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hygelligstudying · 4 years

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Writing the Perfect Query Letter

The point of a query letter is to sell your story.

Writing your query letter, your goal is to make the reader want to pick up the book. That is the entire purpose. We’ve all recommended books to friends before. It’s exactly that, except now that book is yours and the stakes are high. A query letter is, above all, persuasive. While writing your query letter, make sure you draw your reader into your story with every word.

A query letter is not a creative letter; it’s a business proposition.

Writing a query letter, don’t think of yourself as a writer, especially not of this particular story. You’ll need that degree of separation from your work for a good query. An agent/author relationship is foremost a business relationship. You’re pitching a product to someone whose job it is to sell your product (the agent) to someone whose job it is to sell your product (the editor) to someone you want to buy your product (the reader). This means that by querying your manuscript, you’re requesting a place in an industry. As such, you should follow some industry standards:

Use business letter formatting. 12 point font. Single spaced. Left alignment. No indentations. A space between paragraphs.

Don’t be familiar. This is a business letter. A formal letter. Unless you already have some sort of a relationship with the person you’re querying–if you’ve met at an event or corresponded in some other regard–write like you’re writing to a potential business associate.

Write the letter as yourself. Don’t write as your character. Don’t write as your narrator. Don’t write as the historian who discovered your story 1,000 years into the future. It’s a risk that rarely pays off. On that point…

Don’t be creative with the form of your query. Save the creativity for your manuscript. Don’t quote a section in your opening lines. Don’t include a box of chocolates with it when you mail it off. Don’t be gimmicky. If you resort to a gimmick, the agent is going to wonder if it’s because you don’t know how this works or your story isn’t strong enough to stand on it’s own. Play by the rules. Trust your story.

Keep it short. 250-400 words. Remember your goal: to get the agent to pick up the first chapter. Agents can receive hundreds of queries in a week. They don’t have time for wasted words. They won’t wait for you to get to your point. Say what you have to say as quickly as possible.

Writing Your Query:

You don’t have long to tell your story. Just a page. This means you can’t include much more than the information that is absolutely vital to your story and the querying process. I’ve outlined the information, and separated it into paragraphs. You don’t have to divide it the way I’ve set out here, but these are the general lumps of Query Stuff.

Each point I’ve bulleted should only be a sentence or two long. If your reader wants to know more, they’ll read the first chapters and request the manuscript.

The Opening Lines: The Formalities

Address the agent. As this is a business letter, start with something akin to “Dear Mr./Ms. [First Name, Last Name] or [Last Name]:” Ex. Dear Mr. Tolkien:

State your intent. In my research I’ve found this unnecessary, but if you choose to do so you can say something along the lines of: “I’m submitting for your consideration my completed novel, [TITLE].”

The First Paragraph: The Introduction

Introduce your story as cleanly as possible. It should be minimal, yet evocative. Specific to your story, but skimming the surface of it. The more set-up you give, the more complicated you’ll make things for yourself.

The set up. What was life like for the character when the story began? Where does the story take place?

The inciting incident. The “but when…” What set the ball rolling? This can be in the same sentence as the setup.

The combination of the set up and inciting incident should work as a sort of tagline.

Protagonist motivation. What does your protagonist want? What is it about the inciting incident that motivates the protagonist to action?

The Second Paragraph: The Conflict

I’ve made this a separate paragraph because shorter paragraphs make a page more inviting for a reader, but it’s your call. In this paragraph, you don’t want to summarise the entire book; you want to show your ability to weave a compelling story. It should have energy. It should tell the reader just enough to get them excited.

The rising action. What are a few key events that raise the stakes in your manuscript? Take a few sentences to lay out the most important events leading to the climax of your story.

The central conflict. What is the main obstacle your protagonist will face to achieve their goal? Lay out exactly what your protagonist’s biggest problem is.

The hook. The line or question that will make your reader want to read more. If you’d like, you can make it it’s own paragraph.

The Third Paragraph: The Details

Some people make this their first paragraph, but I’ve decided to put this after the introduction to the story. These are the formal details of your story, where it gets very Industry.

The title. You might have said it earlier, but it won’t hurt to say it again here.

The word count, genre, & age range. All necessary industry information. Round your word count to the nearest 1,000.

Comp titles. What books might this person have read that are similar to your own, either in tone/setting/story? This can give your reader a sense of the potential audience for your story. You only want to include two.

