Where to find your voice

When their muse goes on vacation and the writer struggles with each sentence, words land on the page with a resounding thud. That’s when a character or narrator can step in, speak up, and bring the story back to life through their Point Of View (POV).

A writer’s voice may vary from character to character, but within a single work should be a steady presence, reshaped only by time and events.

How to find your voice

You, as the author, can also rely on that presence as you envision narrative steps ahead.

What do you see, hear, or otherwise sense from this POV?
What will you mood compel you to do or say?
Consider your emotions. Are you amused, haunted, fearful, or joyful because of some event or some person with you?

Character POV
A strong character’s voice will resonate in its thoughts as well as speech. It reflects that character’s lived experience and emotional truth. Current needs and challenges set the pace and tone of in each block of dialogue.

Narrator POV
In a third-person POV, an omniscient narrator stage-manages or relates the story like a campfire tale. The voice may be stylized, neutral, playful, or wise as it speaks to the reader in one voice from page one to the end.

NOVEL AND AUTHOR	POINTS OF VIEW	CHARACTER VOICES
A Visit from the Goon Squad, by Jennifer Egan	Multiple POV in the 3rd person, present and past tense	The POV shifts across time and characters, resulting in several distinct voices.
As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner	Multiple POV in the 3rd person, past tense	Each of the 15 narrators in thiws novel has a distinct voice.
Beloved, by Toni Morrison	Multiple POV in the 3rd person, present tense	A complex, fragmented structure brings the reader deep into the challenges the central charater has faced.
Mrs. Dalloway, by Virginia Woolf	A single POV in the 3rd person, present tense	Clarissa's thoughts are shared in a stream-of-consciousness as the narrative unfolds in real time.
Never Let Me Go, by Kazuo Ishiguro	3rd Person, past tense,one POV	Kathy narrates in a restraied, emotionally muted voice, graduallly revealing the memories she has repressed.
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain	1st person past tense	Huck’s disctinct vernacular brings the reader deep into the moral conflict he has experienced in the events he retells.
The Bell Jar, by Sylvia Plath	1st person past tense	Esther Greenwood’s introspective, poetic voice reveals her psychological descent with haunting clarity.
The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Díaz	1st person, past and present tense	Yunior’s voice blends Dominican slang and historical commentary mostly in past tense, with some present-tense commentary from the narrator.
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger	1st person past tense	Holden Caulfield's adolescent alienation permeates the recounting of his story in a cynical, digressive voice.
The Color Purple by Alice Walker	1st person past tense	Celie’s letters evolve from broken grammar to empowered voice, mirroring her growth Epistolary format

George Pond

In his tech writing work, George created a chest-high stack of unattributed training and computer manuals for Walt Disney World Co and in consulting assignments across the eastern U.S. He also wrote and published fiction and nonfiction books.
George holds a Poynter ACES Editing certificate. He founded and is Editorial Guide at Second Eyes Editorial.