Success Homeschool

Secondary 4 English · Creative writing: voice and style

Name: ______________________

Date: ____________

1. What is the term for a writer's word choice? (one word)
2. What is the term for the arrangement of words into sentences, including sentence length and structure? (one word)
3. Which sentence has the most formal diction?
- ☐ (a) The party was awesome, loads of fun.
- ☐ (b) The gathering proved thoroughly enjoyable.
- ☐ (c) That party? So good.
- ☐ (d) We had a blast at the party.
4. Which perspective is used here? 'You open the door. You hear something breathing in the dark.'
- ☐ (a) First person
- ☐ (b) Second person
- ☐ (c) Third person limited
- ☐ (d) Third person omniscient
5. 'Late. Again. Brilliant.' What tone do these fragments most likely create?
- ☐ (a) Sarcastic frustration
- ☐ (b) Calm contentment
- ☐ (c) Formal politeness
- ☐ (d) Scientific objectivity
6. What is the main advantage of first-person narration?
- ☐ (a) It lets the reader see inside every character's mind.
- ☐ (b) It creates intimacy by giving direct access to the narrator's thoughts and feelings.
- ☐ (c) It is always more reliable.
- ☐ (d) It avoids using the word 'I'.
7. Which reflective statement is most effective?
- ☐ (a) I wrote my story and it was good.
- ☐ (b) I used long, winding sentences and gentle words like 'drifted' and 'hush' to create a dreamy, peaceful voice for my elderly narrator.
- ☐ (c) My story has words in it.
- ☐ (d) I chose to write a story because we had to.
8. What word describes the distinctive personality of a narrator that comes through their language? (one word)

Answer sheet

1. diction — Diction covers whether words are formal, informal, simple, elaborate and so on.
2. syntax — Syntax is about how sentences are built.
3. The gathering proved thoroughly enjoyable. — 'Gathering', 'proved' and 'thoroughly enjoyable' are formal word choices.
4. Second person — The narrator addresses the reader as 'you', which is second person.
5. Sarcastic frustration — The clipped fragments and the ironic 'Brilliant' express annoyance.
6. It creates intimacy by giving direct access to the narrator's thoughts and feelings. — First person brings the reader close to one narrator, though it limits us to their view.
7. I used long, winding sentences and gentle words like 'drifted' and 'hush' to create a dreamy, peaceful voice for my elderly narrator. — It names specific choices (syntax, diction) and explains their intended effect.
8. voice — Voice is the personality we hear in the writing.