Describing a bombing.

Hey all,

I am new to the website, as probably evident from my number of posts.
I am in the process of writing an essay.
I was trying to describe a bombing that took place, however could not quite find the sophisticated writing style to convey the bombing in a descriptive and interesting way.
Rather, all I could come up with is the rather mundane:

'Outside, an explosive and bellicose bang was audible to everyone in the city'.
..

-.-

Metaphors might help. "From outside, a massive booming, as if an ancient giant were stomping the Earth in rage, sent shockwaves roaring over us." You can probably come up with something a bit better -- that's sort of off the top of my head, but you get the idea.

You're sitting in Afganistan, the corrections you made to an essay posted earlier were very good --- don't know why it suddenly went away. I am thinking you're fighting the war there, your name has a German ring, yet it means 'love'. I'm also thinking you're craving for some intellectual outlet amidst the barren landscape.

Well. If so, tell us, I for one am very interested in hearing of things in your part of the world!

Did you witness this bombing? If so, write in the first person and describe what you saw, heard, and felt as precisely as possible without worrying about sophistication of language.

Even if you are just imagining the bombing, creating a sense of immediacy is the key in writing about such an event. Deliberately sophisticated language creates distance -- the opposite effect of what you want.

I would use metaphors sparingly and keep them very simple so as not to draw attention to themselves. You want your reader to see the bombing without noticing the language you are using to describe it.

@Rajiv,

Well I do not live in, nor have ever visited, Afghanistan. I thought I changed the country on my profile as well...It was initially chosen because I was too lazy to scroll down and Afghanistan is the first country on the list :P

Liebe is Dutch for Love if I remember

And yea, it appears that the entire thread that I had posted in earlier has been deleted.

@Simone, I did not witness the bombing, but I heard it. But thanks for the advice however. I am in the process of completing a CommonApp essay, as I am applying Early Action, and my essay does feature the bomb incident slightly.

Anyways thanks guys, much appreciated.