tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9058478111996476699.post3495421035374995177..comments2024-03-29T06:35:45.788-06:00Comments on Author Elana Johnson: Finding Your Character's VoiceElana Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05877856005992028912noreply@blogger.comBlogger21125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9058478111996476699.post-5513809520145142592009-07-07T11:21:47.253-06:002009-07-07T11:21:47.253-06:00I'm with you, Elana. I don't outline, and ...I'm with you, Elana. I don't outline, and I tried to do a character sheet once, but I got bored with it. Makes for a lot of rewriting but it just feels forced any other way. :)Abby Annishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05543937393055900844noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9058478111996476699.post-34736506385584382292009-07-03T08:24:54.864-06:002009-07-03T08:24:54.864-06:00Very cool guys! At least I'm not alone in the ...Very cool guys! At least I'm not alone in the character sheet department. Once I have several drafts done, I can usually interview my characters and know exactly what they're going to say/do. It's all a process.<br /><br />And man, it's not simple to go back and fix 17,000 words of "wrong" voice. So I wouldn't say my way is simpler. Just less organized and less efficient. ;-)Elana Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05877856005992028912noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9058478111996476699.post-48480065536873210832009-07-03T00:05:28.357-06:002009-07-03T00:05:28.357-06:00I have a variety of different techniques. My favor...I have a variety of different techniques. My favorite one to figure out brand new characters is to sit down with my DnD handbook and let the character figure themselves out while I go through the process of creating the character and filling out the character sheet (though I usually don't use it once I finish the character).<br /><br />Another process I use is sort of like an interview. I'll sit down with a sheet of paper, ask questions, and then write the character's name and have them respond. <br /><br />The other one I use is also basing characters off of people I know (or having them complete my favorite way of doing it). Then while writing the story I will ask the person to read over the story every now and then to make sure I'm using the character properly.<br /><br />I also just write to find some of them. Sometimes that does work the best. <br /><br />(quixotic: I think its almost normal for writers to hear voices. If we didn't all of our characters would sound the same.)Ryan S. Kinsgrovehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11709819500632207934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9058478111996476699.post-87227502450990595652009-07-02T20:05:59.785-06:002009-07-02T20:05:59.785-06:00I love to work dialogue in my head. that's whe...I love to work dialogue in my head. that's where I really hear my characters voices. I know, I sound crazy lol, hearing voices in my head is never a good sign. Once I think I have them figured out I write out all the dialogue and pray the voice translates. I think it's working so far.Katie Salidashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15159923761047042193noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9058478111996476699.post-14012904074561224142009-07-02T19:30:10.453-06:002009-07-02T19:30:10.453-06:00I am with you - I don't use character sheets o...I am with you - I don't use character sheets or spend lots of time stewing about my characters, I simply find them in the writing. <br /><br />Sometimes, like how you mentioned the courtroom scene with Vi, there will be one specific moment where things really just start to click. And those moments are awesome.Kate Karyus Quinnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15581176126578915929noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9058478111996476699.post-27435042349154905832009-07-02T18:55:41.113-06:002009-07-02T18:55:41.113-06:00Amen! My characters show up when I'm writing. ...Amen! My characters show up when I'm writing. That's when I let them go about their business while I follow them around with the laptop typing like crazy.Danyelle L.https://www.blogger.com/profile/10366276085080565870noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9058478111996476699.post-51197812325795806712009-07-02T16:29:26.489-06:002009-07-02T16:29:26.489-06:00I not an outliner and I'm not a stewer either....I not an outliner and I'm not a stewer either. I take notes on what I want to happen and just write. Sometimes if I need to figure out a character, I get one of my favorite '100 questions for your character' sheets and fill it out until the character starts talking to me. <br /><br />The only thing I take notes on is the character's age, eye color, hair color, and appearance. Because that's always slipping my mind while I write.Rachaelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11918987890132222901noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9058478111996476699.post-32705725860037886732009-07-02T13:31:17.536-06:002009-07-02T13:31:17.536-06:00Well, truth be told -- I find that the characters&...Well, truth be told -- I find that the characters' voices reveal themselves to me the more I write. In other words, the more I bring a character to life, the more his/her voice will emerge.ajgallionhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17155248959570402952noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9058478111996476699.post-13651530647232496962009-07-02T13:14:41.898-06:002009-07-02T13:14:41.898-06:00Yup, I do it, or rather attempt to find my charact...Yup, I do it, or rather attempt to find my characters voice via writing as well. I do do character sketches ahead of time, but none of these 50-page ones. It's in the revisions that I hone the voices. If I succeed at all.Eileen Astels Watsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11098531184044931737noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9058478111996476699.post-83153160635935297282009-07-02T12:22:11.402-06:002009-07-02T12:22:11.402-06:00Here, here! I tried character sheets the last time...Here, here! I tried character sheets the last time around. I filled them out and n-e-v-e-r looked at them again. I started one this time and said,"Oh to heck with it." Moral of my story? I don't do that stuff. I just get something down on the computer screen! :)Robyn Campbellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17356555082768185840noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9058478111996476699.post-52087355872356566392009-07-02T12:00:54.959-06:002009-07-02T12:00:54.959-06:00I'm not an organizer, so outlines are torture ...I'm not an organizer, so outlines are torture for me. One class I took was so much about planning that I felt drained of any sparkage. But having said that, I just spent half a year pouring out a YA fantasy based on two characters from a dream I had. It kept my crit group enthused, but I realized as I neared the end that I had some plot and character problems that made me go back to defining them and their goals more precisely. I "interviewed" them and had some eye-opening moments that I think will really make the second draft work. So maybe that's backwards but it seems to be working.Tricia J. O'Brienhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05993110400088806252noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9058478111996476699.post-27285735729178649822009-07-02T12:00:38.422-06:002009-07-02T12:00:38.422-06:00Snarfage? I love that word.
