"had contorted" is a perfectly valid part of a sentence in written English.
You can use it when you need to describe something that has been twisted, distorted, or otherwise changed from its original form. Example: His face had contorted in an expression of rage.
Before the war, Lincoln had contorted himself mightily to distance himself, his party and the nation from Brown's radicalism.
James had contorted past Anthony when Amar'e Stoudemire swooped in from the weak side, leapt and blocked James's shot, which could have given Miami the lead with seven seconds left.
What's happening is that blue chips are closing the gap with tech stocks after a disparity had contorted the market's balance for too long.
Mr Obama has contorted his own policy to appease critics.
Since then, Putin's face has contorted and smoothed out so much that it's at times unrecognisable.
The California sycamore (P. racemosa), about 25 m (80 feet) tall, has contorted branches, thick leaves, and bristly seedballs in groups of two to seven.
The tragic history of societies that have contorted themselves through massive change reveals a pattern of blood-letting in civil war that is despairingly familiar.
And the BBC has contorted itself into one of its periodic bouts of self-flagellation, convening multiple inquiries, admitting multiple mistakes and offering multiple mea culpas.
But if you're not lucky enough to have an unamused Austrian to hand, you can always search Google Images for "Austrian town of Fucking" (the words "Austrian town" being key here) and see for yourself the number of people who have contorted themselves into various positions in order to creatively interpret the name of the town.
Rather than mount a serious defense of his policies, he has contorted the truth ― even lied.
Look at the dynamic and fun shapes they have contorted their joyful bodies into.
