I’m a writer blog

Guidelines for writing Poems, Stories and Tales

Is the strategy described here an effective one, to distinguish character voice?

Asked by: Megan Stevens

How do you distinguish a character’s voice?

7 Effective Ways to Give Your Characters Unique Voices

  1. It’s Not About Accents and Syntax. …
  2. Read the Dialogue Aloud. …
  3. Cover the Character Names. …
  4. Eliminate Unnecessary Exposition Dialogue. …
  5. Identify Character Types. …
  6. Identify Character Traits. …
  7. Action Speaks Louder Than Words.


What makes an effective character description?

To describe a character, use creative and specific details to give the reader a clear picture. Note their unique physical characteristics, like eye color, hair, body type, and scars, as well as their personality traits such as hobbies, moral beliefs, and temperament.

What is a character voice and how do you develop one?

Character voice refers to the unique way that a character in a novel or short story expresses themselves outwardly and inwardly. A character’s voice can be communicated through a character’s personality, a character’s thoughts, and the way that character sounds.

What is an effective narrative voice?

Narrative voice is the perspective the story is told from. The writer chooses a narrative voice carefully, as it can have an important effect on the story and the reader’s response.

How important is characterization of voice?

Good characterization gives readers a strong sense of characters’ personalities and complexities; it makes characters vivid, alive and believable.

How do you analyze voice in literature?

In analyzing voices, you must identify the voices that appear in the text, see how they fit together, and understand how the author uses those voices to create his or her own voice and to make his or her own statement.

How do you describe character actions?

Character Actions: The Building Blocks for Emotional Complexity

  • Keep it simple. …
  • Every action has a purpose. …
  • To create suspense. …
  • To emphasize a point made in dialogue. …
  • To add tension between a character’s words and emotions. …
  • Picture the scene as a movie in your mind. …
  • Character actions made simple. …
  • Conclusion.


How do you describe character?


He has big pointy ears and he's small he's actually pretty tiny. Do you think that those are all good describing words for him on the outside.

How do you describe a character in a story examples?

Character description examples: 7 lessons from famous books



  • Describe characters’ personalities using appearance. …
  • Flesh out character descriptions from multiple characters’ viewpoints. …
  • Use metaphor to describe characters and avoid abstractions where possible. …
  • Make character introductions memorable.

How do you analyze a character?

Being mindful of subtle hints, like mood changes and reactions that might provide insight into your character’s personality, can help you write a character analysis.

  1. Describe the Character’s Personality.
  2. Determine the Character Type of Your Protagonist.
  3. Define Your Character’s Role in the Work You’re Analyzing.

How do you describe the main character in first person?

In writing, the first person point of view uses the pronouns “I,” “me,” “we,” and “us,” in order to tell a story from the narrator’s perspective. The storyteller in a first-person narrative is either the protagonist relaying their experiences or a peripheral character telling the protagonist’s story.

Why is first-person narrative effective?

The Advantages of First-Person Perspective



First-person immediately puts the reader inside the narrator’s head, which allows for an intimate portrayal of thoughts and emotions. You can effectively communicate how each moment feels—delivering sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch—through the prism of your narrator.

How would you describe a character from perspective?

For a viewpoint character, one of the simplest ways of “describing” him/her is by using comparisons with other characters as the viewpoint describes them.

How do you introduce a character in first person example?

For example, a character might say ‘I saw that the building had started to collapse’. Instead, however, you could simply make your first person narrator say ‘the building had started to collapse’.



How do you introduce the main character in a first person story?

Here are some writing tips for how to begin your first-person story:

  1. Establish a clear voice. …
  2. Start mid-action. …
  3. Introduce supporting characters early. …
  4. Use the active voice. …
  5. Decide if your narrator is reliable. …
  6. Decide on a tense for your opening. …
  7. Study first-person opening lines in literature.


How do you introduce a character in an essay examples?

Here is some writing advice to help you introduce your characters as effectively as possible:

  1. Don’t get bogged down in physical appearance. …
  2. Give your character a memorable character trait. …
  3. Start with backstory when appropriate. …
  4. Introduce a character through action. …
  5. Introduce the main character as soon as possible.


How do you get characters to meet in a story?

Some general, non specific things I can think of:



  1. they live in the same dorm.
  2. they attend the same class.
  3. one of them has a friend that stretches him/her socially.
  4. they eat at the same place everyday.
  5. they buy their books at the bookstore at the same time and run into each other that way.


How do you connect characters in a novel?

Connect your characters to their setting to give readers the experience of a real locale. Put props in your characters’ hands so those characters seem real and more than one-dimensional. Tie characters together by their love—or hatred—of someone or something else.

How do you make two characters become friends?

So today, I am going to give you 7 things you need to do to develop your friendship.

  1. Make Each Character Their Own Person. …
  2. Give Them Something in Common. …
  3. Give Them Meaningful Differences. …
  4. Give Them a History That Shines Through. …
  5. Create a Glue. …
  6. Create Meaningful Scenes. …
  7. Don’t Make Their Relationship Perfect.




How do you introduce a second character?

Use action and/or dialogue to present new characters.



Show the new character doing something or saying something. For example, make a new player stumble upon the scene, make a dramatic entrance, or interrupt a conversation. Save the backstory about that person for later, after the reader has formed a strong impression.

Why is character important in a story?

Characters serve as the driving force in your story. Your characters create and push your plot forward. Readers can experience the world that you’ve created through your characters, both from the way that your characters interact with their environment and the way that your characters view their environment.

How do you create a good character?

  1. Establish the character’s story goals and motivations.
  2. Give the character an external and internal conflict.
  3. Make sure the character has strengths and flaws.
  4. Decide whether the character is static or dynamic.
  5. Give the character a past.
  6. Develop the character’s physical characteristics.

