| Writing Non-Fiction posted April 12, 2022 |
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The Iceberg Theory
Show, Don't Tell - part II
by giraffmang
One of the most influential principles behind the idea of ‘show, don’t tell’ is that of the ‘Iceberg Theory’.
What is the Iceberg Theory?
When you see an iceberg from the surface, it looks like a small mass of ice, but underneath, it is another gigantic mass of ice. So, even when we don’t see its entirety, there is always a big chunk that is hidden from our view.
Ernest Hemmingway likened these attributes to the writing process.
This theory, also called the theory of omission, posits that the best writing reveals only a few details at a time, effectively keeping the rest “below the surface” — just like how the bulk of an iceberg lies hidden beneath the surface of the ocean.
It is the idea that an act of omission can strengthen the story.
This is the Iceberg Theory in a nutshell: giving readers just enough that they can draw their own conclusions about what “lies beneath.” This can be much more satisfying than telling them outright.
How to apply the Iceberg Theory with the principles of ‘Show, Don’t Tell’.
Of course, minimal information does not make for good writing in and of itself. You still have to ensure that information is evocative and intriguing enough to engage readers.
Here’s an example of the Iceberg Theory in action, with a strong description from the opening of Celeste Ng’s ‘Everything I Never Told You’:
‘Lydia is late for breakfast. As always, next to her cereal bowl, her mother has placed a sharpened pencil and Lydia’s physics homework, six problems flagged with small ticks. Driving to work, Lydia’s father nudges the dial toward WXKP, Northern Ohio’s Best News Source, vexed by the crackles of static. On the stairs, Lydia’s brother yawns, still twined in the tail end of a dream. And in her chair in the corner of the kitchen, Lydia’s sister hunches moon-eyed over her cornflakes, sucking them to pieces one by one.’
If you break this paragraph down, you’ll see a few showing mechanisms at work: crackles of static from the radio, the taste of cornflakes. These mechanisms are well employed and ‘showing’ on a surface level, but when you look deeper there is something much more compelling going on.
This scene plays out hinting at a wider scenario and implies more about the family dynamics as a whole. By looking deeper, you’ll notice that the members all start the morning separately. They are all described in relation to the middle daughter, Lydia. It implies a fractured group (as readers will know by this point, Lydia will not be coming to breakfast).
The author here does not explicitly state that it is Lydia who keeps the family together and that without her they’d fall apart. However, as the novel progresses, this becomes evident and that the ‘iceberg’ is lurking from the very opening. Foreshadowing can be subtle; breadcrumbs, instead of signposts.
How to apply the theory in your own writing.
1. Use it to hint at complex dynamics and histories. The Iceberg Theory works well in the context of relationship dynamics, especially those with a long history. The larger the underwater iceberg, the more weight your descriptions will hold — and the more satisfied readers will be as chunks are revealed.
2. You can tell a little bit if it serves the showing. Sometimes to dig deep with your showing, you first need to establish context. Ng does it with that first line where she tells us, “Lydia is late for breakfast.” Don’t be afraid to tell if it balances or enhances your showing!
3. Don’t omit what you don’t know yourself. The Iceberg Theory is not an excuse for incomplete character or story development; if you're implying something rather than confirming it, it should be for an intended effect, not mere laziness. As Hemingway puts it: “A writer who omits things because he does not know them only makes hollow places in his writing.” This also becomes evident to the reader when large leaps take place in the narrative and things start to look ‘convenient’.
Try these exercises.
The Iceberg Theory is tough to apply in isolation — you need a fully fleshed-out character or story, a proper iceberg, in order to deliberately show a fraction of it.
That said, if you don’t have your own story or characters mapped out yet, you can try these exercises with existing characters (from a book, film, TV show, etc.) that you know incredibly well!
• Write a scene in which a character’s behaviour or reaction to something is affected by a past experience — without saying what that experience was
.
• Write a monologue on a seemingly arbitrary subject that deeply reflects that character’s worldview.
