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if infinite scroll crashes you: add /page/# to the end of the blog's url, it will set up pages for you! you'll have to keep manually changing the pages though
Publishing this for people who didn’t know.
(Again, theme suggestions are very welcome here!)
Word Tracking Spreadsheets - These sheets also have sections for character and plot information.
Writing with Color: Description Guide - Words for Skin Tone
We discussed the issues describing People of Color by means of food in Part I of this guide, which brought rise to even more questions, mostly along the lines of “So, if food’s not an option, what can I use?” Well, I was just getting to that!
This final portion focuses on describing skin tone, with photo and passage examples provided throughout. I hope to cover everything from the use of straight-forward description to the more creatively-inclined, keeping in mind the questions we’ve received on this topic.
So let’s get to it.
S T A N D A R D D E S C R I P T I O N
B a s i c C o l o r s
Pictured above: Black, Brown, Beige, White, Pink.
“She had brown skin.”
This is a perfectly fine description that, while not providing the most detail, works well and will never become cliché.
Describing characters’ skin as simply brown or beige works on its own, though it’s not particularly telling just from the range in brown alone.
C o m p l e x C o l o r s
These are more rarely used words that actually “mean” their color. Some of these have multiple meanings, so you’ll want to look into those to determine what other associations a word might have.
Pictured above: Umber, Sepia, Ochre, Russet, Terra-cotta, Gold, Tawny, Taupe, Khaki, Fawn.
Complex colors work well alone, though often pair well with a basic color in regards to narrowing down shade/tone.
For example: Golden brown, russet brown, tawny beige…
As some of these are on the “rare” side, sliding in a definition of the word within the sentence itself may help readers who are unfamiliar with the term visualize the color without seeking a dictionary.
“He was tall and slim, his skin a russet, reddish-brown.”
Comparisons to familiar colors or visuals are also helpful:
“His skin was an ochre color, much like the mellow-brown light that bathed the forest.”
M o d i f i e r s
Modifiers, often adjectives, make partial changes to a word.The following words are descriptors in reference to skin tone.
D a r k - D e e p - R i c h - C o o l
W a r m - M e d i u m - T a n
F a i r - L i g h t - P a l e
Rich Black, Dark brown, Warm beige, Pale pink…
If you’re looking to get more specific than “brown,” modifiers narrow down shade further.
Keep in mind that these modifiers are not exactly colors.
As an already brown-skinned person, I get tan from a lot of sun and resultingly become a darker, deeper brown. I turn a pale, more yellow-brown in the winter.
While best used in combination with a color, I suppose words like “tan” “fair” and “light” do work alone; just note that tan is less likely to be taken for “naturally tan” and much more likely a tanned White person.
Calling someone “dark” as description on its own is offensive to some and also ambiguous. (See: Describing Skin as Dark)
U n d e r t o n e s
Undertones are the colors beneath the skin, seeing as skin isn’t just one even color but has more subdued tones within the dominating palette.
Mentioning the undertones within a character’s skin is an even more precise way to denote skin tone.
As shown, there’s a difference between say, brown skin with warm orange-red undertones (Kelly Rowland) and brown skin with cool, jewel undertones (Rutina Wesley).
“A dazzling smile revealed the bronze glow at her cheeks.”
“He always looked as if he’d ran a mile, a constant tinge of pink under his tawny skin.”
Standard Description Passage
“Farah’s skin, always fawn, had burned and freckled under the summer’s sun. Even at the cusp of autumn, an uneven tan clung to her skin like burrs. So unlike the smooth, red-brown ochre of her mother, which the sun had richened to a blessing.”
-From my story “Where Summer Ends” featured in Strange Little Girls
Here the state of skin also gives insight on character.
Note my use of “fawn” in regards to multiple meaning and association. While fawn is a color, it’s also a small, timid deer, which describes this very traumatized character of mine perfectly.
