Write what you know.
How many times have you heard that? I am guessing if you’ve been at this any amount of time… quite a few. What’s that? You write fantasy and you’ve invented a whole new world entirely in your head so how could you possibly write what you know?
I am here to let you in on a little secret… that isn’t what that means! Do you think JRR Tolkien knew a tiny creepy grey guy consumed with greed that lived in a cave? Probably not. But, chances are he did know a thing or two about greedy people and how they acted… so when he wrote Gollum, he used the voice of one of those guys!
That’s the key. You can tell any story you want, and I don’t care if you set your story inside a giant’s cell phone… as long as you use voice to make your characters like real people, then your story will be relatable. I know it isn’t as easy as it sounds, because if it were then my pomeranian would be churning out a novel right now…
But remember, you know voice. You hear people talking and see them acting every day, and each of those people has their own voice. So next time you see some crazy cat throwing a fit at the bank… pull out your notebook and write it down. Their words, their hand motions. Even the reaction of the bank teller. Your story will be that much better for it.
Jamie Harrington is an aspiring author that spends her days frantically writing about super heroes and band geeks. She blogs at Totally the Bomb.com. You can also find her mindlessly chatting away all day on twitter.![[del.icio.us]](http://giveagirlapen.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/delicious.png)
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14 Comments so far
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You mean Stephenie Meyer didn’t date a vampire?
I love sitting in the park and watching how people interact with each other. I need to start bringing my notebook with me.
[Reply]
Jamie Reply:
April 23rd, 2009 at 6:29 pm
hah oh no she dated a vamp… just in her head
[Reply]
By Joyce on 04.23.09 4:33 pm | Permalink
Also, do lots of research! Tolkien was a master of Scandinavian Folklore. If you look up basic stuff, you’ll see that what he came up with isn’t original at all and that he wrote about what he knew. He just wrote it in an amazing way.
Research is crucial, but don’t go overboard so that even the writer doesn’t even know what he or she is writing about!
[Reply]
By Ceylan on 04.23.09 6:07 pm | Permalink
I love to find voice. I love to people watch and your suggestion on a notebook is great.
[Reply]
Jamie Reply:
April 23rd, 2009 at 6:28 pm
oh and they have THE cutest notebooks at target… just sayin
[Reply]
By Brenna on 04.23.09 6:27 pm | Permalink
LOL
This is sooo true. I take from experience, from others, from whatever moves me. And not always positively. But I feel what I write.
And yeah, research is vital!
And come on, we’ve all dated Edward Cullen.
[Reply]
By Sarah on 04.23.09 6:35 pm | Permalink
not me. I dated Jasper. Come on Sarah you know that!
[Reply]
By Brenna on 04.23.09 9:45 pm | Permalink
No way!Jacob all the way! Werewolves are hott!
[Reply]
By Ceylan on 04.24.09 7:00 am | Permalink
I’ll tell you what’s hot… that wolfpack. G-rowl
[Reply]
By Jamie on 04.24.09 10:18 am | Permalink
Found your blog today and thought I’d say hi
Don’t you wish voice came in a jar and you could buy it at wal-mart next to the pickles? That would be so much easier (lol)
[Reply]
By Tess on 04.24.09 11:17 am | Permalink
Hey Tess thanks for checking us out. Come and visit and comment any time you’d like. We love visitors!
[Reply]
By Brenna on 04.24.09 11:54 am | Permalink
Ooh, voices in a jar. I like.
[Reply]
By Sarah on 04.24.09 4:21 pm | Permalink
I think they shelf voice next to the eggs. The refrigeration helps keep it fresh.
[Reply]
By Joyce on 04.24.09 4:25 pm | Permalink
Okay. I just checked out the wolfpack. Yowza!
[Reply]
By Joyce on 04.24.09 7:21 pm | Permalink
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