copying the style of whichever era you've based your story on is enough, but it can be fun to create your own styles and in some cases it'd make sense to have your own styles as well. This is less important for non-visual arts as clothing isn't always described in writing, but it can still be incredibly helpful to have a fully detailed character in your head or written down somewhere for reference and just to make everything feel more real and alive. Do all your characters embrace it? We often express ourselves through our clothing, at least when we have the freedom to do so, so knowing who we're designing for is the first step in creating the perfect outfit for a character. It may be apocryphal, but Harold Godwinson is said to have done just that at the battle of Hastings in 1066. Also his mother was poor and anyone who knew that might wonder how he could afford such clothing so it hints at the actual story. I second the idea of describing the reactions of the characters to the city. Impress someone with my indifference? - Another way to use color is to make things seem like they're glowing even if they're not and to use gradients. If you stopped to think about it, you may even notice yourself imagining things as specific as age, hobbies, and ambitions. - Use lines to break up a piece of clothing and create a kind of mosaic. This includes items like steel-toed boots, heavy denim, or tech-forward, snag-resistant superhero spandex. Helmets were arguably the most distinctive feature of an armored knight. But thats the case wherever you go. Send private message Achievements: Need help with clothing description in Fantasy #1 I'm writing a Fantasy Novel in the middle ages, filled with swords and magic However, I realize I have trouble trying to convey how the characters look, like what the nobles' attire, the bandit's armor. We see the contrast between the characters friends reaction and the advisory words of Gems aunt. And when Mother Nature gets involved, even the best suit of armor can have problems. And as a reader, nothing bores me like an entire paragraph of detailed clothing description. Is your character trying to attract positive attention? You can try all Dabbles premium features for free for fourteen days. One very important aspect of describing attire well is understanding why youre describing it in the first place. Dont worry, thats not a trick question. For instance, if I'm reading a story and the narrative mentions jeans right off, I'm thinking mid twentieth century or later (while dungarees would be late nineteenth . I would be great to expand it with armor from other areas, Samurai armor, for example. In Gabriel Garcia Marquezs Love in the Time of Cholera (1985), we learn of a doctors status through his being the only person at an event who is not smartly dressed: Although it was not customary for invitations to request special attire, least of all for a luncheon in the country, the women wore evening gowns and precious jewels and most of the men were dressed in dinner jackets with black ties, and some even wore frock coats. The description will describe a lot of clothing pieces, some of which you may not need depending on where your character lives. If Im wearing lipstick with no plans of going out, one of two things is happening: Im in a great mood or Im feeling like I have zero control over my life and failure is inevitable. Characters can also comment on or react to one anothers clothing, as long as the exchange reveals something about the world or relationship. We even have the technology to create clothing without seems. its obviously black with a centered zipper is easy but then the various pieces, the shapes, the colors, like two rows of this then a row of that, you get what I mean?

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