What is Literary Voice? How Does a Writer Find Voice?

As writers we hear a LOT about this word: voice. So much so, it almost begins to take on magical connotations. Agents demand it. Editors reject piles and piles of manuscripts for not having it. We’re told to discover it, like it’s a hidden jewel in our soul, and if we mine deep enough, we’ll find it!

*insert discordant scratch on record player*

It took me a long time to realize that the words of the all-wise Inigo Montoya apply here: “You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.”

When people talk about ‘voice’ like the hidden jewel to discover in themselves, they mean it in the poetic, stylistic sense, like on Project Runway when the judges are say, that designer has a distinctive point of view or ‘voice.’ They mean, there is a sense of visual and artistic cohesion to their pieces, in the way that you can tell an impressionist is different from Picasso is different from Jackson Pollack. Or in Project Runway terms, Seth Aaron’s in-your-face dramatic sensibilities are very different from Anya’s flowing, feminine, wearable drapey dresses are different from Mondo’s style. This use of the term ‘voice’ is very useful for the visual arts and for writing poetry.

However, it’s NOT AT ALL USEFUL in the practical sense for fiction writers, because, unless you’re writing literary fiction (and even then, only rarely), voice is meant to be about the voice of your CHARACTER, not about your authorial stylistic voice. When agents and editors reject manuscripts for voice, it’s because the voice of thecharacter’s personality isn’t coming through. Ironically, because of this false idea of what voice is, authors are over-writing with their prose styles and not letting character’s voices speak.

Because here’s the kicker: readers rarely care about how pretty or well constructed your sentences are. All readers (and agents and editors) want is to get pulled emotionally into a story. Which is accomplished through your character feeling like a fully-realized, complex human—via voice. Voice is merely the term to encompass all the ways this full character realization is translated onto the page (in every single line of text) through:

1. Internal Thought and Reflection
2. Observation and Description
3. External Dialogue
4. Movement (as in, blocking the movement of the characters within the setting, like actors on a stage)

How does your character see the world? What are they like? Down to earth? Snobby? Intellectual and detached? Overly empathetic? You as the writer have to be in their heads, whether you’re writing in first person or third. That’s where you discover voice—not in yourself, but in your character. It’s not how you see the world that matters, it’s how they see it.

Do they have a penchant for gambling or drugs? They’ll always want to align themselves with the person in the room likeliest to give them their next fix. Every thought in their head, observation they make, thing they say, and movement they make is to get them closer to this goal. Through this, the reader should feel their personality because the reader is in their heads. As the writer, it’s your duty to see and write through the lens of the character. It’s up to you to get in their minds. Remember, you’re telling their story, not yours. Get as close to them as you can, even down to the language level—this is where their personality can shine through.

When I began to shift my paradigm to think this way, writing began to feel like an entirely different animal. And that’s when my (pile of) rejection slips started turning into acceptance notices.

Here’s my nice and fancy definition of voice to hang your hat on:

The manner of language by which an author expresses personality to narrate a story. Voice is used to close the distance between narrator and reader so that the reader is immersed in the ‘feel’ and personality of the story that the author intentionally means to convey. All language—every line of text—including internal thought, observation, movement, and external dialogue should be filtered through voice.

I'll be teaching a class online this Fall on this topic if anyone's interested, here's a little intro video below.

Open to anyone, anywhere. For more deets, click here: The Loft Literary Center

Which Cover? YOU CHOOSE!!!

So my amazing new writing BFF, A.E. Murphy, is redesigning the covers for her first series and it came down to two covers that she couldn't make up her mind about. And I was like, Alex, why don't we let the fans decide? Her response: Super cool idea! So here we are, for your voting pleasure!

And for your trouble A.E. Murphy is also giving away TEN copies of ALL OF HER BOOKS (that's SIX BOOKS, including her Amazon Top 100 Ranked BROKEN series).

Have you read the Broken series, because oh my gosh, these books are amazing. So amazing, that's how I met Alex in the first place, I just contacted her on Twitter out of the blue and was like, I'm in love with your books, I'd love to blurb you!!!!! The first one in her Broken serious, BROKEN, is FREE on Amazon, iTunes, Smashwords, Kobo, so even if you don't win the giveaway, go grab it now!

