[Writingworkshop] narrative voice

[Neale Morison]

So. You're ready to write something in second person, but you're not 
sure of the voice . You know, you might find that there are some answers 
in technical writing. Frequently, to avoid weighty formality and the 
excessive use of passive voice, you may wish to speak directly to the 
reader, almost as an old friend. You take them through the steps, one by 
one, offering advice, a tip, a trick. Warning: You should first ensure 
that the audience is willing to accept this level of informality. Some 
people may feel it is like unsolicited touching.
If you are writing the story of your life, you could write as if you 
were instructing the reader how to behave as you. An example, no 
resemblance to your life intended:

You open your eyes. Still breathing.Your wiggle your toes. Cold, but 
nevertheless they move. You stretch your limbs, your back. No worse than 
yesterday. Are you going to do it the easy way, make the small effort to 
rotate your legs out of bed and let them fall so the weight will lever 
the rest of you up, or is today the day? The hard way, full use of the 
abs, not even a bounce to break the inertia? You take a breath, you 
concentrate your forces, and hah! You're sitting bolt upright in bed, 
your heart beating at twice the rate, your torso a degree warmer. You 
narrow your eyes and smile grimly. This day is not going to know what 
hit it.




Adam Holland wrote:
> OK, so my 15th college reunion is coming up, and there's the usual 
> "submit a brief description of what you are up to for the class bulletin"
> I usualyl eschew these, bu since the 5 year intervlas actually result 
> in a published volume, I submit something then, but try to have some 
> fun with it.
>
> For example, at my 10th, I rewrote the intro to one of the Conan 
> collections so that it was about me.
> "At this stage in Holland's wanderings, he is in his early thirties, 
> and at the height of his powers... etc."
>
> So I'm trying to decide what would be funny for this one, because If 
> I'm just going to do the boiler plate crap, what's the point?
>
> One idea I had was to somehow write it in the 2nd person.  But, I'd 
> like to see some models if possible.
> Are there any available examples of this being done even reasonably 
> well? 
>
> Adam
>
>     / From the discomfort of truth there is only one refuge, and that
>     is ignorance.
>     I do not need to be comfortable, and I will not take refuge.
>     I demand to know./
>
>
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-- 
Neale Morison
neale at nealemorison.com
http://www.nealemorison.com
35 Frazer St, Leichhardt NSW 2040
+61 417 661 427

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