Pop quiz! What do these items have in common:
Apple pie
Skunk
Lemon
Campfire
Lilacs
Rotting garbage
Answer: They all have strong smells.
And at least some of those smells probably call up strong memories in your mind.
I feel like our sense of smell is one of our most under-appreciated senses. But it’s also one of our most powerfully evocative senses. The other day, for example, my husband and I were taking a walk, and the scent of lilacs drew me to a stop. Because it’s the first time I’ve smelled lilacs since we moved to Texas, and it took me instantly back to Wisconsin, where the scent of blooming lilacs signaled the true start of spring to me.
When it comes to writing, scent is one of the hardest senses to describe. But I think it can also make the strongest connections with readers. If a character walks into a room and smells chocolate chip cookies, for example, we can all remember a time we walked into a room and smelled chocolate chip cookies—and how that made us feel. That’s why, as I’m writing, I’m always thinking not only about what a character or a place looks and sounds like, but also how it smells.
You Smell Nice
People have distinctive smells, whether from soap or shampoo, perfume or cologne, or even their occupation. As an author, it can be challenging to find just the right smell for each character—something unique (but not so unique that we can’t imagine what it smells like!), something that fits their occupation or their personality, something that makes you say, “Ah, of course she smells like that.” For example:
But she could feel Spencer behind her, and nothing could block out the welcoming, woodsy scent that always clung to him, as if he’d spent his whole day among the trees. (Not Until Forever)
A faint scent of sandalwood and hard work drifted from him, but it wasn’t unpleasant. More like . . . comforting. (Not Until This Day)
A sweet scent caught Levi’s attention as he was about to enter the building. He stopped abruptly.
Grace?
But there was no one around aside from her brothers. And he knew from spending the past half hour in the car with them that the sweet smell definitely wasn’t them.
Next to him, a vine wound up a trellis, pink and orange flowers covering its green stem. He stepped closer to it, inhaling deeply.
This was it. This was what Grace smelled like. (Not Until Someday)
Every once in a while, when he stepped closer to her, he caught a scent of peaches that made him think of summer and sunshine. (Not Until Then)
The sleeping baby curled against her shoulder. Bethany closed her eyes, soaking in the sweet, milky scent. (Not Until Then)
She smelled like vanilla and gingerbread and everything warm and cozy he’d ever smelled. (Christmas of Joy)
Her jasmine scent surrounded him as her hands came to his shoulders, and all he could do for a moment was breathe in and hold her tight. (Pieces of Forever)
There’s No Smell Like Home
Did you ever notice how everyone’s home has a different smell? Sometimes my kids will smell something and say, “This smells like grandma and grandpa’s house.” (They mean that as a good thing, just for the record.) A few fictional examples:
But spring in Chicago smelled nothing like spring at home in Hope Springs. There, the season carried the heady scents of ice melt and earth and fruit blossoms. (Not Until Forever)
Sophie parked and climbed out of the car, inhaling the soothing scents of cut grass and bee balm. (Not Until Forever)
Everyone’s cheeks were pink, and they’d brought the fresh scent of the cold in with them. (Not Until This Moment)
As they stepped into the store, a mix of baking scents and fresh wood hit her, making her heart ache in a way she couldn’t explain. (Not Until This Day)
The late morning air smelled earthy and damp and sweet with the scent of lilacs that had just begun to bloom. (Not Until Then)
Outside, a horse nickered, and in the barn, the scent of horse manure and hay closed in on him. (Not Until Then)
It smelled like grease and metal and hard work out here, but not in an unpleasant way. (Christmas of Joy)
But he kept his gaze on the sky—now empty aside from the haze of firework smoke that obscured the stars and left a heavy scent in the air. (Songs of Home)
Mouthwatering Smells
Foods obviously have smells, which makes them a lot of fun to write about. Like:
As they broke off to do their jobs, Austin rummaged in the industrial-size refrigerator for the herbs he’d need for the turkeys. He snapped off a piece of sage, the smell a punch straight to the gut. (Not Until Christmas Morning)
She slid out of bed and opened the door, the scent of coffee and waffles delighting her nose. Those smells meant Mama was up. (Not Until Someday)
What was that delicious smell?
Levi retracted his tape measure and lifted his nose into the air, inhaling deeply.
Something garlicky, but he couldn’t place what it was. (Not Until Someday)
Kayla lifted an eyebrow. “You made waffles? I’m impressed.”
“Don’t be. They looked like shoe leather.”
