Re: Ookami to Koushinryou / Wolf and Spice
Posted: Thu Feb 07, 2008 3:51 am
Something to think about for now: Regarding the unique manner of Horo's speech, someone suggested Shakespearean earlier, but I think that's too strong. Consider Ista's manner of speech and thought in Lois McMaster Bujold's novel, "The Curse of Chalion". It is at times high-born and courtly, but far from Shakespearean. There are other qualities to it as well, I can't properly describe it any further, if anyone's interested you'll have to read it for yourself. (I'll see if I can think up other similar examples. It's an excellent book btw.) Would that be a good English parallel to Horo's? It's also useful to keep in mind what Koshimizu Ami said about her role as Horo, in particular that "If you overdo it, it becomes like dialect." I think the key is really a light touch, not a heavy one. I haven't translated anything related to her beyond her thoughts in the prologue, so I can't properly judge for myself yet.
The other characters also seem to use oldish speech, other characters from Bujold's Chalion series, Ursula Le Guin's Earthsea series and the non-hobbit characters from Lord of the Rings might be useful models as well. Outside of character speech, is the general style of writing also oldish (to a lesser degree)? The pages I've worked on so far seem pretty normal.
The other characters also seem to use oldish speech, other characters from Bujold's Chalion series, Ursula Le Guin's Earthsea series and the non-hobbit characters from Lord of the Rings might be useful models as well. Outside of character speech, is the general style of writing also oldish (to a lesser degree)? The pages I've worked on so far seem pretty normal.