Voice Challenge Guess Cards (Something Broken Theme)

[English Lady]

So, let me get this straight:

Samandiriel wrote the nice, heartwarming story, where everything turned out beautifully, the work which makes you feel so much better about human nature.

English Lady wrote the dark fiction (usually my territory) of excruciatingly horrible things happening to very nice people.

I'm not buying it. At all.

The Earl

Earl...thats not the end of it Dark as it is it's not as dark as you might think from that *chuckles*

Shanglan I think I stick put like a sore thumb mostly *L*

Sorry I didn't get to guess, the meet's just wiped me out!

 

[BlackShanglan]

One of the things that seems consistant in your work, EL, is that you are, for lack of a better way to put it, quite "English" in your word choice and in your voice as well as in your sense of place and daily life. I hesitated over the possibility that you'd written #6, but the voice in #6 sounded American, and on the whole I didn't expect the butterfly-being-eaten twist from you - although the rest of the focus on a warm interaction with a child might well have been. When I read yours, several things stood out. There are the typical English words like "lolly," "whilst" instead of the American "while," "pram," "mum" instead of "mom." Then there are also the circumstances. The buses with seats facing toward a central aisle reminded me immediately of England; we have them here, but buses on the whole are in use a great deal less in the United States and have a different feel to them. The speaker's evident comfort and familiarity with them felt English. Then, of course, there is the focus on the young child; motherhood is often an important theme in your posts and your stories.

You do also have a characteristic grammatical style of using commas to combine descriptive sentences. But I think the other thing that tells me it's you is that you have a very similar voice, personality, and charm to a particular friend of mine - also a sweet English lady with a bit of a mothering instinct. When it sounds like her, I know it's you.

Shanglan

 

[Samandiriel]

Suckers.

Okay, not fair.....no one really knows my writing voice. The challenge was fun.

 

[English Lady]

One of the things that seems consistant in your work, EL, is that you are, for lack of a better way to put it, quite "English" in your word choice and in your voice as well as in your sense of place and daily life. I hesitated over the possibility that you'd written #6, but the voice in #6 sounded American, and on the whole I didn't expect the butterfly-being-eaten twist from you - although the rest of the focus on a warm interaction with a child might well have been. When I read yours, several things stood out. There are the typical English words like "lolly," "whilst" instead of the American "while," "pram," "mum" instead of "mom." Then there are also the circumstances. The buses with seats facing toward a central aisle reminded me immediately of England; we have them here, but buses on the whole are in use a great deal less in the United States and have a different feel to them. The speaker's evident comfort and familiarity with them felt English. Then, of course, there is the focus on the young child; motherhood is often an important theme in your posts and your stories.

You do also have a characteristic grammatical style of using commas to combine descriptive sentences. But I think the other thing that tells me it's you is that you have a very similar voice, personality, and charm to a particular friend of mine - also a sweet English lady with a bit of a mothering instinct. When it sounds like her, I know it's you.

Shanglan

So that's what it is eh?

Yes, I am very English, I often get feedback about that It's good to know I'm recognisable!

 

[TheEarl]

So that's what it is eh?

Yes, I am very English, I often get feedback about that It's good to know I'm recognisable!

See, now I picked you for the broken heart one (no 2?) on the same logic that Shang used; the sweet touch of the kid as consolation. That felt like you.

I had no idea you had it in you to be that mean to your characters. I'm impressed.

The Earl

 

[English Lady]

See, now I picked you for the broken heart one (no 2?) on the same logic that Shang used; the sweet touch of the kid as consolation. That felt like you.

I had no idea you had it in you to be that mean to your characters. I'm impressed.

The Earl

Yeah I'm evil *grrrrrr* can't you tell?

 

[Samandiriel]

Yeah I'm evil *grrrrrr* can't you tell?

I knew it by your title.......Happiness fairy. That has the makings of evil.

 

[angelicminx]

i'm sad that i didn't get to guess, but happy at the same time cause i really don't think i would have gotten them right... I am going to read them and see if i can guess now, i haven't made note of who is who. My pc is finally fixed, now all I have to do is reinstall everything... SIGH.

I have to say that I am pretty tickled. I knew Shanglan would know which was mine. Hmmnmm, you surprised me, I didn't think you knew me well enough just yet. That is, unless I was as obvious as I thought I was being. But then again, Earl didn't know...

I am thrilled to know that I do have a specific voice and would love to know what gives it away... (Shanglan?) Though I am happy as well to fool people...

Love y'all! Looking forward to the next challenge.

 

[BlackShanglan]

Yeah I'm evil *grrrrrr* can't you tell?

I didn't read it as mean or cruel, actually. She's either going to live or she's going to die protecting her child. For that character, I think that's the way to go. She might not want to leave life at that point, but I bet if you asked her if she thought it was worth dying to protect her baby, she wouldn't hesitate an instant.

There's a certain beauty to dying well. A good death is a noble thing.

