What is your character afraid of? We’re not talking about spiders, creepy dolls, and invisible Legos in the night. Wounded characters will have crippling fears that paralyze them and limit them in life. Use this thesaurus to brainstorm your characters deepest fear: what it looks like, what internal struggles it will produce, and which scenarios might send them into full-on fight or flight mode.
Exploring this important mental challenge for your character will help you see where they’re going to stumble in the story and what they’ll need to do to emerge victorious. Please note this isn’t a tool to diagnose personal fears in the real world and should be used for fiction purposes only.
Recommended Reading:
What is a Fear Thesaurus?
Understanding the Role Fear Plays in Character Arc (Fear Thesaurus Tutorial)
How to Uncover Your Character’s Deepest Fear
Fear Entries (Samples)
If you’re trying to figure out your character’s greatest fear or need help writing it realistically into their arc, check out the following samples.
A Loved One Dying
A Secret Being Revealed
Abandonment
Agoraphobia
Becoming a Parent
Becoming What One Hates
Being Capable of Harm
Being a Burden to Others
Being Labeled
Being Pitied
Being Physically Touched
Being Returned to an Abusive Environment
Being Taken Advantage Of
Being Watched
Certain Kinds of People
Change
Conditional Love
Conflict
Criticism
Crowds
Death
Discrimination
Failure
Feeling Unsafe
Government
Growing Old
Having No Purpose
Hope
Humiliation
Infidelity
Isolation
Leading
Leaving Behind No Legacy
Letting Others Down
Losing Autonomy
Losing Control
Losing Financial Security
Losing One’s Heritage or Cultural Identity
Losing the Respect of Others
Love
Mediocrity
Never Finding Happiness
Not Being Believed
Not Fitting In
One’s Genetics
Physical Pain
Putting Yourself Out There
Rejection
Relational Commitment
Responsibility for Others
Sex
Sickness
Ready to change the writing game?
There are always more fear scenarios to explore, which is why an updated and expanded version can be found at One Stop For Writers. The Fear Thesaurus is part of the largest Show-Don’t-Tell THESAURUS Database available anywhere.
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