It's true to say that a character doesn't become a real
person until he or she speaks. So what can we do to
convey to our readers what type of person a particular
character is just by the way they speak?
First of all you must have in your own mind a clear
picture of, yes, what they look like, but also what type
of person they are. Then you can begin to infuse their
speech to reflect that.
Let's look at four types of chracter: people who are
either forceful, timid, warm-hearted or critical
To convey these personalities you might use dialogue
such as the following:
'Now look here, it's obvious the what we have to do in
this situation is rope off the area where the dog show
will be. It won't cost that much to find stakes and
ropes, and we can't risk small children getting bitten
by dogs. I'm sorry but it's got to be done.'
Here's someone who is not used to being countermanded.
They know what they want and are determined to get it.
They tend to use long, forceful sentences that defy
interruption and are aimed at both parrying objection
and demanding action.
'These tea cakes, well, I did try to get them right but,
oh dear, I'm afraid they just didn't, you know, really
come up to scratch. What Jane will think I just can't
imagine...'
Can you imagine this dear old thing ever saying boo to a
goose? She's too worried about what people think of her
and too self effacing and lacking in confidence to stand
up for herself. She speaks hesitantly and her sentences
are broken up so that her uncertainty and timidity are
revealed.
'Nonsense, Elsie, they look absolutely scrumptious to
me. People love your tea cakes, you know they do. Come
on, tell you what, I'll help you get them in the tin and
we'll take them along to the fete together shall we?.
Then we'll go and have a nice cup of tea.'
Here is a warm, generous, motherly person who is helpful
and kind. She is well able to take people in hand and
encourage them along. Her speech is soothing and
reassuring. Even the 'Nonsense, Elsie' has the positive
intention of making Elsie reconsider her opinion of her
cakes and of herself.
'There just aren't enough tables out. And what if it
rains? These marquees should have been much bigger. I
told the chairman this would happen but, of course, he
wouldn't listen to me.'
This person has difficulty finding anything good to say
about anything and has probably become somewhat bitter
because making friends is not easy when you are so
critical. They talk in short curt sentences which are
couched in such a way as to rebuff disagreement or
comment.
I have given just four types of personality here, but
there are many more for you to experiment with. Practice
writing dialogue to emphasise your own characters
personality traits. You will find they will be much more
enjoyable for your readers to listen to.
Mervyn Love offers advice, resources, competition listing, markets and much more on his website. Go here: http://www.writersreign.co.uk Subscribe to his free Article Writing Course here:http://www.writersreign.co.uk/WRac.html
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