is for…

Voice.

 

Imagination is the voice of the daring. If there is anything Godlike about God it is that. He dared to imagine everything. –Henry Miller

The most important tool we have as a writer is our voice. One hundred people can write on the same topic but what makes the few stand out is voice. It is the one thing that is uniquely ours. You can blindly pick up a book by Hemingway, Shakespeare, Dickens, Austen, Plath, Rowling and you know who wrote it by the voice.  The combination of words and phrases, the cadence of dialogue and description, development of characters and pacing of the tale all help to determine voice.

We get to imagine our stories and worlds and dare to tell their story. We can imitate and study the style of our idols, but the words are stilted and counterfeit. When the words flow with ease, like a conversation with a friend, a story to a child, or a confession to a minister, then they become yours. You have found your voice. Now, it’s time to find someone who’ll listen.