This is the book I used to find my "voice."
I write two
series and I’ve produced a couple of standalone books. Switching from one
protagonist to another can be a little tricky.
I’m preparing
to write another book in The Bogey Man series, having recently finished with a
book from the Sandi Webster series. Every character in every book needs to have
a distinct “voice.” I found myself in a quandary. Would Pamela, Mrs. Bogey Man,
end up sounding like Sandi?
If you write
a series starring Jane Doe and a series with Mary Smith, you don’t want the two
characters to sound alike and be interchangeable.
I decided to
sit down and read some of one of the Bogey Man books to “get into voice,” so to
speak. It struck me that because of differences in age, lifestyles and
families, of course the voices would be different.
Habits are
part of the voice, too. Sandi sighs a lot and occasionally rolls her eyes. On
the other hand, Pamela has a habit of rolling her eyes frequently and only
occasionally sighing. Sure, they can share habits, but only to an extent.
I,
personally, both sigh and roll my
eyes, habits I hadn’t realized I had until my husband called it to my
attention. However, the characters aren’t based on me, other than having a few
annoying traits.
There are
some traits they can share because they’re things many women can relate to,
such as eating chocolate because it’s comfort food.
As I mentioned,
lifestyles can make a big difference between characters. Sandi and Pete have
only recently married. Chris (the Bogey Man) and Pamela have been married for a
few years and have a young son. Sandi and Pete look out for each other. Chris
and Pamela have a son to add to their equation. It makes a difference.
Pamela’s
husband is a Humphrey Bogart look-alike. He walks the walk and talks the talk.
In other words, he uses old-time slang. Pamela’s character needs to fit in with
him, but Sandi is too much in the present. Pamela and Chris own a
forties-themed restaurant and dress the part. Sandi is a jeans and comfy shirt
woman. Major differences.
In the two
standalone stories, there were more differences. I couldn’t let the
protagonists take on traits of Sandi or Pamela. They each needed personalities
of their own and they needed fresh, new voices. I had to wipe the two series
women out of my mind, which isn’t as easy as it sounds.
If you’re
writing books with different protagonists, try reading aloud in the voice of
each character. See if they sound alike or not. Better yet, have someone else
read a piece from each person. You can make the words sound any way you want them
to, but an outsider will read it the way it appears on the page. Does that make
sense? I hope so.
So, now you
have a few of my thoughts about voices. Any thoughts you’d like to share about
keeping them separate and unique?
Until next
time, think about the voices you’ve read in the books of prolific authors. Do
they manage to keep voices fresh?
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Great post! The first thought I had when I saw the title of the post was "the voices in my head?" And that made me laugh. But, when we write, that's exactly what we call upon. We see and hear each character and then attempt to capture them on paper. As you said, not an easy task.
ReplyDeleteThat's an excellent explanation, Pat, and so true. I guess a lot of authors hear voices in their heads. LOL Thank you so much for commenting!
DeleteI continue to struggle with the entire concept of voice--what of the author's voice? Should that be the same from book to book? I get that the different characters need different voices, but is there a "voice" arching over the entire story that authors need to keep in mind?
ReplyDeleteThe voice should be the same from book to book, except as the character grows and changes, the voice will, too. I don't think it's a voice that arches over the entire story. Voice and concept are two different things. The voice defines your character. The concept is arching over the story.
DeleteI think the author's' voice would be the concept of the story, unless a character actually represents the author.
I sure hope that makes sense. And it's just my opinion. If anyone can add to that or wants to change it, please do. In a way, voices vs. concept is a gray area.
Gray and murky. Thanks for the clarification!
DeleteLOL Sorry about that. I haven't noticed that you have a problem with voices in your books. You've got it under control.
DeleteI agree that it's difficult to make each character's voice unique and consistent. When new characters appear in one of my books, I've been known to base their diction on a colorful character I know, or a celebrity. It's too easy to have all characters sound alike. And boring.
ReplyDeleteYour technique is a good one, Jean. Basing a character on someone specific can work quite well. I tried basing Sandi on a celebrity when I started the series, but within a chapter she took on a life of her own.
DeleteVoice is difficult. If you think about it, most of your characters are probably from the same area of the country, so that would make them sound the same. Especially characters from the south or the mid-west. Of course old people would sound different from young people because of their vocabulary. But most older people would sound the same and most young people would sound the same, and I don't know where I'm going with this... just rambling. Great post, by the way.
ReplyDeleteWell, Evelyn, you made me laugh. Voice is tricky, and I think everyone handles it differently. I haven't had any trouble keeping your characters separated, so you're doing something that works for you. :)
DeleteI always struggle with voice at the start of the project and keeping MINE out of it. Typically, it takes me the first twenty pages before I kick myself off the page. You're right about chocolate.
ReplyDeleteKeeping our own voice out of it is an issue, Brenda. It's too easy to start using our own voice. We work on it though, and hopefully we win the battle. Oh, and I eat a lot of chocolate. Does that tell you anything? LOL
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