How to Find Your Writing Voice (Without Trying to Sound Like Everyone Else)
Every writer has a voice.
Some whisper. Some shout. Some tell stories like they’re painting murals with language.
But when you’re starting out, it can feel like your voice is… missing.
You read other authors and think:
“Should I sound like them?”
“Do I write too casually?”
“Do I sound smart enough?”
Pause.
Your voice isn’t something you manufacture — it’s something already inside you that you uncover through writing… not through overthinking.
What is a writing voice?
Your writing voice is the personality your reader experiences on the page.
It’s your rhythm, your phrasing, your humor (or boldness or softness). It’s you, without the filter of perfectionism.
How to Actually Find It
- Write the way you think — not the way you think you should write
Readers don’t connect with perfect writing. They connect with authentic writing.
Instead of forcing “I was overwhelmed by emotion,” try:
“I ugly-cried into a burrito. No regrets.”
Your voice lives in those quirks.
- Stop editing while you write
Editing too soon is like stopping mid-conversation to adjust your shirt.
Let your thoughts flow first. Clean later.
Voice comes from freedom, not restraint.
- Pay attention to what you naturally repeat
Do you use short punchy lines?
Do you ramble in long descriptive sentences?
Do you lean into dialogue?
Your tendencies are clues.
- Write like you’re talking to one person
Your ideal reader.
Your best friend.
Your future fan.
Imagine you’re writing to someone, not at everyone.
- Read your writing out loud
Your eyes lie; your ears don’t.
When you read aloud, you hear the truth of your voice —
where it flows, and where it stumbles.
- Stop trying to sound like your favorite author
We don’t need another version of them.
We need the original version of you.
- Give yourself permission to evolve
Your voice won’t be the same in book one as it will be in book five.
That’s not inconsistency — that’s growth.
The biggest secret:
You don’t find your voice by searching for it.
You find it by writing until it shows up.
Your voice is already there.
You just haven’t allowed yourself enough pages to hear it.
So write messy.
Write bold.
Write honest.
Your voice will meet you on the page.
