Stakes are a crucial part of your story because they define what will happen if the protagonist fails. To build reader empathy, you need this piece in place because when the reader sees what’s at stake, and they recognize why it matters to the character, the story becomes important. It matters.

Stakes also create tension when the reader realizes what’s on the line. So when the stakes are referenced early on, readers are more likely to be drawn in and root for the character’s success.

But that empathy connection only happens if the reader can see what’s at stake. And that can only happen if the author knows what’s on the line. Sometimes, it’s obvious. What are the consequences if Sheriff Brody doesn’t catch the shark in Jaws? Death and dismemberment. In the original Inside Out, if all of Riley’s emotions aren’t acknowledged and won’t work together, her identity is at risk.

But other times, it’s harder to identify what’s at stake in a story. So I’d like to share a simple method for figuring that out.

Outer Motivation + Inner Motivation = Stakes

All you have to do is figure out a couple of key elements for your story.

First: the protagonist’s goal. This is their overall objective. It’s what they’re hoping to achieve: getting the girl, enacting revenge, catching the criminal, etc. This is also called the Outer Motivation because it’s what the character is visibly working toward; everything he or she does is in pursuit of this objective. In The Lord of the Rings, Frodo’s goal is to destroy the one ring. In An Officer and a Gentleman, the protagonist’s goal is to become a Navy officer. The story goal should be pretty obvious because it’s what your character is actively seeking and pursuing.

But, often, there’s also something internally driving your character toward their goal. This is called the Inner Motivation because its private and is usually related to self-esteem or personal fulfillment. Figuring this out requires some digging into the character’s psyche and their past, but on a basic level, you can simply ask: Why is the goal so important to them?

In An Officer and a Gentleman, why does Zach Mayo want to become a Navy officer? There are lots of possibilities, but the true reason becomes clear when you know his backstory. His mother committed suicide, abandoning him as a ten-year-old. He was sent to live with his father, who was an excellent drinking buddy but not good for much else. And his dad’s military career had them moving all over so he could never put down roots. What Zach craves more than anything is belonging, and becoming a military officer will provide that for him. This is going to meet an internal need that’s missing. Belonging to a group is his inner motivation.

One interesting connection to note:
the inner motivation will often point back to a missing human need.

If you’ve followed Angela and me for long, you’ve likely heard about Maslow’s hierarchy of human needs and how it fits into character arc. The full explanation is here, but to summarize, there are 5 needs that are common to all human beings. If any of these are missing, people become vulnerable, and they’ll take action to fill the void.

Very often, that missing need is the inner motivation.

So, when we’re thinking about how to create meaningful stakes for a character, it’s helpful to zero in on which need is missing or most important to them—and be sure it’s tied to their inner motivation. For Zach, he’s missing love and belonging. He’s chosen a goal that, if he succeeds, will usher him into a ready-made community. So what’s at stake if he fails? Not belonging—continuing to live in isolation, alone.

SIDEBAR: It’s important to note that not every protagonist has an inner motivation. This happens a lot in stories that are plot-driven rather than character-driven: thrillers, action/adventure, etc. Think: Indiana Jones, Lara Croft, and vintage James Bond. Those stories are all about the character achieving the goal rather than them growing and maturing, so that internal piece isn’t necessarily needed. In stories like these, the stakes will be very obvious: the end of the world, someone dying, the Nazis getting the Ark of the Covenant and becoming all-powerful, etc.

Bonus: You Can Start from Anywhere

The cool thing about this method is you don’t have to know all your story elements at once; you can start with the inner or outer motivation to figure out the rest of the pieces.

Example 1: Start with the story goal. You know you’re writing a romance with a protagonist who’s looking for true love. What missing human need will be filled if they succeed (inner motivation/human need)?  What’s at stake if they fail?

Example 2: Start with the human need/internal motivation that’s driving their behavior. You know your character inside and out, so you’ve already identified their wound and the human need that’s been compromised. Let’s say it’s Esteem and Recognition. What story goal might they pursue that would fill that void? What’s at stake if they fail to reach their objective?

And now you know how to figure out what’s at stake for your story. Convey that to readers early on, and you’ll show them why the story matters, making it engaging and difficult to put down.

Additional Stakes Resources:

Make the Stakes Personal
Tips for Raising the Stakes
Use Stakes to Establish Reader Expectations

BECCA PUGLISI

Becca Puglisi is an international speaker, writing coach, and bestselling author of The Emotion Thesaurus and its sequels. Her books are available in five languages, are sourced by US universities, and are used by novelists, screenwriters, editors, and psychologists around the world. She is passionate about learning and sharing her knowledge with others through her Writers Helping Writers blog and via One Stop For Writers—a powerhouse online library created to help writers elevate their storytelling.

The post Use This Method to Identify Your Story’s Stakes appeared first on WRITERS HELPING WRITERS®.

What secret is your character keeping? Why are they safeguarding it? What’s at stake if it’s discovered? Does it need to come out at some point, or should it remain hidden?

This is some of the important information you need to know about your character’s secrets—and they will have secrets, because everyone does. They’re thorny little time bombs composed of fear, deceit, stress, and conflict that, when detonated, threaten to destroy everything the character holds dear.

So, of course, you should assemble them. And we can’t wait to help.

This thesaurus provides brainstorming fodder for a host of secrets that could plague your character. Use it to explore possible secrets, their underlying causes, how they might play into the overall story, and how to realistically write a character who is hiding them—all while establishing reader empathy and interest.

Maybe your character is…

Pregnant

ABOUT THIS SECRET: While pregnancy is often cause for celebration, a character who becomes pregnant accidentally or under adverse circumstances—as the result of an affair or a rape, without a partner’s support, or even against her own wishes—might be desperate to keep it a secret. She might struggle with fear or shame, not only about the pregnancy itself but also by what could follow if the news gets out.