“And smelled like feet,” Ruby added with a giggle. (Not Until Now)
Do Smells Have Feelings?
I’m not sure if smells can exactly have feelings, but they sure can evoke them. Which is why I sometimes describe feelings in terms of smells:
The scents of home cooking got him every time. His home had never smelled like this growing up.
It had smelled more like . . .
Did fear have a smell? (Not Until This Moment)
She inhaled deeply. “It smells so good here. Like Christmas and . . . and—”
“Joy,” Luke filled in.
Madison looked at him in surprise, and he shrugged. “If joy had a smell.” (Christmas of Joy)
She pulled in a deep breath. The air smelled like summer and flowers and hope. (Songs of Home)
Do you have a favorite scent or a scent that evokes powerful memories for you? Let me know in the comments!
I’m currently in Minnesota with my family, visiting the college my oldest plans to attend next year (it smells like snow and cold here), so I may not get a chance to pop in and reply to comments until this evening. Thanks for your patience!
Valerie M. Bodden has three great loves: Jesus, her family, and books. And chocolate (okay, four great loves). She writes emotion-filled Christian fiction that weaves real-life problems, real-life people, and real-life faith. Her characters may (okay, will) experience some heartache along the way, but true to her tendencies as a hopeless romantic, she will always give them a happy ending. Valerie is living out her happily ever after in Wisconsin with her high-school-sweetheart-turned-husband and their four children. Visit her at www.valeriembodden.com to get a free story.
I love the smell of fresh mowed lawn. I always think of my dad. I can just see him now, cutting the grass on Saturday morning. I miss him so much.
I like the smell of vanilla and coconut. Coconut reminds me of summers spent at a beach. with my family. Vanilla is in one of my favorite candles, Vanilla Bean Noel and reminds me of Christmas.
I love the scent of the air after a spring rain and early morning after a snowfall. Chocolate and cinnamon are warm scents. Many of my memories are evoked by scents, and the sense of smell enhances the taste of food.
This one is weird lol. My dad is a life long smoker, and so always smells of cigarettes. I know a lot of people hate this smell, but to me it smells like my dad and is strangely comforting. When he broke his ankle a while back and had to stay in hospital I remember going to see him and giving him a hug and it felt really strange as there was no cigarette smell as he wasn’t allowed to smoke in there.
I love the smell of chocolate chip cookies baking as my grandmother always had them for us after school
To me, autumn smells like cinnamon, oranges, and cloves. It makes me feel warm and cozy so I love adding those items and water to s crockpot every fall/winter and letting it simmer all day.
I like some scents, like the coffee aisle at the grocery store! I love the smell of cinnamon, and a few other scents. Nothing too strong, as that would set off my allergies. I do like the scent of baking cookies and brownies, though!
I’ve noticed a lot of authors make a big deal about how a certain character smells. I’ve never noticed how people smell – unless it’s dirty diapers on a baby, or someone wearing really strong perfume (and I steer clear of them) :-) However, I am aware of smells like rain, flowers, spices, etc. Apple pie — yum!
Every time I smell peonies I remember my Mom because she loved flowers and especially peonies.
Flowers remind me of my grandma that passed away March 24th so this year will be 3 years . my mom loves anything vanilla or coconut smelling .
I loved this post! In the kitchen, I love tomato sauce (which I relate to all things pasta), chocolate cake (which usually means a celebration), and empanadas (a scent related to Christmas in my family :) ). I also loved the smells of Fall, rain, and damp earth.
I love the smell of COFFEE :)
The scent of baby powder makes me think of my grandmother. She loved to sprinkle J&J’s baby powder on herself so when I would hug her the smell lingered. To this day it brings a smile to my face.
I love the when scents have the smell of orange in it. My sister says that I prefer clean smells more than warm smells, if that makes sense
Yes , whenever I smell hot cocoa. When I was growing up and it was in the autumn season, in the cool evenings, when we were outside playing , my mom would call us in for dinner, well as we walked in the house I could smell hot cocoa, our mom had made us hot cocoa to drink in a big pan on the stove. So whenever autumn is here and it is a cool day, it always reminds me of hot cocoa and I can even smell it, bringing back beautiful memories.
Hi Valerie,
I love the smell of roses. It reminds me of the roses my great-aunt used to grow in her backyard.
Thanks for your post!
Freshly mown grass reminds me of my father.
