Discovering Voice in Your Writing
In your 3-prong folder:
•What is voice?
•How is voice created?
What is voice?
• Voice is what makes reading interesting.
• Voice is what gives color and texture to
communication and keeps us involved.
How is voice created?
• Voice is created through conscious choices.
• In other words, the writer, painter, or musician
purposefully chooses his or her « tools »
(words, colors, instruments) and uses them in
ways that create a certain effect.
As you consider the conscious choices writers
make, learn to ask yourself some fundamental
questions:
1. What is he/she (or the work) saying?
1. What does the work mean?
2. How do you know?
1. What evidence can you find in the work to
determine the meaning?
3. How does he/she do that?
1. What tools does the writer use to create
meaning, and how does he/she use these tools?
Think about how Van Gogh expresses his
voice – his style or personality
• What is Van Gogh saying about
himself?
• Based on the picture, not your
feelings, complete these two
statements as if you were the Van
Gogh of this portrait
– I am…
– I feel…
• How do you know what Van Gogh is
saying about himself?
– What evidence can you find in the
picture that supports your statements?
Voice in Reading & Writing
Read and Think:
The little pink fishes swam upstream and died.
Talk about it:
1. Is this sentence sad?
2. What specific characteristics in the sentence
keep it from being sad?
Voice in Reading & Writing
Read and Think:
The little pink fishes swam upstream and died.
Now you try it:
Write a sad version of the sentence above.
What did you do to make it sad?
What conscious choices did you make?
Elements of Voice
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Diction
– Refers to the choice of words and is the foundation of voice and all good writing
Detail
– The facts, observations, and incidents that develop a topic
Figurative language
– The use of words in an unusual way to reveal new meaning, meaning that is not literal
and makes the reader think.
Imagery
– The use of words to capture a sensory experience – what you see, hear, smell, taste,
or touch.
– Brings life to what you write and makes it seem real.
Syntax
– Includes sentence structure, word order, and punctuation
– Controlling syntax is one way to express ideas and thoughts in a fully developed,
mature way
Tone
– The expression of attitude in writing.
– Writers express tone through the use of diction, detail, imagery, figurative language,
and syntax
Voice ~ Your Turn
Read and Think:
My girl is beautiful.
Talk About It:
What image does this evoke in you?
Read and Think:
My beauty-pageant-queen reigns supreme in her
family, her school, and in our relationship.
My angel glows in her family, with her friends, and
in my heart.