#authorlife

When I was a young writer, I was told that I often started my sentences with "there is/there was/there are." I was told to eliminate those as much as possible.

I couldn't believe how often I used them. My first novel was completely littered with them.

I learned to diversify and grow my use of verbs. Instead of the state-of-being verbs, like "is" which isn't very descriptive at all, I started using stronger verbs.

Instead of writing "There were a bunch of trees on the hill" I wrote "A cluster of trees towered over the hill."

"Towered" is a much stronger verb than "Is"

FEAR

DEFINITION: To be afraid of; to expect threat or danger

PHYSICAL SIGNALS AND BEHAVIORS:

Face turning ashen, white, pallid Hair lifting on the nape and arms Body odor, cold sweats Clammy hands Trembling lips and chin Tendons standing out in the neck, a visible pulse Elbows pressing into the sides, making one's body as small as possible Freezing, feeling rooted to the spot Rapid blinking Tight shoulders Staring but not seeing, eyes shut or crying Hands jammed into armpits or self-hugging Breath bursting in and out Leg muscles tightening, the body ready to run Looking all around, especially behind A shrill voice Lowering the voice to a whisper Keeping one's back to a wall or corner Shaking uncontrollably Gripping something, knuckles going white Stiff walking, the knees locking Beads of sweat on the lip or forehead Grabbing onto someone Eyes appearing damp and overly bright Stuttering and mispronouncing words, tremors in the voice Jerky movements, squirming Licking the lips, gulping down water Sprinting or running Sweeping a hand across the forehead to get rid of sweat Gasping and expelling one's breath as if pained Uncontrollable whimpering Pleading, talking to oneself Flinching at noises

INTERNAL SENSATIONS:

An inability to speak Shakiness in the limbs Holding back a scream or cry Heartbeat racing, nearly exploding Dizziness, weakness in the legs and knees A loosening of the bladder Chest pain Holding one's breath, gulping down breaths to stay quiet A stomach that feels rock hard Hyper-sensitivity to touch and sound Adrenaline spikes

MENTAL RESPONSES:

Wanting to flee or hide The sensation of things moving too quickly to process Images of what-could-be flashing through the mind Flawed reasoning Jumping to a course of action without thinking things through A skewed sense of time

CUES OF ACUTE OR LONG TERM FEAR:

Uncontrollable trembling, fainting Insomnia Heart giving out Panic attacks, phobias Exhaustion Depression Substance abuse Withdrawing from others Tics (a repetitive grimace, a head twitch, talking to oneself) Resistance to pain from rushing adrenaline

MAY GROW INTO:

ANGER, TERROR, PARANOIA, PANIC, DREAD

CUES OF SUPPRESSED FEAR:

Keeping silent Denying fear through diversion or topic change Turning away from the cause of the fear Attempting to keep one's voice light A watery smile that's forced into place Masking fear with a reactive emotion (anger or frustration) False bravado Over-indulgence in a habit (nail biting, lip biting, scratching the skin raw) A joking tone, but the voice cracks

MAY TAPER-OFF TO:

AGITATION, OVERWHELMED, WARINESS, UNEASE

POWER VERBS:

On Creating Beautifully Contradictory Characters ✨

Hey writer friend! Rin here.

I LIVE for these questions! 💕

Here's the thing about characters (and people). we're not single-note beings who fit into neat little boxes. The most real characters exist in the in-between spaces.

Let's talk about how to make this work...

The secret to contradictory character traits

What makes a character feel REAL isn't consistency. it's coherence.

• Your character doesn't need to be the same in every situation

• What they need is an emotional core that makes sense of their seemingly opposing behaviors

• Think of their personality as a constellation, not a straight line

When I'm developing characters like this, I always start with their wounds and values. What do they care about SO DEEPLY that it would make a normally quiet person raise their voice? What hurts have they experienced that make them bite their fingers when anxious?

Some practical ways to blend these traits

• Give her specific triggers for each mode. Maybe she's quiet in casual social settings but finds her voice when someone's being mistreated.

• Create physical transitions between states. How does her body language shift when moving from quiet observer to vocal defender? Does she take a deep breath? Square her shoulders?

• The finger-biting anxiety habit is actually perfect. it can be the bridge between her quiet and loud states. Maybe it's what she does while gathering courage before speaking up.

• Show us moments where BOTH traits are present at once. She can be nervously biting her fingers WHILE confronting someone.

What NOT to do (because it's boring)

Please don't fall into these traps:

• Don't make her "usually quiet except when..." That's not a complex character, that's just situational behavior.

• Don't explain away her contradictions with trauma (unless that's genuinely part of her story). Not every character trait needs a tragic backstory!

• Don't make her self-conscious about her contradictions. She doesn't need to apologize for being both quiet and loud.

Let's make some word magic happen

Try writing a scene where:

We first see her in her quiet, observing mode

Something happens that triggers her sense of justice

We witness her internal thought process as she decides to speak up

She exhibits her anxious behavior (finger biting) while ALSO stepping into her confrontational mode

Afterward, she returns to quietness, but it feels different now

The magic happens in those transition moments. That's where readers will fall in love with her complexity.

Remember this always

The most memorable characters aren't the ones who are consistently anything. They're the ones who surprise us while still feeling true to themselves.

Your character's contradictions aren't flaws to fix or explain away. they're what make her human. They're what make readers say "I KNOW her" even if they've never met anyone exactly like her.

So embrace those contradictions. Let her be quiet AND loud. Let her be anxious AND brave. Let her be fully, messily human.

I hope this post helped you

Writers often say they’re only going to “edit one chapter,” but somehow it turns into hours of rewriting scenes, changing dialogue, fixing plot holes, and becoming emotionally attached to characters they never planned to keep.

Writing is a creative process filled with revisions, second guesses, and unexpected ideas. That’s why having a beta reader matters. A fresh perspective can help writers see what they might miss after spending so much time inside their own story.

Sometimes the smallest feedback can make the biggest difference in a manuscript.

What's the part of your manuscript you're most nervous about sharing?

The opening chapter?

The romance?

The ending?

The dialogue?

The plot twist?

Drop your answer below. No judgment.

there’s always that one part of your writing you secretly love

not the whole thing just a line, a moment, a character… something that makes you pause and go “okay… I did something right here”

10 months down and one month to go.

Episode 05 of Calling Out the Shadows: A Clarity Over Comfort Podcast. The other day Amazon showed up with the first paperback proof of the book. Ten months in. One month and a day to go.

There are many people right now that talk about using the abuse of AI. And then there are others out there saying, no, I do not use it that way. Well, how? Prove it.

One of the things I wanted to do, and did from the first day, was track my writing time. I can show on a calendar the last 10 months. 999 hours and 9 minutes. Not a vanity number. The audiobook took 51 hours to record a 14-hour audiobook. Not in the greatest of health. But it was all me.

Consider marking that journey and laying out that journey.

Available on Spreaker, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and other podcast platforms.