What is lyrical prose? The internet is very vague about it. Ive enjoyed learning about topics like rhythm and metrical feet and slant rhymes over the last year. I just rewrote a chapter of a mermaid short story in iambic pentameter actually, and have a couple of other stories in iambic / trochee but without any structured line lengths. It’s fun to write like that! I end up having to outline at an almost paragraph level to keep from getting lost though. Pardon the ramble, I think it’s time for bed, my brain is half asleep already
Honestly I don't actually think of the above as lyrical, but I couldn't think of a proper word for it. Just "different" to my usual style?
I mostly think of lyrical as focusing more than usual on the rhythm (like you mention), including change up sentence length to break up rhythm as well. To some extent I think of it as paying more attention to word sounds (alliteration, assonance, etc) in almost every sentence, while in my usual plainer style it mostly just happens by chance. Thirdly, I think of it as involving more imaginative use of words, albeit not so much so that it turns into purple prose. No doubt that is different to what others may consider lyrical prose.
Iambic pentameter always comes across as insanely difficult to me, so I've never tried! Have you ever watched the episode Zanzibar in Inside No 9 (s4e1)? That's all in iambic pentameter. I often find their work interesting because of the constraints they put on their word - A Quiet Night In has no dialogue until the last minute, Bernie Clifton's Dressing Room is just two characters in a room talking (there's probably others with just two as well). Quite a few episodes are just set in one room, or one small train carriage, etc.
This was a good piece.
What is lyrical prose? The internet is very vague about it. Ive enjoyed learning about topics like rhythm and metrical feet and slant rhymes over the last year. I just rewrote a chapter of a mermaid short story in iambic pentameter actually, and have a couple of other stories in iambic / trochee but without any structured line lengths. It’s fun to write like that! I end up having to outline at an almost paragraph level to keep from getting lost though. Pardon the ramble, I think it’s time for bed, my brain is half asleep already
Honestly I don't actually think of the above as lyrical, but I couldn't think of a proper word for it. Just "different" to my usual style?
I mostly think of lyrical as focusing more than usual on the rhythm (like you mention), including change up sentence length to break up rhythm as well. To some extent I think of it as paying more attention to word sounds (alliteration, assonance, etc) in almost every sentence, while in my usual plainer style it mostly just happens by chance. Thirdly, I think of it as involving more imaginative use of words, albeit not so much so that it turns into purple prose. No doubt that is different to what others may consider lyrical prose.
Iambic pentameter always comes across as insanely difficult to me, so I've never tried! Have you ever watched the episode Zanzibar in Inside No 9 (s4e1)? That's all in iambic pentameter. I often find their work interesting because of the constraints they put on their word - A Quiet Night In has no dialogue until the last minute, Bernie Clifton's Dressing Room is just two characters in a room talking (there's probably others with just two as well). Quite a few episodes are just set in one room, or one small train carriage, etc.