A Story Without a Picture
Can a story come alive in the reader’s mind with nothing but words?
Why not!
The verandah sat in a gentle stillness as she walked from the kitchen, a cup of tea in her hand, its steam carrying the faint scent of cardamom. In the other hand, a plate of candy biscuits rested neatly in order, each placed with quiet care.
The rising curls of steam drifted upward, softening the air around her. The pale pink of her dress seemed to spill onto her cheeks, giving them a natural blush. She set the plate down and tried to brush back a strand of ash-grey hair that had slipped loose. It fell forward again, and with a small, almost resigned smile, she tucked it behind her ear once more...
Or perhaps
He stepped into the lawn and stopped at the sight before him. Her long, silky black hair flowed down her back as she watered the plants. With her back turned toward the setting sun, he could not see her face. Her slender frame, graceful in a pistachio-green shalwar kameez patterned with delicate flowers, looked captivating. She had lined her eyes with kohl, yet it wasn’t only her appearance—something about her presence drew him in, pulling him closer with an unseen force.
Isn’t this the beauty of writing?
When words alone can create such a vivid picture that the reader sees it unfold in their own mind.
Now you might be wondering why I’m bringing this up.
Ever since the issue with uploading pictures on Steemit started, it has been a bit frustrating. But instead of focusing only on the downside, why not flip the perspective? This could be our chance to polish our writing skills, to let words do all the painting.
Why not make the most of it?
Think about it: the greatest stories we’ve ever read didn’t come with many pictures, yet they etched entire worlds into our minds. From fairy tales told in childhood to novels we still cherish, it was always words that built castles, oceans, and skies in our imagination.
So maybe this is not a setback, but an invitation. An invitation to challenge ourselves, to experiment with detail, to test how deeply our words can connect with the reader. Perhaps this is the time to slow down, to observe more keenly, and to write in a way that breathes life into the ordinary.
I’m honestly sick of it, the writings without soul.
How many of us really put in the effort to engage our readers? To take them along with us? To make them feel what we feel?
Whether it’s a simple diary entry, a story, or even just an event we’re sharing, how often do we actually write with our heart, with feelings that breathe between the lines?
When was the last time we wrote something that made someone pause, smile, or even ache with us? When did our words last carry weight, not because they were polished, but because they were real?
Maybe that’s what’s missing, not the pictures, not the tools, not the formats. It’s the honesty, the sincerity, the heartbeat behind the words. If we bring that back, even the simplest lines can touch deeply...
So while they fix the error, and hopefully someone is working on it, why not try to replace pictures with a little bit of soul? Let’s bring back the kind of writing that actually makes a reader feel, imagine, and travel with us.
And for those who still itch to use images, here’s a little hack I’ve tried myself. If you reduce the pixels by lowering the quality of the picture, basically by taking repeated screenshots of your original image, the upload eventually works. I’m not a technical person, but it has helped me a few times. So if you can’t resist adding an image, maybe give this a try!
Ironic, isn’t it? The caption says ‘story without a picture’, yet can’t we still weave one, where words become the paint on the canvas?
Happy writings to everyone.
This is very well said and extremely well described and argued. I had almost forgotten the original perspectives of life before that. Because even just recently I read again that people nowadays prefer to look at just pictures accompanied by short sentences. Perhaps that's why I also prefer to accompany my texts with pictures, even if these pictures often have nothing to do with the text. But at the same time, I can't limit myself to just a few sentences or just one sentence, even when I'm just writing a comment.🤭
Well, this is a very relative thing, because it depends not only on the writer, but also on his audience. For example, in the last few days I've been thinking about how I can't share anything personal on FB, regardless of the number of "friends" or acquaintances there, how there usually isn't or never has been any dialogue, reciprocity or compassion there. While here I can do it, with unknown acquaintances and unknown friends, and the likelihood that some kind of dialogue will take place here and there will be some kind of response is much greater, despite the long and sometimes quite heavy texts, although completely sincere, but difficult to read. So it doesn't even depend on the effort I put in. Although everything you wrote is true in principle.😊
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Well, I’m not at all undermining the photographers and artists here, no, not at all. Quite the opposite.
