"Words mean more than what is set down on paper. It takes the human voice to infuse them with shades of deeper meaning."
--Maya Angelou
As writers, we hear a lot about Voice. When I first heard this term, I admit I stumbled. What was voice? It seems to be a bit of an indefinable thing. I once heard an editor say that she didn't know how to describe it, but she knew it when she saw it. After some reading, some writing, and some experience, I thought I had it all figured out. Recently, I learned for myself just how distinct voice is.
We could talk about all kinds of voices--character voices, genre voices, etc--but I'm going to focus on "style" voice. (For examples of varying voice, check out this post by Carolyn V.) I read a book recently that emulated another author's work. It was very well done and I have no complaints. However, I often found myself noticing subtle differences. A character could speak or act exactly as they always spoke or acted and yet it was just slightly...off. This was a powerful epiphany for me.
No matter how well done--no one can say it like you can.
You can use the same character--the name, the mannerisms, the setting--but without your voice, it isn't the same at all. Some authors can get pretty darn close, but a reader who's invested in your story, in your character, will always be able to spot the differences.
I don't highlight this to insult or demean the efforts of any person or work--far from it. I chose to write about this because of how powerful the idea was behind it. So many writers (myself included) have a tendency to compare themselves to others. We see another person's ability to weave words, to create authentic characters, to entrench us in setting, and we believe ourselves lesser. We might even think that if we handed our manuscript over, they'd make it sparkle and shine when we couldn't manage to scrub off a layer of dust.
This just isn't true. There will always be those more or less talented than we are, those who are further along the path or those trying to catch up. Those "stops" on the road aren't indications of skill, they're markers of amassed knowledge. We all have to learn. For some of us, learning takes longer than others. (I feel like it will take forever!)
Let's just say that learning is like going to a hardware store. Some people have more tools in their baskets and some people (like me) linger in the aisles before they can get to the check-out. Voice is what you do with the tools once you've bought them. Someone might build their story with a regular hammer and nails. Other's might have a nifty nail-gun. And then you might end up like me and grope for the end of a heavy screwdriver to batter that puppy into place. :)
The point is, at the end of the day, all three methods get the job done. Someone else could write your story for you--but they won't use the tools you will. Only you will know if a particular character needs a the driving force of a power tool or the more gentle tap of a rubber mallet. Your story was born in your head, your heart, and you know it better than you think you do. Trust that. Be willing to believe in it.
Because no matter how well someone else could build your story, no one can say it like you can.
Until next time,
L.T.
50 comments:
I loved this post.
This is why I never compare my style to someone else's .
I just think too differently for my voice not to be unique.
Everyone has their own strengths ans weaknesses.
:-)
I loved this post! I think it's important to remind writers that your voice is the key!!!
J.K. Rowling didn't make money on a cool idea, no, she worked hours upon hours to make the idea she had wicked cool with the voice she had. No one could replicate that and have it turn out to be as popular as she made it.
I think this post brings relief to a writer :)
You make me want to start writing so I can head to the hardware store, start collecting tools and using them.
And I love the idea that you are the best person to tell your own story.
So, you are saying I can plagiarize your awesomeness and it's OK, right?
Thank you L.T. I often get discouraged after reading an awesome book with fantastic writing. I worry that I'll never write that way - I'll never measure up. It's so comforting to know that I will never write that way, but I can write my way and I too can achieve fantastic writing.
This is true. Only you can write your story. I could try to write part of your story...
But you'd end up with pointless gerbils running around... Lots and lots of gerbils...
Excellent, LT! Voice is such a personal thing, yet when asked to describe my own voice, I would have a hard time pinpointing how I do it. I really don't think about it when I write - and I think that's the key to finding your authentic voice. Just let the writing overtake you and let be what will be.
Aw!!! I love, love this post!!!! =) Thanks for linking to me. I totally agree. It's hard to write a story. But the you can only write you story, no one else can. =)
I'm speaking on this very subject at the Bloggy Boot Camp in November. I love the idea of voice, and as a musician I have an extra helping of experience with the subject. How many times have I taught a student to sing a particular aria, only to have it sound very different each time someone new sings it?
This is also one reason I discourage using a thesaurus when writing. You'll be rolling along, completely at ease with the story as it's being told to you, and suddenly you'll trip over a word that you just KNOW the author pulled out of the 'synonyms' book, because it is literally like hearing a voice-over from another speaker!
This is so true. I had a friend say to me once that someone could take your characters and your plot and try to write your book, but it would be completely different.
I love this post! It was two nights ago when I was talking to my bestfriend over the phone who also writes and I asked her, 'Do you think I should continue to write my story? Somebody else might already be writing it.' She said to me what you wrote about, 'No one else will write it like you are. It is your story.' I was having goosebumps when I was reading your post. You are right. No one can say it like I can. Thanks so much! :)
So true! I still struggle to find mine, it likes to hide. No one can write what I want, in the way I want, so my voice will be the factor that makes it different. Lovely reminder!
Well spoken. Now I understand why each story I write takes a different path. New voices need different tools.
And thanks for helping me feel better about taking forever with my current WIP. This story is a tap with a mallet vs. the power tool.
This rings true, even for a non-writer, like me. When I feel something or know something, I need to be the one sharing it.
I loved this! Especially the thought that no one can say it like me, or you. Great stuff!
Posts like this are one of the reasons I love you!
I came to this same conclusion when I got discouraged about trying to write what I called "just another book". What would make it special, stand out from everyone else's? Then it came to me--no one else could write my book.