So here are the options of cover for the first book of her previous series, A Little Bit of Crazy. And make sure to enter the Rafflecopter giveaway below the poll!

Here's the summary of the book:

An arranged marriage. Unconventional? Hell yeah. A little medieval? Sure. 

But when it's my dying father's last wish for me to marry his right hand man, someone he knows will treat me well, what's a girl to do? Well... I'll say yes obviously. I've always had a little bit of crazy in me. Everyone who knows me knows this fact.

Sure I don't love James, but love was never part of the bargain and we both knew that going into this. I think. He's a little bit charming and completely gorgeous, and I'm a little bit selfish, self-centered and definitely shallow. It's doomed to fail, but that's never stopped me before.

This is our story, it has: a Channing Tatum poster, a long lost brother, a bony blonde and a promiscuous female friend, plus a hot shot star and the one and only sinus blocker Sylvia. Now throw in a crazy lady and a man who would do anything for her (meaning myself and James) and you have our story. Or the first part of it. 

Part one of two. Part two is now released. A Little Bit of Us. 

Little Bits is a character series. After book two you will be introduced to a new character and story.

So, without further ado, 

which cover do you think best fits this story? 

Help Alex choose!

Which Is Your Favorite Cover?
	Cover #1: BACKSIDE
	Cover #2: LEGS
pollcode.com free polls

Here are the SIX E-Books of A.E. Murphy's we're giving away today!

The BROKEN SERIES
(Amazon Top 100 Ranked Series!)

 

THE LITTLE BITS SERIES

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Scott Westerfeld & Plot Knots

I got to hear author Scott Westerfeld speak at The Wild Rumpus bookstore today, and it was wonderful. I go to YA author events as often as I can and Westerfeld was definitely among the top speakers I've ever heard. He has an easy style, had a really interesting talk (and pictures!) prepared about how pictures stopped being popular (in anything other than young children's books) these days when they used to be so prominent, and the Q&A time was killer.

Things he said that stood out to me:

- someone asked him basically what kind of reaction he got when he came up with this complicated "weird" story idea for the Leviathan series. His response was awesome--that complicated stories are a lot easier to write than simpler ones--there's so much to explain, so many places you are freed to go with it. He gave the example of trying to summarize Season 3 of Buffy--and how hard that is to do quickly because there are so many intricate things going on with so many characters and interweaving storylines. And Westerfeld does do some seriously complicated storylines. I loved the Uglies series, but it was really his Midnighter's series that impressed me with some f'ing SMART, intricate, kick-ass storytelling. Really, Leviathan too. So intricate, so smart, love it.

-which leads to the next thing he said that totally surprised me: he says he's not a plotter! Doesn't do outlines. He just goes with it, and said he'd rather just try things out and write it several different ways if he has to. And when he comes to a plot knot that may arise, between research and his extensive worldbuilding, he always finds a solution. For example, if you've read Leviathan and Behemoth: he didn't know what kind of creature was in the eggs for a long time!!! Then it turned out to be the awesome perspicacious loris!

I am a big Plotter. But I'm learning you can only take it so far: you outline, you write, then you step back and see the story has a giant lump sticking out the side that's going to have to be lopped off (aka, I think I'm gonna have to kill this one scene). But once you do that, the whole shape is now wonky, and you have to re-think what it's going to look like. Plotting and outlining shouldn't be taken to the point where you forget to allow the story to grow organically--you are not some supreme god able to control every element of the book you are writing and the world you are creating in it. It should surprise you.

Art imitating the Big Things I'm learning about life: trying to hold onto it with a clenched fist of control isn't the way to go. Things will be a lot more exciting and spontaneously creative if you learn to let go.

So, I'm looking at this mass of words that will eventually be a book, a cohesive and hopefully moving thing. And I'm teasing out thoughts and playing around with the shape (without trying to be so immediately controlling), just digging my fingers in the clay and seeing where it goes. Some question tools I'm using as I explore:

• What's the emotional core of this book?
• What's the climax (and how does that connect to the emotional core)? 
• How are all these chapters driving towards that climax?
• What's necessary, what's not?
• How do I bring these characters to life?

Lookeeee! New Publication Forthcoming!

So we just got news of the cover for the critical anthology I have an essay in! My essay is from a psychoanalytical perspective, questioning why we are all secretly attracted to the sexy tug of war between restraint and desire in Twilight!!!