Shanglan

 

[English Lady]

I didn't read it as mean or cruel, actually. She's either going to live or she's going to die protecting her child. For that character, I think that's the way to go. She might not want to leave life at that point, but I bet if you asked her if she thought it was worth dying to protect her baby, she wouldn't hesitate an instant.

There's a certain beauty to dying well. A good death is a noble thing.

Shanglan

*wondering if Shanglan's been reading over my shoulder,that would explain the slight breeze and whinnying then!*

 

[BlackShanglan]

I am thrilled to know that I do have a specific voice and would love to know what gives it away... (Shanglan?) Though I am happy as well to fool people...

Let's see ... you have a woman-focused perspective and a strong sensitivity to romantic relationships. Your writing focuses closely on the central female character's emotional reactions. You tend to have a warm, physical sense of romance when you head that direction - flowers, candles, concrete details like that - and I thought I sensed your family orientation in that last one as well. I seemed to think that you had children.

I knew that it wasn't English Lady largely because it seemed clearly written by an American (or, to cover my own paranoia and second-guessing, someone writing as if as American). The word choices, spelling, and diction all sounded like they were from this side of the Atlantic. Your grammar is also a bit diffrerent to EL's; EL more frequently joins complete phrases with commas, whereas you tend to use fewer compound sentences and comma splices.

This explains why The Earl's guess that my story was yours really stunned me. Then he explained that he hadn't read any of yours. That made sense. I can't really see you writing that particular snip.

Shanglan

 

[BlackShanglan]

*wondering if Shanglan's been reading over my shoulder,that would explain the slight breeze and whinnying then!*

And the horsey muzzle nuzzling your cheek.

 

[English Lady]

And the horsey muzzle nuzzling your cheek.

Oh yeah *happy sigh*

 

[TheEarl]

I didn't read it as mean or cruel, actually. She's either going to live or she's going to die protecting her child. For that character, I think that's the way to go. She might not want to leave life at that point, but I bet if you asked her if she thought it was worth dying to protect her baby, she wouldn't hesitate an instant.

There's a certain beauty to dying well. A good death is a noble thing.

Shanglan

Which I suppose was the difference between that and my dark fiction. In the Voice competition where it was about a mugging, my main character was suicidal, but tried intervening in the robbery and attack of a little girl only to get himself knifed. He ends up dying in an alleyway, uncertain if he managed to save the girl or not and suddenly very aware that he doesn't actually want to leave life yet. Death without purpose, meaning or justification.

The Earl

 

[impressive]

Well done, everyone. Y'know, these voice entries would be great for some of the calls for flash on ERWA.

Sorry I didn't participate. Been swamped with RL and the anthology.

 

[hmmnmm]

I received word of this unexpected honor earlier this morning and still try to absorb the reality.
As I said in my guess card, some of the participants I am more famliar with (their work, their posts, their AVs, their feel). Others I see their names and posts here and there but we have had little occasion to communicate. Thus, those that were pretty clear and those that were tough and which I part guessed at and part felt for. I was most surprised that my feel led me to choose Kass over Sam for #1. People here who seem more familiar with Sam were choosing Sam for #1. They may be more familiar with Sam's voice than I am. Yet, something told me, "there could be a conspiracy put together here." And, feeling as though I would give away my utter and unforgivable ignorance of some voices here, I chose Kass. I could go on about why I chose those I chose but it's over now... and sorry for getting stuck in the temporary Dr. Seuss channel. Thanks Yui for hosting and hope you're feeling better.

P.S. Actually I'm surprised I guessed more than two correctly.

 

[minsue]

So that's what it is eh?

Yes, I am very English, I often get feedback about that It's good to know I'm recognisable!

And I for one am quite grateful you are! You're the only one I got right, dammit.

 

[Kassiana]

I was most surprised that my feel led me to choose Kass over Sam for #1.

Me too, especially since I don't think we've talked or interacted much. I guess my theme song here should be "You Don't Know Me."

My story was actually based on a dream I had in high school about my experiences in junior high. I wonder if anyone else's was based on reality, though given the generally depressing nature of the stories, I hope not.

 

[angelicminx]

Me too, especially since I don't think we've talked or interacted much. I guess my theme song here should be "You Don't Know Me."

My story was actually based on a dream I had in high school about my experiences in junior high. I wonder if anyone else's was based on reality, though given the generally depressing nature of the stories, I hope not.

Yes, reality based.

 

[English Lady]

Soooooo Would anyone like to find out how it all ends?


My Angel Misson



Here you go, the whole piece! Feel free to let me know what you think

 

[ABSTRUSE]

Soooooo Would anyone like to find out how it all ends?


My Angel Misson



Here you go, the whole piece! Feel free to let me know what you think

I just read it, well done EL. Nice piece for Mom's day.

 

[English Lady]

I just read it, well done EL. Nice piece for Mom's day.

You know, thats a total coincidence too...Mothers day in England was sometime in March if memory serves me correct

Thanks Abs