....
oh wait, yes I am!
I tend to forget how strange we, as writers, tend to be. Do other people walk around trying to solve problems for the imaginary people in their head? Do they imagine escape routes out of any situation? Do they plan revenge for made up offenses?
Maybe
But I doubt it.
On my Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/pages/Rebecca-Lamoreaux-An-Author-In-Progress/150123935140108?ref=hl) I shared a recent discovery:
"Today I had an epiphany .... I realized that writers are really a lot stranger than we give ourselves credit for :)
I was talking with a friend (not a writer or really a big reader that I can tell) and she asked how my writing was going. My reply was, "Well, I'm stuck because Braxton needs to teach Natania some important information. But Natania is currently upset with Lord Frenner and will not be willing to learn while she's angry. So I'm trying to figure out how to get her NOT angry with Lord Frenner so she will listen to Braxon."
Her reply, "...... oh ..... ha ha .....ok."
About that moment I realized that she was thinking I had gone insane. So I said, "I'm just need to finish my next chapter to send out to some people for critiquing." And I left it at that :)"
So back to voices (and I'm not just meaning because we are insane)
My real challenge lies in trying for find voices. Not my voice as an author - but rather to give voices to my characters so that they talk and think individually, just like normal people do.
I can't let Terrence and Vivian talk and think the same when they have clearly been raised very different.
Braxton and Natania, though brother and sister, will not interpret things the same. They will see the same thing in different ways. But how do I voice that? How do I give them their own speech pattern and manner of thinking?
This is my current frustration .....
How do you make voices for your characters?
I was just trying to find my main characters voice today. She's being difficult.
ReplyDeleteGreat post.
New follower
~Summer
My Blog
Welcome Summer :) Good luck with your MC
DeleteBeen there! It is definitely a challenge. Sometimes I have to become an actor (I try to do this when/where no one is looking) and adopt the mannerisms of my characters... because if they all have MY mannerisms, they won't be their own people. When I can get their actions down, sometimes their voices follow naturally. I try to watch other people as well, using their hand motions or expressions for a character... this also helps the "voice" come.
ReplyDeleteHappy A-Zing!
http://jenelleschmidt.com/blog
Thanks Jenelle, I'll be doing some people watching for sure :)
DeleteI do people watching as well or I try writing the same event from the different characters point of view in 55 or 100 word pieces. I also listen to find the different voices on my head.
ReplyDeleteGreat post. Happy A to Z.
That's why you never talk to non writers about writing. They just don't get it.
ReplyDeleteI'm still struggling with trying to figure out how to get the voices right.