Sensory Details in Writing: Definition

The writer's ability to create a gripping and memorable story has much to do with
engaging our five senses.

Sensory details include sight, sound, touch, smell, and taste. Writers employ the five
senses to engage a reader's interest. If you want your writing to jump off the page, then bring
your reader into the world you are creating. When describing a past event, try and remember
what you saw, heard, touched, smelled, and tasted, then incorporate that into your writing.

Sensory details are used in any great story, literary or not. Think about your favorite
movie or video game. What types of sounds and images are used? What do your favorite
characters taste, smell, and touch? Without sensory details, stories would fail to come to life.

Tips on using sensory details in your writing:

1. Identify the thing to describe. Keep it simple. It’s difficult to describe something that is
diffuse or abstract. If possible, name the thing you want to describe.
2. State what the thing does. Sometimes it’s not necessary to compare the smell or taste to
something else. A clear statement of what the thing does (cooking in its own grease) can
clearly evoke the thing—and sometimes it can suggest sensory details. So, explain in
close detail what the thing does. When and where do you find it? How do you know it’s
there? What is it doing? How do people react?
 3. Describe the thing with a few senses. Perhaps you can use more, or even all; if so, great.
But, very often, it’s effective to choose one or two senses and explore the different ways
to use them. Haider uses two different onomatopoeic words. He twice describes how the
smell sticks to different parts of his body. He finds two different visual descriptions of
bacon: color and texture. Try choosing a sense and finding different ways that the thing
looks, sounds, feels, smells, or tastes.
4. Connect the senses to story. You’re really just connecting the thing to story, which should
be easy; why else would you be describing it in the first place? Think about the effect the
thing has on you. How does it affect your behavior? As you consider this, remember the
sensory details. The smell of bacon made it difficult for Haider to hide the fact that he’d
eaten it. How does one of the sensory details you wrote make the thing difficult to
ignore?

The following are examples of sensory details one might include in your writing:

Sight (the most utilized sense in writing; don’t forget the others!)
- flash of lights in the night sky
- deep blue of the ocean
- the roads had begun to glisten underneath headlights
- the sun was setting behind low, gray-blue storm clouds
- a heavenly hue to the layers of ice and snow accumulating on rooftops and tree limbs.
- her shadow shaky behind a slight flame stemming from a candle she carried
- sparks lit up the dusk of day
- a blinking red light from the truck’s turn-signal illuminated our darkened home
Sound
- The walls shook and vibrated like the tail of a rattle snake
- Ice crackled and pinged against the family room window
- Wind swirled around our beach house whistling loudly to a terrible tune
- The television buzzed as it shut off, and the furnace sighed one last time before the house
fell silent.
- The cracking of wood splitting punctuated each burst of fire like an exclamation point.
- the sounds of emergency sirens awakened the still roads
- the howling of wind and branches creaking under the weight of ice
Smell
- sweet aroma of baking corn bread
 - cinnamon-scented candle
- pungent odor of smoke.
- salty beach air
- rotting leaves and crispness of air
Touch
- We sat still, huddled underneath the quilt
- Car tires gripped the ice with fearful intensity
- The power lines, heavy from the thickness of ice had snapped
- soft tufts of fur
- stick my toes in the warm and grainy sand
Taste
- ice-cold strawberries
- tall, frosted glass of sweet yet bitter lemonade
- salty chips
- juicy tartness of orange
- rancid butter

Online Resources:

 https://study.com/academy/lesson/sensory-details-in-writing-definition-examples.html
 http://mrbeland.weebly.com/uploads/3/0/5/5/30558007/23-sensory-details1.pdf
 https://readtowritestories.com/2014/11/26/how-to-use-sensory-details/