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The Emotion Thesaurus: A Writer's Guide to Character Expression (Second Edition) (Writers Helping Writers Series) Paperback – February 14, 2019

by Becca Puglisi (Author), Angela Ackerman (Author)
4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars 3,807 ratings
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The bestselling Emotion Thesaurus, often hailed as “the gold standard for writers” and credited with transforming how writers craft emotion, has now been expanded to include 55 new entries!

One of the biggest struggles for writers is how to convey emotion to readers in a unique and compelling way. When showing our characters’ feelings, we often use the first idea that comes to mind, and they end up smiling, nodding, and frowning too much.

If you need inspiration for creating characters’ emotional responses that are personalized and evocative, this ultimate show-don’t-tell guide for emotion can help. It includes:

  • Body language cues, thoughts, and visceral responses for 130 emotions that cover a range of intensity from mild to severe, providing innumerable options for individualizing a character’s reactions
  • A breakdown of the biggest emotion-related writing problems and how to overcome them
  • Advice on what should be done beforedrafting to make sure your characters’ emotions will be realistic and consistent
  • Instruction for how to show hidden feelings and emotional subtext through dialogue and nonverbal cues
  • And much more!

The Emotion Thesaurus, in its easy-to-navigate list format, will inspire you to create stronger, fresher character expressions and engage readers from your first page to your last.

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Previous page
  1. Book 1 of 10
    Writers Helping Writers Series
  2. Print length
    306 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publication date
    February 14, 2019
  5. Dimensions
    7 x 0.69 x 10 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    0999296345
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0999296349
  8. See all details
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Popular Highlights in this book
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Previous page
  1. Who shaped my character’s views on emotion, and did they pass on functional or dysfunctional attitudes and behaviors?
    Highlighted by 1,507 Kindle readers
  2. To convey feelings well, a writer should also utilize nonverbal communication, which can be broken down into four additional vehicles: vocal cues, body language, thoughts, and visceral reactions.
    Highlighted by 1,171 Kindle readers
  3. To keep your verbal exchanges sharp and multi-dimensional, ask yourself the following question: What do my characters want from this conversation?
    Highlighted by 851 Kindle readers
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"One of the challenges a fiction writer faces, especially when prolific, is coming up with fresh ways to describe emotions. This handy compendium fills that need. It is both a reference and a brainstorming tool, and one of the resources I'll be turning to most often as I write my own books."
~James Scott Bell, best-selling author of Deceived and Plot & Structure

About the Author

Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi are bestselling authors, writing coaches, and international speakers. Their books are available in five languages, are sourced by US universities, and are used by novelists, screenwriters, editors, and psychologists around the world. Angela and Becca also co-founded their popular Writers Helping Writers site, a hub where authors can hone their craft, as well as One Stop For Writers, an innovative online library built to help writers elevate their storytelling.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ JADD Publishing; 2nd ed. edition (February 14, 2019)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 306 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0999296345
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0999296349
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.18 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7 x 0.69 x 10 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars 3,807 ratings

About the authors

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Previous page
  1. Angela Ackerman

    Angela Ackerman

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    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    ANGELA ACKERMAN is a writing coach, international speaker, and co-author of 11 bestselling books for writers, including The Emotion Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide to Character Expression. Her books are available in 10 languages, are sourced by US universities, and are used by novelists, screenwriters, editors, and psychologists around the world. Her home country is Canada.

    Angela is also the co-founder of the popular site Writers Helping Writers®, as well as One Stop for Writers®, a portal to powerful tools and resources that help you think like a writing expert so you become a stronger storyteller. A strong believer in writers helping and supporting other writers, she tries to pay-it-forward however she is able to.

    http://writershelpingwriters.net

    http://onestopforwriters.com

    See more on the author's page
  2. Becca Puglisi

    Becca Puglisi

    Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Becca Puglisi is an international speaker, writing coach, and author of bestselling books for writers. Her books are available in multiple 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. Her books are represented by foreign rights agent Marleen Seegers of 2 Seas Agency.

    During her free time (ha), Becca enjoys playing video games, watching movies with her family, baking, and adding to her stash of emergency supplies. She has always enjoyed contemplating the What if? scenario, which serves her well during hurricane season in south Florida.

    See more on the author's page
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Customer reviews

4.8 out of 5 stars
4.8 out of 5
3,807 global ratings
From the Inside Out
5 Stars
From the Inside Out
This is a great book for understanding the emotional side of a character or person, what the mental activity is, and how to write the appropriate body actions for what is happening inside the character. This book is needed by every writer.
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Top reviews from the United States