SPECIFIC FEARS THAT MAY DRIVE THE NEED FOR SECRECY: Becoming a Parent, Being a Burden to Others, Being Capable of Harm, Being Judged, Being Unable to Achieve a Dream, Change, Humiliation, Losing Autonomy, Losing Financial Security, Losing the Respect of Others, One’s Genetics, Regret, Relational Commitment, Repeating a Cycle of Abuse

HOW THIS SECRET COULD HOLD THE CHARACTER BACK
Having to avoid close friends and family (because they’re the most likely to notice something has changed)
Losing access to the people who would offer advice and support; having to go through the situation alone
Not being able to pursue desired career opportunities
Being consumed by guilt and shame (for being pregnant to begin with, from constantly lying to loved ones, etc.)

BEHAVIORS OR HABITS THAT HELP HIDE THIS SECRET
Wearing baggy clothes
Running the tap in the bathroom to mask signs of morning sickness
Embracing future plans that would be difficult for a pregnant person (scuba diving, extensive travel, etc.)
Not making pregnancy-related plans (buying maternity clothing, taking prenatal vitamins, etc.)

ACTIVITIES OR TENDENCIES THAT MAY RAISE SUSPICIONS
Gaining weight
Giving up smoking or alcohol
A pregnancy test being found in the garbage
The character suddenly wanting a commitment from her partner

SITUATIONS THAT MAKE KEEPING THIS SECRET A CHALLENGE 
Having to change clothes in front of others (in a locker room, hotel room, etc.)
Canceling a big event that will take place after the baby is born (one that will be hard or impossible to attend with a baby)
Developing a pregnancy-related condition that requires bedrest or hospitalization
Sharing the secret with someone who proves to be untrustworthy (the boyfriend, a close friend, a family member, etc.)

Other Secret Thesaurus entries can be found here.

Need More Descriptive Help?

While this thesaurus is still in development, the rest of our descriptive collection (18 unique thesauri and growing) is accessible through the One Stop for Writers THESAURUS database.

If you like, swing by and check out the video walkthrough for this site, then give our Free Trial a spin.

ANGELA ACKERMAN

Angela is a writing coach, international speaker, and bestselling author who loves to travel, teach, empower writers, and pay-it-forward. She also is a founder of One Stop For Writers, a portal to powerful, innovative tools to help writers elevate their storytelling.

The post Character Secret Thesaurus Entry: Being Pregnant appeared first on WRITERS HELPING WRITERS®.

What secret is your character keeping? Why are they safeguarding it? What’s at stake if it’s discovered? Does it need to come out at some point, or should it remain hidden?

This is some of the important information you need to know about your character’s secrets—and they will have secrets, because everyone does. They’re thorny little time bombs composed of fear, deceit, stress, and conflict that, when detonated, threaten to destroy everything the character holds dear.

So, of course, you should assemble them. And we can’t wait to help.

This thesaurus provides brainstorming fodder for a host of secrets that could plague your character. Use it to explore possible secrets, their underlying causes, how they might play into the overall story, and how to realistically write a character who is hiding them—all while establishing reader empathy and interest.

Maybe your character is…

Is Safeguarding Someone’s Secret

ABOUT THIS SECRET
Sometimes characters are secret-keeper for others, either because they have been asked to, or the character learned something by accident and has chosen not to share it. They could have many reasons for doing so, including a desire to respect the other person’s privacy, protect them from harm, or not wanting to become personally involved in something that could bring them unwanted scrutiny, risk, or danger.

SPECIFIC FEARS THAT MAY DRIVE THE NEED FOR SECRECY: Abandonment, Being Attacked, Being Capable of Harm, Being Labeled, Being Responsible for Others, Being Taken Advantage of, Being Unsafe, Conflict, Letting Others Down, Losing Autonomy, Losing One’s Social Standing, Putting Oneself out There, Relational Commitment

HOW THIS SECRET COULD HOLD THE CHARACTER BACK
Struggling with having to lie to protect the secret
Having to take risks to help the person avoid exposure
Experiencing anxiety or fear over what to do (if the secret is dangerous or harmful)
The secret shattering a close relationship (over knowing what they did) and mourning that loss

BEHAVIORS OR HABITS THAT HELP HIDE THIS SECRET
Shutting down gossip that involves the person and/or what is being hidden
Watching for threats (nosy people making connections, etc.) that could endanger the secret
Steering the conversation away from anything that might lead to discovery
Using misinformation, false rumors, or lies to keep people from learning the truth

ACTIVITIES OR TENDENCIES THAT MAY RAISE SUSPICIONS
Being caught in a lie
Not attending an event the character was expected to but cannot due to the secret
Emotional volatility around the party at fault (e.g., being unable to rein in anger and judgment around the abusive partner of a friend who is keeping her bruises a secret)

SITUATIONS THAT MAKE KEEPING THIS SECRET A CHALLENGE 
Wanting to offer advice but knowing doing so will alert people involved
Wanting to warn someone when that person is unaware the character knows their secret
If suspicions are raised and the danger increases for the character
When keeping the secret means crossing a moral line

Other Secret Thesaurus entries can be found here.

Need More Descriptive Help?

While this thesaurus is still being developed, the rest of our descriptive collection (18 unique thesauri and growing) is accessible through the One Stop for Writers THESAURUS database.

If you like, swing by and check out the video walkthrough for this site, then give our Free Trial a spin.

ANGELA ACKERMAN

Angela is a writing coach, international speaker, and bestselling author who loves to travel, teach, empower writers, and pay-it-forward. She also is a founder of One Stop For Writers, a portal to powerful, innovative tools to help writers elevate their storytelling.