If you really want, you can choose to personalise the submission here and say why you’ve queried this particular agent. If you only want to show that you’ve done your research, you should have already gotten this point across clearly with the summary, age range, and genre. But, if you really love this agent, if you follow their blog or twitter or love some of their authors, it won’t hurt to say so.

The Fourth Paragraph: The Author

The last paragraph is usually set aside for a few short lines about yourself. This should only include information relevant to writing this manuscript. Examples of biographical details you might want to include:

Awards

Degrees

Writing conferences/workshops attended

Expertise related to the content of the book

Where you lived/have lived (if it matters)

You should be able to summarise this paragraph with: here is why you should trust me to tell this story.

You can also include a line about what you: are currently writing, enjoy writing, or have written. Let the agent get to know you as a writer and reader outside of this one story. (Especially if you don’t have many manuscript-related accolades/experience.)

The Closing Line: The Niceties

Thank the agent for taking the time to read your query. A small but important consideration.

Tips

Highlight your writing ability with narrative voice. If your story is funny, make sure your query reflects that. If the writing is lyrical, your query should be too. You don’t want to drown the agent in your writing style, but you should splash them a bit.

DON’T INCLUDE THEMES. Don’t say this is a story about “friendship and the power or love,” or “children will relate to this story of bullying.” A query letter isn’t a literature class. Don’t analyse your manuscript for your reader. Let the story speak for itself.

Use active language. Don’t use phrases like “this story is about” or “the main character is.” Again, let the plot and the character’s actions speak for themselves.

Only name a few characters and locations outright. If you’re querying Harry Potter, you’ll want to use Harry’s name in the query, but Aunt Petunia and Uncle Dursley can be “his cruel relatives.” Hermione and Ron can be “his friends.” Even Hogwarts can be a “school for people with magical abilities.” Refer to things by their function in the manuscript and keep your query simple and easy to follow. The more names, locations, and special terms in your query, the more confusing it will be.

Don’t sing your own praises. Don’t say that your mom loves your book, or that your little cousins devoured it. Don’t compare it to Harry Potter or any other best-seller. Don’t say you think the book will sell well. The agent won’t believe you.

It’s okay if it takes you days and days to write your query. It should take days to write. Whether or not the agent even looks at your first chapter will depend entirely on this single page. You can write the novel of the century, but no one will look at it unless your query sells it.

Have someone else look over your query before you send it out. Share it with the smartest person you know. Share it with your old English teacher. Share it on a writing website, like r/writers. Have them judge it on clarity and quality. Ask them where it can be trimmed. Ask them what they think the strongest sentence is. Ask what the weakest sentence is. Have them check for typos.

Triple-check you’ve spelt the agent’s name correctly. Agents are trying to get through their inbox. If they find one good reason to move past your query, they will. Don’t give it to them in the first line.

Triple-check the agent’s submission requirements. Getting these wrong is another way to get your query moved directly to the reject pile.

Let them know if there’s a potential for sequels. If you’re writing a trilogy, don’t try to sell all three books at once. Use this query letter to sell the first book of the series only. Then, let the agent know that “[Your Title] has the potential for two sequels continuing [Your Protagonist]’s story.” An agent wants you to have more than one book in your arsenal, but this is a short letter. There’s only room for the one book in it.

And one last tip? Your query doesn’t have to be perfect. Following this advice will help you draw the essential story out of a manuscript and make it look like you know what you’re doing, but many queries break these “rules” and still get full manuscript requests. As long as there’s something in the pitch that is enough to make the agent want to take a look at the manuscript itself, the query is doing its job.

Remember: you’re recommending a book. That’s all. It just happens to be your book.

Sources.

Writing a Six Sentence Synopsis

23 Successful Query Letters

How to Write a Query Letter

How to Write the Perfect Query- Agent Advice

The Anatomy of a Query Letter (Podcast episode: 1hr)

The Narrative Breakdown (Podcast episode: 35min)

Query Generator

Using the research I did for this post (plus a whole bunch more), I created a website to help you identify important aspects of your story and gather them into a standard query structure. Check it out at: https://www.querylettergenerator.com/

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hygelligstudying · 4 years

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Saturday morning vibes :)

12/14/19

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hygelligstudying · 4 years

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Illustrator Michael MacRae

Twitter: @artwoonz_ Uzaktan eğitim İstanbul

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hygelligstudying · 4 years

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I believe in free education, one that’s available to everyone; no matter their race, gender, age, wealth, etc… This masterpost was created for every knowledge hungry individual out there. I hope it will serve you well. Enjoy!

