Voice

Odile_Blud · Jan 7, 2018

http://kriswrites.com/2016/02/03/business-musings-serious-writer-voice/ (Here is the link to the article if you are interested in reading it)

I read an interesting article about voice by a woman named Kristine Kathryn Rusch. She mentions workshops and how we limit our writing voices to adhere to the "rules". I felt like it was worthy of discussion. She mentions serious writing and having a distinct voice which is something I think about a lot with my own writing.

She’s not the only one. The best writers use
every
tool in the toolbox. If a scene calls for jumping from one point of view to another without a white space, the writer should do so. If the best way to show a character’s shallowness is to have the guy speak only in clichés, then the writer should use the clichés.

When critiquing others work, I try not to comment too much on voice because I believe that is something an author develops with time, and I feel like criticizing it will stunt their growth.

Anyway, I thought it was an interesting article so I figured you guys would find it interesting too. What do you think?

The Otter · Jan 7, 2018

I think the rules she discusses are probably most useful to new writers who are learning the ropes. Things like head-hopping, bookisms, etc., can be annoying when overused or used badly, and a lot of beginners do overuse them. It depends on the preferences of the reader too; many people aren't bothered by head-hopping, but I tend to notice it and find it distracting even when a pro does it. I like to stay parked in one head, at least for the duration of a scene. But, as with everything, it's possible to take that mindset too far, to follow those rules too rigidly and start editing by mechanically looking for "mistakes" like head-hopping, bookisms, adverbs, etc. with no regard for the voice or tone of a piece.

Ultimately there are only two rules for a writer:

1. Be interesting
2. Don't be boring

Everything else is a guideline in service of that fundamental goal, and when the guidelines are working against you, they should be thrown out.

blackcat777 · Jan 7, 2018

I'm curious, how do you critique someone's voice?

The only rule about rules is you have to learn to follow the rules before you can break them. There is value in playing with rules. I think it's good to try everything to see what you like and what you don't. Coherency is also incredibly important, and I think the purpose of many of the rules is to help achieve coherency.

The more I write and learn about story structure, the more obsessed with tropes I'm becoming, because they are more tools for the kit.

I know, as a writer, I gravitate toward certain types of stories, and therefore certain types of narrators. I thought I was finding my voice, which I came to think of as "badass voice." But my current WIP has two POVs, both of which are badasses, and now I feel like the whole ms suffers from "generic badass voice." I feel like I'm back to square one and am questioning everything I ever thought I understood about voice. (Which is so completely not badass.

)

Lakey · Jan 8, 2018

blackcat777, I think the last paragraph of your post answers the question in your first paragraph.

You’ve critiqued your own voice, by noting that you think it might be “generic,” and also that you have two POV characters without sufficient distinction in their voices.

I think one can also critique inconsistencies in voice.

I’m intrigued by the interplay between the notion of “finding one’s voice,” and the notion that voice is something you create anew for each story, for each POV character or narrator. I think the Rusch piece linked at the start of this thread glosses over that distinction a little; on the one hand, she notes that every story should have its own voice, and on the other, she talks about a strong voice as a writer’s instantly-identifiable signature. I’m reading a collection of Grace Paley stories at the moment and the most striking thing about it is the strength and diversity of voices from story to story. Yet someone who knows Paley’s writing well would almost certainly identify something quintessentially Paleyesque about all of them. There is something subtle going on there.

TSJohnson · Jan 8, 2018

I liked the article, but I don't think the picture is as bleak as she paints it. Certainly many novels are published (even by the big houses) that have very distinct voices, even by new authors.

I feel that there is a great risk in misunderstanding that article as a new writer. I don't think voice is that easily lost, even if you adhere to some of the stylistic choices purported by publishing houses.

blackcat777 · Jan 16, 2018

I’m reading a collection of Grace Paley stories at the moment and the most striking thing about it is the strength and diversity of voices from story to story. Yet someone who knows Paley’s writing well would almost certainly identify something quintessentially Paleyesque about all of them. There is something subtle going on there.

This subject is something I'm constantly ruminating about.

The other day, I was watching a skit by one of my favorite comedians in which he plays about ten different characters. He has different outfits, a nuanced way of speaking for all of them... but the humor is all the comedian's signature humor. It sounds obvious, now that I type it out, but watching that set off a light in my brain because I was thinking about this thread.

I also think the author's power of observation plays a role in the overarching voice that pervades a library of works.

Voice

Odile_Blud

-_-

The Otter

Friendly Neighborhood Mustelid

blackcat777

Lakey

professional dilettante

TSJohnson

blackcat777