Archive of Our Own

this one I’m making goes into complete depth on everything and is fairly long. 

I’ll add the guide tag along with my usual Author's notes and intermission tags for easy access, and provide the link to the post in my pinned post on my Tumblr. Also If you’ve ever had a cold or something similar you can just use much of what you were feeling and thinking then as a reference for other symptoms such as fever, etc, and tweak it for the severity of the character and situation. 

So let’s start:

Section 1. Nausea descriptors, build up and sensations:

Nausea, for example, can have many add-on descriptors, depending on the character and its cause, since everyone experiences differently. Words I like to use to describe it as a sensation would be:

Cold, slimy, nagging, annoying,-(words like these are best used when it’s just beginning, or is slowly coming on and growing stronger. It lets the reader know that this is something that bad that the character wants no part of but finds a nuisance more so that an actual issue just yet though.)

Along with nausea comes emotional and physical descriptions associated with an anxious/worried or annoyed character, typically anxious though. For example, they may start glancing around, they may fidget trying to get comfortable, they’d hope it wears off of course/goes away soon. Often since they don’t actually feel really sick at that time they may just ignore it convincing themselves they’re fine. With characters with emetophobia, it can be a bit different though.

For example, the moment they start feeling sick, their anxiety and sense of fear can and often does skyrocket. Some may go to the bathroom immediately spending all day by the toilet,  others may try to brush it off and ignore the feeling to desperately keep themselves calm(this later part can also be applied to the dumbass characters whose first instinct is to hide that they’re sick or the ones who are forced to ignore that they’re sick because they have important plans to do) either way that fear and anxiety would be present and would also start feeding into that nausea making it worse.

And either way, that nausea starts growing more present and very much more noticeable which changes the add-on descriptors a bit, for example: nagging, becomes things like churning, which can then be applied to the character's stomach to describe the exact sensation that they’re feeling.

 Other good descriptors are: swirling, constant, irritating, cold, slimy.

Typically with descriptors for nausea, I try to use a combination simply to amplify the misery, to let the reader know this is quickly becoming a very big and bad problem for the character experiencing it and that the character dislikes it very much.

At this point, the physical descriptions for the sensations a character is experiencing for their stomach come more into play as well. The worse the nausea gets the more visceral the descriptions get when I write typically.

Words/phrases I typically use to go into detail on a character’s stomach being upset: gurgling, violently churning, roiling, stomach contents curdling/boiling, stomach contents shifting, the meal refusing to settle, the food being heavy in their stomach, growling/snarling, *Sloshing(-this one is one I use with motion sickness often because of the dizziness that often comes with it, it’s also a good descriptors to use if the character has been drinking something or a lot of something before feeling sick if you’ve ever drunk a bit too much water and felt slightly queasy afterwards there you go) 

(There’s a lot more but these are just some of my personal favorites to give an example)

The above are mostly descriptions for things happening inside of the stomach so let’s go to descriptors for the outside of the stomach as well and what a character would feel if they were to touch it.

So multiple varieties of words can be used for this section depending on how upset a character’s stomach is and how violent you want it to seem. Good ones I often use are: 

writhing, bloated, tight, sensitive, painful. 

If they have their hand on their stomach think about what the character would feel, it’s all about playing with sensations and feelings for this section especially. They 

may hear their stomach making noise as well so depending on which descriptions you use to describe the activity inside their stomach you can play around with the noise descriptions. For example, gurgling and boiling would have similar sounds, sometimes I do use special descriptors when writing for these, but not always.

Some of these words I used for this section for example are: sickly, thick, harsh, wet.

Section 2: Writing what happens to a character right before they puke, sensations, descriptors, etc

Now to the actual sensation of the character about to puke, here’s where things get a bit more complicated because depending on the character, their instinct, and the situation, etc this can change, but first I’ll break down actions and things that the character may feel using things I personally like including while writing.

First one's first, drooling. I love making characters just drool a lot when their nausea starts reaching a certain level of too much to handle. Depending on how quickly it’s building up/flowing, I use other descriptors that would apply to other liquids like rapid, overflowing, trickling, flood etc.

The drooling can be accompanied by the action of the character swallowing to try to clear it away. When describing this one I always describe it from the character’s perspective but it can also be done using external descriptions.

Good internal descriptions for swallowing, in this case, would be: thickly, quickly, frantically, hard,  audibly (gulped can be used as well I just don’t personally)

External descriptions would be describing the actions their throat is doing that those around them perceive in this case descriptors can vary depending on how much attention the person looking at them is giving, but some good ones are: bobbing, bounced, shift, etc.