FREE ONLINE COURSES (here are listed websites that provide huge variety of courses)

Alison

Coursera

FutureLearn

open2study

Khan Academy

edX

P2P U

Academic Earth

iversity

Stanford Online

MIT Open Courseware

Open Yale Courses

BBC Learning

OpenLearn

Carnegie Mellon University OLI

University of Reddit

Saylor

IDEAS, INSPIRATION & NEWS (websites which deliver educational content meant to entertain you and stimulate your brain)

TED

FORA

Big Think

99u

BBC Future

Seriously Amazing

How Stuff Works

Discovery News

National Geographic

Science News

Popular Science

IFLScience

YouTube Edu

NewScientist

DIY & HOW-TO’S (Don’t know how to do that? Want to learn how to do it yourself? Here are some great websites.)

wikiHow

Wonder How To

instructables

eHow

Howcast

MAKE

Do it yourself

FREE TEXTBOOKS & E-BOOKS

OpenStax CNX

Open Textbooks

Bookboon

Textbook Revolution

E-books Directory

FullBooks

Books Should Be Free

Classic Reader

Read Print

Project Gutenberg

AudioBooks For Free

LibriVox

Poem Hunter

Bartleby

MIT Classics

Many Books

Open Textbooks BCcampus

Open Textbook Library

WikiBooks

SCIENTIFIC ARTICLES & JOURNALS

Directory of Open Access Journals

Scitable

PLOS

Wiley Open Access

Springer Open

Oxford Open

Elsevier Open Access

ArXiv

Open Access Library

LEARN:

1. LANGUAGES

Duolingo

BBC Languages

Learn A Language

101languages

Memrise

Livemocha

Foreign Services Institute

My Languages

Surface Languages

Lingualia

OmniGlot

OpenCulture’s Language links

2. COMPUTER SCIENCE & PROGRAMMING

Codecademy

Programmr

GA Dash

CodeHS

w3schools

Code Avengers

Codelearn

The Code Player

Code School

Code.org

Programming Motherf*?$%#

Bento

Bucky’s room

WiBit

Learn Code the Hard Way

Mozilla Developer Network

Microsoft Virtual Academy

3. YOGA & MEDITATION

Learning Yoga

Learn Meditation

Yome

Free Meditation

Online Meditation

Do Yoga With Me

Yoga Learning Center

4. PHOTOGRAPHY & FILMMAKING

Exposure Guide

The Bastards Book of Photography

Cambridge in Color

Best Photo Lessons

Photography Course

Production Now

nyvs

Learn About Film

Film School Online

5. DRAWING & PAINTING

Enliighten

Ctrl+Paint

ArtGraphica

Google Cultural Institute

Drawspace

DragoArt

WetCanvas

6. INSTRUMENTS & MUSIC THEORY

Music Theory

Teoria

Music Theory Videos

Furmanczyk Academy of Music

Dave Conservatoire

Petrucci Music Library

Justin Guitar

Guitar Lessons

Piano Lessons

Zebra Keys

Play Bass Now

7. OTHER UNCATEGORIZED SKILLS

Investopedia

The Chess Website

Chesscademy

Chess.com

Spreeder

ReadSpeeder

First Aid for Free

First Aid Web

NHS Choices

Wolfram Demonstrations Project

Please feel free to add more learning focused websites.

*There are a lot more learning websites out there, but I picked the ones that are, as far as I’m aware, completely free and in my opinion the best/ most useful.

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hygelligstudying · 5 years

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Views from my desk at university.

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hygelligstudying · 5 years

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Are These Filter Words Weakening Your Story?

After putting my writing on hold for several weeks, I decided to jump back in. I expected to find all sorts of problems with my story–inconsistencies in the plot, lack of transitions, poor characterization–the works. But what began to stick out to me was something to which I’d given little thought in writing.

Filter words.

What are Filter Words?

Actually, I didn’t even know these insidious creatures had a name until I started combing the internet for info.

Filter words are those that unnecessarily filter the reader’s experience through a character’s point of view. Dark Angel’s Blog says:

“Filtering” is when you place a character between the detail you want to present and the reader. The term was started by Janet Burroway in her book On Writing.

