Saturday, September 25, 2010

Linda Pratt talks about Voice

Linda Pratt (agent with Sheldon Fogelman Agency) talked about voice.
Voice in children’s books (and any book) is the key thing that agents, editors, & readers look for.

Voice is something that is developed. Most artists & most authors are not self-taught. Writers must be readers first. Writers great with voice must be good listeners.

Linda says, “Voice is the personality and the whole life history of a character when they speak.”

Look at who the character is and the language they use. Word choice and sentence structure can tell the reader a lot about the character.

Some exercises Linda recommends for honing your voice include:
*Eavesdrop on conversations.
*Read for pleasure, then re-read later. Study the work.
*Read your work aloud.

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