Okay. I should keep in mind that she has emotion deep down, just don't know what it is. All these advices are good, much better than I have received when I asked the same question in another forum.
Got it that makes much more sense. I would say she feels numb and sad initially and lacks enthusiasm for life. Just sort of goes through the motions. Then she starts uncovering feelings yet can't really identify them. And so forth. Like I said. I have experience with this but not to the same extent. I hope that helps.
If she's not human, I imagine you could get by without delving as far into the intricacies of psychology as you would need to if she was. What does her being inhuman mean?
A werewolf; but that's just a fraction of story. It more focuses on innocent relationship of a boy and a girl (who appeared to be werewolf). So, majorly she is human but not actually one.
Ah, I see. So she is essentially human, metaphysically? Brushing up on your psychology would probably be a good idea then, yeah. PTSD maybe?
Emotionally disturbed people surely have some emotion in them? y'know, prior to whatever made them "disturbed"?
Now you're coming close to describing Lisbeth Salander from Stieg Larsson's Millennium trilogy. Certainly not boring. I think if you describe somebody as being completely emotionless then they are bound to seem cold, like a robot or Terry Pratchett's "auditors". That's not a bad thing in itself, as the coldness can provide a contrast with other characters. But if she is "she is emotionless in term of emotional disturbed person" then it seems that she's not really emotionless (or how could she be "emotional disturbed"?) but rather does not respond with the emotions that society expects. That's like Lisbeth Salander, it's like Antoine Roquentin in Camus' Nausea. It seems cold, detached and unpleasant until the reader starts getting into their head, discovering why they're like that and what really makes them tick.
It seems to me that if she's capable of ever having emotion, then she has emotion now. She may not be able to express it, or even identify it, but it's there. I was thinking about how those hidden emotions might affect her priorities in communication and memory. That is... well, let's take the "and then my dad died" example. Let's assume that she didn't actually like her father particularly. And she doesn't have the societal expectation that she's supposed to care. So to her, his death would not be a milestone event. But let's assume that when she got back to the city, a particular burger joint was closed. A burger joint where the food tasted good, and nobody got in her space, and the counter staff were quiet and impassive and didn't make any confusing social demands on her. She went to that burger joint every single day when she was in school in the city. She was safe there and she experienced the pleasure of eating familiar food that tasted good. Now it's gone. _That_ is a change in her life. She doesn't have the social training to know that her father's death is supposed to be a big deal, and a burger joint closing is supposed to be nothing by comparison. So if she's listing milestones in her life, she'd probably skip her father's death and mention the closing of Burger Shack. OK, the example got long, but do you see what I mean? ChickenFreak
You should look up autism. My friend is autistic but you could never tell. His is the kind where he just lacks emotion towards other people rather than the more serious cases of autism. The way he explained it to me, he just can't get real emotions towards other people and real reactions to what they say. You're character idea reminds me of the showtime show, Dexter. Where he is a sociopath who has to fake emotions to live a somewhat normal life. But, as the show progresses and he starts his own family he begins to develop emotions...somewhat
Nausea is by Sartre, not Camus. Easy mistake to make, and not to sound pedantic, but I don't want the OP to go looking for a book that doesn't exist. However, Camus' The Stranger is a very good example of the same thing, as is Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment. These people have one main thing in common: they observe, but they don't interpret. Therefore people getting angry when they attempt to transfer information surprises them. They miss the subtext to speech: a normal person will say "Hmm, maybe you should try another." when asked if an ill-fitting outfit looks good, an emotionless person will say "You look awful." Essentially, destroy all understanding of hidden meanings that we take for granted behind metaphors, similes, and ironic tones, and sarcasm, and normal speech, and you're there.
