Finding Your Writing Voice Is The Most Important Thing You Don’t Realise You’re Doing
Write, read, follow the rules then bend them to your will, and soon you’ll have a style all of your own
“Don’t read books like yours while you’re writing.”
“Don’t copy other people’s style.”
“Write like this, not like that.”
Cor, there are so many writing rules.
Some of those rules are important for the most part. For example, please don’t write a whole novel where you tell instead of show, however a little bit of telling can be a good thing, proving that these ‘rules’ are meant for bending sometimes.
The three ‘rules’ above are all connected to you finding your voice. Your voice is something that all writers should endeavour to find and is basically your writing style. Done well enough, readers may be able to recognise you from a passage you’ve written without your name being anywhere near it.
Want an example?
Ash Ambirge of The Middle Finger Project. Her writing voice is loud (and brilliant) and once you’ve read some of her stuff, you’ll know her anywhere.
For the fiction writers among us, our voice and style may be more closely linked to the style of stories we tell as well as the words we use. I like to think I could pick out Neil Gaiman or Terry Pratchett out of a line-up of passages.
For us non-bestselling word magicians, our voice and style is the thing that helps to hook the reader in, whatever it is we’re writing.
Great. We know what a voice and style is.
Now what?
How on earth to you go about finding yours?
It isn’t quite as simple as sitting down and writing.
I mean…it is that simple but there’s things you can do to help speed things up.
But first of all write.
Write. Write. Write some more.
Keep writing.
You know that thing about having to do something for 10,000 hours before you master it? Well, after 10,000 hours of writing, you’ll definitely have figured out your voice.
Honestly, it doesn’t take that long to find your own style but it’s nice how these things can work together sometimes.
Other than writing, writing, writing, there are other things we can do to help us find our own writing styles quickly.
Let’s take those three rules I mentioned at the beginning…
“Don’t read books like yours while you’re writing.”
I get the logic behind this — if you read books that are similar to the ones you’re writing, you’ll accidentally write something like theirs instead of your own thing.
But this does rather suggest that we, as writers, don’t have any imagination or the capability of turning something into our own. And isn’t that why we’re writing in the first place? Because we have stories and characters and ideas in our heads?
I love reading similar books while I write. I feed off the other author’s vibe and style and the atmosphere they create. It’s similar to listening to music as you write. It can get you into the right headspace for that particular world, mind or theme.
Immerse yourself in that world, whatever it may be, and a voice of your own styling will start to appear.
“Don’t copy other people’s style.”
Well…no. Try not to do this but you can borrow and twist it and make it yours, because that’s how writing and inspiration and ideas work.
When I was small and too tired to come up with my own stories, I used to copy out one of my favourite books. In the long run, what I was actually doing was learning that author’s style and voice by copying it out word for word.
It’s a great exercise if you’re ever feeling stuck or bored.
Take a favourite passage and write it out. Feel the rhythm and the choice of words.
Take another passage and do the same.
Again, by studying other people’s voices and styles, we can learn and adapt our own.
Just don’t use or publish anything you copy. Obviously.
“Write like this, not like that.”
Rubbish!
Poppycock!
Take this rule, screw it up and throw it in the bin (or, you know, recycle it).
This isn’t a writing rule in itself but it encompasses the masses of writing articles I see online. So many people telling writers how they should use their words.
Let me tell you something: You can write however you damn well want.
That’s what finding your voice is all about. It’s YOUR voice. YOUR style.
Yes, there will be guidelines to follow if you submit your work, and yes, you probably want to avoid offending too many people, but please, please, please don’t be afraid of your own voice.
It can feel oh so vulnerable putting your own voice and style out into the world, but it’s just the thing that will grab readers’ attentions, hook them in and leave them wanting more from you.
It’s your words, using your voice, that leave them thinking and feeling.
And that, my writing friend, is the whole point of telling stories, of writing books or articles. You’re there to leave people thinking and feeling and maybe, taking something new away with them. Inspiration, education, an atmosphere that brings them excitement or comfort.
Yes, finding your own writing voice and style can take time, but the more you read and write, the more it’ll develop and before you know it, readers will be able to pick you out of a line-up too.
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