Tuesday Writing Tip~Character Mannerisms

This week on the #WritersRoad chat we talked about character mannerisms and actions. It was an excellent chat and I walked away with a lot of great ideas. Today's #writetip is inspired by the chat.

#WriteTip: Mannerisms should be unique to each character~to a point~and she be used to show instead of tell.

Such as, crossed arms and looking down one's nose to show defiance, tight jaw and clenched teeth to show anger, maybe a slight limp to hint at an old injury. For some excellent ideas on character mannerisms and description I highly recommend The Emotion Thesaurus. It truly is a writer's bible.

Don't forget to enter my eBook and paperback giveaway, it's to help a great cause!

Comments

  1. Ooh, yes. Uniqueness in characters is where it's at. I like to use some quirk that is in total opposition with his/her normal behavior.

    ReplyDelete
  2. There are little tricks such as you mentioned to help our characters come to life for our readers. Thanks for pointing out The Emotion Thesarus. Great book! Great post, Roland

    ReplyDelete
  3. Oh, good tip, and even better if you push it outside of traditional mannerisms and give your character something that is particular to them like crossing one leg behind the other when nervous.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Exactly! Outside of the norm is always good, it makes them more memorable.

      Delete
  4. Great tip! Mannerisms can do so much to bring a character to life.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I am so sad I missed the chat! I've been so overwhelmed lately. I love the comment about mannerisms. That really helps to show. Thanks so much for the reminder. And for your supporting writers.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Comments are like good friends, the more the merrier!

Popular posts from this blog

Twitter Tuesday~Writer Contest & Agent Advice

Movie Review: 47 Ronin

A New Novel and Call for Cover Reveal Participants