Writers – Develop Quirky Characters – Phobias

There was a really strange story in the news today.  Pam Babcock spent two years in her bathroom and was rescued when her boyfriend called for medical assistance because she was stuck to the toilet.  Authorities are guessing she sat on the toilet for a month, so her skin actually adhered to the surface.  The boyfriend, Kory McFarren, was arrested for mistreatment of a dependent adult,  because he didn’t seek help sooner.  Babcock was afraid to leave the bathroom, so McFarren brought her food and water and tried to coax her from the bathroom. 

There was no speculation regarding the mental condition which might have kept Babcock prisoner in her bathroom for two years.  I’ve heard of people with obsessive compulsive disorder who become so enslaved by their compulsions they can no longer leave the house, or certain rooms.  It may have been a phobia, such as Agrophobia, which caused her to stay sealed in the bathroom. 

As a writer, I find mental disorders which affect human behavior fascinating. Dean Koontz has included obscure physical or mental ailments into his stories, with characters that are allergic to the sun, or suffering debilitating phobias.  I also remember a movie called Copy Cat, in which Sigourney Weaver suffered agrophobia and she was trapped in her house while a killer stalked her.  Even with her life at stake, she couldn’t bring herself to cross the threshold of her front door. 

You may have heard of a few of these phobias, but if you’re looking for a character quirk or plot device, consider incorporating one into your story. 

“Phobia: is an irrational, intense, persistent fear of certain situations, objects, activities, or persons. The main symptom of this disorder is the excessive, unreasonable desire to avoid the feared subject. When the fear is beyond one’s control, or if the fear is interfering with daily life, then a diagnosis under one of the anxiety disorders can be made.” Wikipedia

 

The Phobia List

Air- AnemophobiaAirsickness- Aeronausiphobia
Alcohol- Methyphobia or Potophobia
Alone, being- Autophobia or Monophobia
Alone, being or solitude- Isolophobia
Amnesia- Amnesiphobia

Animals- ZoophobiaAnts- Myrmecophobia
Anything new- Neophobia
Asymmetrical things- Asymmetriphobia

Automobiles- Motorphobia

Bald people- Peladophobia
Bathing- AblutophobiaBicycles- Cyclophobia
Birds- Ornithophobia
Black- Melanophobia

Blood- Hemophobia, Hemaphobia or Hematophobia
Blushing or the color red- Erythrophobia, Erytophobia or Ereuthophobia
Body odors- Osmophobia or Osphresiophobia

Books- Bibliophobia

Bums or beggars- Hobophobia

Buried alive, being or cemeteries- Taphephobia or Taphophobia

Chickens- Alektorophobia
Child, bearing a deformed; deformed people- Teratophobia
Children- PedophobiaChoking- Anginophobia
Chopsticks- Consecotaleophobia
Church- Ecclesiophobia
Clocks- Chronomentrophobia
Clouds- Nephophobia
Clowns- CoulrophobiaCorpses- Necrophobia
Creepy, crawly things- Herpetophobia
Criticism- Enissophobia

Darkness- Achluophobia or Myctophobia, or Scotophobia
Daylight or sunshine- Phengophobia
Decisions: making decisions- DecidophobiaDogs or rabies- Cynophobia
Dolls- Pediophobia
Drafts- Aerophobia or Anemophobia
Dreams- Oneirophobia
Drinking- Dipsophobia

Eating or swallowing- Phagophobia

Eight, the number- Octophobia

Everything- Panophobia, Panphobia, Pamphobia, or Pantophobia

Filth or dirt- Rhypophobia
Fire- Arsonphobia or Pyrophobia
Fish- Ichthyophobia

Flowers- Anthrophobia or Anthophobia
Flutes- Aulophobia
Flying- Aviophobia or Aviatophobia or Pteromerhanophobia
Germs- Verminophobia
Ghosts- Phasmophobia

Gravity- Barophobia

Heights- Acrophobia, Altophobia, Batophobia, Hypsiphobia or Hyposophobia
Hell- Hadephobia, Stygiophobia or Stigiophobia
Homosexuality or of becoming homosexual- Homophobia
Horses- Equinophobia or Hippophobia
Hospitals- Nosocomephobia

Ignored, being- Athazagoraphobia
Imperfection- Atelophobia

Kissing- Philemaphobia or Philematophobia
Knees- Genuphobia

Light- Photophobia

Marriage- Gamophobia

Moon- Selenophobia
Mother-in-law- Pentheraphobia
Moths- Mottephobia

Mushrooms- Mycophobia

Noise- Acousticophobia

Odors or smells- Olfactophobia
Old people- Gerontophobia
Open spaces- Agoraphobia
Opinions- Allodoxaphobia

