Comments on: Seven Deadly Novel Writing Sins: Voice and Point of View

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[…] story lines straight, there’s too much going on. Maybe characters are vying for importance (sin # 3) or maybe the writer has so many great ideas they can’t decide which subplots to include. The […]

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[…] Sin # 3 Missing the Mark on Voice & POV […]

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Tue, 26 Nov 2013 04:20:37 +0000

[…] SIN # 3: Missing the Mark on Voice & POV […]

By: Janet Johnson

Janet Johnson — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 15:33:19 +0000

Thank you for defining Voice! EVERYONE talks about it, but few can explain what it is in a helpful way. Great advice!

By: Joseph Katz

Joseph Katz — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 17:49:16 +0000

Sometime a writer is better of sticking to what they know.

*Sometimes, off*

By: jessjordan

jessjordan — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 05:43:28 +0000

Great post! I had to stop writing the other day and say, “Okay, this is what *I* would do in x situation, but no one cares about me–what would my MC do?” It’s definitely important that we get out of our own heads and let our characters grow and learn and make their own mistakes. That said … it’s still very difficult to do, at least imo.

Thanks so much for this!

By: Creative A

Creative A — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 04:04:20 +0000

"A strong voice is the writer's devotion coming through. Their portrayal of the POV character entrances the reader--every word, every description, every thought and action of the MC rings true."

I thought that was especially good, and nails down exactly how I think of voice. It's the sound of the novel, which is more than the way we wrote it. It's the way we've portrayed what we've written, based on the people we're writing about. Although you said it more succinctly than I did :)

-Mandy

By: Lisa and Laura

Lisa and Laura — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 20:59:19 +0000

So, so true. Voice is essential to a book. We absolutely love playing around with it. Thanks for the fabulous post.

By: ElanaJ

ElanaJ — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 20:45:25 +0000

I agree with your voice points 1000%. They are spot on. We all have a voice we talk with, write with. So does your MC. It’s your job as a writer to find it and convey it with words.

By: Harvey Chapman

Harvey Chapman — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 13:17:20 +0000

Great post, Angela...

I totally agree with what you said about newbie novel writers not being practised enough with their chosen POV.

I see a lot of manuscripts from beginners and, while they are passionate about their writing, they clearly don't understand the theory and logic of either first or third person - particularly the important difference between the viewpoint character's voice and the author's/narrator's voice.

And getting that wrong, of course, can be the difference between acceptance and rejection.

By: Anne Gilbert

Anne Gilbert — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 06:49:46 +0000

Thanks very much for this post. I’ve been struggling with the same issues. In my present book, I’ve got several POV’s, but they’re all main characters, and their stories kind of intertwine. I also have part of a novel I set aside, that I did in first person, and I know that wasn’t quite right, or at least the way I did it wasn’t quite right, so I’m wavering between starting it in a different place than I started it, or making it third person, so I can have mainly the main character’s POV, but also the POV’s of some others.
Anne G

By: PJ Hoover

PJ Hoover — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 04:20:41 +0000

Awesome post, Angela! I love reading various voices and thinking about them, especially when I recognize something as a strong voice and don’t like it.
And POV – Oy. I’m working on dual POV right now, and it is a stretch exercise for me (which is good!).