Just something I'm struggling with and thought I'd ask for advice on - how do you guys make your characters' voices unique? How do you keep your dialogue consistent with that characterisation without having them fall back on the same few catchphrases?
(I've been trying to improve my dialogue writing and I've come to the conclusion that the problem lies mainly with how similar my characters sound to each other.)
Well, I usually try to put myself into the minds of the characters talking. Certain characters are from poorer areas, and that shows in their speech patterns, and others had higher educations, so they speak more…elegantly, if that makes sense? I don't typically use written accents though, 'cause it's weird and annoying, but I might mention it after the character speaks.
You just gotta know how your characters talk, and what words they would know and know how to use. Maybe a character tries to use big words, but doesn't quite know what they mean, or at least how to use them. Maybe give certain characters catch phrases, favorite things to say and favorite words. The gods know I repeat the same damn things all the time. My new word is 'me', said with enthusiasm.
One thing I do, is cause many of my characters are similar, except in experiences. So I usually try to put an emotion to their words, how are they going to voice whatever they're saying in a given situation?
For example: The topic of a conversation, happens to be torture for whatever reason, and one of my characters has been tortured. Because he's a part of said situation, he might become less vocal, and his words may be shorter, and more to the point. Whereas when the topic is light, and airy, the same character might be more vocal, and even making jokes.
I realize this can more accurately be put to actions, but when you think about it a lot of human reactions and how we speak about things is based on prior experience. Think about what a character has already been through, or what their views on a particular situation are. Do they fidget when they talk? If so, then how? Does it change depending on how they are feeling?
Another one would be feelings, if a character is sick or upset, their words may be more blunt, or maybe eloquent, or sassy, depends on the character.
Point is, (through all my randomness) it depends on the character, how they're feeling, and the current situation, and their views on said situation.
That makes sense, thank you both!
(Happy to help!)