The post Character Secret Thesaurus Entry: Is Safeguarding Someone’s Secret appeared first on WRITERS HELPING WRITERS®.

What secret is your character keeping? Why are they safeguarding it? What’s at stake if it’s discovered? Does it need to come out at some point, or should it remain hidden?

This is some of the important information you need to know about your character’s secrets—and they will have secrets, because everyone does. They’re thorny little time bombs composed of fear, deceit, stress, and conflict that, when detonated, threaten to destroy everything the character holds dear.

So, of course, you should assemble them. And we can’t wait to help.

This thesaurus provides brainstorming fodder for a host of secrets that could plague your character. Use it to explore possible secrets, their underlying causes, how they might play into the overall story, and how to realistically write a character who is hiding them—all while establishing reader empathy and interest.

Maybe your character is…

Hiding a Sexual Relationship

ABOUT THIS SECRET
In general, characters don’t discuss who they’re intimate with, but occasionally it becomes a guarded secret as discovery could mean difficult or painful consequences. An age gap, being from different societal classes, a forbidden pairing due to a feud, danger, or a taboo might all be reasons others would condemn and seek to end this relationship. This entry covers scenarios where the characters involved are happy with these encounters and wish them to continue.

SPECIFIC FEARS THAT MAY DRIVE THE NEED FOR SECRECY: A Secret Being Revealed, Abandonment, Being Attacked, Being Judged, Being Labelled, Being Separated from Loved Ones, Being Unsafe, Humiliation, Letting Others Down, Losing Autonomy, Losing One’s Social Standing, Losing the Respect of Others, Never Finding Happiness, Persecution

HOW THIS SECRET COULD HOLD THE CHARACTER BACK
Creating distance in important relationships to avoid accidental discovery
Carrying the weight of guilt (if the character knows this secret will hurt others)
Being unable to talk about something that brings joy
Stress over telling lies, manufacturing excuses, and courting the danger of discovery

BEHAVIORS OR HABITS THAT HELP HIDE THIS SECRET
Arranging meetups for times when other people are busy or absent
Having an activity near the partner’s location to have a legitimate reason for being there
Cultivating trust with others to allow for freedom of movement
Following a protocol (going out when the family is asleep, avoiding the same hotel, etc.)

ACTIVITIES OR TENDENCIES THAT MAY RAISE SUSPICIONS
An observer overhearing a conversation, especially one that contains suggestive innuendo
Being caught somewhere the character shouldn’t be
Being caught purchasing a gift intended for the partner
Losing track of time often, causing others to notice a pattern of absences

SITUATIONS THAT MAKE KEEPING THIS SECRET A CHALLENGE 
Increased scrutiny of the character
Being caught in a lie
Being discovered half-dressed or in bed together
Parental expectations that it’s time to “settle down with someone”

Other Secret Thesaurus entries can be found here.

Need More Descriptive Help?

While this thesaurus is still being developed, the rest of our descriptive collection (18 unique thesauri and growing) is accessible through the One Stop for Writers THESAURUS database.

If you like, swing by and check out the video walkthrough for this site, then give our Free Trial a spin.

ANGELA ACKERMAN

Angela is a writing coach, international speaker, and bestselling author who loves to travel, teach, empower writers, and pay-it-forward. She also is a founder of One Stop For Writers, a portal to powerful, innovative tools to help writers elevate their storytelling.

The post Character Secret Thesaurus Entry: Hiding a Sexual Relationship appeared first on WRITERS HELPING WRITERS®.

What secret is your character keeping? Why are they safeguarding it? What’s at stake if it’s discovered? Does it need to come out at some point, or should it remain hidden?

This is some of the important information you need to know about your character’s secrets—and they will have secrets, because everyone does. They’re thorny little time bombs composed of fear, deceit, stress, and conflict that, when detonated, threaten to destroy everything the character holds dear.

So, of course, you should assemble them. And we can’t wait to help.

This thesaurus provides brainstorming fodder for a host of secrets that could plague your character. Use it to explore possible secrets, their underlying causes, how they might play into the overall story, and how to realistically write a character who is hiding them—all while establishing reader empathy and interest.

Maybe your character…

Coveting Someone Else’s Life

ABOUT THIS SECRET: Few things are equal, including advantages, opportunities, burdens or struggles. So, when others have more luck, support, or success, it’s easy to envy them and what they have, even to the point of bitterness. If anyone finds out though, pity follows, so your character will try to keep what they covet a secret.

SPECIFIC FEARS THAT MAY DRIVE THE NEED FOR SECRECY: Becoming What One Hates, Being Judged, Being Pitied, Being Unable to Achieve a Dream, Failure, Having No Purpose, Humiliation, Losing the Respect of Others, Mediocrity, Never Finding Happiness

HOW THIS SECRET COULD HOLD THE CHARACTER BACK
Being unable to appreciate the good in life because they can only see what is lacking
Causing loved ones to feel “not good enough” because the character is never happy
Creating a self-fulfilling prophecy from the belief that their life can never be as good as another’s
Becoming increasingly pessimistic
Not living their own life because they’re obsessed with someone else’s

BEHAVIORS OR HABITS THAT HELP HIDE THIS SECRET
Avoiding the person who has what the character wants
Changing the topic if the conversation begins to highlight the great life someone else has
The character deflecting questions that could reveal insecurities
Working hard to control their emotions when the other person is around

ACTIVITIES OR TENDENCIES THAT MAY RAISE SUSPICIONS
Moodiness (especially when the other person is around or mentioned)
A habit of minimizing the other’s accomplishments by attributing them to luck
Overcompensating; being overly warm or complimentary to hide envy
Trying to force opportunities in hopes of changing their life to be like another’s
Passive-aggressiveness (talking behind the person’s back, sarcasm, back-handed compliments)

SITUATIONS THAT MAKE KEEPING THIS SECRET A CHALLENGE 
Falling in love with that other person’s partner or spouse
Seeing luck favor the other person and the perceived unfairness of it carrying the character to a breaking point
Discovering the person they envy is a fraud or unworthy in some way (disillusionment)
Suffering yet another disappointment that seems unfair or unjust

Other Secret Thesaurus entries can be found here.