Another thing I like doing is making them hiccup/burp a lot, descriptors that can be used for this section would change depending on whether they muffle the sound or not:

If they don’t muffle the sound, words that can be used to describe both actions are: sloppy, sickly, loud, rumbling, gurgling and echo, wet(- this is also a good descriptor to use if they burp or hiccup right before throwing up, or as they’re throwing up.)

If they do muffle the sound, good descriptors would be: choked, strangled, muffled(of course), soft, airy, faint. 

(Sometimes if I’m having trouble imagining what specific noise I need, I’ll fake hiccup and them cover my mouth or face the way I imagine a character doing so. Which I recommend doing if you still feel like you can’t get right. It’s all about how sound in general travels and volume rather than that specific sound itself.)

Another thing I like to do occasionally is make characters sweat some descriptors I use are: prickling, rolled over, etc. 

These descriptions can vary depending on if it’s a cold sweat or a hot sweat/flash so recommend playing around a bit with sensations. The descriptor prickling can work for both though.

Another thing I do very often is make characters go pale as their nausea gets worse, and this paleness typically reaches its peak once they’re actually about to puke. Descriptors I use to describe their complexion before they throw up would be: ashen grey, green-tinged, pale as snow, the color of spoiled milk, etc are all good ones.

The ones I primarily use when a character is about to throw up are:  the color/what little color is left draining from their face.

While I often used the term “washed out” to describe their complexion after they’ve thrown up.

Now for small actions descriptors that often happen before someone actually pukes.

Their breathing patterns change. For example:  Their breathing may get shuddery, hitch, stutter, slow down or even pick up pace becoming panting. (This one is all preference-based I typically go with shuddering/stuttering or hitching myself because the sense of impending anticipation is just godlike to me.)

The character will start drooling even more right before they throw up as well, and the drool may take on an overly salty or metallic taste. It can also overflow and again if it does think about how a liquid like water travels naturally but just a bit slower because saliva is often thicker. 

So I often make it trickle from the corners of their mouth and down their chin. From there think of where it would logically fall, if they’re laying back would it drip on their clothes, leaning forward on a table or floor, etc.

You can also add small details if the drool falls onto stuff like fabric or paper, again it’s like water so the stain would be similar so if you’ve ever spilled water on paper or fabric there you go.

Another thing I like to add is the character trembling often I use descriptors like: shaky or shivering to describe it. But I know there are more out there. This trembling can range from a slight shaking to shivering.

Another thing to note is that their stomach may hurt before they throw up, which I use sometimes depending on the character, if it does, they may clutch at their stomach, or tighten their grip on it a bit almost subconsciously like how someone clutches an injury to try and make it stop hurting a bit.

Another small detail you can include is the character feeling too weak/dizzy due to the nausea getting too intense to actually move or they may feel as if their body is locked up/tensed up suddenly this would be the point of no return.

The character would begin to actually feel bile in the back of their throat more often than not and sometimes even faintly taste it along with their previous meal if they had one. 

Good descriptors for this in reference to the sensation of feeling bile in their throat would be: bubbling, boiling, hot, slimy, burning. It’s important to remember that bile is both acidic and hot so try to keep that in mind when writing.

Now for the taste, this one can vary but good general descriptors are: sour, salty, rancid, awful, bitter, poisonous, etc . You can also add the faint taste of whatever they may have eaten beforehand.

Now for the more emotional aspect of what a character feels before they’re about to puke:

They would typically panic and this panic/oh shit feeling would increase depending on the situation they’re in. If they’re by themselves near a toilet then it’s more of an annoyed/irritated feeling or a feeling of “I can’t believe I’m actually sick/got sick” or “I’m going to puke aren’t I?” 

If they’re not alone nor near anything they can use to easily throw up in their eyes would frantically start looking for one. They may close their eyes, swallow more frantically in an effort to force back the nausea until they can get to a safer area.

Some characters just close their eyes and try taking deep breaths in and out.

Now for Characters that have emetophobia, it’s very different. They would basically be having a panic attack on top of all of this, crying, absolutely scared, in denial, and wanting to do anything to make this situation stop. For them sometimes being in front of a toilet would be good but also bad, because while a lot of people won’t see them puke it would basically lock-in that fear that this is going to happen no matter. 

They would be whimpering, softly pleading, and this fear would only mount as things grow worse and worse for them, some can even faint from said fear which is so good(I’m a slut for characters puking in their sleep so I’ll briefly cover that soon) Throwing up in public or with a lot of people around would be their worst-case scenario.

Section 3: The actual vomiting scene, liquid physics, descriptors etc.

Now on to the best part the actual puke:

So, this is where it gets more complicated but I’ll do my best to break it down frame by frame so bear with me.

There are multiple ways to go about this scene but typically most characters seconds before they throw up will feel it rushing up their throat.