Funny you mention smells (this is not a nice one) the past couple nights there has been a smell in my room. I now have a clean pillow, underlay, blanket etc. The smell was worse last night. I found it Thanks to the cats a dead mouse not far from my bed. 1am I am vacuuming.
The smell of Johnsons baby powder makes me think of mum in the nursing home so I can’t handle it.
But some cooking smells I just love. Vanilla is a scent I love I know there are others that bring memories
Love the smell of lilacs. It smells like spring. Baking cookies reminds me of Christmas. I used to bake dozens and dozens of Christmas cookies when I was younger. Also, there was an Avon perfume, Bird of Paradise, that I used to wear. On the rare occasion that I smell it, it takes me back about 20 years.
I hope you are having a good visit in Minnesota.
I love the smell of line dried clothes, especially sheets. That’s one of my favorite smells!
Aw, what a sweet smell and a sweet way to think of your dad.
Two great smells! Coconut always reminds me of the beach and sunscreen, and vanilla is such a Christmassy scent.
Oh yes! So many great smells for so many seasons, and they are so powerful at evoking memories. And smell definitely plays a huge role in taste too!
That’s so interesting! What smells mean to everyone can be so individual. I can see how the smell of cigarette smoke would be comforting since it reminds you of your dad.
Mmm, yummy! And such a sweet memory!
Oh, that’s a great idea! I’m going to have to try that!
Those are all great ones! I agree with you about nothing too strong. Even though I like the smell of sandalwood, we have a sandalwood candle that’s way too overwhelming for my taste.
Lol! That’s a great point! Unpleasant scents are probably much more noticeable on people. But there are so many great nature and food smells.
Aw, I love that! Peonies are such beautiful flowers too!
It’s so sweet that the smell of flowers reminds you of your grandma. Vanilla and coconut are great scents too.
Thank you! I’m so glad you enjoyed the post! Food scents can bring back such powerful memories–especially of holidays and special occasions. I love the smell of rain and fall too.
Mmm, yes! There’s something so warm and homey about it!
Oh, I love that! I can almost smell baby powder now. :)
Oh sure, I definitely think of any kind of citrus as a clean smell. I love the smell of a fresh peeled orange. :)
Oh, I love that! What beautiful memories!
Hi Janet! Roses have such a beautiful smell–and it sounds like they bring back great memories of your great-aunt’s roses.
A great scent–and great memories!
Oh no! Dead mouse is not a good smell at all! Glad you found it! And you make a good point that some scents bring back sad memories as well.
Vanilla is such a warm cooking scent–it makes me think of cookies and Christmas.
I agree completely about lilacs smelling like spring! And who can resist the smell of baking cookies, lol. Perfumes can really take us back in time too. I can still remember the scent of the cologne my husband used to wear.
We’re having a great visit in Minnesota, thank you! :)
Oh yes! There’s something so fresh about line dried sheets and laundry. Smells like sunshine! :)
My Mom sold Avon for over 50 years. If I smell one of the older fragrances, I would think of her. She loved lilacs as well as the roses we grew in the yard. I love the smell of apple cinnamon or anything cinnamon. Thank you so much for sharing. God bless you.
no fav
Perfumes can really make you think of specific people! I love apple cinnamon too–definitely my favorite candle scent. :)
That’s fair! Thanks for reading!
Vanilla is the smell I like best.
My favorite scent is lavender. It has always calmed me, even before it was a popular thing for people to use. My grandmother used it in her linen and I loved to cuddle up in her sheets and just smell them. My whole house always smelled like lavender!
I love the smell of flavored coffees.
Such a good smell!
Lavender is such a soothing smell! Sounds like your grandmother knew a thing or two about scents!
Oh yes! So warm and inviting!
I love the smell of coffee being brewed and toast being made. On a stranger note, I also like the smell of diesel because it takes me back to being a kid at the airport getting ready to go on vacation.
Coffee and toast smell so warm and homey. The diesel less so, lol, but I can totally see how it would remind you of going on vacation.
There are certain smells that remind me of my Grandma. I’m not sure exactly what the scents are, but when I smell them I always think of her.
Wood smoke, sweet baking, savory dinner, fresh line dried laundry, flowers, spring woods, autumn woods, winter woods. So many smells from the farms of my life. Thanx for the memories.
I know what you mean! Even smells we can’t describe can bring back memories.
So many great smellls…so many great memories! :)
I love food scents, especially the scent of homemade breads and desserts.
Mmm, yes! So homey and mouth-watering. :)