I'll post more updates when we get a publish date, though it's available for pre-order now :-)

Forthcoming from McFarlands Press!!

Endings and Beginnings and as always, Middles

Endings!

• My last semester of grad school! Over! No more classes! So, other than a couple of papers left (for a class I took an Incomplete due to health problems), I'm done with course work. I'll work slowly on my thesis throughout the next year, probably fly back to Tx to defend it next May since we're moving to MN. But I'm DONE w/ going to class! Maybe forever!!
• Which leads to the next exciting Ending: working on 2nd round of edits for GLITCH! My editor got back to me with edits yesterday, on my birthday too :) Happy birthday to me! I'll be diving in tomorrow and all next week.

Beginnings!
After I finish edits on GLITCH, then I move on to writing Book II for the rest of the summer. I've written about the first third of it, but the rest I get to dive into First Drafty Land. There's an adrenaline to the pure creation stage, building up word count and getting deep in the Writing Zone.

Middles...!...?
But most of my life is middles right now, probably why I'm a little bananas and have been for the past few weeks/months. For example,

• Motherhood. Always a middle, an on-going drama of happy and driving-me-crazy and then cuddly and then enforcing consequences for bad behavior. Bah! Mothering a 6 1/2 yr old is constant rollercoaster land. Today was a good day though. Took munchkin to the river and we played in the small waterfalls and let him get more comfy floating and starting to learn how to swim. We are also starting to watch Doctor Who together. Very good things ;)
• The House. We are trying to sell our house. Like, putting it on the market by May 30th. Hence, crazy house projects, like today: we were paying my friend to paint the walls in the living room, meanwhile husband and I worked together to put the grout in for the tile he laid a few weeks ago. After we put sealant on that tomorrow, we finally get to put the master bath toilet back in!! Which has been missing since husband pulled it out THREE MONTHS AGO (sharing bathroom w/ a 6 yr old w/ bad aim= no bueno!!) Also, we might be moving into an apartment starting in June so the house can be empty while it's on the market.
• School. Yes, I'm finished w/ classes, but I still need to work w/ prof on the class I took an Incomplete for, will need to write those two papers in July.
• The Husband. Oh dear, is it uncouth to call my husband one of my Middles? But really, the dude could not be MORE in the middle of transition-land. He's just starting his thesis...which has to be done by July! He's been finishing up other research projects with his research professor. He's taking his last final exam on Monday, then he's done w/ coursework. In a couple weeks, he's bowing out to take a trip to MN to try to figure out a safe school solution for our son. And he's going to be a Research Advisor to several undergrad students all summer. Seriously, the guy is half super-sonic cyborg, I swear, who goes and goes and goes on still very little sleep. Poor dude. Heather's Mission now that school is done: do as much as I can to give him all the time/energy/space he needs to get done all the craziness in the next few months. You know, along w/ packing and moving this summer to an apartment before he graduates and we move in mid-August!!!!! Bananasville!!!!

Author Photo!!!

Heather's First Author Photo:

So, today I got to fulfill a childhood dream: getting an author photo taken. Seriously, ever since 2nd grade when we made little cardboard-bound books for stories we'd written and pasted a school photo at the back (see left), I've been completely enamored with the idea of author photos. I picked out the outfit I would wear TWO YEARS AGO. Before I even had an agent! Seriously, I have thought out what angles work and how I could best show off my tattoos and funky hair and what sitting positions, and yeah, writers are neurotic, and here was another outlet for my neurosis to manifest!!!

And today was the day. I did my own make-up and hair, picked out the perfect jewelry, met up with the photographer I'd contacted through a mutual art-y friend. The weather was perfect, I felt at ease and natural, and basically all around had a blast. I can't wait to see the results. You bet your buns I'll post the best ones here so ya'll can help me decide which one is the best!!!!

Also of note: That's my original hair color, and it's probably the only time you'll ever see it!!

Elements of an Edit - Picture Post

So, I looked at the calender today, thinking for sure it had been 3+ weeks since I'd gotten my edit letter. Yeah, or not. It's been a little less than 2 weeks, but I turned in my edits today, and they felt pretty massive. At least to me. We'll see what my actual editor thinks :) In the meantime, here's a picture post of the elements involved in Heather's Vortex Hermit Cave of Edits where I've been living the past couple weeks.

