How to Find Your Voice as a Writer

"You have to find your voice." You've probably heard it many times in your writing journey. I know that I have.

And I thought, every time I heard it from a mentor, an agent, a TV executive, or even just a friend, 'What if I don't know what my voice is?'

Do you have that as a writer? That lingering question about your voice. Or are you like me, believing you have nothing worthwhile to say and finding your voice is the least of your worries?

That was me. For years as a writer, no matter how much great feedback I got on a project I was working on, I never felt like it was my "voice." It took a long time-- 32 drafts of the same TV pilot script I was working on, to be exact-- before I finally discovered my voice.

As a writer and storyteller, I believe our voice is already within us. But how do you find it? Where do you even look within yourself to know if it's there?

In today's post, I wanted to define a writer's voice and discuss some of the things you can do to find your own authentic voice.

Ready?

What is A Writer's Voice? Why Does It Matter?

All the greats have it: Ernest Hemingway, Stephen King, Colleen Hoover—the list goes on and on—every author you've ever read. All it takes is reading a few words before you know exactly who you're reading.

But what is a writer's voice exactly?

It all depends on who you ask, really. It can be a litany of things, including:

• Your perspective on the world.
  

• Your style and the way you put the words together.

• The tone of your work.

• And even all of that and more.

Let's take a quick look at each of these.

What's Your Style?

No, this doesn't mean "are you a jeans or a t-shirt" type or "dress for the occasion." Your writing style is the mechanics of your storytelling—word choice, sentence structure, and how you craft your narrative. Over time, your natural style will emerge. The key? Write every day!

No one starts with a unique style. It develops as you read and absorb different influences. Like handwriting, your style becomes uniquely yours. You might prefer short, crisp sentences or elaborate, poetic ones. Whether you lean towards rich descriptions or minimalism, your style will become your signature.

What's Your Perspective?

Every writer has a unique perspective. It's different from the story's point of view; it's how you choose to see and relay events. Multiple people can view the same event and interpret it differently because no one else has your vantage point.

As a writer, you bring your entire history of experiences into your storytelling. This perspective shapes how you describe characters and events, making it uniquely yours. For instance, if you retell Pocahontas's story, your life experiences will influence whether you see her as a tragic or triumphant figure.

Your perspective is crucial to your voice, shaping what you emphasize in your story. What worked for me to really find my perspective was to start noticing the world around me. People-watching at Starbucks or Barnes & Noble, or really wherever you get your coffee, is one of the best ways to be present to how you see the world around you.

A fun game is to make up stories about the people who come in, where they came from, why they need their coffee today, and where they might be going. It's even more fun when there is more than one person in the group you're inventing stories about.

What's Your Tone?

Your tone is your attitude toward your story, which can shift depending on the scene or characters. It can be serious, ironic, cheerful, or even meta. Your tone guides readers through the story and influences how they feel about it.

For example, telling a friend, "I can't believe you did that," with a laugh rather than a frown, changes the mood without altering the message.

In writing, your word choice and feelings create a tone that's clear on every page. Avoid being monotone. Let readers feel your emotions—excitement, disappointment, relief—as they journey through your story. Tone shapes the reader's experience.

How to Find Your Voice

In the world of writing, "voice" is the unique blend of vocabulary, tone, point of view, and syntax that gives your words their distinct flow. It's what makes your sentences and paragraphs unmistakably yours. In novels, you often hear more than one voice—the narrator's and the characters'.

To help you discover your own writing voice, here are some questions you ask yourself today:

How Do You See Yourself as a Writer?

Pick three to five adjectives that describe you as a writer. This self-description gives insight into your likely voice.

Do you describe yourself as ironic, playful, and conversational? Are you drawn to writers with a similar tone?

The writers you admire can reveal your voice, too. We're often influenced by the writers we love. Another way to approach it? Who are you when you're with your friends you feel most comfortable and authentic with? That's when I started to realize and step into my own voice.

Instead of writing what I thought people wanted to read, I started just writing my truth and stepping into all that it opened up for my writing.

How Do Others See Your Writing?

It's one thing to describe yourself, but don't stop there. Ask your family and friends to describe your writing.

Yes, that means that you have to share your writing with people you love. Over the years in my writing, I've found that sharing my WIP (work in progress) with people I trust allowed me to see holes in the story or moments in a character's decisions that didn't work. Or even where I swerved the drama and didn't push myself as a storyteller.

Other times, I found that there were certain people I shared my writing with and asked for feedback, and I would die on any sword not to make a change. Then, a few days later, I would come back to them with an updated script draft with their changes. (Sorry, Curtis!)

The more I shared my work and asked for feedback, the more I could start to see my voice coming through.

You may think you write one way, but your reader experiences something totally different. Knowing how others experience your writing can help you better define your writer's voice. The more you realize what readers respond to (your descriptive prose, your quick staccato delivery, your smart word choice), the easier it is to hone in on what resonates and makes you a fantastic storyteller.

Who Inspires Your Writing?

Who are the writers you love? What voices attract you? Are they poetic or matter-of-fact? Do they weave in humor, or are they distant and somber?

Take a few minutes to write down what you like about these voices. How are they similar? How are they different?

The more you study writers you love and that make you feel the things you want your readers to feel, the more you'll start blending elements of those voices into your writing to create a unique melody of words that's yours.

Final Thoughts

Your voice is just as crucial as the story itself. It shapes how you tell the story, what details you highlight, and how you interpret the events. The emotions you evoke in readers will shape their experience of your narrative.

Developing your writer's voice takes time. It's built from years of life experiences, countless books read, and, most importantly, lots of writing.

Your voice is how readers come to recognize you. It's uniquely yours and should feel authentic. Your perspective is distinct—no one else sees the world quite like you. That uniqueness is what makes you the perfect person to tell your story.

Step into your truth. Write your truth. And you'll inspire love (and every other emotion you want) in your readers.

Take a moment to share in the comments other things you did to find your voice. Is there something that I missed? Share, and let's discuss!