How to make your prose more cinematic with better verb choices
“Which verbs in this paragraph do I like best?” I asked a writer during a recent coaching session, pointing to a passage filled with action.
He scanned the text: watched, changed, splitting, collapsed, walked, keeping, scanning, looked, were, was, laying, shouting, unstrapping.
“I’m gonna guess shouting,” he said tentatively.
“Yeah. And?”
“Unstrapping!”
“You nailed it.”
Those two verbs—shouting and unstrapping—were the only ones in the entire paragraph that showed us something we could actually see. Everything else was either abstract, internal, or vague. And that difference is crucial for creating prose that comes alive on the page.
The Cinema Test
Here’s a simple way to think about verbs: Could you film this action?
If a character “unstraps” something, a camera could capture that specific physical action. If a character “shouts,” we could record the sound and see their mouth moving, their posture changing.
But if a character “realizes” something? “Feels confused”? “Was surprised”? A camera couldn’t capture those internal states directly. The actor would have to translate those abstract concepts into visible actions—and that’s exactly what you need to do as a writer.
The Hierarchy of Verb Strength
Not all verbs are created equal. Here’s how they rank in terms of creating vivid, engaging prose:
Strong Visual Verbs (Best)
Physical actions you can see: grabbed, stumbled, winced, slammed, whispered, glared, sprinted, collapsed
These verbs do the heavy lifting in great fiction. They put readers right into the scene, showing exactly what’s happening in terms they can visualize.
Sensory Verbs (Good)
Actions involving non-visual senses: listened, tasted, smelled, felt (physical touch)
Still concrete and specific, these verbs engage the reader’s sensory imagination.
Dialogue Tags (Neutral)
Said, asked, replied, answered, called
These are functional but invisible. “Said” is usually your best choice—it disappears and lets the dialogue do the work.
Thinking/Feeling Verbs (Weak)
Thought, realized, felt (emotional), knew, understood, believed, hoped
These tell us about internal states rather than showing us behavior we can observe.
Linking Verbs (Weakest)
Was, were, seemed, appeared, looked (when used as linking verb)
These create static descriptions rather than dynamic action. They’re often necessary but should be used sparingly.
The Internal vs. External Challenge
The biggest trap writers fall into is defaulting to internal verbs when external ones would be stronger.
Internal/Weak: He was surprised by the noise.
External/Strong: He spun toward the noise, eyes wide.
Internal/Weak: She felt nervous about the interview.
External/Strong: She twisted her ring and checked the time for the third time in five minutes.
Internal/Weak: The captain was confused by this information.
External/Strong: The captain frowned and read the message twice.
Why Visual Verbs Matter
Reader Engagement
Visual verbs give readers something concrete to picture. Instead of being told about emotions or thoughts, they see behavior and draw their own conclusions.
Cinematic Quality
Strong visual verbs make your prose feel like a movie. Readers can easily construct scenes in their imagination because you’re giving them specific, observable actions.
Character Revelation
How a character moves, reacts, and behaves tells us more about their personality than any amount of internal description. Actions reveal character.
Immediacy
Visual verbs put readers in the present moment of the scene. Instead of being told about what happened, they experience it happening.
The “Show Don’t Tell” Connection
Visual verbs are one of the most direct applications of the “show don’t tell” principle. When you choose visual verbs, you’re automatically showing rather than telling.
Telling: He was angry and frustrated.
Showing: He slammed his fist on the desk and swept the papers to the floor.
The second version doesn’t use the words “angry” or “frustrated,” but readers understand the emotion through the character’s actions.
Practical Application: The Verb Audit
Try this exercise with your own writing:
- Highlight all the verbs in a paragraph of action or dialogue
- Sort them into categories: Visual, Internal, Linking, Dialogue tags
- Count how many fall into each category
- Rewrite sentences that rely heavily on internal or linking verbs
Example Revision:
Original: Sarah felt worried about the test results. She seemed nervous as she waited for the doctor. She was hoping for good news.
Revised: Sarah paced the waiting room, checking her phone every few seconds. She twisted her hair around her finger and kept glancing at the door marked “Dr. Rodriguez.”
When Non-Visual Verbs Work
Visual verbs aren’t always the answer. Sometimes you need internal verbs for:
Dialogue Attribution
“I don’t know,” she said. (Better than trying to make every piece of dialogue visual)
Brief Transitions
Sometimes you need to summarize internal states to move efficiently between scenes.
Character Interiority
In deep POV, some internal processing is necessary and effective.
The key is proportion. If most of your verbs are visual and concrete, the occasional internal verb won’t hurt. But if most of your verbs are internal or linking, your prose will feel flat and distant.
The Specificity Principle
Even within visual verbs, some are stronger than others. The more specific and concrete, the better.
Generic: She moved quickly across the room.
Specific: She darted across the room.
Generic: He made a sound of pain.
Specific: He groaned.
Generic: The car went fast down the road.
Specific: The car roared down the highway.
Building the Habit
Start paying attention to verbs in everything you read. Notice how your favorite authors create vivid scenes through verb choice. You’ll start to see patterns:
- Thriller writers use lots of sharp, quick visual verbs
- Literary writers might use more unusual or precise visual verbs
- Romance writers often focus on subtle physical gestures and reactions
Why Visual Verbs Create Cinematic Scenes
When you consistently choose visual verbs, something magical happens to your prose. Scenes become more immediate. Characters feel more real. Readers stay more engaged.
It’s not about perfection—it’s about awareness. The more conscious you become of verb choice, the more naturally you’ll gravitate toward the strong, visual options.
Your Next Steps
- Do a verb audit on your current work-in-progress
- Identify your weak verb patterns (do you overuse “felt” or “seemed”?)
- Practice the cinema test (could you film this action?)
- Revise three sentences today using stronger visual verbs
Remember: readers want to see your story unfold, not be told about it. Visual verbs are your best tool for creating that immediate, immersive experience.
Strong verbs don’t just improve sentences—they transform how readers experience your entire story.
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Generic: He made a sound of pain.
Specific: He groaned.
When I’m writing I feel the groan but type something generic. The cinema test is what I’m finally doing during revisions. I’m asking myself if it can be seen.