http://www.angelakulig.com/2011/06/writing-process-demystified-2-oral.html
(Seriously, you need to read it. I just did and I even laughed at my own jokes. )
Stranger still is the number of people who find angelakulig.com by searching things like, "Do I have an oral fixation", and "I'm embarrassed by more oral fixation." Since for whatever reason it's such a big hit, I have decided it's time to revisit the topic. This time in the form of fictional characters, because even the make believe have oral fixations.
I believe it was the Twilight series that made me feel as though I had been SLAPPED every time a certain someone bit their lip. To this day I still inwardly recoil when I read it in other books (mine included) so I've been working on keeping track of original oral fixations. Things like pencil chewing, and fingernail biting are totally played out yo. So tell me characters you love and love to hate who have oral fixations. There are thousands, so don't worry, there will not be a test.
3 comments :
I'm guilty of lip biting in my books too. I try not to and opt for fingernail chewing. Or I just leave it out. Can't think of any other fixations I gave characters.
Physically biting their tongue to keep from saying anything. I've seen it happen repetitively in a few books. The comment "I bit my tongue hard enough to taste blood, and the blood reminded me to stay silent" annoys me for some reason. When I bite my tongue I'm usually saying ow at the very least.
I can't offer up a specific character. But I do have two theories on the topic:
1. The writer is basing the character on someone he or she has seen, and that someone was a lip-biter / nail-biter, or
2. Since we are supposed to SHOW, not TELL, if you write, "She was nervous," you're saying. If you write, "She tapped her foot and bit her lip," you're telling.
Just my $0.03
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