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: curly, ringleted, straight, kinky, wavy, wild, lank, blunt, tame, bushy, frizzy, silky, long, short, flowing, buzzed, cropped, chopped, coifed, styled, gelled, loose, flat, shiny, dull, bouncy, thin, thick, wiry, dyed, streaked, layered…
Things Hair Does (and other words/phrases to describe those actions)
- Flip: toss, jerk, flick, shake,
- Blow (in the wind): float, flutter, sail, waft, fly, skim, whip, tear, thrash, twirl, buffet, lash, shimmy, sway, slap, flap
Key Emotions and Related Hair Gestures:
- Though hair doesn’t do much on its own, people often touch their hair to indicate certain emotions. When nervous or feeling insecure, people do pretty much anything with their hair, such as touching, patting, twisting, pulling, compulsively braiding/unbraiding, pulling, jerking, and finger-combing their locks.
- At times of high anxiety or stress...
Clichés to Avoid: Bleached blondes that are dumb or gullible; sexy, sassy redheads; lice as a sign of dirty hair…
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 tried not to stare at the matriarch’s hair but didn’t quite succeed. It was the color of rich loam without a hint of white—a glossy shade that inspired both envy and debate among the village women. My mother liked to say that no one Bentri’s age kept such hair naturally.
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!
Becca Puglisi is an international speaker, writing coach, and bestselling author of The Emotion Thesaurus and its sequels. Her books are available in five 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.
I used to chew my hair. I liked the crunchy texture.
Great one Becca–there is so much we do with our hair–it really is a way of expressing who we are!
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Cynthia, you’re right. That’s a point I hadn’t considered, which would bring the percentage of redheads higher. Even considering that, though, I stand by my opinion that there are far more redheads in literature than are represented in the general population :).
Nice. This is the kind of thing I try to work on with on edit pass.
Always find these posts very useful. Thank you=)
My character does tons of stuff with her hair. How much is too much!Trying to figure it out. It is definitely her tic. Great post.
Are red heads really that rare? That makes me feel special 🙂 Stereotypes aside I think certain hair colors DO give impressions. I gave each of my characters their hair and eye color for a reason. My heroine has big brown eyes, because I wanted them to capture, and be all-encompassing. Her honey-blonde hair too, was meant to give an impression of softness.
My cheerful counter to the 2% statistic is that it doesn’t seem to consider that not all redheads have been that way since birth.
There was an MFA class at Vermont College that had a half dozen redheads.
Many of my friends are redheads. How many of them are natural? I’d never ask. But if you’re scanning the general U.S. populace…
Good stuff. Keep ’em coming:)
Thanks for sharing your tips.
Excellent, as always.
Great one!!
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