Hi Lee, I don’t think voice is a gimmick, whether in fiction or memoir. I think it’s a cross-pollination between verbal expertise and the vision and passion of the writer.
Hi David - we will definitely kick this idea around a bit. Verbal expertise + vision/passion. Noted.
I don’t necessarily think “gimmick” is altogether pejorative. Huck Finn’s voice is a gimmick, but one we buy. I can cite many others of course.
With memoir, I think there’s a different tenor to the voice of a real person vs someone like Huck Finn. But there are gimmicky memoir voices, a put-on persona for the sake of presenting a version of self. Where the crux lies is in whether the voice promotes authenticity and honesty about that person and their life events.
If that voice is stretched the wrong way or too thin, we stop believing it.
What makes us believe the voice and go along for the ride?
Thanks for commenting, David. Maybe we can get more people to participate.
Hi Lee, I don’t think voice is a gimmick, whether in fiction or memoir. I think it’s a cross-pollination between verbal expertise and the vision and passion of the writer.
Hi David - we will definitely kick this idea around a bit. Verbal expertise + vision/passion. Noted.
I don’t necessarily think “gimmick” is altogether pejorative. Huck Finn’s voice is a gimmick, but one we buy. I can cite many others of course.
With memoir, I think there’s a different tenor to the voice of a real person vs someone like Huck Finn. But there are gimmicky memoir voices, a put-on persona for the sake of presenting a version of self. Where the crux lies is in whether the voice promotes authenticity and honesty about that person and their life events.
If that voice is stretched the wrong way or too thin, we stop believing it.
What makes us believe the voice and go along for the ride?
Thanks for commenting, David. Maybe we can get more people to participate.