Descriptive Writing Techniques: Steinbeck vs. Parker
             The smell of stale cigarettes and old coffee lingers around the dusty, metal desk in the middle of the converted garage that is now a home office. Calendars and itineraries posted on the walls ages ago, now outdated and insignificant, fight the stacks of paper that are piled high around the room to collect as much dust as possible. In the far right hand corner of the room lay boxes of two year old phone books that were at one time gathered to be taken to the recycling center by my younger brother's cub scout troop. Now they have become a catchall, where overcoats are placed for the time being and bibles are stacked waiting for next Sunday to roll around. The two sliding glass doors that occupy the opening of the original garage, are filthy with dirty fingerprints that catch the light of the late afternoon sun as is shines through them towards my dimly lit computer screen. Closing the blinds over the sliding doors helps with the light and I can now see the word processing progr!
             am on the monitor; but the change in light allows for another image to appear on the screen. It is my inquisitive and thoughtful face that now reflects back towards me. I resist the pressure of the keyboard, not ready to start the long process of writing; but logic overcomes desire. So I begin the task by stretching my arms and popping my joints and I lay my fingertips onto the keyboard; and I begin to type my paper, l-e-t-t-e-r-b-y-l-e-t-t-e-r...
             Descriptive writing allows for an author to present a scene or feeling through the use of words. The reader develops a sort of picture, as seen through the author's eyes, and understands on a more emotional level what happens in the story. Two authors that I believe to be extremely proficient in the use of descriptive writing and narration techniques are John Steinbeck, with his short story "The Chrysanthemums," and Dorothy Parker with her ...