Need More Descriptive Help?

While this thesaurus is still being developed, the rest of our descriptive collection (18 unique thesauri and growing) is accessible through the One Stop for Writers THESAURUS database.

If you like, swing by and check out the video walkthrough for this site, then give our Free Trial a spin.

ANGELA ACKERMAN

Angela is a writing coach, international speaker, and bestselling author who loves to travel, teach, empower writers, and pay-it-forward. She also is a founder of One Stop For Writers, a portal to powerful, innovative tools to help writers elevate their storytelling.

The post Character Secret Thesaurus Entry: Coveting Someone Else’s Life appeared first on WRITERS HELPING WRITERS®.

What secret is your character keeping? Why are they safeguarding it? What’s at stake if it’s discovered? Does it need to come out at some point, or should it remain hidden?

This is some of the important information you need to know about your character’s secrets—and they will have secrets, because everyone does. They’re thorny little time bombs composed of fear, deceit, stress, and conflict that, when detonated, threaten to destroy everything the character holds dear.

So, of course, you should assemble them. And we can’t wait to help.

This thesaurus provides brainstorming fodder for a host of secrets that could plague your character. Use it to explore possible secrets, their underlying causes, how they might play into the overall story, and how to realistically write a character who is hiding them—all while establishing reader empathy and interest.

Maybe your character…

Monitoring Someone Without Their Knowledge

ABOUT THIS SECRET: While there are legitimate uses of monitoring (say, placing a legal wiretap on a suspect’s phone, collecting intel as a private detective or undercover cop, etc.) privacy laws and heavy regulation usually require it be disclosed or in plain view (but never in a private space such as a bathroom). However, what’s legal and what isn’t doesn’t concern characters on the unsavory end of the spectrum—criminals, Peeping Toms, captors, hackers, stalkers, cyberbullies, blackmailers, or other characters who operate outside the law. This entry focuses on these character types.

SPECIFIC FEARS THAT MAY DRIVE THE NEED FOR SECRECY: A Secret Being Revealed, Being Attacked, Being Unsafe, Discrimination, Government, Persecution

HOW THIS SECRET COULD HOLD THE CHARACTER BACK
Having to keep people at arm’s length so their activities are not discovered
Being torn over monitoring another if feelings become involved
Developing an obsession that takes over their life
Being unable to have genuine relationships (due to a fear of discovery)
Not seeking help for mental and emotional conditions that may be lurking beneath the surface

BEHAVIORS OR HABITS THAT HELP HIDE THIS SECRET
Avoiding friendships and personal connections
Having a secure area to plan and store items needed to monitor (computers, hard drives, etc.)
Taking precautions to stay undetected and not raise suspicions
Being disciplined (resisting temptation to take things too far or get close enough for discovery)
Following certain protocols to stay undetected
Being someone forgettable (being polite but not memorable, seeing boring and harmless)

ACTIVITIES OR TENDENCIES THAT MAY RAISE SUSPICIONS
Being a recluse, causing others around them to wonder what the character is up to
Carelessness (sloppy hacking, obvious daytime survellience, etc.) that is noticed
A cold, detached demeanor (that makes the character memorable to others)
Being discovered in a place they are not supposed to be
Not hiding monitoring equipment well enough, leading to its discovery

SITUATIONS THAT MAKE KEEPING THIS SECRET A CHALLENGE 
Circumstances that suddenly change (like a loss of privacy)
An unforeseen challenge that the character is unprepared for
Needing to take in a roommate to keep up with costs
Having a nosy neighbor or family member
Becoming attached to a target

Other Secret Thesaurus entries can be found here.

Need More Descriptive Help?

While this thesaurus is still being developed, the rest of our descriptive collection (18 unique thesauri and growing) is accessible through the One Stop for Writers THESAURUS database.

If you like, swing by and check out the video walkthrough for this site, then give our Free Trial a spin.

ANGELA ACKERMAN

Angela is a writing coach, international speaker, and bestselling author who loves to travel, teach, empower writers, and pay-it-forward. She also is a founder of One Stop For Writers, a portal to powerful, innovative tools to help writers elevate their storytelling.

The post Character Secret Thesaurus Entry: Monitoring Someone Without Their Knowledge appeared first on WRITERS HELPING WRITERS®.

As you may have heard, we recently released The Emotion Amplifier Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide to Character Stress and Volatility, a companion to The Emotion Thesaurus.

If you aren’t familiar with this term, let me explain. An emotion amplifier is a special state or condition that can make a character emotionally reactive. Whether it’s pain, scrutiny, pregnancy, competition, or other state, when a disruptor messes with a character’s psychological and emotional equilibrium, it’s bad for them, but good for the story. And this is but one way to use them.

Emotion Amplifiers are unbelievably versatile. In addition to making a character volatile, check out how else they can help you level up your story!

1. Amplifiers make it harder for characters to hide what they feel.

Characters are like people–they often mask what they feel to avoid judgment, vulnerability, and the perception that they are weak. But if your character is hungover, enduring high levels of scrutiny, or it’s been ten hours since they last had a cigarette (withdrawal), it becomes harder to keep their emotions in check. A slip–forgetting their filter, telling someone off–and suddenly their emotions are on full display.

