--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A first-person voice helps to ensure the…" description: "\"A first-person voice helps to ensure the uniformity and cohesiveness of the narrative; it gathers unto itself incidents and characters in its unstoppab..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/225/norman-lock-21222_character_a-first-person-voice-helps-to-ensure-the_2610825.jpg" --- # A first-person voice helps to ensure the uniformity and… ![“A first-person voice helps to ensure the uniformity and cohesiveness of the narrative; it gathers unto itself incidents and characters in its unstoppable progress toward the story's end.” quote by Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/225/norman-lock-21222_character_a-first-person-voice-helps-to-ensure-the_2610825.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/225/norman-lock-21222_character_a-first-person-voice-helps-to-ensure-the_2610825.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/225/norman-lock-21222_character_a-first-person-voice-helps-to-ensure-the_2610825.jpg) > “A first-person voice helps to ensure the uniformity and cohesiveness of the narrative; it gathers unto itself incidents and characters in its unstoppable progress toward the story's end.” [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A first‑person narrator creates a cohesive, driven story by uniting events and characters toward a common end. **In simple terms:** First‑person unifies story elements. Key Takeaway Use a single voice for cohesion. Themes storytelling cohesion perspective Mood analytical neutral Type educational reflective When to use this quote - novel writing - screenplay drafting - personal memoirs - blog storytelling Key Concepts narrative structure character development plot momentum Questions to Reflect On - When is third‑person preferable? - How does narrator reliability affect impact? A Different Perspective First‑person can limit viewpoint diversity and bias. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Cohesiveness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cohesiveness/) [Cohesiveness Narrative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cohesiveness-narrative-2027599/) [Ends](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ends/) [First person](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/first-person/) [Firsts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) [Helping](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/helping/) [Incidents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/incidents/) [Narrative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/narrative/) [Narrative Gathers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/narrative-gathers-2027598/) [Person Voice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/person-voice-627379/) [Persons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/persons/) [Progress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/progress/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Uniformity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/uniformity/) [Unstoppable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unstoppable/) [Voice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/voice/) ## Related quotes > [“A brand is a person that has a voice, evokes emotion and spreads a message.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richie-norton/a-brand-is-a-person-that-has-a-voice-evokes-emotion-and-spreads-a/) [Richie Norton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richie-norton/) > [When we are in love if we hear that person's voice we are smiling..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mariane-corbito/when-we-are-in-love-if-we-hear-that-person-s-voice-we-are-smiling/) [Mariane Corbito](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mariane-corbito/) > [I almost always use first person voice in my novels. It has its limitations, but it gives a sense of immediacy that's hard to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-graham/i-almost-always-use-first-person-voice-in-my-novels-it-has-its/) [Laurie Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-graham/) > [“Old ladies standing in halls, up and down the streets, asking the same question as if they were one person with one voice: “Mailman,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-bukowski/old-ladies-standing-in-halls-up-and-down-the-streets-asking-the-same/) [Charles Bukowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-bukowski/) > [Writing in another person's voice is a skill you have to develop when you're working on someone else's show. But if you can maintain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nahnatchka-khan/writing-in-another-person-s-voice-is-a-skill-you-have-to-develop-when/) [Nahnatchka Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nahnatchka-khan/) > [Each person's voice is very different, so you need to find what works for you. Make sure you keep to your routine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-mathis/each-person-s-voice-is-very-different-so-you-need-to-find-what-works/) [Johnny Mathis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-mathis/) > [“It only takes one person, one voice from somewhere beyond, to save a life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirsten-arcadio/it-only-takes-one-person-one-voice-from-somewhere-beyond-to-save-a/) [Kirsten Arcadio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirsten-arcadio/) > [You will see India as a country of opportunities, unmatched across the world. India can be a role model of growth and cohesiveness for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/narendra-modi/you-will-see-india-as-a-country-of-opportunities-unmatched-across-the/) [Narendra Modi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/narendra-modi/) > [As we get further into our career we're figuring out how to become more efficient as artists, and doing so many different things is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/black-thought/as-we-get-further-into-our-career-we-re-figuring-out-how-to-become/) [Black Thought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/black-thought/) > [“Diversity, rather than cohesiveness, is the new passion, and it pits us against each other for “rights.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-c-dobson/diversity-rather-than-cohesiveness-is-the-new-passion-and-it-pits-us/) [James C. Dobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-c-dobson/) > [Unlike the sale of a commodity, the giving of a gift tends to establish a relationship between the parties involved. When gifts circulate within…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-hyde/unlike-the-sale-of-a-commodity-the-giving-of-a-gift-tends-to/) [Lewis Hyde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-hyde/) > [Texas has a tight cohesiveness perhaps stronger than any other section of America.