Writing Voice
I need to spend time learning this.
5 Tips For Developing Your Writing Voice
- Write honestly, from the heart
When you write from your feelings, your voice will be automatic. Of course, you’ll have to rewrite and edit, but allow your honest feelings to surface and show.- Write as if you were writing or talking to a friend
When you’re writing or talking with a friend, the honesty and passion show up. So does the clarity. Clarity, even simplicity, expressed through you will make your writing sing - in your voice.- Picture your reader
Every time you write, you’re writing for a particular audience. Think how you would address one reader in that group as if they were a friend. Write for that person.- Read widely
Read all sorts of things. Get out of your field and read something you’re not inclined to read. Notice the voice. Can you see yourself writing that way? If not, why not? The answers don’t matter; the key here is just to become aware of voice.- Experiment
Break out of your comfort zone. If you always write articles, try a short story, or part of one. If you write mostly for high-end travel magazines, try something for children. The goal here isn’t to break into a new market, although that may happen, it’s to play and experiment and stretch your boundaries. You can even do this with a sentence or two as an exercise.
