Repetition

Repetition. It's a powerful tool in poetry and prose and an annoying element in many rap songs. I feel like repetition in writing is like experimenting in cooking. It has to be done right or not at all. Repetition is usually used to hammer home a point to the audience. The act of constantly repeating a description of a character, a setting or a plot outline establishes a kind of base in the mind of the reader and they will unconsciously find themselves repeating the self same words that are so often repeated as a way to remember how a character acts, a setting looks or a plot runs. This is a little confusing, so I will elaborate with an example.



If I mention the words "jet-black hair", "round glasses", "skinny" and "emerald green eyes" to you, any of you who have read J.K Rowling's Harry Potter will know that I am describing Harry. How? Because Rowling always describes Harry that way in all seven books. This repetition of description reinforces the image of Harry and also allows the readers to form a mental image of Harry in their minds. Every time those descriptors are used, the readers will already have a picture of Harry.
So now back to using repetition in your own writing. Repetition is very useful, but can also be very dangerous to your writing. If you overuse repetition, you run the danger of boring your readers and if you don't use repetition correctly, you run the risk of having your writers experience this weird deja vu. "Where did I see this before? It sounds so familiar..." Mhmm, repetition must be used right or its magic backfires and you look like an idiot.
This was a loooooong post (so sorry) but I hope you liked it :) Next time I will be addressing the bane of all writers, WRITER'S BLOCK. Does it exist? Is it just an excuse to be lazy? We'll see :) Like, dislike, agree, disagree, whatever you want :) Till next time :)