2. Amplifiers are great for uncovering a character’s faults, flaws, and sensitivities.

Characters are motivated to control events around them as much as possible, which can make them seem more capable and strong than they actually are. Derailing their plans with an amplifier is a great way to show readers they don’t have it all together and can lose their emotional grip just like anyone else.

3. Amplifiers infuse scenes with tension.

When a character’s stress levels are heightened because of an amplifier like hunger, illness, or pain, the reader becomes glued to the page, wondering if the character will be able to handle the extra strain.

When a reader is unsure of what will happen next, the tension they feel causes them to read on…exactly what we want!

4. Amplifiers generate conflict.

Sometimes your character can manage the strain of an amplifier, and sometimes they can’t. If distraction, sleep deprivation, or even attraction causes your character’s attention to drift, they could fail to spot a threat or worse, taking their situation from bad to worse.

5. Amplifiers can help make a character relatable.

Most amplifiers are common enough that readers have experienced them themselves, or at least know the challenge they represent. So when a character is struggling with something like stress, pressure, or bereavement, readers relate to the character because this situation feels like common ground.

6. Amplifiers pressure characters to deal with their inner conflict.

It can be tempting to ignore personal problems when there’s a difficult decision to be made, but if characters continue to avoid the hard stuff, readers will disengage.

Deploying an amplifier at the right time can make the character’s situation untenable, forcing them to search within and find a way to change their situation for the better, even if this means a cost or sacrifice.

7. Amplifiers provide the opportunity to grow.

In a story, characters should make plenty of mistakes so they can learn from them. Letting emotions take over because of an amplifier like addiction, burnout, or confinement might mean taking a foolish risk, doing or saying something that damages their reputation, or creating big problems for themselves. Dealing with the fallout of bad decisions and emotional volatility will teach them to find a better way next time.

8. Amplifiers support your story’s structure.

Stories contain a framework of turning points and characters must move from one stage to the next for the story to progress. The problem? Fear can make them resistant to take on certain challenges, and they become resistant to leaving their comfort zone. An amplifier like danger, dehydration, arousal, or physical disorientation can force them to march into the unknown so they can secure what they need most.

9. Amplifiers give the story’s premise or conflict scenario a fresh edge.

Stories naturally contain elements and scenarios that will be similar, especially within a genre. The addition of an amplifier, perhaps one like brainwashing, an injury, mental health condition, or intoxication, will help readers see your events as unique, and give you a way to show a character’s individuality in the way that they handle the challenge.

10. Amplifiers encourage readers to connect with your characters on a deeper level.

Amplifiers are familiar to readers as these states and conditions are part of the human experience. When an amplifier brings a character’s emotions close to the surface, readers can’t help but be reminded of their own feelings and humanity. This fosters empathy and connection, and the reader becomes invested in what happens next.

Becca and I explore over 50 amplifiers in this second edition of The Emotion Amplifier Thesaurus. As a companion guide, each entry is styled very close to The Emotion Thesaurus. If you’d like a look at the list of amplifiers and a few sample entries from the book, just go here.

ANGELA ACKERMAN

Angela is a writing coach, international speaker, and bestselling author who loves to travel, teach, empower writers, and pay-it-forward. She also is a founder of One Stop For Writers, a portal to powerful, innovative tools to help writers elevate their storytelling.

The post 10 Reasons Why Emotion Amplifiers Are Good for Your Story appeared first on WRITERS HELPING WRITERS®.

It’s glorious. So…how do we do it? Psychology.

People are hardwired for stories. For one, they contain experiences that the primal part of the brain likes to mine for information to help with survival. But there are other reasons, too, like the chance to experience certain emotions that act as a release, and the sense of connection a person gets from discovering common ground with others…in this case, the characters.

This is psychology at work.

Certain psychological processes steer us, even though we may not realize it. They shape how we respond to life’s ups and downs, our behavior toward others and ourselves, influence the goals we seek, and more.

Psychology is the study of mental processes and behavior to understand why people think and behave as they do.

Most of us aren’t experts in psychology. We may not even think much about the WHY behind our attitudes and behaviors. Nonetheless, psychological patterns and processes are whirring in the background, drawing from our personal beliefs, emotions, values, identity, and experiences to determine how we think, act, and behave.

Applying human psychology to characters makes them authentic and relatable to readers.

Psychology is part of what it is to be human. Whether it’s a character’s struggles, choices, values, needs, or mistakes, readers can’t help but see a piece of themselves reflected in the character. A bond forms, and if we wish it, we can make that character important to them, someone whose hopes, desires, and goals are meaningful and worth cheering for.

We don’t need to be experts to use psychology, either. We may not always know the terminology or reasoning behind certain processes, but we know what they are like to experience. We can show a character struggling to mentally or emotionally process something and readers will relate—they’ve had to process challenging things, too. This familiarity creates connection and empathy, which is exactly what we want to happen.

Let’s look at a common psychological process: cognitive dissonance.

The best way to explain what this is will be to ask you a question: Have you ever experienced internal tension from an unsettling situation, like seeing a neighbor chain his dog up day after day?

Or maybe this tension crops up when you’re doing something you don’t feel 100% good about, like pulling into the McDonald’s drive-thru when you committed to making better choices and eating healthier.

If so, this tension is called cognitive dissonance, the psychological discomfort caused by contradicting thoughts, perceptions, values, or beliefs. It’s quite common – we all experience it. A few examples:

• We discover information that challenges our current beliefs and sense of right and wrong
• We must choose between competing values/beliefs because, in our current situation, we can’t live by both
• We are behaving in a way that doesn’t match with what we believe in

Cognitive dissonance causes uncomfortable emotions like confusion, worry, guilt, regret, or shame.