First of all, there is the Edit Cave :

Note: multiple coffee cups on the shelf, as well as wine bottle and glass. Both are important ingredients in the Hermit Cave. Mini-speakers on the couch arm (blasting mainly Florence + The Machine and Mumford & Sons). Also important: comfy couch space, pillows and blankets that nestle the aforementioned Heather Hermit into the couch space. And yeah, random stacks of laundry and books scattered around. This is my life.

Next item of importance: midway through edits, printed out manuscript, with more chicken scratch:

And last but not least--the beacon guiding in the dark: THE EDIT LETTER, in all it's 18-page gloriousness, marked up, highlighted, and each item crossed off one by one as I work through Amazing Editor's thoughts and suggestions for manuscript.

And then there is the Heather Hermit in the Aftermath. That's right, I am sleeeeeeeeeeeeepy. But wait, what? Grad school needs my attention? Bahhhhhhh!!!

And the edits are upon me!

Edit letter has come and let the hacking begin!!! I love editing, because, as fun as the purely creative drive of the first draft provides its own high, it's edits where the magic happens, where the art is finally crafted closer and closer to a finished entity, able to go live on its own out in the world.

I've forced myself not to look at the manuscript for months. And when I came back to it, editorial suggestions from my fabulous editor in hand, I can suddenly SEE it with fresh eyes. And yeah, then go in with a hack saw to pages at a time. All this shit I thought was necessary for character building, sooooooooooo slow--hack out all the boring crap, keep the heart of the cinematic, emotional moment, get back to the moving action, the active tension. I love editing because in my mind it seems like sculpting.

The first few drafts have created a real living entity on the table, but it is blunt, awkward, and ugly (not to say that it wasn't hard as hell to get it that far, but still, it's not ready for the world to see). The edits are the crafting of the crescendos and diminuendos of action, all working toward a truly dynamic climax at the end. Each scene should have shape to make it cohesive, cause-and-effecting as it goes. The middle and second half are really where most of this work needs to be done.

After the plot gets shaped up, then I want to go through a pass at the language level--making sure the most potent moments of emotional impact are the most lyrical, and the language of dialogue is unique and distinctive. Here's to the Hermit Cave of Edit-land, kids. I raise my glass to toast, and I'll see you on the other side.

Path to Publication

Just read Jessica Shea Spotswood's blog about her path to publication, and I agree! I love hearing people's stories about getting published too! So I thought I'd share mine--important dates in bold if you're in a skimming mood ;)

