How would you describe yourself as a person?
That's right. Writing with a personality can sound difficult and daunting at first for writers who might be struggling to find their style. For anyone who wonders how they can start developing and owning their writing style, check my previous blogs out.
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Today, I will cover how you could inject personality into your work. It has a lot to do with tone and choice of words so let's get started!
#1: Trademark Slangs / Sayings / Spelling / Punctuation
We have that one weird friend who always says something or does something that is so uniquely them. In writing, it is the same. I like to spell my "Yupp" with 2 "p"s. I also spell "Ok" the way it is instead of Grammarly's "Okay" suggestion. Also, I spell my "gray" in American even though I write everything else in British English.
It has become my trademark. Don't feel afraid to invent certain words either. For instance, "sex on legs" and "Typoist" are some of the things that my readers remember and relate to me. For Aina, my co-author for The Mafia Boss is my Web Novel Fan!, she has a habit of overusing exclamation marks in her writing. Also, she has a habit of placing a speech before a person's name. Those things make her writing recognisable in a sea of other writers.
#2: Choice of Words / Phrasing Sequence
Depending on the kind of person you are, the choice of words we use in daily conversation will bleed into our writing. If you are a confident person, there is a possibility that your tone in writing would convey your preference for making declarations and statements instead of the polite permission seeking style that less confident writers might use.
The structure of our writing also gives readers an insight into the writer's personality. Do you find yourself putting the cart before the horse or jumping right into the abyss headfirst? Are you the kind of writer who meanders along with details before getting to your destination or someone who leaves as soon as the business is done?
How you write the story will give readers some clues about your personality in writing. For instance, I often structure my blog in a military-style with bold subheadings and proper paragraphing that might indicate my disciplined character. However, the tone that I use could come across as a more sarcastic and slightly humourous individual that could point at my intellectual and fun-loving traits.
#3: Narration Style
The narration style is a combination of the above two points. Many writers fail to realise that in writing a story, two things are happening. The first is to convey the plot to the reader. Most writers stop here and think that they've done a great job. Once the story is over, the readers disappear and they wonder why.
Writing a story isn't solely about the plot. It is an encrypted love letter from the author to the reader in the form of the narration style that reveals parts of the author to their readers. I often claim that it is the writers that create the kind of readers they have in their community. If an author is shy, the readers tend to be painfully shy as well. If an author is sweet, the community is naturally sweet too. If an author is savage, their readers will roast the author as well. If the author is money-minded, so are the readers.
It could be tricky to understand how you are portraying yourself in your writing so I would recommend writers to take a look at the type of readers they have to analyse what sort of personality they are showing the world.
In conclusion...
Unlike art and music, there are not many ways to boldly differentiate yourself from other writers. However, for readers who notice a lot of things, these details are what make you unique to them and special. So don't be afraid to explore and set the trend!