Some authors are especially good at describing people and scenes so that a reader can imagine vividly the setting, the characters, and the action.  Details set a mood as well as grounding the events in a specific place.  And characters’ clothing and other aspects of appearance tell much about status, background, employment, and more.

Literary opinion on the subject of description varies widely.  While many promote the paring of a story to its skeletal structure on the grounds that painting a picture slows the flow of the tale or interferes with the plot elements, others applaud graphic prose.

Personally, I believe both styles have merit, each fitting particular genres or specific stories within a genre.  And setting the scene does not always make for sluggish reading.

Do you enjoy details of scenes and characters, or do you prefer stories with more action than description?

[Thanks to Uwe Baumann of Pixabay for the featured image.]