In terms of example, you should watch out for:

To see

To hear

To think

To touch

To wonder

To realize

To watch

To look

To seem

To feel (or feel like)

Can

To decide

To sound (or sound like)

To know

I’m being honest when I say my manuscript is filled with these words, and the majority of them need to be edited out.

What do Filter Words Look Like?

Let’s imagine a character in your novel is walking down a street during peak hour.

You might, for example, write:

Sarah felt a sinking feeling as she realized she’d forgotten her purse back at the cafe across the street. She saw cars filing past, their bumpers end-to-end. She heard the impatient honk of horns and wondered how she could quickly cross the busy road before someone took off with her bag. But the traffic seemed impenetrable, and she decided to run to the intersection at the end of the block.

Eliminating the bolded words removes the filters that distances us, the readers, from this character’s experience:

Sarah’s stomach sank. Her purse—she’d forgotten it back at the cafe across the street. Cars filed past, their bumpers end-to-end. Horns honked impatiently. Could she make it across the road before someone took off with her bag? She ran past the impenetrable stream of traffic, toward the intersection at the end of the block.

Are Filter Words Ever Acceptable?

Of course, there are usually exceptions to every rule.

Just because filter words tend to be weak doesn’t mean they never have a place in our writing. Sometimes they are helpful and even necessary.

Susan Dennard of Let The Words Flow writes that we should use filter words when they are critical to the meaning of the sentence.

If there’s no better way to phrase something than to use a filter word, then it’s probably okay to do so.

Want to know more?

Read these other helpful articles on filter words and more great writing tips:

Filter Words and Distancing Point of View

The Reasons Editors reject Manuscripts

Filter Those words and Strengthen Your Writing

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hygelligstudying · 5 years

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writing ask game

made for novels, but can be used for fanfiction or other types of writing!

describe the plot in 1 sentence.

pick one sight, smell, sound, feel, and taste to describe the aesthetic of your novel.

which 3+ songs would make up a playlist for the novel?

what’s the time period and location in which the novel takes place?

is this a standalone or a part in a series?

are there any former titles you’ve considered but discarded?

how many times does the word ____ appear in the novel?

what’s the first line that comes up when you search _____?

what’s the first line of your novel?

what’s a line of dialogue you’re particularly proud of?

which line from the novel most represents it as a whole?

who are your character faceclaims?

sort your characters into harry potter houses!

which character’s name do you like the most?

describe each character’s daily outfit.

do any characters have distinctive birthmarks/scars?

pick a color to represent each character.

pick a font to represent each character.

which character most fits a character trope? which trope?

which character is the best writer? worst?

which character is the best liar? worst?

which character swears the most? least?

which character has the best handwriting? worst?

which character is most like you? least like you?

which character would you most like to be?

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hygelligstudying · 5 years

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I found a company called “Frantic Meerkat” who makes journals whose sole purpose is to call me out

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hygelligstudying · 5 years

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Do you like music?

Me neither. I only listen to podcasts, and the dark prophecies delivered to me by forgotten gods in the dead of night, and sometimes Oingo Boingo.

But you know what I do like?

• Supporting Disabled Artists

• Supporting Bisexual Artists

• Supporting Mentally Ill Artists

• The Inherent Homoeroticism of Country Music

• Faeries!

• Wrestling!

• Clowns!

• My good, good friend, award-winning polymath of stage and screen, Kate Nyx.

"Newt," you say, "You mean to tell me there's country-influenced-on-occasion-but-generally-too-genre-defying-to-really-classify folk pop music written by a mentally ill, disabled, queer woman that articulates trauma and the joy of recovery in sincere, brilliant, and sometimes silly ways?"

That's exactly what I mean to tell you! And it's available now on SPOTIFY, PANDORA, BANDCAMP, ITUNES, AND WHEREVER FINE MUSIC IS SOLD.

So, check it out! Support one of my oldest friends! Jam your guts out! Have a nice cry! You've earned it!

♡

Kate also does weekly music livestreams, and YouTube videos covering everything from makeup tutorials to making wrestling gear.

Kate's YouTube Channel: Kate Nyx

Kate's Twitter: @IAmKateNyx

Kate's Instagram: @iamkatenyx

Kate's Facebook: facebook.com/iamkatenyx

Kate's Tumblr: @iamkatenyx

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hygelligstudying · 5 years

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My favourite things about Scrivener

1. Navigation. You can see all your chapters, scenes, character & setting planning at one glance and switch between them very easily - compared to scrolling up and down in one long word processing document. Every file can also be a folder, so you can have collapsible items underneath it.

