http://doesdoctorstuff.livejournal.com/ ([identity profile] doesdoctorstuff.livejournal.com) wrote in [community profile] fandomhigh2014-10-30 03:05 pm
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Creative Writing--So Simple Even You Can Do It! (Probably)

On the board there were some...words...written when the students came in.

"S'pose we must be resigned; but oh Lord! how ken I? If I know'd anything whar you's goin', or how they'd sarve you! Missis says she'll try and 'deem ye, in a year or two; but Lor! nobody never comes up that goes down thar! They kills 'em! I've hearn 'em tell how dey works 'em up on dem ar plantations."

"So, we've already talked about making sure your characters don't sound the same, and make sure you use different words for them. But there's another way to make sure all your characters sound different, and it's also an easy way to shove some background diversity in there while you're doing it. Today, we're talking about eye-dialects!"

"Now these are really useful writing tools, because you can pack SO MUCH into just a sentence! With an eye-dialect, you show that your character is from somewhere different, and talks funny, and so they stand out from the rest of your cast! In fact, you can just give a bunch of your characters eye-dialects and then you don't have to spend much more time on making them special or unique! Just throw some zh's in for t's or use a v instead of an s and BAM! You've got a character that people can already just assume a lot about because they talk funny--where they come from, how smart they are, everything! And the best part is? You can just leave it there! Nothing else is needed, just some wacky misspellings and a letter substitution or two and your work as an author is done!"

And anything that made writing easier was something to be used liberally. "Now, the important thing is to make sure that your character is always speaking in dialect. You can't just have them use one or two words, oh no! You want them to be authentic, right? It doesn't matter how difficult it makes reading become--if your book is good enough, your characters will be invested!" She pointed up to the blackboard. "That quote's from a book by Harriet Beecher Stowe and shows a lot of dedication! I want to see all your writing look like that!"

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