Skip to main content

A to Z Challenge: U and V

Understanding Ventriloquism

A ventriloquist is a person who can speak or utter sounds so that they seem to come from somewhere else.

Being a writer requires you to be a ventriloquist, too. Why? How? Because you, the author, must make each character sound like someone you are not.

You may not be a fifteen year old drama queen, but you've got to make you 15 year old teen girl sound real.

What? You're not a lab technician, working on a unique case for the FBI? How do you make your MC real and believable? By understanding ventriloquism and putting it to use as a writer.

Creating characters who are 3 dimensional and original. That's ventriloquism in writing, not speaking.

Do you understand ventriloquism? Can you make a character, talk and sound real, without the reader hearing you, the author speak?

Comments

  1. Alex J. CavanaughApril 25, 2013 at 12:09 PM

    I do all right with main characters but I still need to work on putting more personality into secondary characters.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ink in the BookApril 25, 2013 at 12:25 PM

      Sometimes it is harder for the secondary characters to be bold without taking over the scene when you don't want them to.

      Delete
  2. Nancy Jardine AuthorApril 25, 2013 at 2:54 PM

    That's very enterprising doing two posts in one! In some of my novels I've made secondary characters 'come alive' better than in others! Getting 'into the head' is so important. Nancy at Welcome to she said, he said

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ink in the BookApril 26, 2013 at 1:28 PM

      Knowing your characters is so important to writing a great book.

      Delete
  3. Lady's KnightApril 25, 2013 at 4:32 PM

    Very true and it takes practice so they can't see our lips moving

    nice to meet you thru A to Z. ck us out at Lady's Knight

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ink in the BookApril 26, 2013 at 1:29 PM

      Lately, I've found myself saying the same thing as my characters and it's like Wow, I better change that so it's not me!

      Delete
  4. moondustwriterApril 25, 2013 at 6:50 PM

    love the visual - my next character I will try to make my lips move less...

    moondustwriter

    ReplyDelete
  5. EllaApril 25, 2013 at 10:25 PM

    Well said...
    I like your view point in this post :D

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ink in the BookApril 26, 2013 at 1:30 PM

      Thanks Ella! See. I wrote that, and my lips didn't even move!

      Delete
  6. Lynn(e) SchmidtApril 25, 2013 at 11:11 PM

    The people who do voices for dummies? Yea, they terrify me.

    But I liked how you turned the tables, and make writers ventriloquists! Awesome post.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ink in the BookApril 26, 2013 at 1:31 PM

      Me too! Me Too:) Thanks for the compliment. how are you doing, by the way?

      Delete
  7. UnknownApril 26, 2013 at 8:10 AM

    This, for me, is the most challenging part of writing.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Tyrean MartinsonApril 26, 2013 at 10:33 AM

    This is one of the hardest parts of writing for me, but I keep working on it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ink in the BookApril 26, 2013 at 1:31 PM

      I know. It's like move over Talynn and late your character shine.

      Delete
  9. cleemckenzieApril 26, 2013 at 12:03 PM

    This is a great way to express what authors do when they write their characters.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ink in the BookApril 26, 2013 at 1:32 PM

      Thanks, Lee! You know, my favorite Aunt's name is Lee. I guess that's why I love to see your smiling face everyday:)

      Delete
  10. Melissa SugarApril 29, 2013 at 3:43 PM

    This is an interesting post. I never thought of it in the same realm as a ventriloquist. I love your letter combination for today's post. Hope you don't mind, but I am a letter behind and just may borrow your idea, tomorrow.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Operation Agent Ink

UPDATE: PLEASE FILL OUT THIS QUESTIONNAIRE AFTER YOU SIGN UP. Have you ever wondered what agents were dying to find in their inbox/slush pile? There have been many times I entered a contest and not even received a comment, not even from one of the agents. Or maybe the agent was kind enough to leave a comment that simply said, "Sorry, this just isn't what I'm looking for, but I love the premise and your voice." I always walk away feeling unsatisfied. If I had known exactly what the agent wanted beyond, "YA" or "Fantasy" I might not have even entered a contest I knew I wouldn't win! Even more, I wasted a very busy agents time! Well, your time of guessing is up! OPERATION AGENT INK to the rescue! That's right! This workshop will help aspiring authors get on the list of an agent's WISH LIST! When the workshop is over, your manuscript will be ready to view by a group of AMAZING agents who are dying to see what you've wri...
111 comments
Read more

Writer In Motion CP feedback

Hey beautiful guys and dolls! Here it is! My CP feedback edited story. Had a hard time with this, but I hope it makes sense. I've got a post I'm working on I plan to put up after Thanksgiving. Here ya go. Enjoy... Every morning I wake to carnival day.  Today, though, I have my key. If I don’t use it before midnight, my way of escape will gone. It’s a silver key with a twisted metal handle, a sapphire stone half moon and engraved stars. There’s a tiny inscription on the moon, but it’s so small, I’ve never been able to read it.I’ve always kept mine in my jewelry box, but today, I string it on a ribbon and tie it around my neck. My two best friends will be wearing theirs, too, and I wonder how they will escape this carnival of dreams. “What’s it for?” Cress asks as we stand in line for the swings. I run my fingertips over the entire silver surface. “I don’t know. It belonged to my grandmother,” I say. “Whatever.” She shrugs her shoulder in a dismissive way. “Have ...
3 comments
Read more

Workshop 10

Today, let's get readers hooked from the very first sentence. If you do, you are off to a great start and hopefully a great first chapter. We are going to focus on the first and second sentence and how you can draw readers in while introducing two major items about your book: 1. Your MC 2. The main conflict. How? Is it really possible to do this in only TWO sentences? YES! Example: My name is Snow, like the white powder that falls during winter, though I don't know what my mom was thinking because it was ninety degrees the day I was born. I turned twelve the year I married a man I hated and thirteen when my first baby was born. This sentence tells us a lot. It shows us a little about Snow's personality, it hints toward a shortened childhood and could possibly point to a different time era. I also can definitely see the conflict. Can you? You only have a few minutes to make a good, first impression. Make sure you wow your reader enough they'll actually t...
115 comments
Read more