Plain or Flowery Langague?

[Moonlight]

All right, I saw this thread in particular on another forum I'm part of. This is prime discussion for anyone in the writing 'business', so I thought I'd bring the base over here:

Do you like in a story seeing descriptions which are very, well, 'flowery'? I'm not sure how to describe what that means, but just like poetic, beautified language? It can seem fancy to the reader. Or do you prefer language in stories that is very plain, blunt, straight-forward, not beautiful and not poetic? That doesn't mean it lacks description or feeling, it just means the words used don't make it sound so fancy or pretty.

[Sage of Shadow]

Flowery: "The impressionable youth lolly-gagged with fearful symmatry with his supper nondeterminate."

Plain: "The kid didn't know when dinner would be ready so he messed around with puzzles."

Hyberbole (ha smells of daisies!) but I hope it gives and idea for those who do not know.

Really it depends on what you are going for because you could say a good writer can make anything good, be versatile, and play with expectations. I guess it depends on what you consider good or bad writing.

I like a bit of both but to me either one can be boring/grating depending on my mood. I've been trying plain writing lately. To me, plain writing can be fun because there's no need to interpret. It's usually what it is.

For example, "Jane walked to the store." instead of "What mystic forces conspired against Jane as the veracious young woman meandered towards her destination for subsistence?"

[Moonlight]

Well, I'm going to copy and paste my reply to that thread here because I don't feel like retyping it, XD:

Put it this way. There's a term for overly flowery language. It's called purple prose. Conversely, there is no terms for overly plain language.

Actually, I would beg to differ on that one. While it's not an official term, lack of detail is referred to by - at least the writers I know - as "beige prose". Without detail, words are just that - Words. One feels nothing for the story if they don't know what's going on, if they can't envision it. A few adjectives can make all the difference.

However, this is not to say I advocate purple prose. But at the same time, beige prose is equally unappealing to me. The trick is finding a balance; yin-yang if you will.

JX's other post with an example of purple prose details it nicely, but I would also like to comment a bit on the "wrapping paper" ideal. Say someone is seeing a scene or a person, and the current protagonist is taking it in. What would be more effective:

To use simple plain words (blue, blonde, etc) that could be any shade under the sun, or specify by using one direct word (sapphire, wheat, etc)? In that respect, it cuts out extra words that would be used to clarify the first example. It keeps things simple, while being direct. It may count as flowery, perhaps. But to me, it is far more useful.

Having a story that is bare-bones (beige prose) is usually just as bad as having an overdone one (purple prose).

[Zorayda]

Yeah, I like a good balance... I also like to try and stay very true to the character I'm playing as, so whatever they think, say and do will be reflected in the words used to describe them. *shrug* I like flaws and such, not necessarily in the writing, but creativity means that a few well placed 'grammatical errors' are allowed for the sake of artistry.

[Diamond]

To me, both forms of writing are needed in every book. Especially from First-person point of view. But then, it's subject to the setting. If the entire book is purple prose, or suppose we're being shown the world through the eyes of a poet, then purple prose is, in fact, very fitting and the called "beige prose" feels awkward and out of place.

Furthermore, many books take a section of pure and undeluded purple prose. Why? Quite simple as the fact whatever is being described is supposed to make an impact on the reader. For example, if I were to describe a beautiful, almost magical view from a mountain top, I would be as descriptive as a could. As follows:

As far as my saphire eyes could see, the azure sky sunk into the turquoise waters of the ocean, the snow-white sand gleeming like a diamond, even from this vast distance. The emrald leaves on distant trees swayed gentle in the ever-presence breeze that smelled of salt and flowers. The amber and viridian fields near the bottom of this tall rock that dared reach for the heavens rusled and gave shelter to countless thriving creatures, each on their own a masterpiece.

See? This scene creates an impact. While yes, I did use first-person for this, it's because the view made an impact on the character, and thus also made an impact on the reader. And not all impacts can be good ones. Torture, I believe, is a fantastic and seldom taken opportunity for purple prose. Torture is supposed to drive home just how evil the villian is, how painful and grusome it is. Torture is not pretty, but being descriptive of it can both enrapture and horrify your readers. Thus:

The whip sounded like a small peal of thunder as the tip tore open the cream-colored flesh of the prisoner. Crimson streaks of warm blood oozed from the wounds in the back and chest, staining both the cold, gray stone floor and the dirt-smeared and tattered brown trousers of the prisoner. His anguished scream pierced the noisy chamber above all the other screams of the lost souls, like a hammer striking upon the white-hot iron in a forge. The dark place stanke of mold, pus, rotton flesh and worse still, offending the noses of all who entered, sucking hope from them like a spider sucks the life-giving fluids from it's captured prey.

See? Again, being very descriptive have made an impact. I'm not saying ever book should do this, no, I've read many books where scenes like the above two do not exsist. Good books, too. But purple prose, or the absence of in a book filled with it, will make an impact on every reader.

[siyeoyo2darayo]

Ha, ha, Animal Farm and the Narnia series are plain books, while Uncle Tom's Cabin and Jane Erye are really flowery books (if you want to call it that). All are classics and super good. I guess it has a little to do with taste, the time period, and genre. If you write stuff like Daniel Steel of course you're going to write some real elaborate sentences, but if you're books geared toward the science fiction crowd you might be leaning more toward the plain side. Writing styles go in and out of popularity, too.

My predilection is flowery. I like flamboyant words and impressive phrases that make my heart soar. When I pick up a book I expect to be swept away by it's spirited and vivacious vocabulary. I want to have a good plot and characters, yes, and some books only offer such which is perfectly fine. A book like Shane is every bit amazing as Emma. But I want to also be entranced by the writers sentences. So flowery is definitely the perfect writing style for me.

If you already can't tell, when I write, I write more on the plain side. I know; I'm a total hypocrite!