I think the easiest w...Snarfage? I love that word.<br /><br />I think the easiest way to hear your characters voice is to listen to them for awhile.<br /><br />Seriously.<br /><br />Put them in a situation in your mind, pretend they're characters in a movie and "listen" to the way they'd interact.Kathryn Hupp-Harrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03776391661543060879noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9058478111996476699.post-56209864777573107172009-07-02T11:09:26.068-06:002009-07-02T11:09:26.068-06:00I have to admit the short childrens story I starte...I have to admit the short childrens story I started writing has real people behind every character. One of my friends even volunteered to be the evil one.Brigitte Ballard https://www.blogger.com/profile/01685306630384821633noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9058478111996476699.post-91916675720222846092009-07-02T11:03:26.637-06:002009-07-02T11:03:26.637-06:00Psh, I am the epitome of inefficiency. I write, e...Psh, I am the epitome of inefficiency. I write, even when the character voice clearly isn't there. And then what happens is either I figure it out halfway through and the first half has to be completely rewritten or the entire first draft ends up being a huge outline. This is where I am now, having spat out a 71k draft. I'm halfway through the second-draft-which-is-really-a-first-draft. I should learn to stew some more. Or do some character charts or something.XiXihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05364953168828471897noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9058478111996476699.post-41347029752730157952009-07-02T10:59:49.345-06:002009-07-02T10:59:49.345-06:00We're stewers and outliners and character note...We're stewers and outliners and character note makers. I've taken to using a little notebook and I have a characters name and the title of the project on each page and anytime I get a random thought about a character I just jot it down. I usually like to have 10 things or traits nailed down for each character before we start writing. It helps me to visualize how they'll react and interact within the world we're creating for them.<br /><br />Yeah, your way sounds much simpler.lisa and laurahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18144863275895761642noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9058478111996476699.post-15758332276594659502009-07-02T10:13:11.948-06:002009-07-02T10:13:11.948-06:00I'm a stewer :). My story ideas are often lin...I'm a stewer :). My story ideas are often linked very closely with who's going to be going on the journey, so I sit and ponder their personalities before I do anything.<br /><br />Sometimes I start writing first, then do some character bible stuff to help myself out :P, but sometimes I have to sit and sort it out first or I feel stuck.<br /><br />It's weird, because I'm disorganized in other areas of my life, but if I do that with my writing, it doesn't work so well. <br /><br />I'm actually jealous of you, Elana! It sounds so much simpler to just have it happen!Rebecca Knighthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15214077952378770753noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9058478111996476699.post-47794618196923810182009-07-02T09:46:16.103-06:002009-07-02T09:46:16.103-06:00You know me - everything is about being authentica...You know me - everything is about being authentically in a character's voice. I find it when I write - but I have to stew first. Sometimes I stew for a few days, other times I stew for weeks. The story I am working on now was a thought in my head about six months ago. I wrote the initial ideas down so I wouldn't lose it - <br /><br />Then I stewed. And stewed. And stewed.<br /><br />Finally I woke one day and was ready to write. It is a process for me. <br /><br />Now my characters have hanged in the process of writing - but the first hint of voice came while stewing.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9058478111996476699.post-42750907310823549552009-07-02T09:21:50.370-06:002009-07-02T09:21:50.370-06:00My story is from the viewpoints of an assassin and...My story is from the viewpoints of an assassin and the girl he is trying to kill, and it has taken me about five drafts to finally find both of their voices. Which is why I haven't moved past chapter six in over a year (revising, revising, revising)...and my husband mocks me endlessly for this. I started with an idea of the characters, and their personalities developed as I wrote each draft. What I didn't expect to find was the sarcastic, profanity-laden voice of the character I'm basing on myself :)Lisa Guillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12811848570807946909noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9058478111996476699.post-33081967514833133352009-07-02T09:13:37.265-06:002009-07-02T09:13:37.265-06:00Voice for me is a combination of what story I'...Voice for me is a combination of what story I'm trying to tell (the tone and the stakes) and the pov character's personality. I tend to be more comfortable writing tight povs, whether from first or third. <br /><br />After a whole lot of stewing, and a bit of outlining and even more daydreaming and spending some time with the characters, then I start writing, and the voice just... comes. <br /><br />But it's not something that can't be forced, or it sounds forced. I can't write in a modern, pop teen voice, so I've decided to go back in time a century for my next NiP. I think I'm more comfortable in the past anyway. ;)Tere Kirklandhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13562750950130316280noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9058478111996476699.post-77581344099789120742009-07-02T08:16:59.881-06:002009-07-02T08:16:59.881-06:00I'm the same way. I just write and the charac...I'm the same way. I just write and the characters just come into being. Sometimes they don't quite settle into their true being until part way through the story, so I may need to make some adjustments to the earlier versions of their character. But I never plot or plan and I've never even heard of a character sheet before this post, lol. Besides, my characters are all too stubborn and likely wouldn't agree to go along with I had planned anyway.Cali MacKayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01860615677199216262noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9058478111996476699.post-8478142414276489462009-07-02T07:30:21.931-06:002009-07-02T07:30:21.931-06:00The voice comes as I write. My characters - even w...The voice comes as I write. My characters - even when based loosely on real people - are rarely fully formed when I begin to write. I just write and see what happens. The voice emerges. The personality emerges. The quirks emerge. I get to know my characters as I write - it's an evolving process. Kind of like when I become friends with someone - it happens over time! So, second draft phase the character is second nature and the voice is stronger.<br /><br />SScotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06905515473737579937noreply@blogger.com