To illustrate, let’s go back to the McDonald’s example. Despite your plan to stick to healthy options, it’s been a hellish week, and you pull into the drive-thru. You feel guilty as you order, but when the food arrives, you park the car and indulge—it’s so good! Unfortunately, your Big Mac euphoria lasts only as long as the burger does, and now you’re regretting the decision to cave to your craving. Worse, you’re mentally beating yourself up for not having the willpower to resist.

Cognitive dissonance is powering this discord because you (a) like eating Big Macs but (b) want to lose weight and be healthy. You resolved inner tension briefly by choosing Team Big Mac, but because this behavior didn’t line up with that internal commitment you made to yourself, guilt and regret followed.

This is a psychological process so common readers will pick up on it in the story. The best part? Even if a character experiences dissonance and makes a choice that the reader would not, they still empathize with the character’s experience of internal strain.

Another form of internal contradiction is emotional dissonance. This happens when a person fakes an emotion that they don’t feel.

Can I use you as an example again? Let’s imagine at work you find yourself faking enthusiasm about your boss’s terrible marketing strategy. After all, you know from experience that he won’t listen to contrary opinions, and because you’re a team player, you put on your rah-rah face like everyone else in the meeting.

In this case, your dissonance is mild. You’ve weathered his bad ideas before and aren’t invested enough to state how you really feel.

But emotional dissonance isn’t always minor. Sometimes the emotion you’d have to fake is so far from what you feel that it clashes with your values or personal identity. Acting in alignment with an untrue emotion can mean sacrificing your belief system and going against who you are.

Let’s up the ante. You discover this marketing strategy is driven by a closely guarded secret: the company needs to dump a supply of expired baby formula that they’ve repackaged with fresh dates. When you confront your sales manager she explains that the product is fine, this happens all the time, so keep quiet and get out there and sell, sell, sell.

Can you, knowing the formula could be contaminated? Will you be able to fake confidence as you hit up those neonatal units and pharmacies to convince people to buy your product? Or is this something you can’t do because it crosses a line and violates your core values, regardless of how badly you need the bonus for meeting your sales quota?

Here, the divide between your true feelings (contempt and shock) and the emotion you’d need to fake (confidence) is much wider. Whichever you express reveals your identity: Are you the sort of person who does what’s right or what makes money?

Everyone protects their self-perceptions—things they believe to be true about themselves. Emotional dissonance in a story raises the stakes by challenging the character’s view of themselves, creating confusion, uncertainty, or regret. These difficult emotions are another point of common ground with readers because at one time or another, everyone has reflected on their own identity and whether they are being true to themselves.

Internal dissonance is the heart of inner conflict.

Showing a character wrestle with clashing beliefs, values, or other inconsistencies, no matter what they are, will resonate with readers. The character’s situation may be new to the reader, but the internal tug of war is something they have experience with.

In short, psychology is awesome. Use it!

If you’d like to know more (and discover the best way to encourage internal tension), dive into The Emotion Amplifier Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide to Character Stress and Volatility. This companion book to The Emotion Thesaurus will show you how to remind readers of the real world and their own human experiences so they bond better with your characters!

ANGELA ACKERMAN

Angela is a writing coach, international speaker, and bestselling author who loves to travel, teach, empower writers, and pay-it-forward. She also is a founder of One Stop For Writers, a portal to powerful, innovative tools to help writers elevate their storytelling.

The post Why Writers Should Use Psychology In Their Storytelling appeared first on WRITERS HELPING WRITERS®.

What are writers chronically short on? Time.

There never seems to be enough of it as we try to get the next book written, research our publishing options, keep up with marketing, work on our platform, etc., and that doesn’t even factor in what’s happening in other areas of our life. And as we juggle, the one thing that can help us succeed more than anything else is often neglected: education to help us improve our storytelling skills.

Introducing Mini-Lessons

You guys know Becca and I have a lot to say about description and how showing the right things in the right way means readers are pulled in and will care deeply about characters and what’s happening in their lives. We’ve written books on many description elements and have even more of these in our THESAURUS database at One Stop for Writers.

This summer, Becca and I have recorded a mini lesson for each of our thesauruses, helping you better understand that story element, what its superpower is in your story, and how to activate that detail through description.

Each video takes you through a thesaurus in the One Stop for Writers database, but you don’t need to be a subscriber to benefit from these lessons or use our thesauruses (although they are very helpful for brainstorming). But if you are someone who uses them, this will broaden your understanding so you get even more value from each brainstorming list.

Bite-sized learning is a perfect match for busy writers

Life can be hectic, making it hard to carve out big blocks of time for learning. With these videos, you need about 5 (ish) minutes. Totally doable! Whether you want to learn how to describe a character’s emotions, activate the power of your scene’s setting, or understand character motivation better so plotting becomes easier, a helpful mini-lesson is waiting for you.

Here’s the playlist, or choose the topic you’d like to know more about below.

Happy writing and learning!

Grow Your Skills with Becca & Angela

How to Describe a Character’s Appearance

How Emotional Trauma Affects Characters & Their Arc

How to Use a Character’s Fears in Storytelling

How to Create a Character Readers Will Love

How to Give a Character Flaws that Will Hold Them Back

How the Right Setting Details Make a Scene More Powerful

How to Create a Memorable Character Using a Talent or Skill

How to Show What Your Character Is Feeling

How to Use Conflict to Power up Your Story

How to Write Your Theme and Use Effective Symbolism in Fiction

How to Use the Weather to Build Mood and Generate Conflict

How to Find the Right Job for a Character

How to Bring Readers Into a Story Using Textures

How to Create Vivid Description Using Colors and Patterns

How Describing an Object’s Shape the Right Way Strengthens the Story

How to Build Strong Characters & Arcs

How to Amplify Your Character’s Emotional State

Need more help as you plan, write, and revise? Join us at One Stop!