Though I use standard descriptions of skin tone more in my writing, at the same time I’m no stranger to creative descriptions, and do enjoy the occasional artsy detail of a character.
C R E A T I V E D E S C R I P T I O N
Whether compared to night-cast rivers or day’s first light…I actually enjoy seeing Characters of Colors dressed in artful detail.
I’ve read loads of descriptions in my day of white characters and their “smooth rose-tinged ivory skin”, while the PoC, if there, are reduced to something from a candy bowl or a Starbucks drink, so to actually read of PoC described in lavish detail can be somewhat of a treat.
Still, be mindful when you get creative with your character descriptions. Too many frills can become purple-prose-like, so do what feels right for your writing when and where. Not every character or scene warrants a creative description, either. Especially if they’re not even a secondary character.
Using a combination of color descriptions from standard to creative is probably a better method than straight creative. But again, do what’s good for your tale.
N A T U R AL S E T T I N G S - S K Y
Pictured above: Harvest Moon -Twilight, Fall/Autumn Leaves, Clay, Desert/Sahara, Sunlight - Sunrise - Sunset - Afterglow - Dawn- Day- Daybreak, Field - Prairie - Wheat, Mountain/Cliff, Beach/Sand/Straw/Hay.
Now before you run off to compare your heroine’s skin to the harvest moon or a cliff side, think about the associations to your words.
When I think cliff, I think of jagged, perilous, rough. I hear sand and picture grainy, yet smooth. Calm. mellow.
So consider your character and what you see fit to compare them too.
Also consider whose perspective you’re describing them from. Someone describing a person they revere or admire may have a more pleasant, loftier description than someone who can’t stand the person.
“Her face was like the fire-gold glow of dawn, lifting my gaze, drawing me in.”
“She had a sandy complexion, smooth and tawny.”
Even creative descriptions tend to draw help from your standard words.
F L O W E R S
Pictured above: Calla lilies, Western Coneflower, Hazel Fay, Hibiscus, Freesia, Rose
It was a bit difficult to find flowers to my liking that didn’t have a 20 character name or wasn’t called something like “chocolate silk” so these are the finalists.
You’ll definitely want to avoid purple-prose here.
Also be aware of flowers that most might’ve never heard of. Roses are easy, as most know the look and coloring(s) of this plant. But Western coneflowers? Calla lilies? Maybe not so much.
“He entered the cottage in a huff, cheeks a blushing brown like the flowers Nana planted right under my window. Hazel Fay she called them, was it?”
A S S O R T E D P L A N T S & N A T U R E
Pictured above: Cattails, Seashell, Driftwood, Pinecone, Acorn, Amber
These ones are kinda odd. Perhaps because I’ve never seen these in comparison to skin tone, With the exception of amber.
At least they’re common enough that most may have an idea what you’re talking about at the mention of “pinecone.“
I suggest reading out your sentences aloud to get a better feel of how it’ll sounds.
“Auburn hair swept past pointed ears, set around a face like an acorn both in shape and shade.”
I pictured some tree-dwelling being or person from a fantasy world in this example, which makes the comparison more appropriate.
I don’t suggest using a comparison just “cuz you can” but actually being thoughtful about what you’re comparing your character to and how it applies to your character and/or setting.
W O O D
Pictured above: Mahogany, Walnut, Chestnut, Golden Oak, Ash
Wood is definitely an iffy description for skin tone. Not only due to several of them having “foody” terminology within their names, but again, associations.
Some people would prefer not to compare/be compared to wood at all, so get opinions, try it aloud, and make sure it’s appropriate to the character if you do use it.
“The old warlock’s skin was a deep shade of mahogany, his stare serious and firm as it held mine.”
M E T A L S
Pictured above: Platinum, Copper, Brass, Gold, Bronze
Copper skin, brass-colored skin, golden skin…
I’ve even heard variations of these used before by comparison to an object of the same properties/coloring, such as penny for copper.
These also work well with modifiers.
