Finding Your Voice(s)

What makes someone fall in love with an author’s work? Maybe it’s the world they’ve created, the characters, or the stories. Or it could be the words they’ve chosen. And I’m not talking about vocabulary (although that helps). It’s more than the individual words, more than the sentences and even more than the passages. It permeates every level of the work. You could say it is their signature style. That is what we call an author’s voice. It is what makes each of us unique. If you gave three authors the same plot to write out, their voices would be what sets them apart.

So you’re probably thinking “This voice thing sounds pretty important. How do I find mine?” To which I say “If you’ve lost your voice, tea with honey and lemon is a soothing remedy” (Yep, good life choice not going into stand up comedy) I wish I could say there’s some magic process that will lead you straight to your voice, but the key ingredient is volume.

Not that kind of volume

You need to write. A lot. Just write and let the words flow out of you. Don’t even worry if they’re the right words the first time around. After you write, let it sit for awhile. That may mean stepping away for an hour, a day, or even a week until you can look at it with fresh eyes. Then come back to it and see what speaks to you. What sounds right and what doesn’t. Do some editing and see what it looks like afterwards. As you rinse and repeat until you’ll start to see a pattern of what “feels right” in your writing. That’s your natural story-telling style speaking to you. At first you might only see it on one page or even one line here and there. But that’s it. That’s your voice.

When you’re relatively new (like myself, less than a year in as a professional) you may find that your voice is not quite solidified at the beginning. *insert all of the writing suggested above* By the time it’s well formed you’ll have a decent chunk of writing to show for it. As you look back over your work it’s natural to see the evolution of your voice, especially comparing the very beginning to your writing at the end.

Ahhhh, Chapter One

That’s okay. You can go back and fine tune whatever doesn’t fit with your voice. And sometimes reading your early work can help you rediscover your voice when you feel you’ve lost sight of it. Just recently I felt my writing was becoming a bit dull. Going back to the early chapters I was able to see all of the energy and life from when I first launched into my WIP.

As with all things a balance must be struck. You should stay true to your voice, but you don’t want to become stagnant for lack of growth either. To combat this I suggest interacting with other creators, seeking advice or feedback from non-writers and reading. And more reading. And then read some more (noticing a theme here?)  All of those things can feed new voices to breath life into your own, but don’t let them shout over yours. This applies more to getting feedback from people (books are less prone to shouting at you). You can listen to any comments with an open mind, but you are in no way obligated to make the changes they suggest. It is your voice and your words that matter. So go out there and write until you can hear your voice in the pages! And be sure not to trade it away to a sea-witch for legs or anything silly like that.

It’s not worth it. You’re better than that.

 

Open the door, let the Write People In

While editors, agents and publishers do their part, the actual writing of a book is basically a one man show. That can be both liberating and terrifying. I know my response was equal parts “Yay, I’m free to do what I want!” and “Oh God, I need an adult!” (The fact that I am actually an adult is irrelevant) But fear not, you are not truly alone! Though writing may be a solitary effort, you may surround yourself with those who may ease the journey if not the actual work. So why did I scare you with that one man band talk? Because I’m evil. Just kidding…mostly. I say that because sometimes yes, you will need help. Other times help is the last thing you need.

In his book On Writing, Stephen King advises authors to “Write the first draft with the door closed, and the second with the door open.” (Booby traps and claymore mines are optional) I would like to expand on that idea and share my thoughts on this using the metaphor of the writer as a band.

I like to think this is how that band looks

When writing the first draft the idea is the idea. Just get it down on paper and don’t worry about how it looks. It will be messy, ugly, rough and full of stuff that makes you cringe. It’s like the band rehearsing while they’re still writing the song and getting ready to record. This is not the time to show it to anyone. You don’t know the story well enough yet and it’s really not mature enough to go wandering about on its own. It probably still giggles at fart noises. This is where you figure out what story you want to tell.

The first draft probably looks more like this

Once the first (or second) draft is written, it may be time to open the door just a smidgen and let a handful of people through. These would be your beta readers (or technically alpha readers if the work is not finished yet). By now you know what story you want to tell, but maybe you’re still working out how to tell it. It’s like pitching a demo to a record label. The whole album may not be ready, but you have a taste of your sound that is ready to share. (At this point the band-author metaphor might get kinda shaky, but I’m committed so bear with me).

