Q&A for How to Write a Metaphor

Anything can be made into a metaphor. If you draw enough comparison between the plate and what you want it to represent, you have a metaphor.

Think of things related to water. For example, you can use river, rain, etc. instead of just tears. Push it further and add adjectives that show feelings within the crying, like "a cold, rushing river" or "gentle waterfalls."

Depends what you want to say. An example would be "my pen is my sword." This metaphor indicates that writing would help bring about change.

Any words you want, as long as they make sense in the context. For example: I am a fish, waving my delicate tail in the water of life.

Comparing the moon to an orbiting ball of cheese is a great one, although pretty common if you ask me. "The man in the moon" is a metaphor as well. There's not really a face in the night sky, watching our every move, but it kind of looks that way sometimes.

Think of something that reminds you of butterflies, but you can't use like or as. For example, if I'm talking about the Earth, I'd say something like 'The Earth is a terrarium. It has a lot of life thriving within it.' For a butterfly, use its gracefulness and fragility for inspiration.

A good writer might use only one metaphor in a whole novel, or maybe two or three. You could employ a few more than that if you really love the technique, but each use might serve to "cheapen" the effect.

If it's across multiple sentences, then no. If it's all one sentence, it may feel a little tacky, so you should try and break it down and/or remove unnecessary words.