Writing Prompt: Using The Senses
Write about a physical activity you do often, using as many of the senses as you can to make the reader feel as though they are in your shoes. This is an exercise of showing, not telling. In my piece below, never do I say I’m taking my dog for a walk, yet it becomes quite obvious.
…and I may have chosen this prompt just so I can photos of my cute pooch :D
Rafa sniffing the air on his walk.
I pad quietly down the stairs, Nikes in hand, and when Rafa sees me he stiffens, ears pricked forward in the silence. When I sit down on the bottom step he suddenly leaps off his bed, and a golden flash streaks towards me. Tiny paws claw at my leg, digging into my skin, and a little pink tongue shoots out, quick as a frog trapping a fly, and gives my fingers a warm lick.
‘Yes we’re going!’ I say, struggling to tie my laces as I’m attacked with licks, claws and a furry brush tail slapping my face.
I stand up and Rafa sits back on his haunches, one paw held off the ground like a meerkat on lookout, and wide brown eyes reach out and squeeze my heart. He lets out a high-pitched whine, his apparent despair contradicted by the manic wagging of his tail. Rolling my eyes, I grab his leash from the doorknob and head to the back door, with Rafa beside me spinning and jumping, spinning and jumping, paws sliding on the cold tiles, like a circus dog showing off his best tricks. He obediently sits as I kneel in front of him to put the leash on, his little body shaking with the effort to keep still, and I feel puffs of warm breath hit my face in time with his panting. I momentarily lose the clasp in his long fur, but soon it gives a loud, satisfying click, and with surprising flexibility Rafa turns his head back, grasps the lead between tiny white teeth, and pulls me to the door.
