Prose craft
Purple prose
Ornate writing that has tipped into overwrought: unearned ornamentation, not maximalism in general.
Purple prose is the pejorative for ornamented writing that has stopped earning its ornament: overwrought, decorative beyond what the moment carries. It is a subset of maximalist prose, not a synonym for it; dense, rich writing can be exactly right for its register, and maximalist traditions carry their own discipline.
The practical test is earn, not amount: does the ornament carry information, voice or feeling the plain version would lose? If it only signals effort, it is purple.
Sources
- Princeton UP: In Praise of Purple Prose Argues ornate prose is underappreciated; cited as context, not support for any specific rule.