What's the right way to describe a person fall while facing down?
I am writing a scene for a screenplay about two people fighting. And I don't know what's the right way to describe a person fall while facing down, and her face hits on a rock. Is this correct? So Amy is now lying on the ground and "Amy tries to get to her feet in fluster. Mike grabs her foot and pulls her back to the ground. Amy falls facing down and her face lands on a rock."

This somehow looks like baby English to me... Does someone have a suggestion?

Thank you!

Question

What's the right way to describe a person fall while facing down?
I am writing a scene for a screenplay about two people fighting. And I don't know what's the right way to describe a person fall while facing down, and her face hits on a rock. Is this correct? So Amy is now lying on the ground and "Amy tries to get to her feet in fluster. Mike grabs her foot and pulls her back to the ground. Amy falls facing down and her face lands on a rock."

This somehow looks like baby English to me... Does someone have a suggestion?

Thank you!

Answer

Hi Yang,

There are a few different ways to write this, but if you need to emphasise that she falls facing down (which suggests that she is unable to break her fall), then I would go with:

Amy falls face first, landing on a rock.

Although other options are available, for me, this would be the most natural while emphasising your point.

I hope this helps!

Answer

I would say, “Amy falls (present tense) or Amy fell (past tense) on her face”, “face down” or “face first” (this is my favorite for your story)
If you want to write in present tense, you could say:

“Amy is now lying on the ground and tries to get to her feet in a fluster.
Mike grabs her foot and pulls her back to the ground,
Amy falls and lands face first on a rock.”

Answer

Hello! I would suggest you using fell into a "nosedive" if applicable. Here is sentence example: "The plane roared overhead and went into a nosedive."

Answer

'Amy falls forward...'