The Trick is in the Detail

This month I've set myself the task of keeping a writing diary of details: the telling significance of an object's shape, colour, structure, texture, scent, imperfections . . .

I've always admired writers who can use telling details to add symbolic layers to their writing. Recently, I re-read Robin Jenkins's novel, 'The Changeling' and was full of praise for the way in which he set down details which, initially, seemed insignificant but which gathered layers of meaning as they were picked up at later points in the narrative. It prompted me to think about the importance of detail in our lives: the small gesture that conveys so much, the exact tone of a well-chosen word, the telling sound and so on. As well, of course, as the absence of the above.

So, I've started in the garden - a bit of a disheartening task in this rain-sodden landscape - but it's made me look afresh at so many things: plants, 'beasties', walls, stones, hedges, horizons and much more. It's been a challenging exercise; selecting the relevant details, finding the right words to record them and jotting down any figurative or connotative significances.

I've carefully omitted to say, of course, that all this has been going on while I should have been writing my next short story! But I'm hoping that it will bear fruit in the long run. Well, that's my justification for the moment. How important is detail for you - as a writer/reader?