• Write a description of someone or something whose appearance, unbeknownst to the reader, used to be completely different.
Have fun.
One of the most influential principles behind the idea of ‘show, don’t tell’ is that of the ‘Iceberg Theory’.
What is the Iceberg Theory?
When you see an iceberg from the surface, it looks like a small mass of ice, but underneath, it is another gigantic mass of ice. So, even when we don’t see its entirety, there is always a big chunk that is hidden from our view.
Ernest Hemmingway likened these attributes to the writing process.
This theory, also called the theory of omission, posits that the best writing reveals only a few details at a time, effectively keeping the rest “below the surface” — just like how the bulk of an iceberg lies hidden beneath the surface of the ocean.
It is the idea that an act of omission can strengthen the story.
This is the Iceberg Theory in a nutshell: giving readers just enough that they can draw their own conclusions about what “lies beneath.” This can be much more satisfying than telling them outright.
How to apply the Iceberg Theory with the principles of ‘Show, Don’t Tell’.
Of course, minimal information does not make for good writing in and of itself. You still have to ensure that information is evocative and intriguing enough to engage readers.
Here’s an example of the Iceberg Theory in action, with a strong description from the opening of Celeste Ng’s ‘Everything I Never Told You’:
‘Lydia is late for breakfast. As always, next to her cereal bowl, her mother has placed a sharpened pencil and Lydia’s physics homework, six problems flagged with small ticks. Driving to work, Lydia’s father nudges the dial toward WXKP, Northern Ohio’s Best News Source, vexed by the crackles of static. On the stairs, Lydia’s brother yawns, still twined in the tail end of a dream. And in her chair in the corner of the kitchen, Lydia’s sister hunches moon-eyed over her cornflakes, sucking them to pieces one by one.’
If you break this paragraph down, you’ll see a few showing mechanisms at work: crackles of static from the radio, the taste of cornflakes. These mechanisms are well employed and ‘showing’ on a surface level, but when you look deeper there is something much more compelling going on.
This scene plays out hinting at a wider scenario and implies more about the family dynamics as a whole. By looking deeper, you’ll notice that the members all start the morning separately. They are all described in relation to the middle daughter, Lydia. It implies a fractured group (as readers will know by this point, Lydia will not be coming to breakfast).
The author here does not explicitly state that it is Lydia who keeps the family together and that without her they’d fall apart. However, as the novel progresses, this becomes evident and that the ‘iceberg’ is lurking from the very opening. Foreshadowing can be subtle; breadcrumbs, instead of signposts.
How to apply the theory in your own writing.
1. Use it to hint at complex dynamics and histories. The Iceberg Theory works well in the context of relationship dynamics, especially those with a long history. The larger the underwater iceberg, the more weight your descriptions will hold — and the more satisfied readers will be as chunks are revealed.
2. You can tell a little bit if it serves the showing. Sometimes to dig deep with your showing, you first need to establish context. Ng does it with that first line where she tells us, “Lydia is late for breakfast.” Don’t be afraid to tell if it balances or enhances your showing!
3. Don’t omit what you don’t know yourself. The Iceberg Theory is not an excuse for incomplete character or story development; if you're implying something rather than confirming it, it should be for an intended effect, not mere laziness. As Hemingway puts it: “A writer who omits things because he does not know them only makes hollow places in his writing.” This also becomes evident to the reader when large leaps take place in the narrative and things start to look ‘convenient’.
Try these exercises.
The Iceberg Theory is tough to apply in isolation — you need a fully fleshed-out character or story, a proper iceberg, in order to deliberately show a fraction of it.
That said, if you don’t have your own story or characters mapped out yet, you can try these exercises with existing characters (from a book, film, TV show, etc.) that you know incredibly well!
• Write a scene in which a character’s behaviour or reaction to something is affected by a past experience — without saying what that experience was
.
• Write a monologue on a seemingly arbitrary subject that deeply reflects that character’s worldview.
• Write a description of someone or something whose appearance, unbeknownst to the reader, used to be completely different.
Have fun.
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