"A man's style is his mind's voice. Wooden minds, wooden voices."—Ralph Waldo Emerson
How often do you mimic the voice of other writers? Steve Jobs said, "Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma—which is living with the results of other people's thinking."
Stop, Look and Listen for Your Writing Voice
Follow the sage advice of other writers to find your voice.
Stop: Ralph Waldo Emerson: "None of us will ever accomplish anything excellent or commanding except when he listens to this whisper which is heard by him alone."
Look for your voice: Christopher Morley: "Read, every day, something no one else is reading. Think, every day, something no one else is thinking. Do, every day, something no one else would be silly enough to do. It is bad for the mind to continually be part of unanimity."
Listen to your voice: Claude McKay: "For if a man is not faithful to his own individuality, he cannot be loyal to anything."
Write your voice: Eleanor Roosevelt: "Remember always that you have not only the right to be an individual, you have an obligation to be one."
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