Britni
5.0 out of 5 stars Very helpful tool
Reviewed in the United States on May 11, 2024
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I've been writing a novel, and this resource has been a great help for communicating emotions.
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Jaimie Engle Author
5.0 out of 5 stars A resource book for every writer’s bookshelf
Reviewed in the United States on January 2, 2024
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I think it’s safe to say at this point that I have read this entire book. What a delightful resource! The first time I used it to edit a novel, it won an award, and I do not give myself the credit for that, lol! I have since bought others in the series, though I have not opened them yet. I expect I will find the same level of creativity, detail, Individual potential for character attributes, and wonderful new ways to show my characters becoming “real boys, and girls“. I think this book should be on every writer’s bookshelf.
2 people found this helpful
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Barbara Chapman
5.0 out of 5 stars Expression is vital
Reviewed in the United States on April 25, 2024
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Loved this book. So many options to help a writer convey exactly how a character feels. Also useful for journaling.
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ccooper38
5.0 out of 5 stars Very useful!
Reviewed in the United States on April 7, 2024
Verified Purchase
This book is very helpful for giving your writing that extra punch so you're not using the same words/emotions too much. I highly recommend it to any author!
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William Conrad
4.0 out of 5 stars A Must-Have for Writers
Reviewed in the United States on December 15, 2023
Verified Purchase
I am the author of four fictional books, with three more on the way. My editor pointed out that my descriptions needed some work. I disagreed. “They were angry” read perfectly; no additional words were unnecessary. Extra junk would only annoy the reader.
At the time, I had been re-reading The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman and took a critical look at his descriptions. I realized that I was wrong and my writing lacked good descriptions. My editor recommended The Emotion Thesaurus by Becca Puglisi and Angela Ackerman to help.
The book was wildly eye-opening, and I immediately identified my issues and had a path and motivation to correct them.
This book is exactly what it claims to be. Take anger, for example. Let’s say a character is angry, and the author needs to express this emotion. Well, click on the anger chapter, and there is a definition of anger, a list of physical signals and behaviors, internal sensations, mental responses, acute or long-term responses for this emotion, signs that this emotion is being suppressed, other words in the thesaurus that anger may escalate/deescalate to and associated power verbs.
For example, the angry person would swear, have a high chin, and use sweeping arm gestures. These are terms I picked from the list of physical signals.
Using this book is straightforward and has made my writing far more powerful. However, there is a glaring problem. I admit that my spelling and grammar are not excellent. I spotted many sentences that needed a good edit; if I can see the mistakes, it must be a real issue. I expect a polished work at a download price of $6.29 USD, so I am giving the book five stars.
This book is a must-have for all writers, even with its flaws. It is easy to use, insightful, on point, and a fantastic resource. I wish I had it at the beginning of my writing journey. My hope in leaving this review is that Becca Puglisi and Angela Ackerman run it by an editor.
6 people found this helpful
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Vincent Jobson
5.0 out of 5 stars Another Must Have
Reviewed in the United States on June 24, 2022
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This another absolute MUST HAVE for any aspiring writer. I cannot articulate the tremendous impact that this has had on my writing. I am not in my Senior year as a Creative Writing / English Major with a focus on Fiction Writing. This is the second book by Ackerman & Puglisi that I have purchased and it is as invaluable as the Conflict Thesaurus. This series is like taking an introduction to behavioral psychology for writers. There is so much fantastic information in these that I won't even attempt any edits without them. Right now, I typically write the rough drafts for my stories and then identify the story's elements with these books open around my desk as I work.

I find these books to be the most valuable asset in my education as a writer and am slowly building a library of these. At under $20, these books are priced to move, and the information that is contained in them is worth ten times the asking price. I cannot say enough good things about these books. If you are a writer or thinking about writing, you absolutely must purchase these.
7 people found this helpful
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Laurie
5.0 out of 5 stars Gift for author mother
Reviewed in the United States on March 17, 2024
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Got this for my mom who is a new author. She absolutely loves it and it has come in handy already. This is also great for a student, possibly in psychology or English composition because it gives different scenarios and what you can use to describe it.
One person found this helpful
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Twilla Kay Lamm
5.0 out of 5 stars From the Inside Out
Reviewed in the United States on March 19, 2024
Verified Purchase
This is a great book for understanding the emotional side of a character or person, what the mental activity is, and how to write the appropriate body actions for what is happening inside the character. This book is needed by every writer.
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Twilla Kay Lamm
5.0 out of 5 stars From the Inside Out
Reviewed in the United States on March 19, 2024
This is a great book for understanding the emotional side of a character or person, what the mental activity is, and how to write the appropriate body actions for what is happening inside the character. This book is needed by every writer.
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Top reviews from other countries

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Gabriela Graciosa Guedes
5.0 out of 5 stars Recurso excelente para autores
Reviewed in Brazil on September 6, 2022
Verified Purchase
Esse livro é tudo o que eu precisava e não sabia. Principalmente como uma autora cujo primeiro idioma não é o Inglês, esse livro é uma ajuda excelente.
One person found this helpful
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Joan
5.0 out of 5 stars Muy útil para escritores y jugadores de rol
Reviewed in Spain on April 25, 2024
Verified Purchase
Si escribes y sabes inglés, es muy útil para crear personajes con emociones creíbles y formas distintas de expresarlas para cada personaje y situación. También es útil para dar vida a personajes de rol rápidamente.
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Leisha_Winter
5.0 out of 5 stars Perfekte Hilfestellung
Reviewed in Germany on April 24, 2024
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Diese Bücher haben mir soviel geholfen. Egal ob es darum geht einen Charakter auszuarbeiten oder Orte zu kreieren. Dies ist kein typischer Schreibratgeber, sondern ein wundervolles Nachschlagewerk für jeden Autor. Schade, dass es die Bücher nur auf Englisch gibt. Ich kenne einige, die diese Bücher kaufen würden, würde es sie auf Deutsch geben.
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Flint Sparks
5.0 out of 5 stars Useful reference guide
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 20, 2024
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Yes, mostly it's things you probably already know, but the compiled information is a very handy quick reference when writing.
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5.0 out of 5 stars Ottimo
Reviewed in Italy on December 14, 2022
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