• Spring Semester 2010: amorphous period where I start planning out Glitch. My last novel has just been rejected by enough agents, even ones who'd read the manuscript, that I figure it is time to move on with a new project. I'd always wanted to write a dystopia since I read and LOVED 1984 in high school, so I sit down and write out my favorite elements of dystopias and think about what my ultimate imaginary dystopic future might look like.
• Chatting with computer science-y husband, and he brings up this article he'd just read in Popular Science. Ideas about implanted computer bits in humans start germinating.
• Came up with the love interest hook and start falling in love with my characters and story For Serious.
• June 2010: exhaustion from previous semester and some life things prevent actual starting of book. Instead, complete scenes play out over and over in my head, mostly at night when I am trying to fall asleep!
• July 2010: FINALLY! Time and energy to write! I take after it like gang-busters and have a first draft by August 1st.
• First week of August: edit non-stop for a very intense week, and start querying, probably before I should have, but oh well, I have the patience of a gnat!
• August: get lots of requests from agents to read the manuscript! yay! and then:
• Sept. 15 2010: Charlie Olsen of Inkwell Management emails saying he'd read the first third of my book and was loving it and would like to set up a phone call with me!! An actual phone call! with an agent! just like I heard about with others authors but had never happened with the two other books I'd queried. I still remember the coffeeshop chair I was sitting in when I got that email. After trying for YEARS to be a writer, I had my first indication that the impossible dream might be actually possible!
• The next Monday: we talk on the phone, and I am a lot less nervous than I thought I'd be, even though Charlie is less excited about the second half of the book, parts where it dragged. We talk potential edits, he mentions what he'd like to see, maybe some scenes to add, and I am super stoked, because not only was I talking to an ACTUAL AGENT, but he really GETS the feel of the book, and all of his ideas are totally in sync with what I want the book to be.
• Rest of September: Heather goes into Crazy Edit & Rewrite Mode.
• Mid-October: I send in the edited manuscript, and Charlie asks for Outlines of Book II and III in the intended trilogy. I say 'sure!' then sit down and try to figure out how the hell to write an outline ;)
• October 27th: Another phone call! Offer of representation! Giddy jumping up and down! I have an agent!!!
• November: More edits. We decide to wait to submit to editors till after the holidays.
• January 15, 2011: Book goes on submission!!!!
• January 15th-26th: Absolute worst ten days of my life. A few editors pass. I am sure I am DOOMED TO ABYSMAL FAILURE, HOW COULD I HAVE DELUDED MYSELF INTO BELIEVING I COULD BE A PUBLISHED AUTHOR? OH GOD, WHAT DO I WRITE NEXT? I THOUGHT MY BOOK WAS GOOD BUT NOW I'M SURE IT'S A STEAMING PILE OF SH---- then I get a call from my agent. We have an offer!
• January 26th: Omg, an offer! From a super awesome publishing house, a 3-book deal! And not just any house, but St. Martin's Press! A publishing house that I have not only heard of, but one that publishes some books I've loved, that are sitting on my shelves RIGHT NOW! Squeeeee!
• Feb 1st: Deal is official. Holy shit, I'm going to be a published author, slated for Sp/Su 2012. I walk around in a daze smiling so much my mouth hurts by the end of the day.
• 2nd week of February: Magical foreign rights agent at Inkwell, Lyndsey Blessing, solidifies deals for Glitch trilogy in Germany and France!! OMG!
• Feb. 10th: first call with my editor from St. Martin's, Terra Layton. She is AWESOME and so excited about my book! We talk for an hour about the edits and the process and I feel so lucky to have gotten such a rocking editor!

SCBWI, Meeting Awesome Authors, & Being Interviewed

So this was an officially awesome weekend. I went to my first SCBWI meeting yesterday in Austin, and met some groovy authors: Cynthia Leitich Smith, Varian Johnson, and April Lurie. It was really neat to meet some actual authors face-to-face, and to know I'll be among such illustrious company! I also met the founder of the Dear Teen Me website, and then spent the next hour wandering around BookPeople's extensive Teen section day-dreaming of my book being on the shelves.

Today started with a wonderful brunch with the fam (seriously, these Sunday brunches where the hubster makes omelets and toast with jam, then we all eat and chat, drink coffee while Joseph spazzes out or plays with toys around the kitchen--these are the f'ing memories that are gonna be with me forever). Then Joseph and I had a laundry folding party (it had become a mountain) and we changed his bad attitude by turning on the Wiggles station on Pandora (the sacrifices a mother makes!) and doing dance party/jumping on the bed sessions (he danced, I watched) in between folding things.

Then I went and met at the university library with a videographer who's doing a video piece to go along with the interview I did for the paper about my book deal. Okay, I know it's not a big thing, but it was so much fun! Having someone videotape me while I geek out excitedly about my book? Awesome. I don't think I've seen myself on film since the grainy back-of-the-auditorium taping of a play I did in eighth grade, so I'm dorkily excited about that. And it will be a YouTube piece that I can link to from my website so people can see what Heather looks like in real life. And no, apparently I cannot talk without extensive hand motions :) I'll post it here next week when it goes live.

Overflow of Happy

Agent Dude has referred to the process of all the people working to make a book happen--writer, agent, editor, other readers, foreign rights agents, and more--as making great music. I like this metaphor a lot because it implies a group of individuals all working together to create, not a product, but a moment, a shared experience--something alive that is then given to the world, something that will hopefully carry meaning and emotion beyond ourselves to others.

I just had a very difficult last week followed by a very wonderful few days, culminating in today, which has been a combustion of happy and love and giving to others. And all of the wonder-ment has been because of relationships in my life. I feel this overflow of happy in my chest, fullness, that old biblical image of 'my cup runneth over'. The question of how do you contain happiness over the long-haul? Answer: you don't contain it, you give it away, and paradoxically, I think that's how it stays with you.