The  MECHA GENE 

This is the first half of a two part article focused on describing eyes with clarity. We will be starting with color.

Eyes. Eyes eyes eyes eyes eyes. There are a lot of differn't types out there.

Green

Violet blue

Gold

Blue

Brown

Light amber

Grey

       Now that you know what this article is about let's get to the point. If you’ve read any of my writing you probably realised that I describe eyes intensely. A lot. (If you haven't read any of my writing or didn’t realise this, well I do). Eyes have always interested me. I love them and think they are one of the best ways to initially introduce a character. Your characters ruff and tough? Describe their eyes as cement or like the handle of a knife. A character that is soft and delicate? Two blooming flowers in the middle of their face. It’s all about putting the right spin on it, but how do you describe them without cliches like “sapphire orbs”, “charcoal”, or the dread “cornflower”? Well look no further for in this article i will be stumbling through items you can  use to describe eye color. Exhibit A.

Fruit

      Fruit is a pretty well known object, and although there aren't very many brown or hazel fruits you can use them as a distributor none the less. You just have to be careful, for example if I had a lively somewhat quirky energetic character, “eyes that bursted like half a lime’’ would work pretty well, if they were a boxer that barely spoke to anyone it might not give the right impression. (although sometimes opposites can be awesome)

His eyes were bright, shiny, and bursting, like two blackberries about to fall from theirs stems.

When it comes to something like snake fruit it would make more sense if your character was from Bali or India.

Her thoughts hide behind a veil of brown, Like someone had skinned  a snake fruit and wrapped it around her irises.

 Also;

 Tendrils of red laced his bloodshot eyes, like a thin film of fig had been placed over the usual brown.

Just be careful, if you describe the eyes too much like fruit your reader might think your main character is a cannibal. If your character is a cannibal, go for it.

Flowers

When it comes to flowers it’s best to air on the side of conceation to avoid the dark realm of cliches (shudder). Although “Leaves” and “roses” are pretty well know the key is to blend it into your character's personality.

Their eyes were a deep spiral of reddish brown. As if two Burgundy dahlia flowers grew from her scholar full brain.

 Flower metaphors/similes work good for love interests, though they can be used to introduce other awesome characters.

 Her dark brown eyes bursted with an abundance of undertones, like the center of a Oriental poppy against her firey orange hair.

Nature

Using events and objects found in nature can become great ways to describe eyes, but before you sprint off to describe your character’s eyes as “Eerie fog” or “Tornadoe through a desert” make sure it fits their personality. A quite, timmins child usually don't have eyes like a whipping hurricane.

 Her eyes streaked from her pupils, like polished redwood. Though I had the impression she'd never burn. (Strong character)

 His eyes were like clusters  of  multicolored sand, sparkling in similarity to his freckled skin. (Helpful, inviting character)

 Their eyes were like a tornado sweeping through the desert, dark blue meeting hazel. (Powerful character)

 Space

Space is a great thing to compare eyes to as long, especially if the characters eyes are deep and filled with some complex emotion.

His eyes held the depth of space,  a knitted nebula of turquoise and yellow hiding his thoughts.

There eyes were a  hard gray, gaze slamming against me like an asteroid.

 A river of hypnotic pink and blue twirled through her eyes, like the rivers of space dust that flowed out side my planet.

One thing you have to keep in mind is how exposed your character are to these things. If you're writing a Sci-fi novel and your protagonist grew up in space then you probably can use all of these as descriptors. Example for what characters are exposed to work like this; a character that grew up in the forest won’t compare eyes to plastic or processed food for say. Stick to what your Character knows, not what you know.

Liquids

Using liquids to describe eyes can be interesting and hypnotic if done right. Using certain descriptures can really draw a reader in.

Their eyes were like clear blue water, splashing around with each step they took.

Her eyes were warm and inviting, the color of honey being poured into black tea.

His eyes were the stunning hard green of matcha, like someone had dunked his head in the tea the color sticking to his irises.

Various sources or “Random”

 You can find discriptures everywhere, with everything. Finding something that doesn't work is actually harder than finding something that does.

Her gaze jabbed at me, her cactus green eyes underneath thick thorn like lashes.

There eyes seemed to shine almost artificially, like a pair of lights hanging in a nightclub.

 His eyes were soft and bright, like colorful glass that had been crushed to dust.

Just plane weird descriptors.

A fantastic writer who's mastered descriptors can compare and object to something else with the right circumstances, but i'm guessing none of us have been writing for seventy years or are prodigies so we're going to start small, comparing eyes to unlikely objects.

 His eyes looked like my phones new wallpaper, or they would be once I snuck a picture.

 Her  eyes were an unnatural bright green, like the plastic jewelry that hung above my nightstand.

Their eyes looked like my favorite shade of makeup, it was strangely comforting.

 It’s important when you use descriptors like this that you realise that not “all” character would use them. This is where the “what the characters exposed to” comes in. When I read these descriptions I think a quirky teenager or young adult, you might've thought the same.

Thanks for reading this all ya, stay tuned for part 2, Moving beond eye color.