You are awesome. :)
Nice. So beautifully said. Thank you Laura!
I just came over because of Len's recommendation. I'm glad I did - great post!
You are so right about voice. It was elusive to me for years. If I was writing, I thought I had one. But then I read more in my genre and started to get it. That's why they tell writers to read... a lot.
My blog also helped me find my voice. Once I found out how I wanted to sound, I figured out how to give voice to my characters.
Ah-ha moments are one of my favorite things - as good as the smell of rain, the sound of geese, and the feel of my daughters arm in mine.
LOVE the hardware store analogy! I linger in the aisles too, pricing things. :o)
It's very empowering to know we are the only ones that can tell our stories, though, isn't it?
P.S. I didn't like the Kira Knightley version of Pride and Prejudice because I felt the screen play was so obvious where they'd stitched their own lines with those of Austen's words. Drove me batty....
Awesomest post ever. This is so true. I'm tired of feeling like I'm "doing it wrong" by doing it the way I do it. Writing, I mean. ;-) You're so right: no one can say it the way I can. Or you can. Or whoever.
I never really knew what my "voice" was, until my most recent book I'm trying to finish. One night as I read through it, I realized that I actually have a voice! It's amazing how it just jumps out at you and has been there all along.
Thanks for this post! I love knowing I'm the only one who can tell my story. :)
Tell your story. Tell your story. Yes, yes! I say that all the time. Tell your story, because you are the one who can tell it best. Great post.
L.T., this post is O-M-G! awesome! I am bookmarking this forever so I can come back to it whenever I doubt myself! :-)
Great post! And you're soooo right. Everyone has their own style and way of writing. I was like you and lingered in the aisle a while before I understood.
Thanks!
You know, whenever I teach about finding your writer's voice, I always use construction metaphors too. I love that you wrote this. Awesome
What a great post! And I agree, no one can say it the way you can. I think this is something that is very important for writers to remember. We shouldn't focus on comparing our style to other writer's, we need focus on finding our own style. :)
Did you mean this fragment of your post: "...a heavy screwdriver to batter that puppy into place."
A screwdriver to hammer? If so, the absurdist in me loves it! :)
I've done the screwdriver as a hammer think for reals before, so I'm with you on that one.
For some reason, this post makes me want to cry.
I think you're on to something here. Where do you sit on the debate about whether voice can be taught? I don't think it can. Uncovered, maybe, but I wouldn't know how to go about helping someone do that. It seems like one of those got-it-or-you-don't kind of things. I don't know . . .
Yes, learning takes forever.
You are so articulate! :)
Wow, Laura, that was so profound! Can I get you to come write my blog posts for me? I'm sure you could do it better than I can. ;o) No, but you really got me thinking about the difference between having the right tools and skills, verses what you personally bring to the story and your own unique way of saying it. Thanks! <3
So true. It's an evil tool to compare ourselves at all times with anything in our lives. Thanks for this wonderful post! :)
I love this. Our individuality is such a gift, and I think we try too hard to smother it sometimes, just because we think we should be like someone else. I have to trust that I am the best me, and nobody will ever be as good at it as I am!
I have loved seeing you around more lately...it makes me happy. :)
Finding my voice is the heart of my journey right now. I want to nail it:)
I know the more I write the more I'll grow comfortable in my own writing skin!
Thanks for this! It's so true, we are so quick to read something and think that we are not worthy, when in fact, we will never get there if we don't keep trying. Perfect :)
Awesome post. I loved your line "Voice is what you do with the tools once you've bought them." It's hard not to compare ourselves to others, but I like your reminder that each of us really do have our own unique voice - something that is ours and ours alone.
Nice post. I think you have a very distinct voice in your posts and your comments. I can always tell if it's LT -- even if I were blindfolded -- first and foremost because your every word is laced with compassion.
What a wonderful way to say this. I working on the self-confidence to trust my own voice. I think that's a big part of being able to do it alone.
I loved this. It's so easy to have low self-esteem as a writer. Growing up, I've always been a terrible speller but could correct grammar instantly (oddly enough.) It used to stop me from writing because I felt like I wasn't as "smart" as other writers, or like you've said.. how they always found the right words. So thanks for this encouraging post!
"I'm scatterbrained and will frequently lapse into glassy eyed stares while envisioning alternate realities in my head." ....are you sure you're not a politician?
Great post, Laura! Somehow, you always know exactly what I need to hear. :)
Absolutely fantastic post. Great, great job!
You make some great points, here, and they are timely reminders as I just posted a poem that has me wondering again about voice, how I execute it, and if it is (at all) effective. Voice is an evolving thing for me as a writer, one that I am getting more and more comfortable with, but still has me edgy. (there, I said it!)
PS: Love your posts, LT, and your blog visits, too! :)
Great post. I agree the voice is hard to nail down. If I read several books by the same author, I can nail down their voice. But I also believe that each character and each book needs it's own voice.
Thanks for the words of encouragement. I'm still on the path to find my voice. I want so badly to be there, but the journey is what makes up the whole and builds my toolbox.
Oh this is def. an A-Ha moment! You're so right, but I have to say I think your voice also gets stronger the more projects you write because yourself sees the different styles you're capable of and then you find out what kind you enjoy and can craft a new one based on stuff you liked.
Come back and write another post! It won't take much time if it's a short one, right? ;)
Thank you for this post. I feel like you were talking directly to me.
~Houdini
Post a Comment