Let’s talk about voice. What is it, and can it be developed?
Well, there’s many thoughts on that. Let me start with what it is.
Your author’s voice is an expression of your personality. Your worldview, experiences and temperament contribute to your writer’s voice. It’s who you are and how you “sound” to the reader.
Can I work on it?
I believe the answer is yes, you can refine your writer’s voice. The best way to do that is to write. All. The. Time. Blog, journal, freeform, stream of consciousness, social media post, essay, book or whatever, just keep writing.
I like to Tweet because of the character limit. It forces me to choose my words carefully to get across a whale of an idea in a small pond. Sure, there are short cuts like using ampersands (&), but the limit is good practice for learning what’s important and what is not.
Develop your voice by writing as much as you can. And then, write some more. Because someday, your story might change a life…or even the world.