# New York accent



## TheYellowMustang (Feb 23, 2014)

One of my characters is from New York. The others are from Black Forest Creek, a town that doesn't exist. It's in The US, really cold and snowy in the winter, hot in the summer. All 4 seasons. I haven't really decided _where_ it is on the map, or if it even matters. 

So, this New Yorker, she arrives in Black Forest Creek. Is it unrealistic that the other characters can't tell where she's from? Should I rewrite the dialogue to include an accent? I've never visited New York, but I'm under the impression that most of the people with accents are from New Jersey. Or is it Brooklyn? I have no idea how to do that, write a NY-accent. All I can think of is maybe changing "something" to "somethin'"


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## Riptide (Feb 23, 2014)

http://www.ehow.com/how_2121885_talk-new-york-accent.html

Does this help?


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## Riptide (Feb 26, 2014)

You know... on the outer layout of the forum it says no reply, but I see my reply... maybe one more time? http://www.ehow.com/how_2121885_talk...rk-accent.html


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## TheYellowMustang (Feb 27, 2014)

Riptide said:


> http://www.ehow.com/how_2121885_talk-new-york-accent.html
> 
> Does this help?



I read a similar article, actually. I guess the question I'm trying to ask is if she _needs_ an accent. I've seen shows and movies where I can tell the characters from NY speak differently, but I've also seen shows and movies where I can't. I'm just not sure if that's because of me or if it's because some people from New York just don't have an accent.


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## NerdyMJ (Apr 3, 2014)

There's no such thing as a "Brooklyn accent". Most of the people that live in or around NYC (and therefore in or around Brooklyn) are immigrants, so there are various accents. 
I grew up in upstate NY and I've been told that my accent sounds more like a mix of the Wisconsin accent and the Canadian accent. Personally, I think it'd be pointless of you to write your character with an accent even after living in a different state for almost four years, I still can't tell the difference between how anyone else speaks and the accent my husband has described to me. In fact, I wasn't even aware I had an accent until after I met him.


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## patskywriter (Apr 3, 2014)

I don't think the accent will matter if Black Forest Creek is anywhere close to New York.

I used to visit relatives in New York and was amazed (and amused) by the accents—and there are lots of them. Just as fascinating is the choice of words that some New Yorkers come up with. If I had a character from New York in a work in progress, I'd probably emphasize the colorful turns of phrases rather than the pronunciations of the words themselves.


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## TheYellowMustang (Apr 4, 2014)

> If I had a character from New York in a work in progress, I'd probably emphasize the colorful turns of phrases rather than the pronunciations of the words themselves.



Okay I've been doing some more googling, because I keep hearing her talk with a NY accent in my head. 

Like this actually: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwny52Ncatk (but a little more subtle)

So I did some more research and this is what I've scribbled down so far: 
You gotta problem with that?
Get outta here!
Forget about it!
Don't do that/say that to me, come on (it was the "come on" part someone said she kept hearing in NY)
Also, someone said that New Yorkers frequently say "already," as in "Stop it, already!"
And "what am I," as in "What am I, a mind reader?"

And, of course, fuhgeddaboutit!

I don't know.. it sounds a bit silly in my head.


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## A_Jones (Apr 4, 2014)

new yorkers have accents.   There are several different ones all over the state.  My family is from just outside the city.   They have a similar accent to the Jersey accent but is is different.


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## Blade (Apr 4, 2014)

If I were you I would place Black Forest Creek in upper New York State. and just decline on the accent angle. Residents near New York City will get any differences right away which is more than you can say for the rest of us.



NerdyMJ said:


> I grew up in upstate NY and I've been told that my accent sounds more like a mix of the Wisconsin accent and the Canadian accent. Personally, I think it'd be pointless of you to write your character with an accent even after living in a different state for almost four years, I still can't tell the difference between how anyone else speaks and the accent my husband has described to me. In fact, I wasn't even aware I had an accent until after I met him.



:sunny:Slippery stuff. I live in southern Ontario and would likely be taken as having a mid-western or northern New York state accent if I were in the US. In real life though I can pick out a New York state or Ohio accent halfway through the first sentence. It is all about familiarity of sound and rhythm and recognition of even the least note that seems to play out of tune. In detail very complex and something I would avoid taking on unless I really had to.:grumpy:

Out of curiosity where is your husband from?


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## NerdyMJ (Apr 6, 2014)

Blade said:


> :sunny:Slippery stuff. I live in southern Ontario and would likely be taken as having a mid-western or northern New York state accent if I were in the US. In real life though I can pick out a New York state or Ohio accent halfway through the first sentence. It is all about familiarity of sound and rhythm and recognition of even the least note that seems to play out of tune. In detail very complex and something I would avoid taking on unless I really had to.:grumpy:
> 
> Out of curiosity where is your husband from?



My husband grew up in N. Carolina, but we live in Florida now. 

And, OP, please just write your character the same way you would any other character. All those "quotes" are just used to perpetuate the stereotype that New Yorkers are rude.


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## Grim Grady (Apr 23, 2014)

TheYellowMustang said:


> I guess the question I'm trying to ask is if she _needs_ an accent.



In my opinion, less is more.  You can imply her accent through, as someone else said, a colorful turn of phrase.  I think you'll find that most readers can summon a reasonable facsimile of a NY accent in their head, if a character is written well enough and known, by mere mention, to be a New Yorker.  Trying to phonetically recreate an accent in dialog will, in most cases, just distract a reader.  As an example, I'm a big fan of Irish accents, but I hate when writers try to transcribe them because they rarely look the way they actually sound.

But like another user posted, don't feed stereotypes with the colorful phrases you choose.

EDIT: Phrase selection can include simple terms, as well.  My friend in Boston is always talking about soda and trash barrels.  Here in Chicago, we say pop and garbage cans.


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