Everyone's Guide to Wattpad

Can I Hear YOU?

The final element in writing is voice. I probably sound insane now. You can't hear the words...or can you?

When you read, you say the words in your head, right? Well, words must sound real, as though someone is reading it to you. Voice. The hardest element to explain. Let's work our way through this one. 

What is Voice?

Voice is you. I want you to read the story to me. I want the words to come to life in my head. What am I saying?

Write how YOU write. We all write differently. Don't try to use the same cliches as everyone else. Don't use the same sentences as everyone else. In the end, you will come on top of the copy-cats. Voice.

Voice is also talking through the character. No, not dialogue. Voice is the depth of your story. Let me know a human is telling the story. How does the character see things in the story? By telling the story from the view of a character, you add a level of depth to your story. Look back at character development. I'll show you an example of voice, to clarify what I'm trying to say.

A rainbow comes into the story. Don't say: Dorothy sees a rainbow. No. Bad. We need to make that pop out at the reader. Make them feel what Dorothy is feeling. I don't feel Dorothy. Do you feel Dorothy? Let me try again but worded differently. Dorothy smiles when she sees a rainbow across the horizon. The colors remind her of the flowers her grandmother used to plant along the side of the house back in Kansas."

Another character, say his name is David, sees the rainbow but from a different point of view. "David scoffs at the sight of the rainbow. Rainbows are illusions and lack any substance - just like his girlfriend."

Two characters looks at the same thing and had completely different reactions. In addition, I WROTE IT. Someone else might try writing the same event but use a different set of words to convey their emotions. There is no right or wrong way - it's just your way! 

Your Voice

Your voice. Define who you are. Define your voice. Tell the story how you want it. Make your words say what you want them to say. If you sound strange, then you sound strange. Your voice will change over time, so don't worry. It will develop as you write. You may have noticed a change in my voice since the beginning of this guide.

Voice is the hardest thing to obtain, that's for sure. I can't show you how to get it; you'll get it over time. It's an element, and when/if you have it, you'll know what I mean. It's something that develops with experience in writing. 

This is a very difficult element to explain, but this is not an end-all be-all guide, merely an introduction. I'm sure there are many of you that will go on to be great writers and exceed my extremely finite experience as an amateur writer. 

That brings us to the end of "ELEMENTS OF WRITING." However, we aren't done with writing just yet. There's so much more to talk about! For now, I bid you farewell and I wish you luck with your writing.

-OrangeGuy