“The dress of fine white silks popped against the deep bronze of her skin.”
G E M S T O N E S - M I N E R A LS
Pictured above: Onyx, Obsidian, Sard, Topaz, Carnelian, Smoky Quartz, Rutile, Pyrite, Citrine, Gypsum
These are trickier to use. As with some complex colors, the writer will have to get us to understand what most of these look like.
If you use these, or any more rare description, consider if it actually “fits” the book or scene.
Even if you’re able to get us to picture what “rutile” looks like, why are you using this description as opposed to something else? Have that answer for yourself.
“His skin reminded her of the topaz ring her father wore at his finger, a gleaming stone of brown, mellow facades.”
P H Y S I C A L D E S C R I P T I ON
Physical character description can be more than skin tone.
Show us hair, eyes, noses, mouth, hands…body posture, body shape, skin texture… though not necessarily all of those nor at once.
Describing features also helps indicate race, especially if your character has some traits common within the race they are, such as afro hair to a Black character.
How comprehensive you decide to get is up to you. I wouldn’t overdo it and get specific to every mole and birthmark. Noting defining characteristics is good, though, like slightly spaced front teeth, curls that stay flopping in their face, hands freckled with sunspots…
G E N E R A L T I P S
Indicate Race Early: I suggest indicators of race be made at the earliest convenience within the writing, with more hints threaded throughout here and there.
Get Creative On Your Own: Obviously, I couldn’t cover every proper color or comparison in which has been “approved” to use for your characters’ skin color, so it’s up to you to use discretion when seeking other ways and shades to describe skin tone.
Skin Color May Not Be Enough: Describing skin tone isn’t always enough to indicate someone’s ethnicity. As timeless cases with readers equating brown to “dark white” or something, more indicators of race may be needed.
Describe White characters and PoC Alike: You should describe the race and/or skin tone of your white characters just as you do your Characters of Color. If you don’t, you risk implying that White is the default human being and PoC are the “Other”).
PSA: Don’t use “Colored.” Based on some asks we’ve received using this word, I’d like to say that unless you or your character is a racist grandmama from the 1960s, do not call People of Color “colored” please.
Not Sure Where to Start? You really can’t go wrong using basic colors for your skin descriptions. It’s actually what many people prefer and works best for most writing. Personally, I tend to describe my characters using a combo of basic colors + modifiers, with mentions of undertones at times. I do like to veer into more creative descriptions on occasion.
Want some alternatives to “skin” or “skin color”? Try: Appearance, blend, blush, cast, coloring, complexion, flush, glow, hue, overtone, palette, pigmentation, rinse, shade, sheen, spectrum, tinge, tint, tone, undertone, value, wash.
Skin Tone Resources
List of Color Names
The Color Thesaurus
Things that are Brown (blog)
Skin Undertone & Color Matching
Tips and Words on Describing Skin
Photos: Undertones Described (Modifiers included)
Online Thesaurus (try colors, such as “red” & “brown”)
Don’t Call me Pastries: Creative Skin Tones w/ pics 3 2 1
Writing & Description Guides
WWC Guide: Words to Describe Hair
Writing with Color: Description & Skin Color Tags
Describing Characters of Color (Passage Examples)
7 Offensive Mistakes Well-intentioned Writers Make
I tried to be as comprehensive as possible with this guide, but if you have a question regarding describing skin color that hasn’t been answered within part I or II of this guide, or have more questions after reading this post, feel free to ask!
~ Mod Colette
THIS NEVER CEASES TO BE AMAZING, bless writingwithcolor
oh thank fuck you have no idea how long ive been slamming my head against a wall like “HOW DO I DESCRIBE JOSIE’S SKIN???? HOW?????”
