I was going to suggest this for the "mirror scene." It's an idea that new writers often reach for (I totes did this with my first two attempts at a novel), but it's also a scene that could be really powerful if done well. And, since everyone's writing the same scene and the scene stands in isolation, it won't have the clunky, awkward feel that it would have on the first page of a Romantasy novel.
I totally agree that a narrative voice is important beyond first person, but not because it says a lot about the narrator. That's like saying a painting says a lot about the painter. The voice can be a feature of a story in its own right, is it terse like Hemingway? Does it display a love of words like Elizabeth George or Ruth Rendell? Does it disappear so that you forget that you're reading a book? I love that aspect of a book, but I don't think of it as revealing anything about the author. I don't think an author should be present in our minds when we read a story. The narrator, yes, not the author.
Just five minutes ago I had an idea for another "On Writing" topic, and now it's gone. If I ever find my authorial voice, I suspect it will include a lot of "You know, the thingy, the... the thing. The thing. With- Wait, what was the subject?"
Story to be released on 4-20
Our narrative vocies are very similar
"Some people have a way with words, and other people...oh, uh, not have way." - Steve MartinOur narrative vocies are very similar
"Then the, uh, the um... The wet thing? That thing, kinda blue, but not always? You know, you find it... Oh, water! Then the water fell. That was it."
Jenny is a runaway, but she went to school and she is not stupid. Her voice is not simple. She uses words such as "texture" when thinking about her sandwich, and wraps it "almost reverently", because the sandwich is the focus of all her attention. But elsewhere she is just a homeless girl dealing with life on the streets, with thoughts like this:
And:
.
Or you just have a voice that works well for telling stories in the way you like. Nothing wrong with that.
I think a painting does say a lot about a painter, because the painter is the narrator of the painting. It shows you what the painter prioritizes, how they think, what the think the painting is about. I like to view narrators, no matter what POV, as distinct entities relaying a story (not necessarily the author, but they can be), and how they relay the story tells you a bit about them. Narrators are their own characters, whether they're intended to be or not. A painter is just as much a part of the painting as the painting itself, maybe not in an obvious way, but certainly you see their thoughts splayed out on the canvas, echoes of their conscious and subconscious.
Totally agree with you, so hard. I mean I agree hard, not that I am hard
Could be. I write stories that I'd want to read, and of course that's influenced by other stories I've read and enjoyed.
That's pretty much how I write dialogue. I can hear my characters saying it.
I absolutely do. A horror narrator is a totally different person than a romance narrator. You have different context and tones, and stylistically you're trying to accomplish different emotional frameworks and subtexts. A horror narrator is more jarring, while a romance narrator is more smooth and flowy. Different word choices, different structures, different focuses.
I envy the homogeny of your stories. The voice you choose to use in your narrative not only reflects the type of story you're telling ( your snake story is told differently than your orc story for example, ie: the voice IS different), but it also matches your character(s); you nail it. Why do I envy it? Because although I think I do well with this, it takes work. My voice will change with my mood on any given day, so I usually have to go back and edit for tone and vocabulary to maintain consistency.I don't know. O.O How do I employ a voice in writing? Hmmm.... Well even in third person, while I tend to use more exact words than the character themselves might know, I still try and make my narrator echo the tone of my POV character. Not sure if I manage. I kinda suck at self analyzing.
Thanks! I try to do it by getting into the head of the POV character.
And when I get that deep in a characters head it's 1st person, so less exposition, usually. One way I deal with my struggle due to whatever mindset I'm in at the moment.
Yeah I've also known people (mostly in DND) who when they get that into the head of a person, they kinda lose sight of themselves.And when I get that deep in a characters head it's 1st person, so less exposition, usually. One way I deal with my struggle due to whatever mindset I'm in at the moment.
The word you maybe looking for is "the whatchamacalllit?!?"
I'm sorry, you'll have to remind me what we discussing.The word you maybe looking for is "the whatchamacalllit?!?"
On the other hand, “neutral” often comes off as “inauthentic” to me. When the author makes the narrator narrate like the author writes, often it comes off as screechingly contradictory to how the character “should” sound.