Now when you’re hip deep in the editing process you may need another opinion. I liken this to a band’s agent, who helps them get their sound onto an album and into a concert (I have no idea how it works, but that sounds right). By this point your book is basically done, with only edits on minor points left to be done. It’s still in the beta reading phase, but you’re looking for more focused critiques. The story is set, but the details are still workable. At this point the door is open. The work can stand up for itself and not be crippled by another opinion. And, perhaps more importantly, you are confident enough in your story to let it speak for itself in the face of criticism or suggestions to make changes that you know will not work for the story.

Eventually your work will be finished (I have faith in you). It’s been edited and you’re ready to share it with the world. Then there is no longer a door involved. At that point you’re on stage performing a concert. It doesn’t matter if you’ve sold one ticket or one thousand, you can’t change anything once it’s out there.

The biggest advantage to the door being closed is that it’s just you and your thoughts. Nothing to distract or lead you away from your own vision. With the door open you’ll get a lot more attention (some of it useful). But most importantly you’ll get perspectives you couldn’t get on your own simply for being too close to the work and having all of the background knowledge that you do. Something that seems perfectly obvious and logical to you might mystify someone else. In my case I’ve had people ask me about patterns or possible origin themes I didn’t intentionally write in. Whether I use them or not, I now know one way people might interpret my story and I can use that to my advantage. If you’re aiming for a certain reaction from your target audience, this can help you see how close to the mark you are.  As for me, I like to leave the door mostly closed. I put a sign up to tell people I’m working, but I leave it cracked so my dog can still come in and say hi whenever he wants. This isn’t adding to the metaphor anymore, but I wanted an excuse to show off my furry writing buddy.

What do you mean, personal space?

Productive Procrastination

I thought this topic would be fitting for two reasons. Firstly, last night I found myself almost incapable of starting the next chapter of my novel. Secondly, I had no idea what this blog post would be about until I sat down to start writing it. My pantsing tendencies are starting to bleed into other areas of life. Today I am here to make a pretty controversial claim. Procrastination is good.

Perhaps I should elaborate before I am pelted with rotten fruit and bricks for my blasphemy. Procrastination CAN be good*

*Void where prohibited, certain restrictions may apply

As writers, or creative people in general, there will be times when we just can’t bring ourselves to write. We’re all human (I’m assuming), life happens. Sometimes we’re feeling burned out, sick or just not feeling the whole writing thing that day. Maybe your muse is on a union break. Just the other night I was recovering from a really long day and did not have the mental reserves to piece together a particularly complicated scene. So I put it away. Then I heard that intrusive voice saying “You’re wasting time, you should be doing something productive.” Since then I have been thinking about ways to fill that writing time with non writing things (and shut that little jerk up).

Reading! Words are important, books are full of them! (And now you know why I’m not in sales). But as a writer, reading is absolutely essential. Just like your body can’t survive eating the same food every day, your mind needs some variety to be at its best. For all the time you spend creating your own world of words, you should also spend some time exploring other worlds. Of words. Unless you can literally travel to other worlds, in which case you should totally do that. It doesn’t matter if it’s related to your writing. If your mind is stimulated, it’s time well spent.

Beta reading. This is something I recently picked up doing. It started as an exchange with another author, but I quickly realized how much more I was getting out of it. It’s like a hybrid between writing and reading. You’re following a story, but you also have a chance to offer creative input (see my previous post on beta reading for my full length ramblings). It’s also a great way to network with other writer types and get some social support, which is a big deal coming from a hermit like myself.

Now we come to what I did instead of writing. You can always outline, daydream or spitball stuff that probably won’t survive the first draft of your work. For example, I’m going into a scene that is the start of a big revelation for my MC. It’s too much info to be dumped on the reader at once, so I started making a list of all the facts that will eventually be revealed or added together. Just by listing ideas I already had I was able to start connecting a few dots and adding new details. You can even start a separate word document so it doesn’t feel like it’s supposed to fit with the rest of your work. I went back to writing the next evening and those notes made the scene feel doable instead of this amorphous blob of ideas.

