cc-agentic-framework 1.14.1

package/framework/modules/writer/skills/writer/writing-prose/CHARACTER-VOICE.md

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+# Character Voice Templates
+
+This document provides templates and examples for creating distinct character voices that differentiate naturally in dialogue and narration.
+
+## Voice Template Structure
+
+Use this template when developing a new character voice:
+
+```yaml
+voice-template:
+  name: "[Template Name]"
+  archetype: [cynical-hero|wise-elder|naive-youth|scheming-noble|etc]
+  base-influence: [zelazny-corwin|tolkien-gandalf|tolkien-frodo|etc]
+
+  traits:
+    - [Primary personality trait]
+    - [Secondary personality trait]
+    - [Tertiary personality trait]
+
+  speech-patterns:
+    internal: "[Sentence structure and rhythm for internal monologue]"
+    dialogue: "[Pattern for spoken dialogue]"
+    under-stress: "[How speech changes under pressure]"
+
+  vocabulary:
+    uses-often: [Words/phrases this character favors]
+    avoids: [Words/phrases this character wouldn't use]
+    signature: [Unique expressions that mark this character]
+
+  voice-example: |
+    "[2-3 sentences demonstrating this voice in both dialogue
+    and internal monologue]"
+```
+
+## Preset Voice Templates
+
+### 1. Cynical Warrior (Zelazny-Corwin)
+
+**Archetype:** cynical-hero
+**Base Influence:** Zelazny's Corwin from Chronicles of Amber
+
+**Traits:**
+- Self-aware and sardonic
+- Experienced but not jaded
+- Philosophical without preaching
+- Loyal despite skepticism
+- Survivor mentality
+
+**Speech Patterns:**
+
+*Internal Monologue:*
+- Short declarative sentences
+- Second-guessing of own decisions
+- Dry humor undercutting tension
+- Practical assessment of situations
+- Philosophical asides delivered lightly
+
+*Dialogue:*
+- Direct and economical
+- Sarcasm as default mode
+- Rarely explains reasoning fully
+- Questions authority casually
+- Understatement in crisis
+
+*Under Stress:*
+- Shorter sentences
+- Humor sharpens to cutting
+- Brutal honesty emerges
+- Falls back on training
+- Dark wit increases
+
+**Vocabulary:**
+
+*Uses Often:*
+- "Could be worse"
+- "Not my first choice"
+- "Fair enough"
+- "Probably should have..."
+- "I've seen worse"
+- "Math is simple"
+- "History will/won't..."
+
+*Avoids:*
+- Formal academic language
+- Flowery metaphors
+- Absolute certainties
+- Earnest declarations
+- Pleading or begging
+- Excessive apologies
+
+*Signature:*
+- "That's going to be a problem"
+- Casual acknowledgment of danger
+- Self-deprecating combat commentary
+- References to past mistakes as lessons
+
+**Voice Example:**
+
+```
+The troll was bigger than I'd expected. That happened a lot
+lately. Things were always bigger, meaner, or more numerous
+than intelligence suggested.
+
+I'd stopped trusting intelligence reports around the third
+ambush.
+
+"You don't have to do this," I told the troll.
+
+It smiled. Trolls shouldn't smile. Nothing good ever follows
+a smiling troll.
+
+"Didn't think so," I said, and drew.
+```
+
+### 2. Wise Mentor (Tolkien-Gandalf)
+
+**Archetype:** wise-elder
+**Base Influence:** Tolkien's Gandalf
+
+**Traits:**
+- Ancient but not aloof
+- Patient with the deserving
+- Impatient with willful ignorance
+- Carries burden of foresight
+- Hope despite knowledge
+
+**Speech Patterns:**
+
+*Internal Monologue:*
+- Longer, more formal sentences
+- References to deep history
+- Weighing of consequences
+- Acceptance of necessity
+- Sorrow for what must be done
+
+*Dialogue:*
+- Formal but not pompous
+- Teaching through questions
+- Measured rhythm and cadence
+- Strategic revelation of knowledge
+- Occasional archaic construction
+
+*Under Stress:*
+- Authority voice emerges
+- Commands become absolute
+- Ancient power shows through
+- No wasted words
+- Formal language intensifies
+
+**Vocabulary:**
+
+*Uses Often:*
+- "Long have I..."
+- "Yet it may be..."
+- "Such was the way..."
+- "In the elder days..."
