《How to Write Stories People Will Love》30. Find Your Voice - Part 1
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This is a tough one, yet so important. In storytelling, "voice" refers to a combination of things. It's your writing style, your personality, and your view of the world. It's how you string words together to express it all. It's what makes you (or your characters) distinct from other writers (or other characters).
In the following examples, you can sense the differences in voice, even though they are all basically saying the same thing:
- This heat is going to be the death of me.
- It's hot as balls out here.
- I step outside. My shoes practically melt on the pavement. Fuck this. I'm going back inside.
- I swear the devil escaped and sat on the world today.
There are so many different ways to say the same thing. This is why you shouldn't be afraid to write a story that may have already been written. No one can write it the same way you will.
Just as important as expressing your voice, it must also be expressed consistently across the entire story. You can use a different voice in different stories, or for different character points of view within the same story, but be consistent. Maintain the tone and the particular word choices that paint a personality. People often have certain phrases that they favor over others. Maybe it's "I told you so" or "for the love of Pete!" Sprinkle those phrases in throughout the story to help cement your character's personality. (I don't mean every chapter, but you know, here and there. Randomly, so it doesn't look forced.)
Now that you know what voice is and what you should do with it, how do you find yours?? I'll get to that in Part 2 next week, otherwise this chapter might get uncomfortably long.
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THE LOST PRINCE |MXTX CROSSOVER|
COMPLETEDLong ago,a Princess fell in love with an immortal Heavenly Martial God,they got married and blessed with a son named Xie LianXie Lian is a gifted child blessed with such strong power,a child that remains half mortal half immortal but year by year,he becomes immortal by strengthening his abilities,he can have a child on his own even if he is a manXie Lian met Hua Cheng,the Ghost King who wanted to take lver the whole mortal world but his plans failed as he fell in love with the Crown Prince of Xianle,every royalties were against of their relationship but the two still married each other with Xie Lian's both his parent's blessingsXie Lian and Hua Cheng were gifted with a child,the Young Prince was named Hua Ying courtesy name Hua Wuxian,the child has both of his father's look he was a child with a handsomely beautiful face After five years Hua Ying turned 5 years old and the Heavenly Emperor came to know about the child as the father of Hua Ying was a Ghost King while the mother was the Crown Prince of the immortal Heavenly Martial God,he knew the child would be the one who could end his schemes and reveal his real identity as it was predicted that the child would be powerful among them allHe wanted to slaughter the Hua Family but Hua Cheng protected them with all cost,Xie Lian and Hua Cheng were unarmed by Bai Wuxiang as he wanted to take away Hua Ying but Hua Cheng teleported his son away from Bai Wuxiang and didn't know where he teleported his child as Bai Wuxiang had held them and ready to kill them but gladly some Heavenly officials came to help to capture Bai WuxiangMonths has passed but they haven't found their 5 years old child while in another realm the 5 years old child was found crying in someone's backyard,Hua Ying was in the Human World where advance technologies are already inventedThe Luo Family found him and decided to keep the child as they don't know how did the child went in their backyard"Shizun, let's keep him,shall we?"
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