2. Word count targets. The “Project Targets” are particularly useful for NaNoWriMo so you don’t have to keep looking back at the website to see how you’re doing for the day, but more so outside of it, when you want to keep yourself working to a target but don’t have Nano’s charts and daily word counts. It also gives you a nice ding when you hit your session target.

3. How many pages? I only recently discovered this, but it’s very nice to be able to see in Project Statistics approximately how big your manuscript would be in pages without worrying about formatting.

4. Outlining. Scrivener has two methods of outlining - one is Corkboard, which is exactly what it sounds like, a digital corkboard with notes pinned on it that represent your chapters/scenes with their summaries. The screenshot above is called ‘outliner’ and lists collapsible chapters/scenes with various statistics you can select as shown in the tick menu. Generally I prefer Corkboard, but Outliner is useful if you just want to see everything in a clear order.

5. Full screen. I get distracted very easily when writing, so the full-screen writing mode is wonderful for me to avoid that - but you can still choose certain windows from the normal Scrivener view to show up. I have my targets and my summary, so I can stick to my plan when I’m writing and also see what progress I’m making.

6. Notes. No screenshot, but it’s a simple post-it note style box to the side of every document (chapter, scene, character etc.) that allows you to add notes. This may sound very simple, but it’s far more useful than I’d expected. During NaNoWriMo when I’m not meant to be editing at all, but I know something needs fixing, I will jot down something in the side like ‘Take out the horse’ so that when I go through again to edit I know exactly the things to focus on immediately but which would have taken too much time before. It’s linked to the scene so I don’t just have a pile of notes in one document at the end and then have to work out where it needs fixing.

Overall

I downloaded Scrivener for the first time two years ago, and now I can’t imagine working without it. It’s so nice to have the planning and the writing all combined into one place where I can easily switch between the two. I haven’t yet got as far in a novel created in Scrivener to use the compile features so I can’t comment on those, but so far all my experiences of it have been good.

One thing to note is that if transferring project between a Windows and a Mac version of Scrivener, it’s generally best to zip the file first.

[Screenshots from my current novel Kindling Ashes using the Mac version of Scrivener - some features may not be available in Windows yet.]

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hygelligstudying · 5 years

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Writing Tip June 4th

A list of body language phrases.

I’ve included a very comprehensive list, organized by the type of body movement, hand and arm movements, facial expressions etc. In some cases, a phrase fits more than one heading, so it may appear twice. Possible emotions are given after each BL phrase unless the emotion is indicated within the phrase. (They are underlined for emphasis, not due to a hyperlink.)

Note: I’ve included a few body postures and body conditions as they are non-verbal testimony to the character’s physical condition.

Have fun and generate your own ideas.:-)

Eyes, Brows and Forehead

arched a sly brow: sly, haughty

blinked owlishly: just waking, focusing, needs glasses

brows bumped together in a scowl: worried, disapproving, irritated

brows knitted in a frown: worried, disapproval, thoughtful

bug-eyed: surprised, fear, horror

cocky wink and confident smile: over confidence, arrogant, good humor, sexy humor

eyes burned with hatred: besides hatred this might suggest maniacal feelings

eyes flashed: fury, defiance, lust, promise, seduction

eyes rolled skyward: disbelief, distrust, humor

forehead puckered: thoughtful, worried, irritation

frustration crinkled her eyes

gaze dipped to her décolletage: sexual interest, attraction, lust

gimlet-eyed/narrowed eyes: irritation, thoughtful, mean, angry

gleam of deviltry: humor, conniving, cunning

kept eye contact but her gaze became glazed: pretending interest where there is none/bordom

narrowed to crinkled slits: angry, distrust

nystagmic eyes missed nothing (constantly shifting eyes): Shifty

pupils dilated: interested, attraction to opposite sex, fear

raked her with freezing contempt

slammed his eyes shut: stunned, furious, pain

squinted in a furtive manner: fearful, sneaky

stared with cow eyes: surprised, disbelief, hopeful, lovestruck

subtle wink: sexy, humor/sharing a joke, sarcasm

unrelenting stare: distrust, demanding, high interest, unyielding

Place To Place, Stationary Or Posture

ambled away: relaxed, lazy

barged ahead: rude, hurried

battled his way through the melee: desperate, anger, alarm

cruised into the diner: easy-going, feeling dapper, confident

dawdled alongside the road: lazy, deliberate delay for motives, unhurried, relaxed

dragged his blanket in the dirt: sadness/depressed, weary

edged closer to him: sneaky, seeking comfort, seeking protection, seeking an audience

he stood straighter and straightened his tie: sudden interest, sexual attraction

held his crotch and danced a frantic jig: demonstrates physical condition – he has to pee

hips rolled and undulated: sexy walk, exaggerating for sex appeal

hovered over them with malice/like a threatening storm: here it’s malice, but one may hover for many reasons.

