How to Master Show, Don’t Tell Method

Here are practical, writer-tested exercises to train Show, Don’t Tell—from simple to slightly evil (the good kind).

1. Emotion Without Naming It

Goal: Replace labels with behavior.

Exercise:
Write a 150-word scene where a character feels anger, jealousy, fear, or love, but you are not allowed to name the emotion or use its synonyms.

❌ Not allowed: angry, furious, scared, nervous, jealous, loved
✅ Use: body language, actions, environment, sensory detail

Example prompt:
A character waits for someone who is late.

Checkpoint:
If a reader can correctly name the emotion without you saying it, you win.

2. The Physical Tells Drill

Goal: Train your eye for involuntary behavior.

Exercise:
Pick one emotion and list 10 physical reactions a person might have when feeling it.

Example for anxiety:

• Jaw clenches

• Keys jingle in a pocket

• Breath caught halfway

• Glancing at exits

• Fingertips numb

Then write a 100-word paragraph using only 3 of those reactions.

Rule: Less is more. Overloading kills the effect.

3. Strip the Adverbs

Goal: Make verbs pull their weight.

Exercise:
Take this sentence and rewrite it three different ways without adverbs:

“She walked nervously into the room.”

Now try:

• Change the verb

• Change the setting

• Change the object interaction

Example result:

She paused at the threshold, fingers brushing the doorframe before she stepped inside.

4. Dialogue With Teeth

Goal: Let subtext do the talking.

Exercise:
Write a short dialogue (8–10 lines) where:

• Two characters are arguing

• They never mention what they’re actually fighting about

Prompt:
A couple packs for a trip.

Tip:
Use interruptions, topic changes, and what they avoid saying.

5. Weather as Emotion (Controlled Use)

Goal: Learn metaphor without melodrama.

Exercise:
Write a scene where the weather mirrors the character’s inner state, but never mention feelings.

Rule:
Weather must interact with the character physically.

❌ “The storm reflected his rage.”
✅ Rain soaking through his shoes, thunder interrupting thoughts, wind stealing words.

6. The Object Focus Exercise

Goal: Externalize emotion through objects.

Exercise:
A character receives bad news. Write the scene focusing on one object the character interacts with (a cup, phone, ring, letter).

Limit:
You may describe the character directly only once.

Why it works:
Readers project emotion onto the object.

7. The Rewrite Test (Advanced)

Goal: Diagnose telling in your own work.

Exercise:
Take a paragraph you’ve written and highlight:

• Emotion words

• Abstract phrases (“felt like,” “seemed,” “realized”)

Rewrite the paragraph without them.

If it becomes:

• Longer → good

• Sharper → better

• Clear without explanation → success

Daily 10-Minute Habit

Each day:

1. Pick one emotion

2. Write 50 words showing it

3. No emotion words allowed

Consistency beats talent here.