What is the Fool’s Journey? The ‘Fool’s Journey’ is the term coined by Eden Gray to describe the story of the Major Arcana of the Tarot. Unfortunately, Gray’s own account of the journey is merely a rushed appendix to A Complete Guide to the Tarot, and in the absence of an “authoritative” version (if it isn’t a fool’s journey…
Could I maybe have some prompts for why my antagonist would kidnap someone? Thanks! <3
Hi! I came up with a few ideas.
Disclaimer: Some of them you may want to be careful about, particularly if you’re not writing from the kidnapped character’s POV, because it’s easy to slip into using the kidnapped character as just a plot device to give another character motivation.
For ransom - for money, information, in exchange for a particular item, or to make some do something.
The antagonist needs the kidnapped person to do something only they can do (because they posses a particular skill, for example, or it’s something they personally need to authorize, etc.).
For revenge - against the kidnapped person or someone else.
They believe they’re actually protecting the kidnapped character.
They need the kidnapped person out of the way temporarily.
They have a reason to want to have the kidnapped person close by.
They want to swap the kidnapped person for a double following their instructions.
They want to use the kidnapped character as a human test subject.
I hope that helps :)
Many, many popular books use the “Chosen One” storyline. The basic idea is that some unsuspecting, ordinary character is actually a hero (often, but not always, a prophesied hero) and is the only o…
Dialogue prompt #5
site that you can type in the definition of a word and get the word
site for when you can only remember part of a word/its definition
site that gives you words that rhyme with a word
site that gives you synonyms and antonyms
THAT FIRST SITE IS EVERY WRITER’S DREAM DO YOU KNOW HOW MANY TIMES I’VE TRIED WRITING SOMETHING AND THOUGHT GOD DAMN IS THERE A SPECIFIC WORD FOR WHAT I’M USING TWO SENTENCES TO DESCRIBE AND JUST GETTING A BUNCH OF SHIT GOOGLE RESULTS
World Building Failures
If you’re a writer and you actively participate in world building, I’m sure you know how exciting it can be. You probably wouldn’t be doing it so often if you didn’t enjoy it. For me, it’s one of my favorite parts of writing and it’s why I enjoy writing Fantasy.
It might seem like there’s no real way to “fail” when world building, because everything is up to your imagination. If you can create whatever you want, how could you possibly fail? However, there are ways that you can do it “wrong”…
…And by that I mean there are ways you can make it uninteresting and boring for your readers. There are ways you can focus too much on the wrong things. In order to combat this problem, I’ve come up with a few ways you can fail at world building, so hopefully you can avoid them in the future.
Too much world building, not enough focus on characters.
It’s easy to get caught up in building your world that you forget to focus on characters. Character building and how they interact with the world you created is just as important as world building. Don’t focus all your time on creating an insanely original interesting world if you’re not going to create characters to go along with it. The world should support your characters and how they go about their daily lives. Don’t make those two separate things or there will be a serious disconnect. You need to show the greatness of your world by having your characters interact with it. Otherwise, what’s the point?
You never had a real understanding of how your world operates.
If you don’t understand how your world works, no one else will. If you say your world is run by magic, take the time to explain HOW it works. I’m not saying that everything needs to be scientifically explained, especially in a world where science might not matter, I just think you need to explain how it all works together to support your world. Make sure you ask yourself questions to flesh out your world. Where do people work? How do they go about their daily lives? Where do they live? How do they speak? It all needs to feel cohesive.
You based it TOO much on Earth’s history.
A lot of people avoid making their worlds diverse because they claim “it wasn’t like that back then”. The whole point of writing Fantasy and world building is that you can change things. Don’t refuse to include something because it didn’t happen that way in our history. You’re not writing historical fiction, you’re world building. You’re most likely writing Fantasy. A big failure that I see is some writers feel the need to follow a timeline that doesn’t need to exist in their stories. Get creative!
