For Writers - Emotional Thesaurus with Melissa Walker

This week's tip comes from Melissa Walker, author of the YA VIOLET series, and teen romance LOVESTRUCK SUMMER. She's also co-founder of the I Heart Daily newsletter, and co-creator of the website, Before You Were Hot. You won't want to miss her next book, SMALL TOWN SINNERS, the story of an evangelical girl who wonders whether falling in love means falling out of faith. It hits the shelves July 19th.
You can find Melissa on her website, on facebook, and by following her on twitter.

Melissa says:

I have a confession to make: When I write a book and want to “show” rather than “tell,” I turn to a lot of old standbys. (“She rolled her eyes.” “He bit his lip.” “She raised an eyebrow.”) Boring! The thing is, I want my emotional gestures to be varied and fresh… and I have an Ace up my sleeve.

The Bookshelf Muse (http://thebookshelfmuse.blogspot.com/) is where I found the Emotional Thesaurus, my guide to new and exciting ways to express what my characters are feeling! Just look at all of these ideas for “amusement” (http://thebookshelfmuse.blogspot.com/2008/06/amusement.html), “guilt” (http://thebookshelfmuse.blogspot.com/2008/05/guilt.html) and “relief” (http://thebookshelfmuse.blogspot.com/2008/01/relief.html). It’s a goldmine!

Here’s my public thank you to Bookshelf Muses Angela and Becca. You’ve helped me through many a character gesture.

(Note from Linda... while you're checking out Bookshelf Muse, don't miss their excellent posts about settings here, here, here, and here.)

More links to keep you busy this week:

Authors Share Their Best Writing Advice (Wastepaper Prose)

10 Ways to Stay in and Write (Publishing Talk)

Creating Strong Characters (Fiction Notes)

Deepening Your Characters' Needs (Query Tracker)

Creating Fantasy Characters (Cynsations)

Ist or 3rd POV? (The Other Side of the Story) (part II)

Developing a Unique Voice (Adventures in Children's Publishing) (There are links within this link, all worth reading...)

On Writing Misery (Gail Carson Levine) (Love, love, love her.)

Getting the Most Out of Your Rewrite (Alan Rinzler)

Considering a Writers' Retreat? (YA Outside the Lines)

How about a Writers' Conference? (Genreality)

Mystery Writers Take Note (Shelf Awareness)

Why Agents Like Published Authors (Treated and Released)

The Value of the Rejection Process (Janet Reid)


Now go! Write!