+- "Doom" (fate)
+- "Kinsman"
+- "Wisely said"
+
+*Avoids:*
+- Modern slang
+- Casual contractions (in formal moments)
+- Dismissive language
+- Crude expressions
+- Absolute predictions
+- Unnecessary obscurity
+
+*Signature:*
+- "A wizard is never late..."
+- Historical parallels to current situations
+- Cryptic hints that prove accurate
+- "This too shall pass" mentality
+
+**Voice Example:**
+
+```
+"You speak of things you do not fully understand," Elrond
+said, though his voice held no rebuke. "The Pattern is not
+merely a source of power. It is a living thing, woven into
+the fabric of reality itself."
+
+He paused, considering his words.
+
+"To walk it is to be changed. Forever. You will carry its
+mark until the ending of the world, and that mark will set
+you apart from all others. Even from those you love."
+
+His eyes held mine. "Are you prepared for such a burden?"
+```
+
+### 3. Noble Schemer (Zelazny-Eric)
+
+**Archetype:** scheming-noble
+**Base Influence:** Zelazny's Eric and other Amber princes
+
+**Traits:**
+- Intelligent and calculating
+- Ambitious without apology
+- Polite as weapon
+- Long-term strategic thinking
+- Sees people as pieces on board
+
+**Speech Patterns:**
+
+*Internal Monologue:*
+- Analytical and detached
+- Always calculating angles
+- Contingency planning constant
+- Emotional distance from actions
+- Self-justification subtle
+
+*Dialogue:*
+- Formal and precise
+- Subtext layered thick
+- Questions as traps
+- Compliments as threats
+- Never says more than necessary
+
+*Under Stress:*
+- Becomes more formal
+- Control tightens verbally
+- Threats become explicit
+- Mask slips briefly
+- Returns to icy calm
+
+**Vocabulary:**
+
+*Uses Often:*
+- "Interesting"
+- "I had expected..."
+- "You disappoint me"
+- "Unfortunately..."
+- "Regrettably necessary"
+- "You understand, of course"
+- "How... unfortunate"
+
+*Avoids:*
+- Casual language
+- Genuine compliments
+- Admitting weakness
+- Losing composure
+- Explaining motivations
+- Honest emotional expression
+
+*Signature:*
+- Everything is "interesting"
+- Faint praise hiding insults
+- Implications instead of statements
+- Strategic use of silence
+
+**Voice Example:**
+
+```
+"You've made remarkable progress," he said. The compliment
+hung in the air like a knife.
+
+I waited. With Eric, the danger was always in what came next.
+
+"Father would be proud. If he were here to see it." He smiled.
+"Such a pity about his... absence."
+
+There it was. The threat wrapped in concern, the accusation
+dressed as sympathy. He knew something. Or thought he did.
+
+"I appreciate your confidence," I said carefully.
+
+"Oh, I have every confidence." His smile widened. "That's
+what concerns me."
+```
+
+### 4. Innocent Abroad (Tolkien-Frodo)
+
+**Archetype:** naive-youth
+**Base Influence:** Tolkien's Frodo Baggins
+
+**Traits:**
+- Naive but not stupid
+- Courage despite fear
+- Growing through adversity
+- Questions without cynicism
+- Hope as default state
+
+**Speech Patterns:**
+
+*Internal Monologue:*
+- Wonder mixed with uncertainty
+- Questions about how things work
+- Observations without interpretation
+- Growing understanding over time
+- Maintains moral clarity
+
+*Dialogue:*
+- Genuine questions
+- Hesitant assertions
+- Polite even under pressure
+- Growing confidence through arc
+- Humor gentle, not biting
+
+*Under Stress:*
+- Falls back on core values
+- Determination replaces hesitation
+- Quiet courage emerges
+- Simplicity becomes strength
+- "Must be done" mentality
+
+**Vocabulary:**
+
+*Uses Often:*
+- "I don't understand, but..."
+- "Is it always...?"
+- "What should I do?"
+- "I'll try"
+- "That doesn't seem right"
+- "Please"
+- "I'm sorry, but no"
+
+*Avoids:*
+- Cynical observations
+- Cruel humor
+- Assuming worst of people
+- Giving up explicitly
+- Strategic manipulation
+- Casual violence
+
+*Signature:*
+- Apologizes even when not at fault
+- Questions that reveal truth
+- Moral stands despite cost
+- "I will do what I must"
+
+**Voice Example:**
+
+```
+I didn't know what I was supposed to do. Nobody had explained
+the rules—if there were rules. Everything was new and strange
+and bigger than I'd expected.
