Accenting your characters

Y’all come in and set a spell. Let’s talk dialect.

Our characters come from all corners of the globe. There are accents and cultural differences that distinguish our characters. We want our characters to be real and who they are is a part of the charm, it makes them interesting.

Use accents and culture sparingly. Pretend that you are cooking and only a pinch of this spice or a sprinkle of that one is all you need for your recipe – dump a whole bottle into the pot and you most likely will ruin the dish.

“Speeek to me mademoiselle and you will know zee desire I have for you. Je t’adore my leetle beauty. I want to take you home to Pariee. How do you say, my love for you weel always beee.”

A little over the top, yes?

Once you create your Frenchman and you tell your readers (in the story of course) that he was born and raised outside of Paris and his name is Francois, you have already set the tone. Your readers will automatically allow their imaginations to hear his French accent. If you sprinkle a dab now and then of a colloquialism, maybe an occasional French word (Mon Dieu!) or perhaps throw in a gesture that seems French (like kissing the hand) and you have an authentic Frenchman.

Refrain from using stereotypes in your writing – you will more often offend your readers than entertain them. If you cannot personally observe people with the ethnic background you want to portray then go to the nearest DVD rental store and find a movie or two that you can study. Notice more than just the pronunciation; notice the mannerisms and the differences that are characteristic to that culture.

In the United States a native New Yorker will tend to be brasher and talk faster than the genteel southerner from South Carolina. My dad spent most of his childhood in Spanish Harlem while my mom was raised between North and South Carolina – when those two bickered over something you would swear that Ricky Ricardo and Scarlett O’Hara were having a set-to. Even after 32-years of being together, they sounded different, had different mannerisms and different reactions to situations.

Be aware of society's attitudes. American women are certainly more forward than those that are raised in the Middle East for instance. It doesn’t matter how liberated I feel I am as a modern woman raised in New York City, I have to be sure that the female lead in my current WIP (featuring Matt and his Pakistani born wife Seudah from Final Sin) is going to be naturally more reserved and will defer to her husband’s decisions.

There are a few other qualities you might want to make sure that you keep consistent. Someone who until recently spoke only a foreign language and just learned English might tend to confuse common idioms such as the NCIS character Ziva David does in most episodes – “Ziva: Crime scene skills are getting a bit dusty. McGee: Rusty.” People who learn English as a second language might tend to talk slower a try to be a little bit more precise; remember also how English can be very confusing so the foreign language student may stay away from common contractions.

When it comes to religious or cultural traditions, there is no need to make your novel into a textbook. Relate only one or two customs (learn them if you don’t know already) to set the scene. In my novel Forgotten, Caitlyn’s best friend Keisha married Malcolm in an African influenced ceremony. I only needed to include a few of the traditions to make the event seem authentic.

All it takes is a “sprinkle here and there” to suggest a dialect, ethnicity or cultural difference. Let your readers use their imaginations.

Writing prompt: What holiday observance tradition did you grow up with that was unique to the religion or culture you were celebrating? List two to three items that make you think of that specific ceremony.

Writing exercise: How many ways can you use each of the following words? Write 2-3 sentences for each word using different meanings? Produce, Wound, Polish, Present, Desert, Breath, Close, Dove, Can, Down, Sow, Tear, Object.