A major issue with first novels is getting the author’s voice right. I’ve read too many manuscripts where the author and major characters all sounded alike and in some cases made the same grammar and spelling errors. Except for first person accounts or where the narrator functions as a character, the unseen author needs a voice that is distinct from the voices of the characters. More important, the author’s words need to be grammatically correct and spelled right. Dialog is the place for peculiar idioms, misused words, slang, jumbled syntax, mangled rhetoric, etc. That’s how people speak. The unseen author may write informally, using contractions and colorful metaphors, for example, but should always be aware of the differences between spoken and written language. In short, the author needs to write more elegantly about the characters than the characters themselves speak in dialog.
Give your stories wings!
