Concept

Narrative voice

You might say: voice, style, tone

The personality you hear in the narration: word choice, rhythm, attitude and how much the narrator comments. It is not the same as the author’s own voice.

What it does

Colours every line: the same event reads differently in a different voice.

Ask

If I hid the name, would you know this narrator?

Trouble

The prose is correct but could be anyone’s.

What to look for

1. Distinct word choice across the narration
2. A recurring rhythm and attitude
3. A narrator who comments by choice

Sources

1. OpenStax, Writing Guide, §4.5In writing, your voice is the sum total of the words you choose, the way you use them, the attitude you project by your word choice, the mood you create

Use it on your project

teardown-apply: hold "Narrative voice" (narrative-voice) from the teardown at https://teardownatlas.com/fiction-writing/ against my project

Paste it into a coding agent that has the teardown skills.

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