September 2026 Meeting: The Writers’ Rx with Dr. Jasmine Sandoval

From Pulse to Prose

Discover how to harness the body’s most visceral reactions and turn them into powerful storytelling tools. In this session, you’ll learn to translate racing pulses, constricted breaths, trembling hands, and subtle somatic cues into gripping narrative beats that drive tension and emotion. We’ll break down how the human body naturally responds to fear, desire, conflict, and revelation—and how to mirror those sensations on the page with precision. By the end, you’ll know how to craft scenes so physically immersive that readers don’t just follow your characters… they feel them.

Workshop Activity: “Visceral Revision Lab”

OPTIONAL: Writers will bring a short scene (150–300 words) from their work in progress—preferably a moment involving tension, emotion, or internal conflict. In small groups or paired breakout sessions, they will identify the character’s dominant emotional state, then rewrite 3-5 lines of the scene using visceral body reactions instead of abstract emotion words. Participants will focus on replacing “telling” phrases (fear, anger, shock, excitement) with pulse changes, breath shifts, autonomic responses, muscle tension, micro-movements, and sensory cues.

After revising, volunteers will share their before-and-after versions to see how the added somatic detail heightens immersion, tension, and emotional authenticity.

With over 25 years in the medical field and 15 years as a registered nurse, Dr. Jasmine Sandoval brings a unique blend of expertise and storytelling to every stage and page. She is the author of The Writer’s Rx, a guide for writers who want to master the art of immersive storytelling. Writing under the pen name J.C. Sang, she explores fiction that delves into resilience and human connection.