Parents-in-law- Soceraphobia
Peanut butter sticking to the roof of the mouth- Arachibutyrophobia

Place: locked in an enclosed place- Cleithrophobia, Cleisiophobia, or Clithrophobia

Rain- Ombrophobia or Pluviophobia

Reptiles- Herpetophobia
Responsibility- Hypengyophobia or Hypegiaphobia

Self, being dirty- Automysophobia
Self, being oneself- Autophobia
Self, being seen or looked at- Scopophobia or Scoptophobia
Self, being touched- Aphenphosmphobia

Sleep- Somniphobia

Spiders- Arachnephobia or Arachnophobia

Stage fright- Topophobia

Staying single- Anuptaphobia
Stealing- Cleptophobia or Kleptophobia

Sun or sunlight- Heliophobia
Symbolism- Symbolophobia

Thinking- Phronemophobia
Thunder- Ceraunophobia

Trees- Dendrophobia
Trembling- Ttremophobia

Ugliness- Cacophobia

Voices or noises, speaking aloud or telephones- Phonophobia
Voids or empty spaces- KenophobiaWashing- Ablutophobia
Wasps- Spheksophobia
Water- HydrophobiaWork- Ergophobia or Ponophobia
Worms- Scoleciphobia
Worms, being infested with- Helminthophobia
Wrinkles, getting- Rhytiphobia  

Many of us might suffer a fear of enclosed spaces or heights.  A few suffer a fear of marriage, wrinkles or responsibility.   I think I have a phobia of clowns, even if they don’t send me screaming from the circus tent.  Some phobias are humorous, like a fear of old people, mother-in-laws or the number 8.  But could you imagine a fear of drinking, being yourself or sleeping?  Well, that’s the point really, imagine if your characters had to live with any of these phobias and see where it takes you. Happy Writing!

Writers – First Visualize Your Success

Writers are blessed with the gift of imagination.  You may assume everyone is able to conjure new worlds, rich in detail and history, or characters beautifully flawed, but imagination is a talent of degrees.  Just like the athlete, born with natural grace who must build their skill, a writer must apply their gift of day dreaming. 

Think of day dreaming as your mental exercise, schedule time each day to imagine, just like you schedule time to work out.  

Put the power of your mind to work by visualizing a successful future. Before you can succeed at any endeavor, you must first succeed in your mind.  You must dream a better life for your self before you can live it, and you must be willing to take action to make it a reality. Without action, your vision is a day dream; with action, it’s a plan for your future. 

According to Tony Robbins “if you want to achieve your goals and master any area of your life—your finances, your health, your relationship—you must first develop a compelling vision to get you excited about what it is you’re striving to achieve.”

Here is an exercise to help you visualize what you really, really, really want.

Write a journal entry as though you have just experienced the perfect day.  Really challenge yourself to be descriptive and detailed, use all your senses and begin from the moment you opened your peepers. 

 My ideal starts something like this –

 I left the windows open last night so I could hear the waves lapping onto the shore.  As I fell asleep, I realized my heart beats to the same rhythm.  It was a chilly when I woke up this morning, so I didn’t want to leave the snuggly warmth of my bed. The crisp white sheets and down comforter encase me like a safe, warm cocoon. The aroma of vanilla bean coffee finally lured me out of my sanctuary. It was probably for the best, because I had a busy day ahead.  First coffee, then I called my agent to discuss my latest manuscript.  She’s practically panting for a copy since my last book made the NY Times Best Sellers List. 

Before doing this exercise I had a vague idea about my dreams but I had never actually visualized them in such detail.  I know I want to be a writer – not where I would live.  I know I want to travel – not where I’ll go. 

Another suggestion to help you visualize your goals is to create a vision board. Use photos, magazine clippings or power words that represent your dreams.  If you want a new car, find a photo of the exact model and color and then visualize yourself behind the wheel. Take one step further and imagine the new car smell, the feel of the leather upholstery, the soft sound of music and silence of the road. If you’re in a convertible, imagine the warmth of the sun on your face and the cool breeze in your hair.

Now that you have a clear vision of what you want, consider the steps required to accomplish your goal. Just knowing how to achieve your dreams will make them more concrete.

The steps I need to take in order to be a best selling author –

1) Write everyday, finish my manuscript and hire top notch editor.

2) Query agents, study the market, self promotion and press releases.

3) Pay off existing debt, reduce expenses, and invest more in 401K.

4) Embrace constructive feedback, discard unconstructive criticism and persist, persist, persist.

5) Write everyday, start next manuscript and send candy to top notch editor.

 Now all you have to do is decide if you are willing to take action. If the answer is yes, start right now.