A 10-minute writing task - SOUND METAPHORS

🔊 Week Fourteen Writing Challenge! 🔊
This week we’re tuning our ears to something a little different — the sounds of feelings.

Instead of listening for the real noises around us (like a barking dog, a buzzing bee, or a rumbling car), we’re going to imagine what emotions might sound like if they had their own voices.

It might feel strange at first, but it’s a brilliant way to make your writing more powerful and imaginative. Writers use this kind of metaphor to give readers a clearer picture of what a character is feeling, without saying it directly.

Think of it like this:

• If anger made a sound, would it crackle like fire?
• If sadness whispered, would it be slow and drippy like melting ice?
• If joy laughed, would it fizz like popping bubbles?

You get to decide!

To help you get started, here’s a word bank and a few example sentences.

 Word Bank

Emotions:
joy, fear, sadness, anger, excitement, hope, worry, bravery, calm

Sound Words:
rumble, whisper, hiss, thump, hum, crackle, clang, boom, flutter, fizz, rustle, echo, murmur, buzz

Mood Words:
gentle, shaky, bright, gloomy, fierce, tiny, booming, soft, powerful, nervous

Figurative Language Ideas:
• Simile: The sound of joy fluttered like wings.
• Personification: Fear crept in, humming quietly behind me.
• Metaphor: A storm of anger crashed inside my chest.
• Onomatopoeia: hiss, pop, boom
• Alliteration: Sadness sighed in soft, slow sounds.

📝 10-Minute Task:
Write 3–4 sentences describing the sound of an emotion.
Choose one feeling — or more, if you like! — and imagine the sound it would make if it filled a room.
Think about the volume, the texture, the speed, and the mood of the sound.

✨ Example Sentences:
• The sound of sadness drifted through the room, a quiet murmur that felt like raindrops sliding down a window.
• Excitement fizzed in the air, popping like tiny fireworks that made my heart bounce.
• The sound of anger growled low and hot, crackling like a bonfire ready to burst into flames.
• Fear whispered around my ankles, a thin, shaky rustle like paper in the wind.

Happy writing, everyone! ✍️

Anna Donovan
Qualified Teacher (QTS 2005)
Specialist 11+ Exam Essay & Creative Writing Tutor
🌐 www.myhomeclass.co.uk