TL;DR
7/10. A handy reference of curated lists, descriptions, body language, traits, plot elements, for breaking stalls and speeding drafts, with show-don’t-tell help its best feature. A useful brainstorming spark in disciplined hands, but like any list reference it risks flattening prose if used as a crutch, and it teaches no craft itself. A good toolkit for the right user.
Master Lists for Writers by Bryn Donovan is exactly what its title promises: a thick reference of curated lists designed to help writers write faster and get unstuck, covering everything from physical descriptions and body language to plot elements, character traits, and the words and phrases that make show-don’t-tell easier. It is a practical, brainstorming-oriented tool rather than a craft guide, and as that kind of resource, used the right way, it is genuinely handy. Used the wrong way, like any list reference, it carries a familiar risk.
The book sits in the same family as the emotion and trait thesauruses, a lookup reference for translating intentions into concrete options, and it should be judged the same way: by how well it sparks rather than replaces a writer’s own work.
What the lists do
The book’s value is breaking through the moments of stall that slow writers down. When you need a fresh way to describe a character’s expression, a physical detail, an emotional reaction, a setting feature, or you are hunting for the right concrete word instead of a flat abstraction, the lists offer a menu of options to jog the mind and keep the draft moving. The emphasis on show-don’t-tell is the smartest angle: the lists of physical and behavioral specifics directly help a writer replace told emotion (she was nervous) with shown detail, which is one of the most common and most fixable weaknesses in developing fiction. As a momentum tool and a cure for the blank-page stall on a specific description, it earns its place.
Keep reading
Show, don’t tell: turning told emotion into shown detail — Donovan’s lists put to work in the craft of showing rather than telling.
A brainstorming aid, not a crutch
The right way to use a book like this is as a spark, not a source. The lists are raw material to prompt a writer’s own specific, fresh choices, a starting point that gets the mind moving toward the right detail for this character in this moment. Used that way, they speed the work and break stalls without flattening the prose. The danger, shared by every list reference, is leaning on it as a crutch, pulling phrases directly off the page, which produces the same generic, recycled descriptions everyone else using the book also produces. Donovan’s lists are a good toolkit; the craft is in how a writer transforms what they find there into something their own.
Keep reading
Body language in fiction: showing emotion through the body — the physical vocabulary these lists supply, in the wider craft of rendering feeling.
The honest caveats
The caveats follow from the form. It is a reference, not instruction; it gives a writer options but teaches nothing about how to write, so a developing writer needs craft guidance elsewhere and this only as a supplement. Its usefulness also depends entirely on disciplined use, since the crutch risk is real and a writer prone to it may be better served building their own observational habits. And as a broad collection it is wide rather than deep, handy across many needs but definitive on none. These are the normal trade-offs of a list reference, not flaws unique to this one, which is among the better-organized of its kind.
Verdict
It is a handy, practical brainstorming reference, genuinely useful for breaking stalls, speeding drafts, and especially for turning told emotion into shown physical detail, the show-don’t-tell help that is its best feature. It earns a solid place as a momentum tool, held from higher by the inherent limits of a list reference: it teaches no craft, rewards disciplined use and punishes lazy use, and is broad rather than deep. For a writer who treats it as a spark for their own fresh choices rather than a bank of ready-made phrases, it is a useful addition to the desk; for one who leans on it, it will flatten their prose. A good toolkit, valuable in the right hands.
Explore the hub
The Writing Hub — description, show-don’t-tell, and the rest of the craft, gathered in one place.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Master Lists for Writers about?
Bryn Donovan’s reference of curated lists to help writers write faster and get unstuck, covering physical descriptions, body language, plot elements, character traits, and words and phrases that make show-don’t-tell easier.
How is it best used?
As a brainstorming spark, not a source. The lists are raw material to prompt a writer’s own specific, fresh choices and break stalls on a particular description, getting the draft moving, rather than phrases to pull directly onto the page.
What is its best feature?
The show-don’t-tell help. Its lists of physical and behavioral specifics directly help a writer replace told emotion, like stating a character was nervous, with shown detail, addressing one of the most common and fixable weaknesses in developing fiction.
What is the risk?
Leaning on it as a crutch. Pulling phrases directly off the lists produces the same generic, recycled descriptions everyone else using the book produces. The craft is in transforming what you find into something your own.
Who should use it?
Writers who want a practical momentum tool for breaking stalls and finding concrete detail, used with the discipline to treat the lists as sparks rather than ready-made phrases. It supplements craft instruction rather than replacing it.
How does it compare to the emotion and trait thesauruses?
It is a broader, more general collection spanning many categories, where those thesauruses go deep on one subject each. Master Lists is handier for quick, wide-ranging lookups; the dedicated thesauruses offer more depth when a writer needs to work a single element thoroughly.
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