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/texas-has-a-tight-cohesiveness-perhaps-stronger-than-any-other/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [You can expand, repeat, even change keys and do other things electronically to give certain elements and phrases more cohesiveness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbie-hancock/you-can-expand-repeat-even-change-keys-and-do-other-things/) [Herbie Hancock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbie-hancock/) > [“Sexual relationships are about creating a personal level of cohesiveness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/asa-don-brown/sexual-relationships-are-about-creating-a-personal-level-of/) [Asa Don Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/asa-don-brown/) > [The individual in the ordinary circumstances of living may feel more unreal than real; in a literal sense, more dead than alive; precariously differentiated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-d-laing/the-individual-in-the-ordinary-circumstances-of-living-may-feel-more/) [R. D. Laing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-d-laing/) ## More by Norman Lock > [I admitted that I did not understand life. What I meant was that I am bewildered by human hearts and motivations, including my own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/i-admitted-that-i-did-not-understand-life-what-i-meant-was-that-i-am/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [I had hoped to be a poet, and for a long time I tried to write poetry. My first published pieces were poems.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/i-had-hoped-to-be-a-poet-and-for-a-long-time-i-tried-to-write-poetry/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [I find it only natural for a storyteller to be interested in storytelling and, for anyone who spends the better part of his or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/i-find-it-only-natural-for-a-storyteller-to-be-interested-in/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [Each piece of writing I undertake, whether a story, novel, play, or poem, begins with an image.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/each-piece-of-writing-i-undertake-whether-a-story-novel-play-or-poem/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [I very much like the idea of the unreliable narrator. Shaping my fictions as monologues - by introducing the "I" - allows me to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/i-very-much-like-the-idea-of-the-unreliable-narrator-shaping-my/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [I do seem to favor a deathbed confession as the occasion for my dramatic monologues.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/i-do-seem-to-favor-a-deathbed-confession-as-the-occasion-for-my/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [I do believe we are actors in our own dramas, which, moment by moment, we ourselves write; that we are characters in our own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/i-do-believe-we-are-actors-in-our-own-dramas-which-moment-by-moment/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [The critique of social inequality, which is very much a part of my story, came about naturally from my recollection of Huck and Tom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/the-critique-of-social-inequality-which-is-very-much-a-part-of-my/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [Theatre aside, my penchant for the extended monologue began with my reading of Browning's dramatic monologues, in high school. My inclination to adopt the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/theatre-aside-my-penchant-for-the-extended-monologue-began-with-my/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [In nearly everything I write, I am like a ventriloquist, throwing my voice into my characters, animating them by the slightest twitch as I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/in-nearly-everything-i-write-i-am-like-a-ventriloquist-throwing-my/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [It may be old hat, but I see no reason to close off what is for me a fruitful subject of inquiry, especially so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/it-may-be-old-hat-but-i-see-no-reason-to-close-off-what-is-for-me-a/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [Emotional, physical, and spiritual estrangement and ontological and religious doubt inform my personality, my thoughts, and my characters, which are, more often than not,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/emotional-physical-and-spiritual-estrangement-and-ontological-and/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [Many of my short fictions use theatre as a metaphor for situations in which characters find themselves estranged from the larger, uncontrollable world that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/many-of-my-short-fictions-use-theatre-as-a-metaphor-for-situations-in/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [I used to teach writing in a federal prison, and for my students' benefit, I would liken the narrative use of this highly personal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/i-used-to-teach-writing-in-a-federal-prison-and-for-my-students/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) > [I haven't the stature to critique one of our literature's great novels, Tobias; and I'm not one of those who believe The Adventures of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-lock/i-haven-t-the-stature-to-critique-one-of-our-literature-s-great/) [Norman Lock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) [Explore all 29 Norman Lock quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-lock/) ## More Character quotes > [This may sound strange, but although I feel like I know everything about my characters, the brand of shampoo they use, how many cavities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-honeyman/this-may-sound-strange-but-although-i-feel-like-i-know-everything/) [Gail Honeyman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-honeyman/) > [I always like a character who makes me laugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachael-stirling/i-always-like-a-character-who-makes-me-laugh/) [Rachael Stirling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachael-stirling/) > [Social responsibility above the level of family, or at most of tribe, requires imagination-- devotion, loyalty, all the higher virtues -- which a man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/social-responsibility-above-the-level-of-family-or-at-most-of-tribe/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I'm often moved by the circumstances around some of my characters, but I don't think I've actually cried watching myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-winslet/i-m-often-moved-by-the-circumstances-around-some-of-my-characters-but/) [Kate Winslet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-winslet/) > [When you're on a daytime drama you get one page, you better damn well know your character. You better know what she would do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hudgins/when-you-re-on-a-daytime-drama-you-get-one-page-you-better-damn-well/) [David Hudgins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hudgins/) > [It can sometimes make people fold into themselves and kind of run away, but I think in this case these characters are being forced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-deschanel/it-can-sometimes-make-people-fold-into-themselves-and-kind-of-run/) [Emily Deschanel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-deschanel/) > [If you are well-mannered towards those whose views are similar to yours, you may be said to exhibit a fairly good character. But, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-are-well-mannered-towards-those-whose-views-are-similar-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Democracy is based on the conviction that man has the moral and intellectual capacity, as well as the inalienable right, to govern himself with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-s-truman/democracy-is-based-on-the-conviction-that-man-has-the-moral-and/) [Harry S. 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