Literary Agent Natalie Fischer On Nailing Voice — And a 1st Chapter Crit

by Martina Boone

Natalie Fischer has recently moved from the Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency to the Bradford Agency. While she isn’t accepting submissions yet, she expects to get rolling soon. In the meantime, we’ve been lucky to have her answer a few questions on the topic of voice, one of the hardest things for most writers to nail down. She also has a great blog with more information, and she tweets at @Natalie_Fischer.

First Chapter Critique Giveaway

Want to know if your voice is right for your manuscript? For the market? Comment and fill out the form below! To help us celebrate the one year anniversary of this blog (with even more giveaways), Natalie has generously donated a 1st chapter critique for a random winner. We’ll draw the name and post it Saturday.

Interview

Question: How would you describe the difference between voice, style, and language in a manuscript?

Natalie: Language is diction: the word choices, the literal language of nationality. Style is the form: short, choppy, flowing, poetic, lyrical. Voice is the personality, the person behind the words that makes the reader forget about the author, and dive into a life. It’s what you remember about the characters long after you’ve forgotten their names.

Question: What mistakes do you see writers make when trying to develop or show a “voice”?

Natalie: I think the biggest mistake is to try and show voice through style or language. Using heavy slang or methods like “Southern dialogue” are annoying, not effective. Voice is a point of view, a perspective that is unique to only one person. It has emotion, history, a sense of place, and senses. These things are shown in unison with style and language, but not reliant on them to be clear.

Question: What is it about a voice that makes you sit up and take notice, and what makes you stop reading?

Natalie: I think what makes me fall in love with a voice is one that I can relate to. What makes me stop reading is one I can’t. Very simple, really, and oh so subjective!

Question: What kind of voices are being done too often or not well enough?

Natalie: I think the most common voice is snarky in tone (and my personal favorite), and the hardest voice to do well is middle grade.

Question: As an agent, what is more important to you: concept, character, action/plot, or voice–and why?

Natalie: Voice, voice, voice! It’s the hardest to fix. If you have voice down, the rest can be thought up.

Question: Name three books that you love for their plot.

Natalie: Am I allowed to use the Harry Potter books – all of them? Is that a cop-out?

Question: Name three books you love for the memorable characters.

Natalie: Jane Austen and Charles Dickens were masters of memorable characters. I’d also have to say Ella from ELLA ENCHATED is one of my favorite characters of all time.

Question: Name three books where the voice blew you away.

Natalie: I’d rather pick a genre: Romance. Romance novels are ALL about voice; from the first page, first sentence, it hits you with a “bam!”

To combine these all up, I think Time Traveler’s wife was the ideal blend of plot, character development, and voice; that elusive “high-concept upmarket” novel everyone talks about. It’s my favorite example for voice, because you can so CLEARLY picture these characters.

Question: If you could describe your ideal book, what would it be?

Natalie: You know, I really can’t say; my tastes change so frequently that the only real answer I have is that it would be one that I can read over and over and over again and still be SO excited about. I will say that someone once asked me what movie would best describe my tastes, and surprisingly enough, THE FIFTH ELEMENT popped first into my mind. So I’ll go with that.

Question: What is on the top of your wish list for 2011?

Natalie: A six-figure deal. 😉

Bonus Tip from Natalie

Last tips on voice: don’t be afraid to let parts of yourself shine through into your characters; those voices become the most real. Explain your character through your unique view of the world, and you can’t go wrong.

Martina Boone

Martina Boone is the award-winning author of the romantic southern gothic Heirs of Watson Island series, starting with COMPULSION from Simon & Schuster, Simon Pulse and the Celtic Legends Collection of novels set in Scotland, Cornwall, and Ireland beginning with LAKE OF DESTINY. She’s passionate about improving lives through literacy and the love of books, and she runs the Compulsion For Reading program to distribute books to underserved schools and libraries.

She lives with her husband, children, Shetland Sheepdog Phinney, and Zoey the lopsided cat, and she enjoys writing contemporary romantic fiction with a hint of magic set in small towns and beautiful places. When she isn’t writing, she’s addicted to travel, horses, skiing, chocolate flavored tea, and anything with Nutella on it.

Post © Martina Boone and/or Adventures in YA Publishing. All rights reserved.

