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WRITERS HELPING WRITERS®

WRITERS HELPING WRITERS®

Helping writers become bestselling authors

Physical Feature Entry: Stomach

February 9, 2013 by ANGELA ACKERMAN

Physical description of a character can be difficult to convey—too much will slow the pace or feel ‘list-like’, while too little will not allow readers to form a clear mental image. If a reader cannot imagine what your character looks like, they may have trouble connecting with them on a personal level, or caring about their plight. 

One way to balance the showing and telling of physical description is to showcase a few details that really help ‘tell the story’ about who your character is and what they’ve been through up to this point. Think about what makes them different and interesting. Can a unique feature, clothing choice or way they carry themselves help to hint at their personality? Also, consider how they move their body. Using movement will naturally show a character’s physical characteristics, keep the pace flowing and help to convey their emotions.

 Descriptors: flat, tight, pierced, round, thick, jiggly, bloated, puffy, stretch marked, bloblike, rolly, ballooned, pregnant, hefty, plump, obese, pudgy, portly, skinny…

Things Stomachs Do:

  • Bounce: jiggle, vibrate, quiver, tremble, shake, judder, jounce
  • Tighten: harden, tense, suck in, bind
  • Slacken: release, bulge, balloon, billow, relax, stretch

Key Emotions and Related Stomach Gestures: 

  • Embarrassment: When people are self conscious and especially if they are embarrassed of their body image, it is common to suck in the stomach to make it appear flatter, or to use arms to hide the stomach by crossing them. People who are confident in their shape have no qualms about dressing so their midriff is exposed or clearly viewable through revealing/tight clothing, while those with less confidence dress to conceal this area.
  • Shock or Surprise…

Clichés to Avoid: likening someone a beached whale; fat jokes that ask where Ahab is; the beer keg or barrel stomach…

 

HINT: When describing any part of the body, try to use cues that show the reader more than just a physical description. Make your descriptions do double duty. Example: I loved watching Eric sleep–so quiet and composed, his small chest rising and falling in a pattern, his stomach smooth and flat. His stillness was so unlike him when awake. Then, he became a wild, electrified force that bounced all over the house. But while he napped, I had him all to myself, watching to see if he would smile, if his belly would shake with silent laughter at something only a three-year-old would dream.

BONUS TIP: The Color, Texture, and Shape Thesaurus might help you find a fresh take on some of the descriptors listed above! 

Describe your character’s features in a way that reveals more than just a physical description. Show what he looks like while also reinforcing his personality and emotional state, thereby doing more with less.

Need concrete examples of how to describe your character in a compelling, magnetic way? Good news! This thesaurus has been integrated into our online library at One Stop For Writers. There, you can find help with metaphors and similes, as well as the best ways to describe your character using movement. The entire Physical Feature collection is cross-referenced and linked for easy navigation. If you’re interested in seeing a free sampling of the updated Physical Feature Thesaurus and our other descriptive collections, head on over and register at One Stop!

ANGELA ACKERMAN
ANGELA ACKERMAN

Angela is a writing coach, international speaker, and bestselling author who loves to travel, teach, empower writers, and pay-it-forward. She also is a founder of One Stop For Writers, a portal to powerful, innovative tools to help writers elevate their storytelling.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. InternetReputation.com says

    February 15, 2013 at 11:56 pm

    Great information. I am very happy about your article. For best health you need best food. Hotel in murree is one of the best food producer.If you come in murree please visit our hotel

  2. creativewritingintheblackberrypatch says

    February 11, 2013 at 9:24 am

    Love the ‘hint’ at the end!

  3. Angela Ackerman says

    February 11, 2013 at 2:10 am

    Haha, you and me both Stina! 🙂

  4. Leslie S. Rose says

    February 10, 2013 at 7:48 pm

    My stomach never looked like that. I’m a big fan of the stomach since it has both external and internal writerly possibilities.

  5. Stina Lindenblatt says

    February 10, 2013 at 7:41 pm

    Wish my stomach looked like that. 🙂

  6. Carol Riggs says

    February 10, 2013 at 7:26 pm

    Great examples. Which reminded me I still hadn’t ordered your EMOTION THESAURUS book–so I remedied that lack. Looking forward to receiving it in the mail!!

  7. Tracy Campbell says

    February 10, 2013 at 5:01 pm

    “Sun-burned gut looking like a giant zit ready to pop.” Love this and all the other stomach explanations. 🙂

  8. Rachna Chhabria says

    February 10, 2013 at 11:44 am

    Super post, Angela. Lots to learn for me. Loved the example.

  9. Lydia Sharp says

    February 10, 2013 at 8:23 am

    Excellent! I’m really loving the physical attributes thesaurus.

    Here’s a word I often use to describe my own post-baby stomach: pooch. Not really a bulge, but definitely not going to be flat ever again. (And that’s okay. If I had to choose between my son and rock-hard abs, I’d choose my son. Every time.)

  10. Natalie Aguirre says

    February 10, 2013 at 6:13 am

    Great example at the end of the post. I never think to describe stomachs, maybe because I don’t write much YA or more likely because I don’t love looking at mine.

  11. Miranda Hardy says

    February 9, 2013 at 8:53 pm

    I want that midsection!

  12. Diane Carlisle says

    February 9, 2013 at 4:37 pm

    The emotion I’m feeling now is envy. I can go to the gym 7 days per week and not get that belly. :\

  13. Heather says

    February 9, 2013 at 2:33 pm

    Nice! I especially love the example at the end that ties in into something deeper.

Trackbacks

  1. Physical Attribute Entries | Writers Helping Writers says:
    October 10, 2013 at 7:44 pm

    […] Stomach […]

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