The way you use photos gives your posts a character of their own. Each picture speaks in its own language… you know what I mean :)
But thank you for your detailed feedback. As frustrating as the whole business of uploading images (and Steemit itself at times) can be, I thought, why not take it as a challenge? Maybe there’s beauty in trying to tell a story without pictures, where words take the place of colors, and imagination fills in the frames. I don’t even know, perhaps it was a spur-of-the-moment thought, but it felt like a doorway to connect with writing and with readers in a different way.
I can completely relate to what you’re saying. FB often feels like a crowd where everyone is present but no one is really listening. Even though "coin" is involved, but here on Steemit, there’s a sense of dialogue and genuine response that feels more human...
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Maybe because no one reads Proust these days...🙂
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How to put it…
At times, it feels like you have to sift through heaps of trash just to discover something truly worth reading. And that, sadly, makes the whole experience of connecting here lose its charm. That’s how decline begins, quietly, almost unnoticed.
But that’s why it matters all the more that we keep going against the tide, striving to turn this space into one of pearls, not debris, a place where words shine and connections actually mean something.
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Ah. I get what you mean. It’s undeniably frustrating that we have to put in so much effort just to find something even barely interesting.
But what you’re proposing about writing can be a bit tricky. Surely you didn’t learn to write beautifully like that overnight. It requires skill, practice, and lots of reading. And people don’t like that. They prefer the easy way out -writing a lot without really taking the reader with them.
And what do we get? Mass-produced junk. This has always been the problem in the past, and it’s only gotten worse with AI. People just don’t like to think anymore, so the writing ends up as soulless as it is thoughtless. It's pretty much hopeless, but I’m still optimistic as long as users like you keep existing and showing what good writing looks like.
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Blush blush
Well, I hardly call my ramblings a writing, let alone anything beautiful !!!
AI can serve as a useful tool to polish and refine a writer’s skills. One thing that really puts me off is bad grammar and poor structure. I don't care how brilliant the idea or story may be — it feels criminal to call such writing a post, a blog, or anything of the sort. At times, I even feel such writings should be banned. Why on earth would anyone settle for carelessness when clarity is within reach? And then comes the proud declaration at the end: It’s human-written. Well, if it’s garbage, it’s garbage. No amount of humanity can make it right.
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If a ramble is articulate and alive with emotion, I find it beautiful. I mentioned Proust earlier because the sample text you wrote had a Proustian feel. Do you know him? He’s brilliant at making even the mundane feel vivid.
Yes, AI can be a useful tool for polishing a writer’s skills. But it’s often overused, and heavy reliance comes with tradeoffs - as is usually the case. In the past, people honed their writing by reading widely, refining their style, and sharpening their comprehension. Today? Why bother, when AI can do the brainwork for you?
Well, you just opened a whole can of worms… I’m not defending those whose texts have been accused of being AI-generated - I know some of them probably are, haha. But I find it weird: AI (particularly LLMs) is trained on our own words and thoughts. So just because a text sounds like AI, does that automatically mean it is? Just because we use em dashes, it’s ChatGPT? Or if our writing is polished and well-organized, it’s AI-generated? I mean, wtf? Should our texts always be inferior? Should we abandon em dashes or intentionally sprinkle in typos just to ‘prove’ it’s human-written? Ridiculous.
Anyway, I’d say don’t stress over the lack of interesting content. Like water seeking its own level, you’ll eventually come across good work -and good writers naturally attract more good writers ;-)
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First of all, please accept my apology.
So… silly of me to think it was a typo and that you meant posts. My bad again. No, I wasn’t familiar with his work until now. I Googled him and learned a little about him. Hihi
Haha, I’ve opened this can of worms quite a few times in the past, and I know it’s the kind of debate that can go on endlessly — em dashes, polish, typos, this and that. But if I really boil it down, it comes to one thing: shortcuts are never good.
If you’re putting your full effort, giving your best, then your writing will naturally reflect your own voice and depth. At that point, it doesn’t really matter whether someone tries to label it AI or not. You know the sweat and thought you’ve poured into it — and that’s what counts. People will always have opinions, but the integrity of your work shouldn’t depend on proving whether it’s human enough.
You as in me, us ...
So yeah!
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Haha - that explains a lot. Apology accepted :-)
No? Even more impressive. Forget Proust - I’ve read how you judge contest entries, and your standards are already impressively high. Knowing Proust too would probably scare me off. You’re actually more intimidating than the raven ;-)
Precisely! Makes perfect sense.
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Curated by: chant
Back in the days, the pages were filled with only words. Now, there's pictures and lesser words