lyrical prose
Musicality in sentences
Lyrical prose is writing that emphasizes the musical qualities of language—rhythm, imagery, and emotional resonance—while remaining in prose form rather than verse.
It prioritizes beauty of expression alongside meaning, often featuring poetic devices like metaphor, alliteration, and cadence.
Her lyrical prose made even mundane scenes feel transcendent.
The term sometimes carries a whiff of criticism, suggesting that a writer has sacrificed clarity or narrative momentum for prettiness.
- evocativeTending to summon memories
- emotional resonanceCapacity to stir feelings
- sensory detailPerceptible descriptive element
- sensory imageryLanguage appealing to senses
- imageryVivid descriptive language
word painting · euphony · incantatory · symbolism · metaphor · Virginia Woolf · rhythm · magical realism · dreamlike · cadence · narrative voice · poetic devices · Toni Morrison · literary fiction · alliteration · poignant · diction · assonance
- literary devicesmetaphor, simile, hyperbole, personification, alliteration
- descriptive languagedescriptive writing, vivid language, vivid detail, sensory language, sensory detail
- literary stylespastoral, satirical, lyrical, epistolary, literary fiction
- magical realismGabriel Garcia Marquez, Isabel Allende, One Hundred Years of Solitude, Salman Rushdie, magical elements
- prose craftstyle, diction, word choice, pacing, narration
- writing stylediction, tone, style, flair, word choice
lyrical prosespare prose