E is for ... by Lorrie Orr

 

We're in the midst of a house renovation. Recently, our new cabinets and countertops were installed, and I lacked only plumbing to have a functioning kitchen. Under the sink my husband installed the appropriate fittings including a 90-degree brass elbow to bend the course of the water flowing from the drain. So very useful. Elbows, I learned, come in varying sizes and angles. A 90-degree angle, such as I have under my sink, forces a sharp change in direction, whereas the more rarely used 22.5-degree angled elbow is gradual.

Sometimes when writing, we don't know how to approach a topic. Natalie Goldberg in Writing Down the Bones advises "begin far away from the answer" with "something small and concrete - your teacup in its saucer, a thin slice of an apple" or perhaps, in my case, the plumbing under the sink.

Working one's way from the small and concrete to a larger, abstract concept is done via elbows - sharp (90 degree) or gradual (45 or 22.5 degree) connections that bend the reader's thoughts to the intended direction. Although Goldberg never mentions elbows in her book she does suggest that "This is how we should approach what we need to say: not head-on and aggressively, but with a little side dance."

Imagine your piece of writing as an elaborate plumbing scheme with straight pipes connected by elbows of varying degrees. Did you make a sharp turn here and a gradual one there? Elbows help your readers' thoughts flow along a defined pathway with ease, enabling them to make the necessary connections and a satisfying conclusion. They can take the form of stories, examples, metaphors, analogies and more. We want our readers to connect our world to theirs. Elbows are the way.

Lorrie Orr writes from Vancouver Island where she lives with her husband Tim. She is looking forward to the renovations ending, but knows that's going to take some time. Meanwhile, there's sewing, reading, the garden, and the grandchildren.