More Than Color

Presently it grew altogether dark: the air itself seemed black and heavy to breathe. When lights appeared Sam rubbed his eyes: he thought his head was going queer. He first saw one with the corner of his left eye, a wisp of pale sheen that faded away; but others appeared soon after: some like dimly shining smoke, some like misty flames flickering slowly above unseen candles; here and there they twisted like ghostly sheets unfurled by hidden hands.’ – The Passage of the Marshes, The Two Towers.

In the previous article, I went in depth into the meaning of colors and how cinematographers and writers should use them to their advantage. Well, leaving behind the cinematographer and going on into the writer, there is a strange and difficult skill that goes into using colors. It is the skill of putting into the reader’s mind a palette of colors without actually stating any particular color. Tolkien was indeed a master of this. There are numerous places in his descriptions where you will see in your mind colors, whether bright and joyful, or grim and deathly, and he has not actually mentioned many, if any, specific ‘colors.’ What actual ‘colors’ are mentioned in the above excerpt? Black. But being the master of words that he was, Tolkien went further than simply colors, and used words like ‘dark’ and ‘pale’ as colors themselves, using them portray something far deeper than any color.

Using It Without Using It

This is the one of the best ways to use color. To use it without stating it. You do not have to use words of particular colors to put colors into your reader’s mind. Words such as ‘pale,’ ‘shimmering,’ ‘matte,’ ‘morose,’ ‘murky,’ ‘weathered,’ ‘foamy,’ ‘merry,’ ‘serene,’ ‘drab,’ ‘stained,’ ‘lacquered,’ ‘stormy,’ ‘lush,’ ‘tacky,’ ‘glamorous,’ ‘bleak,’ and many, many others can be used in place of a color itself, because of the natural association the reader will have between the word and the colors. That is not to say that colors themselves do not have their place. They certainly do, as I showed in the previous article. But those are for particular times when you want to portray something very intense and detailed and symbolic, or for average, simple description, such as giving the color of a flower or a plant. But filling your book with too many colors, or putting symbolic colors to everything in your story, can be overwhelming to the reader and make it look like you are amateur and inexperienced in the writing field.

How To Use It

Poetic Flourish

One of my favorite parts about writing is being able to create a scene, landscape, or any description with a hint of the poetic. This gives depth and interest to the story, and it gives a better idea in the reader’s mind of what you are trying to say. It also provides a broader style of writing available, not only to your reader, but to you. If you show yourself a bit of a poet, you may have a headstart to writing and publish your own poetry some day. Part of using splashes of poetry in your story is describing things in a different way that usual. This more often than not includes and surrounds things bearing color. As in the above excerpt, there is some poetry. Not enough that the reader thinks ‘This is poetry,’ but enough to give it a better, deeper feeling that communicates your ideas to the reader in a clearer light. Putting in ‘like/like a…(fill in the blank)’ is an easy way to begin practicing your poetic description.

Substitute

This does not work with everything, but to begin with, and for much of writing, it will work. Instead of lighter colors, such as white or silver, use ‘pale,’ if applicable. Instead of brown, use words like ‘muddy,’ ‘earthy,’ or even just ‘dark’ depending on what you are trying to get across. Again, this will not work with everything. Describing someone’s clothes as ‘dark’ and describing someone’s clothes as ‘black’ will convey different ideas. If you wish to give a more unknown feeling to the character, describe them as wearing ‘dark.’ Dark is usually considered more mysterious than black. A man in black could be a priest, a soldier with a dark past, an antagonist, a noble, a burglar, or a secret agent. Someone wearing ‘dark clothing’ gives a deeper sense of mystery, since ‘dark’ could mean black, dark blue, dark brown, deep grey, or other things.

Extra Adjectives

You do not have to altogether drop out colors in descriptions. Saying the clouds are ‘grey’ to describe a stormy or snowy or overcast sky will get across your idea to the reader. But sometimes adding extra adjectives can be helpful and give your reader a slightly different, more specific idea. It is somewhat like the substitute, but instead of replacing the word, you add a word. For instance, instead of saying grey clouds, what if you said steel-grey clouds? How does that change the image in your mind? What about blue-grey clouds, or light grey clouds? Adding one more word to your description can save you a dozen other words trying to explain whether your sky is grey because a storm is coming, or it is about to snow, or it is overcast, or something else.

Lesser Known Colors

This is a subcategory of the substitute. But instead of substituting the color with a word that is not a color, this is substituting it with other hues of that color. Saying ‘chestnut’ or ‘sable’ instead of brown. ‘Cream’ instead of white. ‘Rose’ or ‘rosy’ instead of red or pink.

Color-Related Words

Verdant is not a color, but it has to do with green (from the Old French word for green, vert. Also related to Spanish verde, meaning green). Neon is not a color in itself, but something cannot be neon without having a specific color attached to it, such as neon green or neon yellow. Rosy might also fit into this category. Any color-related words you can think of, that are not the name of a specific color, but that are always related to a particular color, can come in handy.

There are other ways to use color without using color. Come up with some, and feel free to share them in the comments!

Conclusion

Using color without using ‘color’ is not easy and takes practice, but the end result is worth it. It broadens your ability as writer to communicate with your audience, giving you other ways to show the reader what is in your mind. It can be enjoyable to read, even more enjoyable to write, and it strengthens your skills. As always, experiment with it! Try things out. If one thing does not work, try something else, or better yet experiment with that one thing to find if it has merit. You are a writer. Write! Use writing as your tool, your paintbrush, to share a part of the great picture of truth with your audience. And keep writing, keep learning, keep growing.