Writers and Readers discussion

Dear all,

If you struggle with your characters, you may find help here. Lively, complex, and enjoyable characters are one of the most important things in your books!

https://mybookwhisperer.org/2019/01/2...

One of my laments in our book club, which has featured a lot of contemporary fiction, is the homogenized speech patterns of the characters. The middle aged career cop speaks just like the recent college graduate who speaks just like the amateur gardener next door. I persuaded them to read "Pride and Prejudice", and had them focus on how distinctive the speech patterns were to a point where you almost don't need attribution. You would never confuse Mary Bennet for Mr. Darcy, or Mr. Collins for Mr. Gardiner.

IMHO, one of the most important features of creating three dimensional characters is dialogue. How one speaks - sentence structure, vocabulary, use of regional, slang or professionally-specific terms, pronunciation is influenced by age, gender, upbringing, education, profession, cultural influences, geography and ideally, a text shouldn't need a high volume of attribution for the reader to distinguish one character from another. What is the point of bringing in a diverse cast of characters if you're going to have them all speak exactly the same?

J. wrote: "One of my laments in our book club, which has featured a lot of contemporary fiction, is the homogenized speech patterns of the characters. The middle aged career cop speaks just like the recent co..."

Yes, I agree. Language is very important. I use slang and accents in my works often. And all my major characters have their typical words or phrases they use often.