This is what it looked like before my notes.

My last suggestion is to try working on something else. If you have an old unfinished piece somewhere or an idea that hasn’t yet set foot on the page, give it your attention for a little while. It’s a nice way to keep flexing the writing muscles. I’ve done this a few times when I really needed to write, but editing was up next on the to do list. Look for a writing prompt, indulge in a fan fic or whatever tickles your fancy. Even if it’s not the story you were planning, you’re still writing.

So these are all things in my mind that are good ways to spend some time that was earmarked for writing. As long as you’re doing something that benefits you as a writer, I think it is time well spent even if it wasn’t how you planned it. See, my inner pantser is showing again. This list isn’t comprehensive obviously. Feel free to do whatever helps you. For me it’s about silencing that nagging little voice and proving to myself that I don’t have to be productive every single moment to meet my goals. I’ve had my share of off days and surprises, but I haven’t missed a deadline yet. So take that, nagging little voice! And on that note, I rest my case in defense of procrastination; a case that called the gelatinous cube to the stand for testimony. I would make the best lawyer ever.

An Alpha needs a Beta…Reader that is

For those who don’t know (much like myself before I got serious about writing) beta readers are basically mini-editors for your work (and not those little fish in bowls at the pet store who have mastered the English language). They will read through your chapters or manuscript and give you feedback. If you’re lucky it will be useful feedback, but I’ll come back to that. Now I can’t speak for all writers, but I know when a work is still in its early stages showing it to someone else can be pretty daunting.

Your story is young, unrefined, and not savvy enough to refuse candy from strangers. Beta readers can be the Mr. Miyagi that helps them become better and stronger.

Self-editing is a vital process, but it can only take you so far. Which brings me to my next point. How convenient!

A computer program can pick out most spelling and grammatical errors for you, so why do you need a person? Perspective, that’s why. What, that single word doesn’t lay it all out for you? Very well, then I’ll elaborate. An author knows their story inside and out. Every detail, planned or not, is swimming around in their head. Every bit of backstory, every motive, and every step that is building towards the climax. Unless they are telepathic, your readers will not benefit from this knowledge. They will only see what is there. They will have their own expectations about where the story is going and how things fit together. Beta readers can share that perspective with you and therefore help you refine it in ways you couldn’t do on your own. They can provide another eye that doesn’t suffer from being too close to the story.

So beta readers are basically magical beings with powers mere mortal writers could never posses, right? Well not quite. Like everything, some are better than others, and most of the time “better” isn’t an objective measure. It is very much a function of personality and preference. Some will nit pick details, some will sniff out plot holes and others will analyze characters, for example, and all of these can be good things if that’s what the writer needs (and wants). Writers need to be clear if they’re looking for feedback on something specific and consequently need to be open minded enough to consider what the beta reader has to say. The one thing I’ve found that almost always makes for a “bad” beta reader is someone who reads your story, then tells you how you should make it better. To be clear, this is not pointing out where something doesn’t work; this is when they tell you “it would be better if…” or “you should do it this way…” A good beta reader should help you to tell your story, not try to change it into the story they want it to be.

While it can be tempting to ask friends and family, ask yourself if they can give objective feedback. Usually the answer is no. I got very lucky and found an exception there. My best beta reader is an old friend of mine, but he is more than willing to question and challenge me. Most of the time you’ll have to invest time in getting to know other writers (and offering to beta read for one another is a nice incentive) to find a good team of betas. And yes, I said team. It’s not enough to have one. I would say three to five is ideal. If you only have one, you have no way of knowing if the issue they’re bringing up is really an issue or just a personal preference of theirs. If you hear the same thing from several betas it might mean you need to take a closer look at something.

So that’s my stance on beta readers. They can be magical allies if you take the time to find a good team that works with and for you and your work. Or they can be frustrating, time consuming and soul sucking. Maybe not that bad, but I enjoy the image of Nazgul-esque creatures scratching notes on a manuscript and hissing their critiques. So I leave you with that image. And also this one.

Image url: http://jenelleschmidt.com/beta-readers-wanted/