ANGELA ACKERMAN

Angela is a writing coach, international speaker, and bestselling author who loves to travel, teach, empower writers, and pay-it-forward. She also is a founder of One Stop For Writers, a portal to powerful, innovative tools to help writers elevate their storytelling.

The post Improve Your Storytelling in 5 Minutes appeared first on WRITERS HELPING WRITERS®.

Fear is a disruptive force, even though its job is to keep us safe. When there’s a perceived physical or psychological threat, our brain blasts us with a shot of adrenaline so we respond, fight, flight, or freeze, whichever helps us navigate the danger we’re in.

But fear is also insidious. It can sink into our thoughts and memories and become an ongoing dark force that cloaks us, changing our behavior and how we see the world. We become ever-watchful for new threats, and avoid things that have the potential to lead to another painful experience.

In fiction, characters also feel this dark weight, and it can be as detrimental to them as it is to us.

Fear may cause a character to…

Hold back in relationships
Underachieve (by choosing ‘safe’ goals below their potential)
Avoid certain places, events, and people
Misread situations and overestimate threats
Feel stuck in life
Struggle with self-worth
Retreat into themselves
Stay within their comfort zone
Settle for less
Find it harder to make decisions
Hold onto the past in an unhealthy way
Have a more negative view of the world
Doom cast (decide something will fail without trying)
Become triggered by certain events and circumstances
Project fears onto others (damaging relationships)
Develop phobias
Not take advantage of opportunities
Have unmet needs (that grow deeper as time goes on)
Develop health conditions
And more.

Whatever your character wants in the story, fear stands in their way.

Strong characters have agency, meaning they make choices and act, steering their own path toward their goal. But this goal will be hard to achieve, and if fear is in the driver’s seat, it affects their choices and actions.

If they stay within their comfort zone rather than take a risk, avoid something they must do because they don’t want to be judged, or convince themselves an effort will only end in failure, their decisions and actions are impaired, and whatever they choose to do instead won’t be enough to win.

There are many debilitating fears which can hold someone back. Knowing what your character’s exact fear is, be it rejection, intimacy, competition, or something else, will help you write their actions, behaviors, and decisions in the story. It will also help you plot events to purposely challenge that fear, in the hopes that they will grow and come to control it, rather than it controlling them.

How to find a character’s deepest fear

Fears can be learned (like a child who fears dogs from being exposed to their mother’s phobia of them), but for the most part, fears are born of negative experiences, especially trauma.

For example, being surrendered to the state by a parent who no longer wants to be tied down would be a devastating experience for a character. This trauma likely would create a fear of rejection, abandonment, or both. They will move through life worrying that if they let someone in, that person will eventually get tired of them and the character will be discarded once again.

To find your character’s fear, think about their experiences, especially emotional wounds. What happened to them, and how did this shatter how they see themselves and the world? What insecurities do they now have? What triggers them, what do they avoid more than anything, and what do they refuse to do because the mental barrier of fear is too strong?

Help for brainstorming your character’s fears

We’re thrilled to announce that our Fear Thesaurus is now part of our THESAURUS descriptive database at One Stop for Writers.

This thesaurus dives into deep-level fears so you can show how one changes who your character is & how it steers their thoughts and actions in the story.

Each entry looks at what the fear looks like, the behavioral fallout it leads to, what might have caused it to form, the inner struggles your character may be facing as a result, and the triggers, possible disruptions to their life, and more.

Use this thesaurus to build deeper characters, understand the role of fear in character arc, and plot events that will be specifically challenging for your character so they struggle but also have an opportunity to grow!

Wondering what One Stop for Writers is about?

One Stop for Writers® is a site Becca and I created to help you beyond our thesaurus books. It’s packed with tools designed to make planning, writing, and revising easier, and teach you to become a stronger storyteller as you go.

If you’d like to take a look, join Becca for a tour, and then start a free trial to test these tools and resources for yourself. See you at One Stop!

ANGELA ACKERMAN

Angela is a writing coach, international speaker, and bestselling author who loves to travel, teach, empower writers, and pay-it-forward. She also is a founder of One Stop For Writers, a portal to powerful, innovative tools to help writers elevate their storytelling.

The post How to Uncover Your Character’s Deepest Fear appeared first on WRITERS HELPING WRITERS®.

I’ll be honest – life’s been hectic. Both my boys had weddings this October (so awesome!), but then a house move and my husband’s major surgery followed (he’s recovering well, thank goodness!). Needless to say, my mental tank is pretty low, so we made the call to skip Advent this year.

But are we skipping the gift-giving? Heck, no!

If you’re interested in how to hack a reader’s brain using psychology and would like to know how a show-don’t-tell mindset steers you to opportunities to do more with your description, then this free webinar is for you!

Unfortunately because of some technical difficulties, it’s just me yammering away, but Becca’s there in spirit. We hope you find this dip into our process helpful, and that you walk away with ideas on how our thesauruses can help you write stronger characters and scenes. So, have a watch, and enjoy:

Psst! This is a limited time webinar, so make sure to view the recording before January 8th. Happy holidays!

ANGELA ACKERMAN

Angela is a writing coach, international speaker, and bestselling author who loves to travel, teach, empower writers, and pay-it-forward. She also is a founder of One Stop For Writers, a portal to powerful, innovative tools to help writers elevate their storytelling.

The post A Gift for You: Secrets to Engaging Readers (Webinar Recording) appeared first on WRITERS HELPING WRITERS®.

