A Character's Voice

In critique groups, I often ask a member whether he wants the reader to read the character's voice in the same way the author reads it aloud.  A writer, reading his own work, reads narrative and dialogue in the voice he hears as when writes and edits.  How do you convey that sound, that unique way of speaking that is part of the character you are creating and developing?

Four ways:

1.   Sentence structure: requires that the author be skilled and have a degree of mastery of the craft of writing- vocabulary, grammar and imagination.  Also, a sense of patience and dedication to do it right, to be thorough and diligent in producing the words and syntax that will make the character's voice reflected in the mind of the reader.

2.   Word emphasis: almost any word in a sentence can be emphasized, vocally, and emphasizing different words give the sentence different connotations.

Italicize the correct word for the reader to emphasize.

3.   Dialect: it takes effort and consistency to illustrate in writing what a word sounds like the way the character pronounces it.  It is essential, however, if you want the character to be authentic.

4.   Cadence: use punctuation—commas , m-dashes and ellipses—to  match the written dialogue to the stops and starts, hesitations and pauses in the character's speech.

These instructions are probably listed in many books and articles.  I made them up this morning, however, over a cup of tea.