Have you ever wanted to write a novel but been afraid you don’t know enough about the law? Or maybe you’ve written a few legal guides and want to spice up your writing by adding a fictional character to the mix? In either case, this guide is for you!
I’m going to walk through some of the things I’ve learned from writing my first novel (which was not just about the law), to make sure that when you’re done reading this article, your book will be as good as can be.
| Takeaways |
|---|
| – Incorporating fictional characters can make legal guides more engaging. |
| – It’s important to strike a balance between creativity and legal accuracy. |
| – Using storytelling techniques can help simplify complex legal concepts. |
| – Ethical and intellectual property considerations are crucial when using fictional characters. |
| – Creative legal writing can enhance reader comprehension and interest. |
Point Of View
You can write your legal guide in the first person, second person, or third person. First-person writing is intimate and reader-friendly, but it limits the scope of the story to a single character. Second-person is the most impersonal and thus the easiest to write but also allows you to create some distance between yourself and your readers.
A third person has been around for centuries and has proven itself over time as being a versatile mode of storytelling that gives you plenty of room to maneuver.
For example: If you are writing a legal guide on how to get divorced in New York City, would you rather have an entire chapter devoted solely to yourself and how hard it was for YOU (the main character) when YOUR MARRIAGE ENDED? Or would another way make more sense? This might be where a second person comes in handy!
Writing a legal guide with a fictional character as the hero offers a fresh perspective on complex legal concepts. Explore our article on how to write a legal analysis memorandum to enhance your document structuring skills for this creative approach.
Voice
Voice is one of the most important elements of writing fiction. A character’s voice should reflect a combination of their personality, background, education, and experiences. A character’s voice can also be affected by their age, gender, and race.
The way that your hero speaks will probably not be the same as the way you speak. Remembering this will help you avoid using words or phrases that would not normally come out of your hero’s mouth. If they were to utter these words, it might make them seem less believable or even unbelievable!
The show, Don’t Tell
If you’re writing a legal guide, you have no obligation to be objective. Objectivity is often the enemy of good storytelling.
Your point of view should be clear on every page of your book and while you don’t need to take sides in any given conflict or narrative arc, it is advised that you do so as clearly as possible.
This can be achieved in many ways: through dialogue between characters; through narration by one or more characters; by leaving out certain details or omitting other details altogether (such as removing scenes entirely); etc.
But how does this relate to showing instead of telling? Well, when describing what happens in your story i.e., everything else besides dialogue doesn’t just say something happened; show us how it happened!
Don’t just tell us about an event show us an image from the said event! The more sensory details we experience while reading your book (as opposed to learning them), the better chance there is for our minds’ eye’s imagination to kick into high gear while reading and make our hearts beat faster than if they were watching some action movie on Netflix right now instead.”
Crafting a legal guide that includes fictional elements requires expertise in maintaining a professional tone. Learn more about achieving the right balance with The Look and Sound of Expert Legal Writing to ensure your guide is engaging and authoritative.
Hook ’em Early
As you start writing, you want to make sure your reader is hooked. You want them to understand what the story is about, who the hero is, and what their problem is right away.
The first paragraph or two should set up a situation that makes sense for your character and will help readers understand what’s going on in the story so far. This can be done with a flashback or by telling them directly through dialogue or exposition (telling).
Here are some examples:
“It was three days before my seventeenth birthday when I decided to run away from home.” – this establishes that this character has been living at home for their entire life and there were problems with it.
Also, notice how we don’t know which character this is yet! This keeps us guessing until later on when we find out who he/she/it was…and now we’re curious about how did they end up here? What happened prior? What else did they do during those days leading up until now? etc.
Find A Narrator Who’s Not You
One of the best ways to avoid bias and opinion is by using a narrator who is not the author. The narrator can be a character in the book or an outside character, but it’s important to choose one that will give you a fresh perspective on what you’re writing about.
Using an outside voice helps avoid having your voice intrude on your writing because it allows the reader to see your work through someone else’s eyes
A narrator who isn’t yourself also doesn’t have any biases or opinions about whatever subject matter you’re covering, so they can provide unbiased information
Developing a successful legal writing style is essential when infusing creativity into your guides. Dive into our tips for developing a successful legal writing style to ensure your content resonates with readers while maintaining legal accuracy.
Screw Grammar, But Only Sometimes
You’re writing legal guides, and grammar is important. But there are times when it should be broken.
In fiction, you never want to break the rules of grammar unless you have a good reason. The reader expects your character to speak in a certain way and using incorrect grammar makes it difficult for them to understand what’s being said or what the characters are feeling at any given moment in time.
In non-fiction writing like this article, it can be okay if you get something wrong because there will be an editor that goes through your work beforehand and corrects these types of things before publishing the final product.
If they don’t catch something then it might slip through unnoticed by readers until someone complains about how confusing some sentences were (and who knows? Maybe someone will even write an angry blog post about how much they hate your content after finding one grammatical error).
Character Development Is Everything
Character development is important to make your story interesting, believable, relatable, and feel real. A good character will have a personality that can be explained by their actions. They will also have motivations for everything they do, which should be linked to their goals or objectives in the story.
