A number of people have asked me how to write well. They’re having trouble finding a “writer’s voice” that sounds natural, unique and still like them. It’s a pretty huge ego boost to get a question like that, because I presume that they’re telling me that I am a good writer. But my answer to this is pretty simple, because it’s the only way I know how to do it: write like you talk.
Nothing that I’ve ever put on this blog is any different from something that I would say in my everyday life. I enjoy using words like “boggle,” “bamboozle,” “kerfuffle,” “hijinks,” “shindig” and so on. The tone and patterns of my writing (or in this case, blogging, which can be different) match my own speech patterns. I usually read what I’ve written out loud and adjust it as necessary.
This strategy is pretty obvious but is rarely used. As I mentioned in a previous post about filling out a job application, it doesn’t make sense to write in a way that no one talks. Grandiloquence (using big words to sound important) won’t get you far, and outside of a Diablo Cody script, quirky, irreverent dialog just seems weird. You don’t need to look far to find a unique or coherent writing voice – just use your own.
And if you don’t like the way you talk, pick someone you wish you talked like and write as them.