+
+But I knew what was right. That hadn't changed.
+
+"No," I said quietly. "I won't help you do that."
+
+He stared at me like I'd grown a second head. Maybe people
+didn't say no to him very often.
+
+"You don't understand the situation," he said.
+
+"I understand enough. You want me to hurt people who haven't
+done anything wrong. The answer is no."
+```
+
+### 5. Ancient Power (Blended: Dworkin/Tom Bombadil)
+
+**Archetype:** ancient-other
+**Base Influence:** Zelazny's Dworkin + Tolkien's Tom Bombadil
+
+**Traits:**
+- Beyond normal concerns
+- Operates on different timeframe
+- Wisdom or madness (or both)
+- Powerful but constrained by choice
+- Sees patterns mortals miss
+
+**Speech Patterns:**
+
+*Internal Monologue:*
+- Nonlinear associations
+- Time references inconsistent
+- Reality treated as flexible
+- Deep truths stated simply
+- Amusement at mortal concerns
+
+*Dialogue:*
+- Sometimes cryptic
+- Sometimes perfectly clear
+- Metaphor and literal mixed
+- Temporal confusion
+- Rhyme or song fragments
+
+*Under Stress:*
+- Becomes more focused
+- Power shows in word choice
+- Reality bends to emphasis
+- Ancient language emerges
+- Commands with weight
+
+**Vocabulary:**
+
+*Uses Often:*
+- "Once" (any time period)
+- "Will be/has been" (tense mixing)
+- "The Pattern sings/weeps/laughs"
+- "I remember when..."
+- Proper names from deep history
+- Made-up words that still make sense
+
+*Avoids:*
+- Linear time references
+- Current politics
+- Explaining clearly (when unhelpful)
+- Concern for personal safety
+- Normal social conventions
+
+*Signature:*
+- Treats past and future as present
+- Knows things impossible to know
+- Cryptic until suddenly precise
+- Song or verse without warning
+
+**Voice Example:**
+
+```
+"The unicorn wept," he said suddenly. "Did you know that?
+When Dworkin drew the Pattern. Of course you didn't. You
+weren't there. Neither was I. But I remember it anyway."
+
+He looked at me with eyes that had seen too much.
+
+"Or will remember it. Time is funny that way. Slippery.
+Like trying to hold water in your hands. Except when it
+isn't." He smiled. "Then it's like trying to hold stone.
+Heavy. Inevitable."
+
+"I don't understand," I said.
+
+"Good," he said. "Understanding is overrated. Doing is what
+matters. Will you do it? Did you do it? Are you doing it now?"
+
+I had no idea what he was talking about.
+
+"Yes," I said anyway.
+
+"Excellent!" He clapped his hands once. "Then it's already
+done."
+```
+
+## Voice Differentiation Techniques
+
+### Sentence Length Patterns
+
+**Cynical Warrior:**
+- Average 8-12 words
+- Mix of very short (3-5) and medium (12-15)
+- Rarely exceeds 20 words
+
+**Wise Mentor:**
+- Average 15-20 words
+- Range from 10-30 words
+- Comfortable with complexity
+
+**Noble Schemer:**
+- Average 12-15 words
+- Precisely controlled length
+- Each word chosen deliberately
+
+**Innocent Abroad:**
+- Average 10-14 words
+- Simple constructions
+- Growing complexity through arc
+
+**Ancient Power:**
+- Highly variable
+- Can be 3 words or 40
+- No predictable pattern
+
+### Contraction Usage
+
+| Character Type | Contractions |
+|----------------|--------------|
+| Cynical Warrior | Frequent (don't, won't, I'm) |
+| Wise Mentor | Rare in formal moments, yes in casual |
+| Noble Schemer | Almost never |
+| Innocent Abroad | Frequent |
+| Ancient Power | Random or zero |
+
+### Question Patterns
+
+**Cynical Warrior:**
+- Rhetorical questions common
+- Assumes listener understands
+- "You see where this is going?"
+
+**Wise Mentor:**
+- Teaching questions
+- Encourages thought
+- "What do you think will happen?"
+
+**Noble Schemer:**
+- Trap questions
+- Already knows answer
+- "You understand what this means?"
+
+**Innocent Abroad:**
+- Genuine questions
+- Seeks information
+- "What does that mean?"
+
+**Ancient Power:**
+- Unanswerable questions
+- Or too-simple questions
+- "Is/Was/Will be?"
