Hear My Words
My commodity as a writer, whatever I’m writing about, is me. And your commodity is you. Don’t alter your voice to fit your subject. Develop one voice that readers will recognize when they hear it on the page, a voice that’s enjoyable not only in its musical line but in its avoidance of sounds that would cheapen its tone: breeziness, condescension and cliches.
I’ve read William Zinsser’s words several times, and then yesterday I read them again. His introduction to chapter 20 of On Writing Well is one of my favorites. I was struck again by two things in the above paragraph.
The first is that the writer is the filter, giving the tone, attitude and feel to everything the writer puts down. Zinsser wrote one book on baseball and one book on jazz, but as he points out, it was his voice in each, his unique take on each subject. The Voice is such a mysterious thing sometimes to pin down. This is what his words bring to mind for me.
The second thing that pops out is “hear it on the page.” I speak best on the page. It never seems odd to me to be heard through a visual medium. It seems natural and right to use such an analogy. To understand me or catch a glimpse of my inner world, you will hear me best on the page. My heart and mind reside there if you have eyes to see.
so well said!!