Depending on how forceful it is, the amount, and how sudden it is a few things can happen. They may instinctively put their can over their mouth and just let it flood their mouth trying to contain it, remember vomit is usually a liquid so when you use descriptors for the motions it makes, and where it goes try to think of slow-moving water.

If the character holds it in their mouth, some physical descriptions/things that would happen and that people would notice would be: their cheeks puffing up/bulging outward, the character’s eyes going very wide or squeezing shut(If their eyes are open another character may note that they look horrified/terrified), tears maybe gathering in their eyes, their body tensing up/curling in on itself, their stomach hitching/heaving. 

And these are more preference-based but, some other details would be small noises, like the character making a choked gasp, their shoulders hitching because of a retch/gag,

if the character is clutching their stomach as well, they may curl up a bit or feel it heaving/shifting beneath their fingers.

Now if they try to swallow it back and somehow succeed their stomach would without a doubt be hurting even more and the nausea would increase (this particularly is good for characters in a public setting when they get sick, or characters that are emetophobic.) And this is once again preference-based but, it could either immediately come back up or it could instead stay down a bit longer until they’re somewhere a bit more secluded, or if you just want to prolong the misery a bit more.

If they can’t hold it back because it’s just too much and more kept coming up, I often like to add the detail of it leaking through their closed lips/fingers,  because the anticipation and sense of impending doom are once again just really good for me. But, if you go this route remember that vomit is a liquid and think about what logically happens when you use a dam with cracks to hold back a ton of water.

In this case, once the vomit breaks through their dam in a sense it would typically spray through their fingers like a firehouse in an arch and go everywhere before the velocity drops and it starts spilling on the floor. Again liquid physics.

If it’s a scenario where it comes up suddenly then this is where it gets a bit more tricky. I often use certain descriptions and phrases that can be applied to the act of the character actively throwing up and think about logically how much would come up. Descriptors I often use would be: small, large, surge, tiny, splatter, trickle, drip.

There are numerous descriptors I like to use as someone is throwing up but commonly use ones like: gurgled out of them, dripped lazily, sprayed, splattered, gushed, etc, because I just really love it when characters burp up the vomit honestly. (SSS-tier)

Now for the actual descriptors of the vomit itself, this heavily varies depending on what the character has eaten or how long it’s been since they have in this case I’ll go through general descriptors as well as which ones apply to which case.

Good General descriptors for actual vomit are:  watery, lumpy, *glistening(the glistening is usually from liquid such as bile or drool but can also be used if the vomit is watery in any fashion), thick, smoothie-like, oatmeal-like, chunky, paint-like, runny, thin. There are more because just like you can describe a puddle of liquid in many ways the same applies here. Ones such as watery can be adjusted by putting the words semi or mostly in front of them depending on what the character has drunk or eaten.

Now for which descriptors typically apply to which cases.

Empty stomach or awhile after eating: thin, watery, runny, glistening(of course). Forms a water-like puddle on the floor or surface, if on fabric tends to soak in.

Slightly full/medium or the halfway point: paint like, semi watery usually, glistening. Forms a slightly watery soup-like puddle or a slight pile on a floor or surface.

Full/mostly full(best in my opinion): lumpy, oatmeal-like, smoothie-like, thick, chunky, sticky, glistening. Typically forms a congealing-like pile on a floor or surface.

Special case: Overfilled: in this case when a person throws up because they’ve overindulged or stuffed themselves far beyond their stomach’s capacity everything would typically come up mostly whole and undigested, but would be coated in a film bile and saliva of course so the glistening descriptor can apply here too.

(The above section of the guide can also be used if a character throws up for a while to describe how the vomit looks as their stomach gradually empties itself too.)

So the color of the vomit can be completely preference-based, but if you want to go the more realistic route I recommend thinking about it as working the same way you would mix paint together and taking into account what they ate and how long it’s been since eating to help. If you don’t feel like doing that though go with what you like and you’ll be fine.

Now for other descriptors such as noise and body motions, these can vary. I'll be using general ones along with preference-based ones in my examples.

For body example I prefer to use words like: lurching, shuddering, shaking, tensing, convulsing when describing the actions of heaving and retching themselves, if it’s sudden/violent especially, I often put lurching, or some variation of it because has more force and impact in a sense.

Shuddering and tensing can be used in reference to gagging or actually bringing up the vomit itself, like a full-body shudder as an example.

Another handy detail is to note facial descriptions of the character getting sick, for example, is it so forceful that tears are in their eyes? Is their face pinched in pain? Are their eyes glassy because of the tears? Do they have their mouth fully open? Is there vomit or drool on their face and lips, things like that. Vomiting is a painful and forceful action most of the time so it’s important to keep that in mind.

