The Pros & Cons of Multiple ‘Voices’ in Fiction
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The pros…
Let’s start with the advantages of writing with different ‘voices’ in fiction— the reasons why I switch things up for my different series.
If you follow me on social media, you know that I write in these genres:
Urban fantasy (Poison Blood Series, Witch’s Blood Series)
Epic fantasy (Heir to the Throne Trilogy)
Contemporary romance (Soulmates Saga, Love & Alternatives Duology).
I don’t use different pen names for the different genres, which a lot of authors tend to do when they write for more than one audience. But I switch up my writing style and my ‘voice’ depending on the genre I’m writing in and the story I’m telling. I don’t have one recognisable author ‘voice’ running through all my books.
Rest assured, my ‘voice’ within each individual series is consistent.
I don’t approach my serious romance novels (Soulmates Saga) in the same way as my slightly lighter, cute wedding romance (Love & Alternatives Duology) even though they are both aimed at adults, or my fun, fast-paced YA urban fantasy books (Poison Blood and Witch’s Blood Series). Readers of each of these sub-genres expect and like a certain type of storytelling and certain story beats, which are specific to those genres.
You have to meet readers’ expectations and satisfy them. Your ‘voice’ has to sound right — or rather, read right to each audience. Else, they’ll be left underwhelmed and disappointed.
But I still need to tie all my books together, don’t I? Something that makes my books mine. Therefore, one thing that is always the same in all my books, regardless of genre, is the character-driven aspect to them. I try to ensure that my characters are well thought-out and well-developed, and I ensure that you understand their actions and decisions.
My writing ‘voice’ might change a little — or a lot — with the genre, and you might not recognise it when you read my urban fantasy novels after reading my contemporary romance books, or vice versa, but you’ll know it’s a Neha Yazmin book because of the depths of the characters. It’s very important to me that the audience understands the complicated people in my stories as…
