Can you guess what each is thinking just based on their "gestures"? |
I'm reading Chuck Palahniuk's Consider This, which is a neat little book with a lot of great writing advice, given in the author's usual direct speech (and peppered with fun little stories to illustrate).
One of the tips Palahniuk gives is to provide texture to your storytelling, and in particular your dialogues, by mixing in gestures. This makes the story come alive more (more "human"), as well as provides a tool to help figure out who's speaking without resorting endlessly to the "he said/she said" tags. Better yet if these movements contradict what's being said!
To help us, his students, Palahniuk suggests coming up with 50 quick wordless gestures we use every day to raise our awareness of them, and starts us off with a few already:
- Thumbs-up
- Thumb-and-index finger "okay"
- Knocking your fist lightly on your forehead to "recall" something
- Clutching your heart
- Hitchhiker's thumb (which can imply "get lost")
- Index finger held vertically against the lips, for "hush up"
- The hooked "come here" finger
- Scratching nose
- Looking up to think (perhaps because lying)
- Looking down in shame or shyness
- Avoiding eye contact (to try to avoid conflict or being noticed or stopped or otherwise hailed)
- Sticking out the tongue
- Rolling the eyes
- Biting the lower lip
- Tossing your hair
- Holding onto the back of the neck in discomfort
- Hiding hands deep inside pockets
- Hooking thumbs in pants
- Lifting the chin in defiance
- Yawning
- Closing eyes in pain
- Blinking
- Winking
- Nodding the head
- Shaking the head
- Twirling the hair
- Holding arms crossed tightly over chest
Squishing arms a little around boobies to make them stand out (as distraction or mating ritual)Head thrown back, arms open wide,
large grin - you're free!- Throwing hands up in frustration
- Pinching lips
- Nostrils flaring in barely repressed anger
- Tapping toe of shoe on the ground bashfully
- Hands on hips
- Flipping the bird
- Blowing a kiss
- Snapping teeth (clear warning...or come hither?)
- Pinching bridge of nose
- Holding pinky and thumb up to face as a "call me" sign
- Miming writing with a pen to ask for pen and paper while too busy talking to someone else (ex: phone)
- Holding hands up, either as "stop" or as a "I give up"
- Rolling shoulders and cracking neck (or knuckles) to get down for business
- Pulling on ear in thought
- Picking your nose
Here are 43 more I've come up with on the spot...
Rigid posture, clenched fists, head high... Shuffling feet, hands raised in shock |
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