EMOTION THESAURUS

DEVASTATION



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HELPFUL TIP:

The inner landscape of your characters (especially your protagonist) is the lifeblood that runs through your story. Emotions, and how they're expressed, are tied deeply to a character’s personality and which positive traits and negative traits will manifest. To bring your readers in deeper through shared experience, consider filtering the setting descriptions through your character’s emotions while also exploring important colors, textures, and shapes through his or her senses.
DEFINITION:
Overwhelming shock and sorrow

PHYSICAL SIGNALS AND BEHAVIORS:
Asking someone to repeat the news out of disbelief
Laying a splayed out hand against one's chest
Needing to sit or be supported
Asking a barrage of questions to try and work toward understanding
Stopping what one was doing mid-task
A pained expression, with eyes that cloud or focus inward
Brows that pull together and down
Shaking one's head
Not knowing where to look or what to do
Expelling an audible breath
A chest that caves in
Using a hand to support one's head or rub at the forehead
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INTERNAL SENSATIONS:
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MENTAL RESPONSES:
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CUES OF ACUTE OR LONG TERM DEVASTATION:
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MAY ESCALATE TO:
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CUES OF SUPPRESSED DEVASTATION:
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MAY DE-ESCALATE TO:
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ASSOCIATED POWER VERBS:
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