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Well I can answer any question you have dear about the US, I understand the list of "what ifs.. how do... and what will..." that run through a writer's mind.
When I write the question that comes to mind a lot is my maturity level. Because some days I write educated sentences, great in detail. Then other days I write down mostly ideads. Half my books are writen as if I were a third grader -- not a college student.
When I write the question that comes to mind a lot is my maturity level. Because some days I write educated sentences, great in detail. Then other days I write down mostly ideads. Half my books are writen as if I were a third grader -- not a college student.
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I supposed these are the things an agent would help you with?
Here is my opinion:If you are from the UK, writing about the US and using main characters that are American, you should write it for the American audience which means lots of research or nudging of American pals for information.
If you from the UK, writing about the US and the MCs are British IN the US, then dialog should be naturally British and if in first person, narration can be too. But descriptions should be US based UNLESS only the setting is America and all parties involved are British.
LOL Does that make sense? :) Basically, write to the audience your MC will be most in tune with, based on the story and the setting.
But, if you are writing from a UK perspective IN the UK and want to sell the book to an American audience ... here is my warning. Some Americans will not buy it because the extra letters in color = colour for example. Unfortunately, that's just how people are. But I would not worry about it. Your FAN base is what's important and those that love your writing adn style will read it whether it's UK English or American English. :)
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well, you know.. I live in Holland, and I didn't understand &^$@# of the sizes mentioned in the books. And then I went online and looked it up and realized that a size 14 is size 40/42 in the Netherlands. But I don't think stuff like that really matters if the rest of the story rocks. It also depends on the audience you're hoping to reach.. I don't think that people like us care about that stuff. But if you're writing a serious-serious book you might have to change some stuff ;)
Aimee wrote: "Here is my opinion:If you are from the UK, writing about the US and using main characters that are American, you should write it for the American audience which means lots of research or nudging of American pals for information.
If you from the UK, writing about the US and the MCs are British IN the US, then dialog should be naturally British and if in first person, narration can be too. But descriptions should be US based UNLESS only the setting is America and all parties involved are British"
I pretty much agree with this.
US setting + US MC = US terms, food, spellings (easily achieved by altering your language settings in Word), etc--BUT it will sound far from unauthentic without a ton of research and someone on hand to bounce off when you need accurate information.
US setting + UK MC = US AND UK terms (either the British MC would make a point of learning, checking with US character that they have the right word, etc), US food (but with British names for them--but you would need to keep in mind that any US characters in the story would likely correct her/his or react to their ignorance), UK spellings, and the research could be reduced to settings/local colloquilisms, any behavioural patterns to the locale, etc--plus, you'd need to remember that any characters your MC is introduced to would most likely comment on the MC's accent (to the point she might be asked to repeat certain things).
But, if you are writing from a UK perspective IN the UK and want to sell the book to an American audience ... here is my warning. Some Americans will not buy it because the extra letters in color = colour for example.
I intend to write a story for a UK MC in the US, but not before I have an established readership. Although my debut novel, Darkness & Light, is a UK MC set in the UK, my Publisher is an American company, and whilst some sayings were changed (because any US readers would be alienated), my British spellings remained to uphold the authenticity of the book.
Luckily, for when I get around to writing my US setting story, I have a decent contact with good knowledge of the area I intend to set it in.
Damn, that was a waffle. Did any of it make sense?
I was always told - write what what you know. Sometimes writing about places you've never been can involve a lot of research. If you're up to the task, go for it. But sometimes the places in your own backyard can be just as interesting with a little imagination :)
" ... write what what you know." <-- It's so limiting sometimes though. Yes, my 'backyard' might have some uniquenesses, but if I didn't branch out, every one of my 8 novels would be within a 20 sq. mile area. LOL Also, I think 'write what you know' is meant for new writers ... to help them get started, find their voice, learn their style, etc. Afterward, the sky's the limit (or maybe beyond!) :)"... Sometimes writing about places you've never been can involve a lot of research." <-- It depends, really, on how much you need to reference them and with Google and every city in the world wanting to be 'known' they put up pictures, history, details I couldn't have gotten before. I have set parts of my stories in cities I've never been in, but 1 hour on the tourism website and I'm absolutely in love with 'x' city and have to include it. :)
As an author and a journalist with more years experience behind me than I care to mention, one of the things that jumps out at me is just how much detail does your reader really need to know? If you're getting into the size clothing someone wears, is that a detail that really moves your plot forward? The second thing I would say is if you write about a particular setting, you should know something about it. With the access we have to the Internet, it really is no longer necessary to write only what you have personally experienced or seen, but research about your setting, your characters interests and career will give you a stronger voice and a more believable story.
I have been working with a publisher in the US (I am from Australia not a lot of publishing opportunities) on some short stories and just rencently submitted my frist full length manuscript which uses complete US wording and so far (fingers cross) everything has been going well. But you do have to research things like what is the common food, phases, scenery etc because if you do get published readers will hound you if you get it wrong....but the internet and places like this are great. I have found people on certain sites are more then willing to help if you are unsure what is correct. I think the main thing though is to have fun, get the story on paper and then see if it needs tweaking, sometimes it wont.
Aimee wrote: "" ... write what what you know." <-- It's so limiting sometimes though. Yes, my 'backyard' might have some uniquenesses, but if I didn't branch out, every one of my 8 novels would be within a 20 sq..."Hello - I'm new here but have an opinion also ( like... duhhh... who doesn't?!)
I think if you're writing a book about CHARACTERS who live in a certain place and that place is their focus or problem like maybe a vineyard in Italy - then the study of that place would be imperative... however... if you just situate someone in a Paris apartment, you can get by with what you learned on a TV sitcom... don't ya think?
I'm not a writer but as a reader I agree with most of the posts above. I think it would be confusing to read a book that's based in the US but had UK phrases/spellings etc. Unless it's a UK character in the US...then some UK terminology would make more sense.
Like UK and US sizes are different such as shoes and dress sizes.
The location? I'm basing mine in the US but am from the UK! Do I need to be up on food over there
Argh I am confundled :)