Every Picture Tells a Story

Okay, I know that’s a cliché, and writers really ought to avoid using them – but I’ve a good reason for introducing this blog that way. It’s all about IMAGE.

Look at the photo here. I took this at the filming of the BBC Antiques Roadshow in June this year. The guy carrying the picture frame has a story to tell. The subject of the painting is clearly a family ancestor, and this is a family visit, judging by the girl at his side and the baby in her arms. They probably told their story to one of the team of experts, and are now on their way home. I don’t know them. They don’t know me. But each of us have stories to tell – and you don’t need to be a writer to tell one!

I love this picture because it excites my imagination. Who are these people? What kind of history is there behind the painting? Is it valuable? Will they get much sleep tonight?

When I read a book, images tend to fill my brain. I see the story visually – assuming the writer has the skill to induce those images in my mind. So, this is my point: As a writer I have to use words to paint the pictures I see in my own mind. If I do it right, then the reader will be able to interpret those pictures in much the same way.

Suppose you lost your sight. A blind person cannot see the text on a page, but once taught how to use braille, they can visualise what has been written. Images are important to us all, because they are a fundamental part of the story-telling process.
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So, to digress slightly, one of my passions in life has been photography. I’ve used all manner of cameras in my time, but since the digital era and the arrival of smartphones, I can enjoy the facility of being a photographer at any moment of the day. All it takes is to pull my phone from my pocket. I’ve now joined the Flickr community, and started to make some of my efforts public – but only those that tell a story! The first 25 are on there now, including the antique one, so if you’d like to sample more of my creativities, click on the Flickr logo below.

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