I embarked on a new task this week. I began voicing my third novel. Although the first two novels have multiple points of view, I tell them in third-person and the voices of the narrators in the various points of view are similar. Novel 3, however, I tell in first-person using eleven narrators, all women. I feel they should all have unique voices, and it is a daunting undertaking.
I have found some excellent resources on the Internet. The one that helped me the most is from Jericho Writers. It goes beyond the normal platitudes and advice on how to find your voice and gives a list (admittedly not complete) of other “elements of voice” that you can manipulate in giving unique voices to characters. Here is a partial list of their partial list:
Rhythm
Length of sentences and paragraphs
Vocabulary
Lyricism versus realism
Humor
Warmth
Irony
Descriptive versus terse
Even before getting into the list from Jericho Writers, however, the character’s intelligence, personality, and attitude in the scene have an even greater impact on their voice. What I thought would be nearly impossible is starting off to great promise, with a wealth of variables available. And I am sure I can pull it off without resorting to creating a character that is too foul-mouthed. That’s just too easy, and I don’t want to be stale. How this whole process of voicing ends will be the proof, though. I will write again to share my insights. I hope to report that I gained a new skill and used it well, but that will be up to readers to judge.