37 Ways To Write About Anger

In this post, we have included 37 things for you to consider when you write about anger. 

Other posts in this series include:

1. 29 Ways To Write About Happiness
2. 32 Ways To Write About Fear
3. 43 Ways To Write About Love
4. 40 Ways To Write About Empathy
5. 37 Ways To Write About Grief

How do we write about anger in an authentic way?

We all get angry. It is natural and it can be a good thing. When it is uncontrolled or unnecessary, anger will not do us any favours on either a personal or a social level.

The same is true for the characters we create. When we write about angry characters, we should remember that there is always something behind this emotion. Anger is usually a surface emotion. It is a reaction to an underlying problem.

[Use our Character Creation Kit to create great characters for your stories.]

37 Ways To Write About Anger

A)  Motivation

1. Confused.
2. Frustrated.
3. Hurt.
4. Jealous.
5. Embarrassed.
6. Powerless.
7. Rejected.
8. Worried.

B)  Body Language

1. An increased heart rate.
2. Feeling hot or flushed.
3. Shaking.
4. A clenched jaw.
5. A dry mouth.
6. Shouting, ranting, making loud noises.
7. Staring.
8. Baring teeth.
9. Finding it difficult to hear.
10. Tense muscles.

C)  Passive Or Aggressive – How Angry Is Your Character?

1. We withdraw – passive behaviour
2. We lash out – aggressive behaviour

D)   Ways To Create Conflict With Anger

Seven ways a character can show passive anger:

1. Being defeatist. Examples: underachieving, choosing to repeat a proven failed behaviour pattern, being accident-prone.
2. Being secretive. Examples: anonymous complaints, gossiping, conning.
3. With dispassion. Examples: giving the cold shoulder, the silent treatment, substance abuse, talking about emotions without showing any, oversleeping, playing with electronic equipment or machines.
4. Evasion. Examples: avoiding conflict, becoming phobic.
5. Exhibiting obsessive behaviour. Examples: overeating or dieting too much, obsessively tidying up.
6. Manipulation. Examples: provoking bad behaviour in others, playing the victim, emotional blackmail, feigning illness, using other people to deliver negative messages.
7. Self-Blame. Examples: apologising for everything, criticising their own behaviour, inviting criticism.

Seven ways a character can show aggressive anger:

1. Behaving manically. Examples: speaking, moving, and driving too quickly; overworking; spending too much money.
2. Being physically destructive. Examples: vandalism, reckless driving, substance abuse, harming animals.
3. Being selfish. Examples: being unpredictable, ignoring other people’s feelings and needs, ignoring requests for help.
4. Being vengeful. Examples: holding a grudge, planning to hurt someone.
5. Bullying. Examples: making threats, persecuting, misusing power, shouting, explosive rages over small problems, illogical arguments.
6. Physically or psychologically hurting people. Examples: sexual abuse, verbal abuse, ignoring people’s feelings, punishing people, making inappropriate jokes, being vulgar, blaming people for something they did not do.
7. Showing off. Examples: talking over other people, throwing money around, acting as if you are better than someone else is, lying about achievements.

Tip: Try The 12 Question Fiction Writing Conflict Test to see if you have enough conflict in your novel.

E)  The Importance Of Anger In Plotting

1. You can force a confrontation that moves the plot forward. A character may use it as a catalyst that allows an escape from an unhealthy relationship.
2. You can reveal another side to a character that nobody dreamt existed. The mild-mannered man nobody suspects of domestic violence could be revealed with an angry outburst.
3. You can also use it as a transformative experience. A character who has reacted angrily to an event could regret it and choose to change his or her behaviour.

How do your important characters deal with anger?

1. 29 Ways To Write About Happiness
2. 32 Ways To Write About Fear
3. 43 Ways To Write About Love
4. 40 Ways To Write About Empathy

I hope this post has given you some ideas on how to write about anger.

Source for examples of passive and aggressive anger

by Amanda Patterson

© Amanda Patterson

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