What now? you say. How is that possible? He (or she) is the baddie, after all!

Indeed. And we know it. But just like a protagonist, the antagonist can have something special about them too. It’s not a hollow quirk, catch-phrase, or great sense of style that draws us in. No, it’s something deeper, something attached to their identity or life experience. We see this part of them and relate to it because it reminds us of something we’ve seen or experienced in our own real-world journey.

Is relatability only for protagonists?

A lot of airtime is devoted to building a relatable protagonist because it makes the character accessible to readers in a meaningful way. Relatability is a rope that ties the two together – in some significant way, readers see the hero or heroine is like them. Maybe they’ve both felt the same thing, been in the same situation, experienced the same heartache or sting of failure. This common ground helps a bond of understanding and empathy to form, and the reader becomes invested in what happens to the character. They root for the protagonist and care what happens to them.

We don’t see as much written on the subject of relatability when it comes to the antagonist or villain because writers are supposed to nudge the reader into the protagonist’s camp, not the antagonist’s. Unfortunately, though, this can send the wrong message about the importance of our darker characters, leading to some writers glossing over their development so they end up with cliché, yawn-worthy villains.

Antagonists should be as developed as protagonists.

They should have understandable motivations (for them), have a history that shows what led them down the dark alley of life, and an identity, personality, and qualities that make them a tough adversary for the protagonist to beat. The more dedicated, skilled, and motivated the antagonist is, the more of a challenge they will be, leading to great friction, tension, clashes, and conflict.

So, just as we want to show readers a protagonist’s inner layers and give them ways to connect and care about the protagonist, we should encourage readers to find something good or relatable about the antagonist so it causes the reader to be conflicted. They may not agree with the antagonists’ goal or how they go about getting it, but maybe they understand why this story baddie wants what they want, or they admire certain qualities they have.

When readers are torn over how to feel, they become more invested in the story.

Life is not always black and white, is it? So it’s okay if a tug of war goes on inside them over who is right and who is wrong in the story, or if they care enough about the villain to hope they will choose to turn from their dark path, and redemption may be possible.

So how do we make an antagonist relatable?

Common human experiences, especially ones that encourage moral confliction, are a great way to show readers they have something in common with the antagonist. For example, consider temptation.

Haven’t you ever been tempted to cross a moral line?
Did you ever want to make someone pay because they deserved it?
Have you ever ignored society’s rules because they don’t make sense, are unfair, or were built to benefit a select few?

Temptation is something we’ve all felt, and wrestle with. Sometimes we remain steadfast, other times we give in. So having a darker character be tempted in a way readers relate to will cause them to identify with the antagonist’s mindset.

Another way to use temptation is to get readers to imagine the what if, which can be another area of common ground:

• What if you could easily let go of guilt and do what feels right for you?
• What if you could break the law for the right reasons and serve a greater good?
• What if you could go back in time and erase someone who really deserves to be erased?

This can work well if you tie the antagonist’s desire to embrace the dark side because of a past trauma. For example…

• Maybe they do whatever feels right because they were enslaved by a cruel master as a child
• They break the law because those who make them are corrupt and entitled
• They go back and erase someone because that person killed their beloved and unborn child

Can’t we all relate to these dark motivations just a little? Don’t they help us understand where the character’s behavior is coming from? We may not morally agree with what the antagonist does, but we do feel some connection to them.

And I’m convinced this last one is the key because antagonists and villains have an Achilles heel: their role. As soon as it’s clear they are cast as the Bad Guy or Gal, readers put them in a box. They must be a jerk, a sore loser, a narcissist, someone who’s all about power and control. They must be unlikable.

And I don’t know about you, but when the antagonist or villain turns out to be exactly those things, I’m disappointed. Why? Because it’s expected: good guy faces off against typical bad guy, good guy wins. Yawn.

Relatability makes it okay to like the antagonist, even though they do bad things.

So, to recap and offer a few more ideas…

Craft a backstory that’s as well-drawn as the Protagonist’s. As the author, you need to know why they’re messed up and take the dark path. Use a past tragedy to help readers understand what led them to their role. Maybe you can even reveal this in a way that causes readers to wonder if they would be any different had they been in the antagonist’s shoes. 

Give them a credible, understandable motivation. Even if their goal is a destructive one, they should have a good reason for wanting it. (For ideas on what this could look like, check out the Dark Motivations in this database.)

Give them a talent, something helpful or interesting. Just like a protagonist, your antagonist likely is skilled in some way. What talent or skill will help them achieve their goal? And you can always make this an interesting dichotomy, like an antagonist with a talent for healing who takes in hurt animals but lacks the same empathy for humans. 

Give them a quality or trait that is undeniably admirable. It’s easy to paint a villain as being all bad, so skip the cliché and give them a belief they live by. Maybe they keep every promise or hold honestly in the highest regard and so are always truthful, even if it makes them look bad. Of course, the dark side might be that they don’t suffer lies of any kind, and punish them severely.

Make them human. Sometimes writers can go on a “power and glory” tear and forget their antagonist is as prone to “Average Joe” problems as anyone else. Does their roof leak, do they have visitors show up at an inconvenient time, do they get sick?

Antagonists can have a hobby or secret, struggle over what to do, or regret words said in haste just like the rest of us. So while you highlight their dark ways and volatile emotions, remember to also show how in some ways, they’re just like anyone else.

ANGELA ACKERMAN

Angela is a writing coach, international speaker, and bestselling author who loves to travel, teach, empower writers, and pay-it-forward. She also is a founder of One Stop For Writers, a portal to powerful, innovative tools to help writers elevate their storytelling.

The post Writing Antagonists Readers Can’t Help But Like appeared first on WRITERS HELPING WRITERS®.