With all the heaps and heaps of books, TV shows, and movies out there, it often feels like every story worth telling has already been told. But what is sure to make your story unique is that you are the one telling it.
There are writers who if you read just a short passage of their writing, you will know who it is right away. That’s due to the mixture of their distinctive style, tone, and perspective—what we call “voice”.
It may seem daunting to try to develop your own voice. But know that it’s already there inside you, and the following tips will help you to coax it out.
Here are ten tips to help you find your voice as a writer.
1) Read and Reread
One important way you can hone your voice is to read. Read a ton. Don’t just read within your favorite genres either—cast a wide net and read everything you can get your hands on. Romance, mysteries, fantasy, sci-fi…. the list of possibilities goes on and on.
When you find books you love, wait a while, and then reread them. Now that your read purely for entertainment is over, you can be free to notice turns of phrase you like and what makes an author’s writing unique.
As you read, you’ll absorb tips and tricks like a sponge without even realizing it. So read as much as you can since it will make your writerly voice all the richer.
2) Make a List of Your Favorite Authors
After reading all those books, you’re sure to have a handful of authors who you count among your very favorites. These are writers who have written not only one book you love, but several. Some of mine include F. Scott Fitzgerald, Neil Gaiman, Maggie Stiefvater, and Philip Pullman. These are all authors with distinct voices whose writing I would know without a name on the cover.
I recommend that you make a list of these authors. Think deeply about each author’s voice and what you like most about it. Study their sentence structure, style, technique, and themes.
You may notice that you are already trying to emulate these authors’ voices in your own writing. You shouldn’t worry that you are copying them—most great artists start out imitating the work they love before they find their true voice.
3) Avoid Comparisons
With all this reading and rereading you’ve been doing, you might start to feel down on yourself. These authors are so fantastic—how will you ever write something that even comes close to measuring up to their work?
It’s crucial to never compare yourself to other authors, especially very successful ones. Those authors have been honing their skills for years and years with the help of talented readers and editors. Of course their writing is going to be better than yours.
And whether their work is better than yours or not, other authors will always lack something you have, and that is your unique voice—the ability to tell a story in a way that only you can. Just be patient and give that voice time to develop.
4) Start Keeping a Journal
You may not think of yourself as the journalling type, but if you’re struggling to find your voice in your writing, it could really help. As you record the happenings of your day and how you feel about them, you’ll become more familiar with how you express yourself outside the confines of novel writing.
Don’t think you just have to write about where you went and what you did each day. This journal can be a space for you to write whatever you please. You may want to vent about an argument you had with a friend weeks ago or muse on some political issue that’s been bugging you.
What’s important with this journal is that you be yourself. As you read over the entries, you will begin to get a clearer idea of what makes your writing special.
5) Be Active on Social Media
While it’s fun for scrolling through recipes and dancing videos, social media is also a great place to work on your voice. A site like Twitter can challenge you to be more concise and exercise your wit, while Instagram and Facebook can give you more space to express yourself.
You can post about whatever you want, though your followers will probably be most interested in your writing. Update them on your projects and write bits of writing advice and posts about your habits.
Through all this posting, you will develop your voice without even realizing it. As a bonus, you can also use these accounts to promote your writing later on.
6) Understand Your Intentions
Before you begin the actual writing of your novel, ask yourself why you are writing this particular story.
Is there a theme or some opinion you have that you wish to communicate to your audience? Or maybe you just want to write a fun story that entertains people.
No matter what your intentions for your novel are, it’s helpful to have a good handle on them before you start writing. Understanding your intentions will help you to develop your distinctive voice and style.
7) Figure Out Which Method of Narration You Want to Use
In all of your reading, you probably noticed that writers use a variety of methods of narration. The most commonly used methods are first-person and third-person. Second-person can be great for short stories (like this one that won our April 2022 Short Fiction Writing Contest), but it is very difficult to maintain throughout a longer piece of writing like a novel and is rarely used.
Think long and hard about what method of narration you want to use. First-person will give you the chance to delve right into your protagonist’s head and really deepen the reader’s connection with the character. Third-person allows you to observe the thoughts and feelings of whichever character you like at any given time, and to describe things your characters may not be able to see for themselves.
Nailing down your method of narration will go a long way toward finding your voice.
8) Consider Word Choice and Sentence Structure
There is a lot to think about when it comes to your word choices and sentence structure. Will you use perfect English or will your characters speak more informally? Will there be cursing? Will you use long, flowery sentences or keep things short and to the point (or perhaps a mixture of both)?
Things like word choice and sentence structure are a big part of what makes an author’s voice recognizable. Think of William Faulkner’s florid prose as opposed to Ernest Hemingway’s concise, straightforward style.
Figuring out the way you plan to make word choices and structure your sentences is a fantastic way to help you figure out your voice and what makes it special.
9) Ask Others to Describe Your Writing
It can be difficult to view your own writing objectively and determine if your voice comes through strongly enough. I’ve talked before about the value of having a critique partner and beta readers to give you feedback on your work. These are just the sort of people you can go to when you need opinions on your voice.
Ask your readers (or, if you don’t have any, friends and family) to read some of your writing and describe it to you in three words. They might tell you that your writing is easy to read, or relatable, or poetic. Or maybe they’ll tell you your voice isn’t quite there yet.
No matter what feedback you receive, it will be hugely helpful in figuring out your voice.
10) Practice, Practice, Practice
I’ve listed a lot of tips here, but the best one is just to write, write, and write some more. You may feel embarrassed by how bad your writing is at first, but don’t let that slow you down. Every writer has had to start somewhere—even those favorite authors you included in your list.
As you write pages upon pages, you will start to see a distinctive voice coming out. Your dialogue and turns of phrase will begin to sound unique to you.
As you move from project to project, you’ll also notice pet themes that run through your body of work.
It’s hard work to develop an original voice as a writer. Hopefully, these tips will help you along the way, and one day, readers will be drawn to your voice and follow it through book after book.
Soak Yourself in Fiction
Follow us on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Discord