-Kris Noel
How to Personify the Seven Deadly Sins – Mythcreants
Using Real Psychology in Your Writing
What Will Your Character Do When Disaster Strikes? by Carolyn Kaufman, PsyD
Characterization and Conflict: Using Psychological Tests to Improve Your Writing by Carolyn Kaufman, PsyD
Gathering Information from Characters: Types of Questions by JJ Cooper
Using Body Language in Writing by JJ Cooper
Body Language Cheat Sheet by Carolyn Kaufman, PsyD
USING ARCHETYPES IN YOUR STORIES
A Primer on Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious by Carolyn Kaufman, PsyD
Writing Better Romantic Relationships
This series looks at the Anima/Animus archetype, which is most often seen in romantic relationships, and how to use it to create more compelling romantic relationships, regardless of genre. Looks at what the anima and animus are, how they’re formed, and why fiction writers need to understand them. There’s also some and what makes love grow - and how happily ever afters really work.
Creating Riveting Romances: The Anima/Animus Archetype Defined by Carolyn Kaufman, PsyD
Writing Romance: Three Influences on the Anima/Animus Archetype by Carolyn Kaufman, PsyD
The Perfect Hero and the Perfect Heroine: Dark and Light Sides of the Anima & Animus by Carolyn Kaufman, PsyD
What Does it Really Take to Live Happily Ever After? A look at the psychological research on what makes or breaks romantic relationships. - by Carolyn Kaufman, PsyD
Creating Better Antagonists
Three-Dimensional Villains: Finding Your Character’s Shadow Using Jungian archetypes and hands-on exercises, this article teaches fiction writers to tap their own dark sides to create realistic villains who will really challenge the hero/es and keep tension high. - by Carolyn Kaufman, PsyD
FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY
Basic Information on Forensic Science by Juan Salvo
The Truth about Forensic Psychology by Lisa Featherston
archetypewriting.com
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How to describe a person using vivid vocabulary and good observation skills
Propp's 31 Narratemes
Russian Vladimir Propp (1895-1970) analyzed many of his country’s folk tales and identified common themes within them. He broke down the stories into morphemes (analyzable chunks) and identified 31 elements or narratemes (narrative units) that comprised the structure of many of the stories.
1st Sphere: Introduction
Steps 1 to 7 introduces the situation and most of the main characters, setting the scene for subsequent adventure.
1. Absentation: Someone goes missing
2. Interdiction: Hero is warned
3. Violation of interdiction
4. Reconnaissance: Villain seeks something
5. Delivery: The villain gains information
6. Trickery: Villain attempts to deceive victim
7. Complicity: Unwitting helping of the enemy
2nd Sphere: The Body of the story
The main story starts here and extends to the departure of the hero on the main quest.
8. Villainy and lack: The need is identified
9. Mediation: Hero discovers the lack
10. Counteraction: Hero chooses positive action
11. Departure: Hero leave on mission
3rd Sphere: The Donor Sequence
In the third sphere, the hero goes in search of a method by which the solution may be reached, gaining the magical agent from the Donor. Note that this in itself may be a complete story.
12. Testing: Hero is challenged to prove heroic qualities
13. Reaction: Hero responds to test
14. Acquisition: Hero gains magical item
15. Guidance: Hero reaches destination
16. Struggle: Hero and villain do battle
17. Branding: Hero is branded
18. Victory: Villain is defeated
19. Resolution: Initial misfortune or lack is resolved
4th Sphere: The Hero’s return
In the final (and often optional) phase of the storyline, the hero returns home, hopefully uneventfully and to a hero’s welcome, although this may not always be the case.
20. Return: Hero sets out for home
21. Pursuit: Hero is chased
22. Rescue: pursuit ends
23. Arrival: Hero arrives unrecognized
24. Claim: False hero makes unfounded claims
25. Task: Difficult task proposed to the hero
26. Solution: Task is resolved
27. Recognition: Hero is recognised
28. Exposure: False hero is exposed
29. Transfiguration: Hero is given a new appearance
30. Punishment: Villain is punished
31. Wedding: Hero marries and ascends the throne
Dialogue prompt #4
