I know some of you may well be fretting about whether you have a truly unique and individual ‘voice’. Maybe an agent has knocked you back saying that your voice isn’t distinctive enough. Some authors undoubtedly do have strong and recognisable voices - but before you imagine that their idiosyncratic style is a gift that is somehow innate, please think again.
Every author has to work at it, and if you were to look at any literary megastar's development from pimply teen to bestselling author you would see that their writing will (like yours) have ‘come a long way’.
Plenty of successful books don’t have a unique or idiosyncratic voice and sell very well indeed. However, I think it’s fair to say that in order to be a bestseller that stands the test of time you need to have all your ducks in a row: strong and original characters, a compelling story – and a ‘voice’ that is very much your own.#
If any of you have been watching the talent show, The Voice, on telly, you will know that there’s an easy correlation to be made. Some singers manage to make cover versions their own, while others can’t raise themselves above the karaoke or wedding singer bar. Some sound like yet another Rihanna, while others have something boldly different to offer.
It is really, really hard for artists, whether they’re writers or singers, to come up with something unique and memorable. You only have to listen to Madonna’s very first record, which the producer, worried that she didn’t have enough that was distinctive in her tone, sped up so that her voice had that tinny, piping quality we know so well. (In later records, they felt confident enough to let her be herself and the voice is notably deeper.) Similarly, the Abba girls didn’t have ‘unique’ voices – the sound became distinctive only after Bjorn had layered their voices.
Suffice to say that those authors who do have a distinctive voice (eg. Elmore Leonard, Irving Welch) have gone the extra mile, spending many hours crafting their style to lose any trace of sameyness. For any writer, finding your unique voice takes a lot of hard graft - it's not some 'hand of god' miracle.
Wanda Whiteley is founder and editor-in-chief of manuscriptdoctor.co.uk
Thanks Wanda for this - most interesting. Fair comment too. It's something that has engaged and intrigued me for quite some time and I've asked myself some quite searching questions about 'voice'.
The singing analogy is valid. I've often thought when listening that anyone could be singing this song and yet five seconds into a (for example) Dire Straits, Rod Stewart, Eagles song you know it can only be them. Very rarely indeed is it 'just the song' that grabs your attention.
The only thing that I would add to your blog is that you should find what it is you are good at then aspire to excel at it. In writing terms and for me it's comedy. Yes, I've written and published books, had poetry published and even been shortlisted by BBC radio four for the Alfred Bradley drama award BUT they were all pretty much rubbish - not me, not my voice, mechanical even. They say comedy is the hardest thing to write and yet for me it comes quite easily. The hardest thing is getting noticed and hustling, networking etc is not my bag then it's going to be a long hard slog. For example, I won an award a few years ago for a stage play, was duly interviewed by the local press and published 'my story'. The journalist invited me to a charity ball in support of children's cancer - a worthy cause indeed. But he invited me because the little girl in question's mother was a producer at the BBC and I could 'network'. I declined the invite. Just to finish; I think you've hit the nail on the head i truly think it's voice that makes all the difference - everything else can be learnt.
Oops, that line should have read. But on subsequent edits my voice became clearer and clearer.
A very interesting post.
I wonder if the authors with the most distinct voices are those who write flowery prose. I am not a fan of flowery prose. I prefer the story telling style of Michael Morpurgo.
There is a smoothness and a rhythm to a good voice. I am drawn to a good voice like iron-filings to a magnet. I have often failed, when I have tried to deconstruct how award winning authors go about their craft. I become totally absorbed and hypnotised by their voice.
I believe that a unique style is determined by the length of sentences and paragraphs. The best authors are able to pack so much information and intrigue into a few lines of text. Their pace benefits from short sentences, and short descriptions that are filmic and vivid.
Characterization and dialogue are vital to style. How characters interrelate, and how individual voices are portrayed in the mind of the reader. The tone of the voices depends on the age group the author has targeted.
My confidence grew the more that I wrote and read. My voice improved.
There was a big difference from my earliest attempts at writing, to the completion of my first draft. I believed I had already found my voice, but my novel was much tighter after each thorough edit. But on subsequent edits my became clearer and clearer.
The voice of reason tells me this has to be my last thorough edit.