Now for things like sound descriptions of the vomit as it falls once again, it’s all about how sound travels in general but in this case, the consistency of the vomit needs to be taken into account as well as the force and pace of how it leaves the character's mouth.

For example, very thick vomit falling onto a hardwood floor at a relatively slow/lazy pace would, make more of a plopping noise. If falling onto a soft surface then that noise would decrease in volume becoming more muted and muffled. Once it forms a pile and actually starts falling on top of itself, it would make a wet mushy noise is the best way to describe it kinda like a pile of cold oatmeal falling on the floor.

If it’s coming out fast though or similar to a surge/spray type then the noise would be more like a bunch of water droplets or rain falling onto a surface or like something just tossing a bucket of liquid somewhere, for hard surfaces the splatter is a very heavy wet noise while on soft surfaces it’s more of a muffled wet pitter-patter or splash. 

Now for thinner vomit or watery vomit, it’s more of a wet dribbling/trickling noise similar to when you’re just turning on a faucet although if there are any remnants of food it’ll make a slight plopping noise again preference and how liquid works.

For both of its falling in the toilet water, it’ll be a plopping/trickling noise because liquid splashing into liquid.

However, if it’s a trash can or a bag for larger and thicker volumes of vomit there’ll be a rather loud crinkling noise along with a rustling noise this noise decreases of course if the weight of the vomit does as well usually. You can also add the details of the bag sagging with weight as well.

For things like retching and gagging etc, it is completely preference-based of course some good general descriptions for both are: violent, harsh, loud, wet, sloppy, gurgling/rumbling(these last two work in particular for retching and if the person is burping as they throw up. While the descriptor sloppy can be used for all 3, it can also be used to describe hiccups too)

This is another preference detail because commonly how much and how many times a character throws up is directly proportional to how horny I am I won’t lie. However, sometimes I do try to keep it in the realm of realism by remembering how much they may have eaten, etc. it’s preference-based, but again if you want to go a more realistic route you can reference the stomach emptying chart further up in the guide.

Now before we get into the aftermath of the character puking I wanna talk about characters throwing up in their sleep, because it changes a lot of things,  being that a lot of the descriptors are external often seen by an outside observer or told by an omniscient 3rd pov narrator. So all the external descriptors I mentioned would apply, but things such as the character feeling nauseous or feeling their stomach churning, etc do not because they can’t feel it.

They may also choke slightly and splutter depending on the position they’re laying in, again the starting position they’re in prefers on preference but I usually prefer their back or side but especially their back, often because I just find that extra little panic the caretaker has when having to roll them on their side adorable beyond belief(makes me grin like an idiot it’s just so cute O/////O)

Section 4: The clean up/aftermath, caretaking, etc 

Now for the aftermath:

When a character is finished throwing up they may feel better or may still feel nauseous it depends on the scenario or preference.

Typically though either way they will be exhausted and sore, their throat would feel raw similar to sore throat, their stomach would hurt because the muscles basically just got a workout.

Some characters may even be a bit dazed on top of the exhaustion this would make them a bit slow to respond to certain things they may simply stand there or sit there panting just letting themselves be taken care of.

Another detail you can add in the aftermath is details of how their face looks. Are there tears in their eyes making them look glassy? What taste do they notice in their mouth? (for this last one the descriptors of the bile pre vomiting can be used.) Do they have drool, bile, etc still clinging to and dripping from their mouth/lips?

Another detail you can add based on preference is if they’re letting out muffled burps or small hiccups afterward.

From here it’s easier since you’re just taking care of them or if it’s hurt/no comfort etc just leave them there/make them clean everything themselves for added misery. But some things to note that are preference-based that I’ve noticed make the caretaking part fluffier/more intimate in a sense:

This can also work with asshole caretakers as well, but they’ll seemingly treat it more like an irritation almost maybe mumbling curses and ‘I told you so’ under their breath. Their touches may be a bit rougher in these instances as well, not like they’re trying to hurt the sick character on purpose but more because they’re so focused on lecturing them and irritated that they’re not paying attention to what they’re doing.

But that’s all I believe, the only other detail I can think of to note at this time that, I didn’t go over is to pay attention to a character’s hair length and if it’s loose or long in certain areas where would go when then lean over to throw up. Long hair is more often than not just held back by the sick character or character taker, usually, people with longer hair carry ponytail holders or hair ties of some kind on them in case they just need to tie it back while outside, etc.

End Notes:

Outside of that though this ends the guide, I hope this helps any writers out there struggling a bit with writing emeto in both a whump or kink since or just writing vomiting and nausea in a visceral sense in general. If so I wish you luck on your writing journey

❤️❤️❤️❤️Butters