A student’s contemporary romance had a well-educated (as in PhD) female protagonist who meets a country bumpkin kind of guy as the love interest. Nothing wrong there, I suppose, but I noted the writer’s tone and voice seemed kind of slippery. One moment the tone was serious and the next the writer threw in groaners of puns, jokes, etc.
Writing Tip for Today: When any writer wobbles in tone, the result is that the reader is unsure of how to react to the characters and their situations. If you want a character to be taken seriously, and if you want the reader to stay on, consider these things:
- Decide on the novel’s tone and stick to it. No matter how clever you are with the jokes, if they deviate from the overall tone they may not be taken in the spirit you intend. While the most depressing theme usually needs some sort of comic relief, be sure it’s what that character would really say or do.
- Just because you think of jokes doesn’t mean you have to use them. Your critique group may get a kick out of a punny one-liner, but remember to sift for tone via your character’s motivation and circumstances. Especially if you’re writing scenes that are hardly ever funny, such as the death of a child, war gore or other violence.
- Beware of cuteness. There’s a fine line between “Aw, ain’t that cute?” and a maudlin or smarmy piece of prose. And it’s doubly hard to maintain a “cute” tone for a novel-length work. Shoot for meaningful rather than simply sentimental.
Thank you for your post. I write that down in my notes and remember it. I appreciate all wisdom you give us.
Glenda Parker
http://glendaparkerfictionwriter.blogspot.com
You’re quite welcome. Keep writing, Glenda. ~Linda
Interesting post. I would love to hear just a little more on this topic of tone. Thanks Linda!
Have a wonderful Sunday!