If you are anything like me, writing with a voice did not come easy at all! During my beginning stages in blogging, I really struggled with writing with my voice instead of a bland, boring, research paper diction that was putting me to sleep as I was typing. Much of blogging and growing a successful blog is tuning your writing into who you really are and something that readers can connect with. In the blogging world, this is called your “blogging voice” as you have probably already heard referenced more than a thousand times.
So…how do we find our blogging voice that is going to connect with readers on such a personal level that they can not…not subscribe…comment and interact with our pages on the screen? For many new and experienced bloggers, this is a stressful question in the quest for bringing our personalities and thoughts out into words.
How To Find Your Blogging Voice
Blog…Blog and Blog Some More – Blogging is no different than any other discipline. By practicing blogging, you will get better at your craft over time. Do not let fear and anxiety keep you from publishing articles and experimenting with writing styles. As you continue to write, you are going to find that it becomes easier and easier to get the words out of your head and onto the screen. After awhile, you will start to notice a trend in your writing style without even really realizing it. It is a beautiful thing and it only comes through actually participating in the process…
Write As You Talk – You can always go back and edit, chop up or scrap a whole idea before hitting that publish button, so take your first draft as a mind dump. If you write as you talk, more of your personality will get out through your words and then you can go back and proofread to fix any glaring mistakes. You are not going to get crucified for several little mistakes here and there if you are connecting with readers by bringing your personality into your writing.
Stop Stressing About It! – Stressing about your writing will just make you lock up even further. Your best content is going to come at moments of happiness and when you are actually enjoying what you are doing. If you are sitting in front of a screen with the small dash blinking stressing about what you have to write that day, get up…walk around…have a cup of coffee (or any other preferred beverage, but I don’t recommend publishing articles while you are loaded) and come back…sit down…and write with a heart-rate that is considered normal. The more you try to push your voice and your writing…the more stressed and upset you are going to become and that will come out in your writing.
Self Reflection – When I first started taking blogging really seriously, I sat back for a second and thought about who I really am. I’m not going to lie…it was really weird. How often do we ever sit back, think about who we are and how we interact with people? Almost never right? Well…after spending some time looking inside, I found out more about myself than I thought I actually knew! It was crazy, but it also gave me some insight into how I wanted to write and how I wanted to interact with people on my blog. Sometimes, we get so caught in the rat race of the days events that we forget to look into our souls and learn about ourselves. It drastically changed how I blogged and for the better.
Do you see an underlying theme here? Basically, if you want to find your blogging voice, you need to practice and relax. The rest will fall into place and you will find yourself in a rhythm that you can call your own. Blogging is about that connection and no one wants to connect with a stressed out mess.
19 comments
This really hits home for me. Over the last couple of days I’ve been really evaluating myself, my goals, and how I want to express them through blogging.
This article is perfectly concise and says everything that needs to be said about finding your textual voice.
Thanks, Robb!
Sure thing Lex! That self actualization helps out a lot in the long run…just don’t spend too much time there because action is the only step forward!
Don’t I know it! Only recently have I been able to break myself of the “extensive planning is productive” mentality and realize that action is the only way up.
When I first started writing research papers, I wrote conversationally.
That was pounded out of me using the whip of failure. Failure as in get an “F” grade.
Very powerful motivation.
Now, I have to come back around to regain that which was driven out of me.
You’ll like this guest post I wrote for Darren @ Problogger.
http://www.problogger.net/archives/2009/12/07/how-getting-an-f-on-your-school-paper-makes-you-a-better-blogger/
Robb, it never fails! You consistently post highly relevant topics that are timed perfectly for where I’m at in my blogging “career.” Just last night I sat down to write a new post and I was struggling to get my thoughts down the way I wanted. Between my baby daughter, the dog, and the Orange Bowl on TV focusing on my post was nearly impossible. Obviously I wasn’t going to be able to put out a quality post so I took a step back, hung out with the family, made some coffee, and relaxed. Soon enough, things calmed down and I was able to hammer out my review. I’ve received a few compliments on my writing style, err, blogging voice, and I’ve just started. It wasn’t something I told myself I had to do, I just let the words flow.
Nice post!
It’s amazing what a little time can do for you! If you are trying to force it…it won’t work. Keep it up Aaron!
“Write As You Talk” is the most common term you speak everytime!! and that what i like on your blog. You topics always attractive!!
Like Today’s Title: “Find Your Blogging Voice: End the Quest Today” is really readers attractive.
-Arijit
Yours Loving Reader. 🙂
Thanks Arijit. Writing in conversational speak allows you to connect with readers on a personal level…and that’s what it is all about.
I tell my kids and my students to write like they are just telling a story, but, you’re right, it’s something that takes a lot of practice.
Hopefully, teachers are not beating the creativity out of students, but people also need to remember that a research paper is not a blog post any more than a blog post is a research paper.
We have to teach students who will do all manner of things when they grow up. In my job, I wrote evaluations of students which are living legal documents that need to hold up in court. In other words, you really have to cover your butt which makes it extremely wordy.
Switching to a style which is more “copywriting” has been a challenge.
The part that I need to take away from this post is to just hit “publish” and not worry about it.
Thanks Robb,
Debbie Ferm
Debbie…as much as I hate writing research papers (had to do an original economics thesis in college), they still laid the foundation for more creative writing in the future. Even writing in conversational tones, you have to have some clue on how to structure a sentence!
Style switching can be a difficult thing to accomplish sometimes and it only comes through practice.
Thanks for sharing you view point!
I think that I’m still working on trying to find my voice. It’s definitely a lot more me then it was when I started, but I still find myself censoring my voice or toning it down. Then there’s other times where I feel like I’m sounding too coffee snobish, which definitely isn’t me either.
I think we are always working on it. Like most things…there is never a perfect.
Bingo! Excellent and yes, you are right time is the best remedy for writing. Like everything else in life the more you practice the better you become. Obviously having a passion for what you write about helps… but, when you write for a living and have to speak in “their” voice it’s not easy. I guess, talking to the client and really understanding what their goals and strategies are helps but it still remains to be seen. Someone told me once ” God gives you talent it’s up to you to nurture it.” Or something to that effect. 🙂
I can imagine that writing for someone else can be a daunting task. I’m sure that is something that gets easier with practice as well.
You’re so right Robb…
I’m somewhat new to blogging and struggling with writing in a unique way that’s me. At times I get very frustrated because I can’t seem to get me out of my head and onto the screen.
I know what’s in my head but when I type it out, it doesn’t read anything like I had in my head or represent my personality. It almost seems like I’m writing what I think the readers wants rather than what I want.
A lot to work on…
It gets easier and easier. I really struggled with that in the beginning too. By doing it over and over again…you are on the right track.
Keep it up!
I finally get what this means. I’ve been hearing/reading about the topic for a while, but it never really clicked.
I’ve recently began to relax and write more like I talk. No more trying to be plain vanilla and please everyone. It’s made the blogging concept much more enjoyable, and easier.
Practice practice practice.
It just keeps getting easier too Chad. If someone would have told me I would be writing this much 2 years ago…and enjoying it…I would have told them they were crazy.