Emotional Arc
Emotional Residue
Detect "emotional amnesia" — major events with no emotional aftermath in subsequent scenes.
What It Does
Tracks two types of high-emotion events and checks subsequent scenes (2–3 scenes out) for appropriate emotional reactions:
- Traumatic events — death, betrayal, violence, assault → expects grief, mourning, nightmares, guilt
- Triumphant events — victory, rescue, liberation → expects joy, celebration, relief, gratitude
Flags when high-emotion events are followed by emotionally flat narration.
Why It Matters
Real people don't witness a death and then calmly make breakfast. If a character experiences trauma in Chapter 5 and acts perfectly normal in Chapter 6, readers feel a disconnect — the character seems emotionally shallow. "Emotional residue" is the lingering effect that major events should have on characters. Without it, even well-plotted narratives feel hollow.
What Gets Flagged
Post-Trauma Emotional Amnesia
Severity: Information
Example (flagged):
Emotional residue: traumatic event here, but subsequent scenes show no emotional aftermath — characters may seem unaffected
Why: A scene with 3+ trauma markers (death, blood, kill, murder, scream, etc.) is not followed within 2–3 scenes by any reaction markers (crying, grief, nightmares, guilt, etc.).
Post-Triumph Emotional Void
Severity: Information
Example (flagged):
Emotional residue: major triumph here, but no joy or relief in following scenes — the victory may feel hollow
Why: A scene with 3+ victory markers (triumph, saved, rescued, overcome, etc.) is not followed by joy reactions (laugh, smile, relief, celebration, etc.).
Tracked Patterns
| Category | Trigger words (3+ required) | Expected reactions |
|---|---|---|
| Trauma | died, death, kill, murder, betray, blood, wound, scream, horror | sob, cry, grief, mourn, numb, shame, nightmare, haunt, despair |
| Triumph | triumph, victory, celebrate, overjoyed, rescued, liberated | laugh, smile, hug, grateful, relief, pride, happiness |
Configuration
No configuration options.
Technical Details
- Source:
prose-craft - Scope: Scene-level (looks 2–3 scenes ahead)
- Minimum text: 4+ scenes
- Method: Keyword density per scene; cross-scene reaction checking