Posted: Mar 10, 2011

Category: Imported from AYAP

Tags: #contests | Craft of Writing | Voice

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The first slide is an animation of a science/magic room in a castle. A cartoon character of a mad-scientist looking man in in the foreground says: “Hello! Dr. Frankenstein here to say, Well Done on kid lit zombie week! I’m an expert at reviving the dead, and let me assure you, with a little spark, you can bring dead projects to life. Especially if you dig up parts from other dead things. I’ll even let you have a sneak peek at my laboratory’s store room to consider potential parts for your dead project. If you see something with a yellow glow, that means you should click it. Have fun!”

He points to the right side of the screen and a new scene slides in of a castle science/magic storage room. There are various cartoon Frankenstein body parts scattered around. Some of them have a yellow glow. If you click on them, the images below appear (I’ve added alt text to them, so I hope it works).

The Heart of your story is the main character. The protagonist is the beating core that truly brings your story to life. If your MC doesn't make kids (and their grown-ups) care within the first few pages, your story will flatline. </p>
<p>Your main character needs to be:<br />
• Relatable enough for kids to see themselves<br />
• Unique enough to stand out in the slush pile<br />
• Active enough to drive the story<br />
• Memorable enough to survive multiple readings at bedtime</p>
<p>Where do you find this amazing donor heart? It might be the very thing you loved so much about the manuscript you want to revive. It might be the younger sister from your shelved YA novel. Or maybe it’s the hilarious kid you blogged about meeting at a school visit. Find a character beating with potential and place it in the center of your story.<br />

The Brain of your story is the theme or central message. The theme is the big idea that controls everything else. Picture books are more than stories - they're tiny life lessons disguised with humor and heart.</p>
<p>But your theme needs to be:<br />
• Subtle enough not to trigger the dreaded "didactic" rejection<br />
• Clear enough for a four-year-old to grasp<br />
• Universal enough to speak to both kids and adults<br />
• Fresh enough to prevent agents and editors from responding with "Not another sharing/bedtime/first-day story!"</p>
<p>Check your other dead manuscripts to see if there is a recurring theme, something that really seems to be speaking to you. Find the bit of poetry you scribbled on the back of a receipt to see what theme inspired it. Reread the pep talk you texted your critique partner at 1am. Pick the theme that will drive your story, giving it purpose, direction, and deeper meaning.<br />

The Legs of your story is the plot. Not to be confused with a grave plot.🤪 The plot is what keeps everything upright and moving, as well as providing support for all the other elements. You have very few words to use in a picture book, so you need to do a lot with each plot point.</p>
<p>In general, your plot should:<br />
• Hook readers fast<br />
• Build tension that a child can follow<br />
• Create page turns that feel natural<br />
• Wrap up in a way that satisfies</p>
<p>You can borrow a plot twist (a leg) from one manuscript and the opening (the other leg) from a different manuscript. Consider if the subplot of the middle grade novel you trunked would work better as a picture book. Or maybe your Facebook post about a disastrous camping trip could become a story for kids. Just keep putting one foot in front of the other until you have your storyline.

The Arms of your story are the side characters.

The Torso of your story is the setting. Setting helps a story breathe and connects all the elements of the story. It isn't just where your story lives, it's what makes your story ALIVE. It's the difference between "this happened in a park" and "this happened in that park, the one with the twisty slide that burns your legs and the creaky swing that sounds like a baby crying.”</p>
<p>Your setting should:<br />
• Make your character's world feel real<br />
• Contain your story in a way that makes sense to young readers<br />
• Connect different scenes and moments organically<br />
• Give your illustrator enough room to add visual subplots</p>
<p>Half-finished manuscripts are a great place to dig up settings, since you worked out the place details before the plot petered out. Or maybe you had to cut a second fantastic location from your chapter book. You can also revisit the detailed caption from your Instagram carousel documenting your tour of that delish candy shop. Disinter a robust setting that can house all of your story's vital organs.

After you press the Click When Done circle button, the lights flash with the sound of electricity buzzing. Then the screen goes black and lightning zaps across the screen with the sound of thunder.

The screen then lights up to show the storage room, and all the Frankenstein pieces have been assembled into the whole monster. An upbeat song plays in the background. Then a speech bubble pops up with the words, “I’m alive! I’M ALIVE!” Then the screen goes to black.

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