hunched over to look shorter: appear inconspicuous, ashamed of actions, ashamed of height

leaped into action feet hammering the marbled floor: eager, fear, joyous

long-legged strides: hurried, impatient

lumbered across: heavy steps of a big man in a hurry

minced her way up to him: timid, sneaky, insecure, dainty or pretense at dainty

paced/prowled the halls: worried, worried impatience, impatient, diligently seeking pivoted on his heel and took off: mistaken and changes direction, following orders, hurried, abrupt change of mind, angry retreat

plodded down the road: unhurried, burdened, reluctant

practiced sensual stroll: sexy, showing off

rammed her bare foot into her jeans: angry, rushed

rocked back and forth on his heels: thoughtful, impatiently waiting

sagged against the wall: exhausted, disappointment

sallied forth: confident, determined

sashayed her cute little fanny: confident, determined, angered and determined

shrank into the angry crowd: fear, insecure, seeking to elude

sketched a brief bow and assumed a regal pose: confident, mocking, snooty, arrogant skidded to an abrupt halt: change of heart, fear, surprise, shock

skulked on the edges of the crowd: sneaky, ashamed, timid

slithered through the door: sneaky, evil, bad intentions

stormed toward her, pulling up short when: anger with a sudden surprise

swaggered into the class room: over confident, proud, arrogant, conceited

tall erect posture: confidence, military bearing

toe tapped a staccato rhythm: impatience, irritation

tottered/staggered unsteadily then keeled over: drunk, drugged, aged, ill

waltzed across the floor: happy, blissful, exuberant, conceited, arrogant

Head Movement

cocked his head: curiosity, smart-alecky, wondering, thoughtful

cocked his head left and rolled his eyes to right corner of the ceiling: introspection

droop of his head: depressed, downcast, hiding true feelings

nodded vigorously: eager

tilted her head to one side while listening: extreme interest, possibly sexual interest

Mouth And Jaw

a lackluster smile: feigning cheerfulness

cigarette hung immobile in mouth: shock, lazy, uncaring, relaxed casualness

clinched his jaw at the sight: angered, worried, surprised

curled her lips with icy contempt

expelled her breath in a whose: relief, disappointment

gagged at the smell: disgust, distaste

gapped mouth stare: surprised, shock, disbelief

gritted his teeth: anger, irritation, holding back opinion

inhaled a sharp breath: surprise, shock, fear, horror

licked her lips: nervous, sexual attraction

lips primed: affronted, upset, insulted

lips pursed for a juicy kiss

lips pursed like she’d been chewing a lemon rind: dislike, angry, irritated, sarcasm

lips screwed into: irritation, anger, grimace, scorn

lips set in a grim line: sorrow, worried, fear of the worst

pursed her lips: perturbed, waiting for a kiss

scarfed down the last biscuit: physical hunger, greed

slack-mouthed: total shock, disbelief

slow and sexy smile: attraction, seductive, coy

smacked his lips: anticipation

smile congealed then melted into horror

smile dangled on the corner of his lips: cocky, sexy

smirked and tossed her hair over her shoulder: conceit, sarcasm, over confident

sneered and flicked lint off his suit: sarcasm, conceit

spewed water and spit: shock

stuck out her tongue: humor, sarcasm, teasing, childish

toothy smile: eagerness, hopeful

wary smile surfaced on her lips

Nose

nose wrinkled in distaste/at the aroma

nostrils flared: anger, sexual attraction

nose in the air: snooty, haughty

Face in General

crimson with fury

handed it over shame-faced

jutted his chin: confident, anger, forceful

managed a deadpan expression: expressionless

muscles in her face tightened: unsmiling, concealing emotions, anger, worried

rested his chin in his palm and looked thoughtful

rubbed a hand over his dark stubble: thoughtful, ashamed of his appearance

screwed up her face: anger, smiling, ready to cry, could almost be any emotion

sneered and flicked lint off his suit: conceit, derision, scorn

Arm and Hand

a vicious yank

arm curled around her waist, tugging her next to him: possessive, pride, protective

