This started off as a tangent on the last post, but it got too lengthy, so I dropped it in its own.
Before I continue, did you read the other post? I have two new ones up for today to make up for the random vanishing act. Go check that one out first! ^_^
Back? Alrighty then. So, as I mentioned in the last post, I'm growing more confident in my characters all having not only differing personalities, but voices as well. I mean, I can tell when one is talking versus the others because of how the statement is said and the little visual clues that come along with it. I thought it was just sort of an instinctive author thing, but I'm now realizing that it's because they're truly their own people and have their own way of talking.
It excited me to realize that. So I wanted to showcase how my characters all differ both in personality as well as speech. I also wanted to showcase what I meant when I said that each of The Girls was a bit of me.
Lia is my bashful and maternal side. The side of me that most people see. She's playful but protecting. Probably one of the reasons I got all giddy whenever Chayse - who is VERY much my husband - did anything to woo Lia. Lia is - more or less - who I am. When we first started X-Future and she was a younger teen she was unsure of herself, routinely fell in to her nervous tick of biting her lip and playing with her hair, she'd playfully punch people in the shoulder to accentuate her statement, and she loved calling Chayse names like "Swamp Brain". That last part I blame on all of my Percy Jackson reading since the character Annabeth routinely picks on Percy about being a "Seaweed Brain".
Anyway, after the time jump and Lia had two years to mature and train, she became more confident in herself and her abilities. She also became very maternal and protective of those she cares about. There's this one scene when she's walking Crystal around the Institute and something happens that forces Lia to protect Crystal. It surprised me how Mama Bear Lia became. I don't know why I was so surprised if Lia is me, however. I'm called Mama Bear by my friends all the time.
Lia's voice reflects all of that personality. She may use the same words as the other girls, but when she was younger it was filled with doubt or cheesy insults to mask the insecurity. As an older teen her words are filled with confidence, but concern. Even though she's not the oldest, she certainly speaks and acts like she's the mother of the students.
If Lia is who I am than Willow is who I want to be - well, partially. Willow is confident, playful, and a prankster. She knows she's got what everybody wants, regardless of sex. She is mad flirtatious and exudes sexuality. Being overly flirtatious - especially since more often than not she's not actually interested in the person she flirts with - tends to get her in trouble, but she loves to do it anyway. She basks in the attention. Even after she aged she's still the same-old-Willow. She's toned down the flirting a LOT after getting in to a relationship, but she hasn't stopped completely; just ask Crystal and Tyler. She's still sarcastic and playful, usually trying to joke around in serious situations to try to lighten the mood. But she's also learned when to get serious and work as a unit.
Willow's voice is full of confidence, flirtation, and sarcasm. She's a sweet talker who uses pet-names a lot and likes to say whatever she needs to in order to get someone's blood going. Although she's older than Lia she definitely acts like a sixteen-year-old hormonal girl in contrast to Lia's mothering.
Trish is my dark, pyro side of me. If there were no rules - or if I didn't have a conscious - I might have ended up like Trish. She's this tiny thing, but she still can give most people this cold chill just from looking at them. She has this "Don't Mess With Me" attitude most people comply with; Quicksilver and Devon being the exceptions - well, them as well as Deadpool and Wolverine, but they're interrogating Trish so it doesn't count. She is OBSESSED with fire and has two personalities linked to that obsession. There's the Wild Fire half where Trish just gets so angry she flies off the handle and goes wild herself. She doesn't think, she just does. It usually gets her in trouble. The second half is the slow, controlled burn. She's calculating and vicious. She'll figure out how to get out of a situation and she'll figure out greatest way to hurt her enemies. Nyssa needs to be weary that Trish linked her to Devon - who is Trish's main enemy at this point.
Trish is the easiest to figure out voice wise. She's constantly cursing - usually dropping the f-bomb, which I can't stand... - and her words are either filled with a chilling confidence, or a rush of anger. She will either intimidate you with her burning calm or her wild anger.
Crystal isn't really a part of me since she was an NPC I just took over. She's a young teenage fangirl who landed on cloud nine when her celebrity obsession became her boyfriend. She's a bit awkward and bashful - as most fourteen-year-old girls are. She's definitely a bit of a prude, a side I discovered leading up to Prom. She has moments where she rambles endlessly and she likes taking charge whenever she does find something she's confident in. She doesn't mean to be rude, but she's blunt and speaks her mind.
Her dialect is slightly different from the others because she's from Ireland, but since I didn't research Ireland's typical speech patterns her voice isn't too authentic for her upbringing. The main way to know it's Crystal speaking is that bluntness. It's not exactly Willow's sarcasm or Trish's cruelty. She just speaks her mind with little filter. You creep the bejeezus out of her and she'll let you know. If she thinks you're hiding something she'll call you out on it. Not too many people like her because of this trait. That, and the rambling whenever she's excited or nervous.
Beyond that though, I also have different voices for my other two main characters: Neghya from the Vampire LARP and Amara from D&D.
Neghya doesn't know when to shut up or get serious. She's a much more intense version of Willow. Even when she knows her comments will get her in trouble she'll still be cocky or sarcastic. It's not so much to break up the tension, but it's her way of showing she's a bad ass. She had been living nomadicly on her own for nearly a decade before becoming a vampire. She used her sarcasm and wit to get by and bluff about how tough she was. It's sort of a defense mechanism. If she feels really out of her element the sarcasm and stupid remarks seems to increase to try to show confidence and cockiness where there isn't any. But she also knows when to just shut up and watch everyone else like a hawk to quickly pick up the lay of the land and the best action to take to keep from getting killed.
Amara tried to turn herself in to a closed off robot. I'm sure you've seen the time in movies, anime, or read about them in books. It's the trope of being seriously emotionally hurt, and so the secretly overly emotional warrior becomes an emotionless robot to keep from being hurt again. Instead the character hides behind the Intimidating Warrior persona, militaristic strategy, logic, and might. Amara shies from showing emotion. She's very calculating and is slow to speak, making sure that when she does it's cold, precise, and worth someone hearing. Her conversing is mostly done through death glares.
So, what do you think? If you have your own original characters, how do they differ from each other? Are they bits of you as well? Is one of your characters a trope like Amara is? Let me know in the comments. ^_^
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