Angela Ackerman - The Emotional Wound Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide to Psychological Trauma

A Writers Guide to Psychological Trauma

ANGELA ACKERMAN

BECCA PUGLISI

The Emotion Thesaurus: A Writers Guide to Character Expression

The Positive Trait Thesaurus: A Writers Guide to Character Attributes

The Negative Trait Thesaurus: A Writers Guide to Character Flaws

The Urban Setting Thesaurus: A Writers Guide to City Spaces

The Rural Setting Thesaurus: A Writers Guide to Personal and Natural Places

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

Copyright 2017 by Angela Ackerman & Becca Puglisi

All rights reserved

Writers Helping Writers

First print edition, October 2017

ISBN-13: 978-0-9992963-0-1

ISBN-10: 0-9992963-0-2

No part of this publication may be reproduced or distributed in print or electronic form without prior permission of the authors. Please respect the hard work of the authors and do not participate in or encourage the piracy of copyrighted materials.

Edited by C. S. Lakin and Michael Dunne

Book cover design by The Book Design House

Interior formatting by Polgarus Studio

PRAISE FOR THE EMOTION THESAURUS

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

PRAISE FOR THE POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE TRAIT THESAURUSES

In these brilliantly conceived, superbly organized and astonishingly thorough volumes, Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi have created an invaluable resource for writers and storytellers. Whether you are searching for new and unique ways to add and define characters, or brainstorming methods for revealing those characters without resorting to clichs, it is hard to imagine two more powerful tools for adding depth and dimension to your screenplays, novels or plays.

~ Michael Hauge, Hollywood script consultantand author of Writing Screenplays That Sell

PRAISE FOR THE URBAN AND RURAL SETTING THESAURUSES

The one thing I always appreciate about Ackerman and Puglisi's Thesauri series is how comprehensive they are. They never stop at just the obvious, and they always over-deliver. Their Setting Thesauri are no different, offering not just the obvious notes of the various settings they've covered, but going into easy-to-miss details like smells and tastes. They even offer to jumpstart the brainstorming with categories on potential sources of conflict.

~ K.M. Weiland, best-selling author of Creating Character Arcs and Structuring Your Novel

Wish you had a powerhouse writing resource at your fingertips that could save you valuable time while elevating your storytelling? One Stop for Writers might just be the answer. Brought to you by Becca and Angela, the authors of this and other best-selling writing books, along with Lee Powell, the creator of Scrivener for Windows, the One Stop online library is the resource youve been searching for.

Our unique description database is one-of-a-kind, and will help you set your book apart by bringing forth the fresh imagery and deeper meaning that your readers crave. Built around our popular thesaurus collection, it covers the most important elements of description, including emotions, settings, weather, characterization, emotional wounds, physical features, symbolism, and more. Along with an array of unique tools, tutorials, structure maps, timelines, worldbuilding surveys, and generators, you can also plan and organize your writing like never before.

Isnt it time someone made writing a little easier? Stop by (registration is always free) and see how were changing the game for writers.

Forewords are a bit like prologues in that theres a temptation to skip them and get to the meat and potatoes of the book. We hope that, in our case, youll indulge us for a very quick yet important word about the content youll find within.

The purpose of this book is to provide useful information about wounding events and how they impact charactersnot only the hero but any member of the storys cast. Mentors, sidekicks, love interests, and villains are all affected similarly by trauma, which will determine the motivations that drive them toward their chosen goals. So as you read, think about each important character and how past wounds may create damage and cause personality shifts, biases, and changes in behavior and attitude.

Please also note that while we have done our best to respect these wounds by researching them thoroughly, neither of us are psychologists. The content here is not meant for real-world application and should only be used to better understand the deeper layers of our characters and how past traumas can drive their choices.

Finally, despite this content being for writing purposes, trauma is, sadly, not fictional. It is a very real, damaging thing, and reading about it can sometimes be triggering, as we have all experienced emotional pain in one form or another. We urge you to take this into account as you explore the darker aspects of your characters wounds. If necessary, consider putting safeguards in place for yourself. To this end, weve included the following section on self-care should any entries in this book hit you particularly hard.

Use This Book in a Safe Place. Many authors like to work in a busy coffee shop, a library, or even at a group writing event. But if you are exploring a characters wound that touches something from your own past, it isnt uncommon for a rush of unpleasant emotions to hit. If this happens, it is much better to be in a place where you can take a few moments to privately process whatever comes.

Incorporate a Time Buffer. Writing about a difficult moment in a characters life isnt easy, especially if some of it feels personal to you. As such, it may be better to not tackle painful content right before a scheduled appointment or over the lunch hour. When writing an emotionally taxing scene, give yourself ample time to get back into a balanced mentality before returning to your responsibilities in the real world.

Take as Many Breaks as You Need. If you feel overwhelmed, go for a walk, cuddle with your cat, or indulge in a special treat. Lighting a scented candle at the start of the session and blowing it out when youre ready to stop is also a great way to signal your mind that its time to back away emotionally and turn to something else.

Have Someone You Trust on Standby.