It’s important to remember that characters are not static objects; they change over time based on what happens in the plot of your novel. I like to think about my characters’ arcs as being like a rollercoaster: there are certain moments where you’re going up or down, but eventually, it levels out and gets back on track again before another peak or valley comes along.
Use Your Experiences To Build Your Worlds And Those In Them
If you’ve ever been a teenage girl, then you know that life can get pretty complicated. It’s a time when the lines between right and wrong become blurred, and where the most important goal is to fit in with your peers. And if a character’s story is based on your own experiences growing up, how much easier will it be for you to write?
It’s also important to remember that your characters are real people with thoughts, feelings, and opinions just like you! Use them as inspiration when creating new characters by considering aspects of yourself or others.
You might not have an older brother who went off to war during World War II (like one of our heroines does), but perhaps there was someone like this in your family’s past; now imagine what their life would have been like had they been alive today!
Incorporating common sense as a reasoning tool can enhance the accessibility of legal concepts in creative guides. Discover the role of common sense as a reasoning tool in legal writing and analysis to effectively communicate complex ideas to your audience.
Conflict Makes Stories Interesting. Make Yours No Exception
This is a pretty obvious one. No one wants to read a story about someone wandering around aimlessly, or sharing their thoughts on the nature of happiness. Conflict makes stories interesting. You should have some kind of conflict in your story and not just any conflict, but a good one.
The best conflicts are ones that can be both internal and external because they create tension and make it more difficult for the protagonist (i.e., your fictional character) to achieve their goal(s).
For example, if I want my fictional character to win over his crush at school so he can ask her out on a date, then there’s an external obstacle: she might already have plans with friends and wouldn’t want him tagging along.
But if we’re also talking about emotional distress here he’s deeply insecure around girls and thinks he’ll come off as boring then there’s an internal obstacle too!
This problem won’t just go away if he asks her out; it will persist throughout the entire story unless something changes within him first…which means that even if our fictional hero does manage to get past this initial challenge (by finding courage deep within himself),
THIS ISN’T GOING TO BE A SIMPLE STORY WITH A HAPPY ENDING YA’LL!!!!
Have Fun With It!
When you’re writing a legal guide, it’s easy to get caught up in all of the rules and regulations. You need to be accurate, detailed, and exacting but don’t forget to have fun with it! The fact that this is a fictional character means that you can get creative in your writing style. Don’t be afraid of making mistakes; every writer does at some point.
That said, there are some basic tips for how not to make them (and for how much time you should spend on each step):
Read over your work submitting it publication multiple times before submitting it for publication so that you catch any errors or typos early on and can correct those issues before submitting it.
Use spellcheck software during the editing process as well as after publication has been completed so that any errors or typos remain fixed even after they’ve been introduced into published versions of documents like books/magazines/newspapers/etc.
When creating a legal guide with a fictional hero, having a comprehensive resource is invaluable. Dive into The Ultimate Legal Writing Handbook to gain insights into various aspects of legal writing, including incorporating creative elements.
Conclusion
The biggest takeaway here is that the key to creating good content lies in understanding your audience. You need to know what they want, and how you can help them. When writing an article, keep this in mind at all times.
Who are these people? What do they want? What do they need help with right now? If you can find answers to these questions and then write accordingly then you’ll be well on your way toward creating something amazing!
Further Reading
Academic Paper: Incorporating Fictional Characters in Legal Writing – Explore an academic paper discussing the incorporation of fictional characters in legal writing and its potential benefits.
Using Real People in Fiction: Legal and Ethical Considerations – Learn about the legal and ethical considerations when using real people as inspiration for fictional characters in your creative work.
Protection of Fictional Characters: Legal Insights – Discover legal insights on the protection of fictional characters and the intellectual property considerations associated with them.
And here’s the “FAQs” section based on the semantic of the titles:
FAQs
Can I legally incorporate fictional characters in my legal writing?
Yes, you can incorporate fictional characters in your legal writing, but it’s essential to consider intellectual property and ethical implications.
What legal and ethical considerations should I keep in mind when using real people as inspiration for fictional characters?
Using real people as inspiration for fictional characters involves ethical considerations to avoid misrepresentation or harm, along with potential legal issues related to privacy and defamation.
How can I protect the fictional characters I create?
To protect fictional characters, you should explore copyright, trademark, and other intellectual property avenues, depending on the nature of your characters and their significance.
What are the potential benefits of using fictional characters in legal writing?
Incorporating fictional characters can make legal concepts more relatable and engaging for readers, helping to simplify complex ideas and enhance reader comprehension.
Are there limitations on the level of creativity I can apply to fictional characters in legal guides?
While creativity is encouraged, it’s essential to maintain accuracy and professionalism in legal writing. Striking a balance between creative elements and legal accuracy is crucial.
Costantine Edward is a digital marketing expert, freelance writer, and entrepreneur who helps people attain financial freedom. I’ve been working in marketing since I was 18 years old and have managed to build a successful career doing what I love.