Voice

Week of January 13, 2013: Painting with Words

Monday, January 14—Voice

I would say no child who reads or listens to a picture book says, “Oh, I love the

voice of the author in that book.” Most of the people reading to them wouldn’t

have a clue what voice is either. Editors and agents talk about voice a lot, however.

Though if you ask any four editors or agents to define voice, and you’ll probably

get four totally different answers. That’s because voice is hard to pin down. Most great

authors probably never give/gave voice a second thought. The voice of their

writing is/was the natural style that comes/came out while writing. . . almost

intuitively.

But not all of us have been blessed with that intuitive ability to create strong voice

in our writing. To many, voice is an elusive concept. That’s why you’ll find so

many articles, seminars, and blog posts on the subject. But voice needn’t be intuitive

or elusive—it can be learned.

Joyce Sweeney defines voice as “the entire way a writer uses language.” If we use

that as our working definition, then it means if we focus on elements of our

language usage (for instance: tone, diction, detail, imagery, and syntax) our writing

can sing out with our voice. Though all authors use the same language

components, our voices can still be unique and strong because no two writers will

use the components of language in the same way.

Read Owl Moon and you’ll hear Jane Yolen’s voice in the pacing, the exquisite

word choice, the details, and the imagery. Read Avalanche Annie: A Not-So-Tall

Tale by Lisa Wheeler and hear her voice in the rhyme, the rhythm, and the made

up vocabulary. Read Saturdays and Teacakes by Lester L. Laminack and hear his

voice through repetition, sensory details, specific details, and dialogue. Read Cat

Secrets by Jef Czekaj and hear his voice through the snarky humor, dialogue, and

pacing. Each one completely different than the other, each with a solid,

distinguishable, recognizable voice.

For You To Do:

Today reread one or two of your favorite picture books by your favorite picture

book author(s). Identify what is making that author’s voice unique and strong.