bit her lip and glanced away: shy, ashamed, insecure

brandished his fist: anger, threatening, ready to fight, confident, show of pride

clamped his fingers into tender flesh: anger, protective, wants to inflict pain

clenched his dirty little fists: stubborn, angry

clapped her hands on her hips, arms crooked like sugar bowel handles: anger, demanding, disbelief

constantly twirled her hair and tucked it behind her ear: attracted to the opposite sex, shy crossed his arms over his chest: waiting, impatient, putting a barrier

crushed the paper in his fist: anger, surrender, discard

dived into the food: hunger, eager, greedy

doffed his hat: polite gesture, mocking, teasing

doodled on the phone pad and tapped the air with her foot: bored, inattention, introspection

drummed her fingers on the desk: impatient, frustrated, bored

fanned her heated face with her hands: physically hot, embarrassed, indicating attraction

fiddled with his keys: nervous, bored

firm, palm to palm hand shake: confident, honest

flipped him the bird: sarcastic discard

forked his fingers through his hair for the third time: disquiet/consternation, worry, thoughtful

handed it over shame-faced: guilt, shame

held his crotch and danced a frantic jig: physical need to relieve himself

limp hand shake: lack of confidence, lack of enthusiasm

propped his elbow on his knee: relaxed, thoughtful

punched her pillow: restless, can’t sleep, angry

rested his chin in his palm: thoughful, worried

scratched his hairy belly and yawned: indolent, bored, lazy, relaxed, just waking

shoulders lifted in a shrug: doubtful, careless discard

slapped his face in front of God and country: enraged, affronted/insulted

snapped a sharp salute: respect, sarcastic gesture meaning the opposite of respect

snapped his fingers, expecting service: arrogant, lack of respect, self-centered

sneered and flicked lint off his suit

spread her arms wide: welcoming, joy, love

stabbed at the food: anger, hunger, determined

stood straighter and smoothed his tie: sudden interest, possible sexual interest

stuffed his hands in his pockets: self-conscious, throwing up a barrier

sweaty handshake: nervous, fearful

touched his arm several times while explaining: sign of attraction, flattery, possessive

wide sweep of his arms: welcoming, all inclusive gesture, horror

Sitting or Rising

collapsed in a stupor: exhausted, drunk, drugged, disbelief

enthroned himself at the desk: conceit, pronouncing or taking ownership

exploded out of the chair: shock, eager, anger, supreme joy

roosted on the porch rail like a cock on a hen house roof: claiming ownership, conceit, content

sat, squaring an ankle over one knee: relaxed and open

slouched/wilted in a chair and paid languid attention to: drowsy, lazy, depressed, disinterest, sad, totally relaxed, disrespectful

squirmed in his chair: ill at ease, nervous, needs the bathroom

Recline

flung himself into the bed: sad, depressed, exhausted, happy

prostrated himself: surrender, desperate, miserable, powerless, obsequious, fawning, flattering

punched her pillow: can’t sleep, anger, frustrated

threw himself on the floor kicking and screaming: tantrum

Entire body and General

body stiffened at the remark: offended, anger, alerted

body swayed to music: dreamy, fond memories, enjoys the music

bounced in the car seat, pointing: excitement, fear, eager

cowered behind his brother: fear, shyness, coward, desperate

curled into a ball: sorrow, fear, sleepy, defensive

heart galloping: anxiety, joy, eager

held his crotch and danced a frantic jig

humped over his cane, each step shaking and careful: pain, aged

inhaled a deep breath and blew out slowly: buying time to find words/thoughtful, reconciled

quick and jerky like rusty cogs on a wheel: unsure of actions, self-conscious, tense, edgy

rocked back and forth on his heels: impatient, cocky, gleeful

manhandled the woman into a corner: bully, anger

slumped shoulders: defeat, depressed, sad, surrender

stiff-backed: priggish, haughty, affronted

stood straighter and straightened his tie: sexual interest, wants to make an impression

stooped and bent: aged, arthritic, in pain

stretched extravagantly and yawned: tired, bored, unconcerned

sweating uncontrollably: nervous, fear, guilt

tall erect posture: confidence, military bearing

was panting now at: afraid, exhausted, out of breath, sexual excitement

-Sharla Rae

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