Is the strategy described here an effective one, to distinguish character voice?

Asked by: Megan Stevens

How do you distinguish a character’s voice?

7 Effective Ways to Give Your Characters Unique Voices

  1. It’s Not About Accents and Syntax. …
  2. Read the Dialogue Aloud. …
  3. Cover the Character Names. …
  4. Eliminate Unnecessary Exposition Dialogue. …
  5. Identify Character Types. …
  6. Identify Character Traits. …
  7. Action Speaks Louder Than Words.


What makes an effective character description?

To describe a character, use creative and specific details to give the reader a clear picture. Note their unique physical characteristics, like eye color, hair, body type, and scars, as well as their personality traits such as hobbies, moral beliefs, and temperament.

What is a character voice and how do you develop one?

Character voice refers to the unique way that a character in a novel or short story expresses themselves outwardly and inwardly. A character’s voice can be communicated through a character’s personality, a character’s thoughts, and the way that character sounds.

What is an effective narrative voice?

Narrative voice is the perspective the story is told from. The writer chooses a narrative voice carefully, as it can have an important effect on the story and the reader’s response.

How important is characterization of voice?

Good characterization gives readers a strong sense of characters’ personalities and complexities; it makes characters vivid, alive and believable.

How do you analyze voice in literature?

In analyzing voices, you must identify the voices that appear in the text, see how they fit together, and understand how the author uses those voices to create his or her own voice and to make his or her own statement.

How do you describe character actions?

Character Actions: The Building Blocks for Emotional Complexity

  • Keep it simple. …
  • Every action has a purpose. …
  • To create suspense. …
  • To emphasize a point made in dialogue. …
  • To add tension between a character’s words and emotions. …
  • Picture the scene as a movie in your mind. …
  • Character actions made simple. …
  • Conclusion.


How do you describe character?


He has big pointy ears and he's small he's actually pretty tiny. Do you think that those are all good describing words for him on the outside.

How do you describe a character in a story examples?

Character description examples: 7 lessons from famous books



  • Describe characters’ personalities using appearance. …
  • Flesh out character descriptions from multiple characters’ viewpoints. …
  • Use metaphor to describe characters and avoid abstractions where possible. …
  • Make character introductions memorable.

How do you analyze a character?

Being mindful of subtle hints, like mood changes and reactions that might provide insight into your character’s personality, can help you write a character analysis.

  1. Describe the Character’s Personality.
  2. Determine the Character Type of Your Protagonist.
  3. Define Your Character’s Role in the Work You’re Analyzing.

How do you describe the main character in first person?

In writing, the first person point of view uses the pronouns “I,” “me,” “we,” and “us,” in order to tell a story from the narrator’s perspective. The storyteller in a first-person narrative is either the protagonist relaying their experiences or a peripheral character telling the protagonist’s story.

Why is first-person narrative effective?

The Advantages of First-Person Perspective



First-person immediately puts the reader inside the narrator’s head, which allows for an intimate portrayal of thoughts and emotions. You can effectively communicate how each moment feels—delivering sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch—through the prism of your narrator.

How would you describe a character from perspective?

For a viewpoint character, one of the simplest ways of “describing” him/her is by using comparisons with other characters as the viewpoint describes them.

How do you introduce a character in first person example?

For example, a character might say ‘I saw that the building had started to collapse’. Instead, however, you could simply make your first person narrator say ‘the building had started to collapse’.



How do you introduce the main character in a first person story?

Here are some writing tips for how to begin your first-person story:

  1. Establish a clear voice. …
  2. Start mid-action. …
  3. Introduce supporting characters early. …
  4. Use the active voice. …
  5. Decide if your narrator is reliable. …
  6. Decide on a tense for your opening. …
  7. Study first-person opening lines in literature.


How do you introduce a character in an essay examples?

Here is some writing advice to help you introduce your characters as effectively as possible:

  1. Don’t get bogged down in physical appearance. …
  2. Give your character a memorable character trait. …
  3. Start with backstory when appropriate. …
  4. Introduce a character through action. …
  5. Introduce the main character as soon as possible.


How do you get characters to meet in a story?

Some general, non specific things I can think of:



  1. they live in the same dorm.
  2. they attend the same class.
  3. one of them has a friend that stretches him/her socially.
  4. they eat at the same place everyday.
  5. they buy their books at the bookstore at the same time and run into each other that way.


How do you connect characters in a novel?

Connect your characters to their setting to give readers the experience of a real locale. Put props in your characters’ hands so those characters seem real and more than one-dimensional. Tie characters together by their love—or hatred—of someone or something else.

How do you make two characters become friends?

So today, I am going to give you 7 things you need to do to develop your friendship.

  1. Make Each Character Their Own Person. …
  2. Give Them Something in Common. …
  3. Give Them Meaningful Differences. …
  4. Give Them a History That Shines Through. …
  5. Create a Glue. …
  6. Create Meaningful Scenes. …
  7. Don’t Make Their Relationship Perfect.




How do you introduce a second character?

Use action and/or dialogue to present new characters.



Show the new character doing something or saying something. For example, make a new player stumble upon the scene, make a dramatic entrance, or interrupt a conversation. Save the backstory about that person for later, after the reader has formed a strong impression.

Why is character important in a story?

Characters serve as the driving force in your story. Your characters create and push your plot forward. Readers can experience the world that you’ve created through your characters, both from the way that your characters interact with their environment and the way that your characters view their environment.

How do you create a good character?

  1. Establish the character’s story goals and motivations.
  2. Give the character an external and internal conflict.
  3. Make sure the character has strengths and flaws.
  4. Decide whether the character is static or dynamic.
  5. Give the character a past.
  6. Develop the character’s physical characteristics.