+
+### Response to Threats
+
+**Cynical Warrior:**
+```
+"That's a terrible idea. We're doing it anyway, aren't we?"
+```
+
+**Wise Mentor:**
+```
+"You speak of things that should not be spoken lightly.
+Yet I see the necessity. Very well."
+```
+
+**Noble Schemer:**
+```
+"How... aggressive. I wonder if you've thought this through.
+No? I suspected as much."
+```
+
+**Innocent Abroad:**
+```
+"I'm scared. But we have to do this, don't we? I'll try."
+```
+
+**Ancient Power:**
+```
+"Threats. How mortal. How now. How then. Yes, the doing of
+the thing. Let us do it."
+```
+
+## Creating Custom Voices
+
+### Step 1: Choose Base Archetype
+
+Start with one of the five templates, or blend two:
+- Cynical Warrior (modern, sardonic)
+- Wise Mentor (formal, historical)
+- Noble Schemer (calculating, precise)
+- Innocent Abroad (genuine, learning)
+- Ancient Power (otherworldly, cryptic)
+
+### Step 2: Define Three Core Traits
+
+Pick personality traits that affect speech:
+- Arrogant → Never admits uncertainty
+- Curious → Asks constant questions
+- Paranoid → Assumes worst case always
+- Optimistic → Finds silver linings
+- Methodical → Explains reasoning step-by-step
+
+### Step 3: Establish Vocabulary Tier
+
+**High/Formal:**
+- Latinate vocabulary
+- Complete sentences
+- Complex constructions
+- Few/no contractions
+
+**Middle/Standard:**
+- Mix of formal and casual
+- Contractions in casual moments
+- Clear, direct language
+- Moderate complexity
+
+**Low/Casual:**
+- Anglo-Saxon root words
+- Frequent contractions
+- Sentence fragments acceptable
+- Colloquial expressions
+
+### Step 4: Set Speech Rhythms
+
+- **Sentence length:** Short (8-10), Medium (12-16), Long (18-25)
+- **Variation:** High, Medium, Low
+- **Paragraph length:** 1-2 sentences, 3-4 sentences, 5+ sentences
+- **Interruption tendency:** High, Medium, Low
+
+### Step 5: Choose Signature Elements
+
+Give the character 2-3 unique markers:
+- Favorite phrase or expression
+- Specific metaphor source (sailing, gardening, warfare)
+- Speech tick (repeats words, asks rhetorical questions)
+- Cultural marker (formal address, specific oath)
+
+### Step 6: Test Voice Consistency
+
+Write the same situation from different character POVs:
+
+**Situation:** Character discovers a betrayal
+
+**Cynical Warrior:**
+```
+I should've seen it coming. The signs were all there. I'd
+just been too busy staying alive to add them up.
+
+Stupid. And potentially fatal.
+```
+
+**Wise Mentor:**
+```
+Betrayal is a bitter thing, made more bitter by the knowledge
+that it was inevitable. I had seen the seeds of it long ago,
+and yet hoped they might not take root.
+
+Hope, it seems, is not always wisdom.
+```
+
+**Noble Schemer:**
+```
+Interesting. I had anticipated disloyalty, of course—one
+always does. But the timing is... unfortunate. This will
+require adjustments to the plan.
+
+How inconvenient.
+```
+
+**Innocent Abroad:**
+```
+They lied to me. The whole time, they were lying, and I
+believed them. I trusted them.
+
+That was my mistake. I won't make it again.
+```
+
+**Ancient Power:**
+```
+Betrayal, they call it. As if loyalty were written in stone
+rather than water. Everything flows, changes, becomes other
+than it was. Will be. Has been. Is being now.
+
+The Pattern weeps. Or laughs. Hard to tell.
+```
+
+## Voice Consistency Checklist
+
+When writing dialogue and internal monologue:
+
+- [ ] Vocabulary level matches character background
+- [ ] Sentence length consistent with established pattern
+- [ ] Contraction use matches character formality
+- [ ] Questions fit character's motivation (teaching, trapping, genuine)
+- [ ] Topics noticed align with character priorities
+- [ ] Signature phrases appear naturally (not forced)
+- [ ] Response to stress follows established pattern
+- [ ] Humor type matches character (dry, absent, cutting, gentle)
+- [ ] Paragraph rhythm consistent with previous scenes
+- [ ] Can identify speaker without tags in multi-character scenes
+
+---
+
+**Next:** See [PACING-STRUCTURE.md](./PACING-STRUCTURE.md) for scene rhythm and narrative arc structure.