Finding Your Voice The Artisan Way

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In my post two weeks ago, I wrote about The Artisan Soul by Erwin McManus. This book is full of meaning and profound truths pertaining to the creative beings we are. In the second chapter, the focus is on finding your voice as an artist.

When you begin a new artistic pursuit, as in writing, sometimes you tend to imitate your favorite authors. You know what kind of books you like, so your words take on the flavor of those books. It's how we learn anything really, but at some point you must find your own voice. You must tell your own story your own way.

It can be difficult in finding our own voice because so many other voices crowd it out. We hear those voices that tell us we aren't good enough, we have no talent, we will never make it, etc. McManus says that, "what others think of us, what others have said about us matters, has power, only when it becomes what we think of ourselves and what we say to ourselves about who we are." Those words only have power if we let them.

McManus goes on to say..."The great battles I fought had little to do with the world of others and everything to do with the universe inside me. It was all about disarming the voices that made me less and taking responsibility for my internal narrative. A critical part of this process is listening to the voice that calls me to more."

Those voices that crowd our minds can keep us in bondage which hinders our creativity. "There is a direct relationship between those who live most free and those who dream most. Captivity not only steals our freedom but cripples our imagination." (Edwin McManus) So what is the guiding voice within us?

As believers the inner voice that shapes us is the voice of God. It is the voice that guides, shapes, and frees us to be who He created us to be. McManus says it beautifully..."We find our voice when we find his voice. It's here that we experience our most authentic selves and find our true voice. In the end every artist creates only art that reflects that inner voice."

The Creator of the universe created us in his image...as creative beings. But without his voice deep within us whispering his essence into our very soul, the words we put on the page are just that...only words. Our true voice shines forth when we listen to God's voice and live the story He guides us through.

"Our story is what we have to offer the world. So much more important than being heard is having something to say. Without a voice our words are just sounds." -Edwin McManus

So what is God's voice doing within you? Are you allowing Him to free you up to live the best story you can? Are you allowing His voice to crowd out the voices that stifle your imagination?

You can purchase The Artisan Soul by Edwin McManus HERE.

Why Writers Should Read-Part 5 Inner Voice

I wonder what the girl in the picture to the left is thinking. Is she second guessing herself, or remembering her true love, the one not attending the wedding?  If only I could know the words she isn't saying I'd understand the photo.

A writing teacher once told me: write as if a camera were mounted on a character's head. If the character can't see, hear, do, feel, or taste then the thought/words can not be included. Good words.

But...what about the picture to the left? I want to know more than this is her wedding day, her bridesmaids are giggling on the other side of the room, and what the foliage smell like through the open window to the right.

As a writer, I want to show a deeper quality to my characters by opening the door to their inner thoughts and entice the reader to become engaged, or side with the character. A character's inner voice paints a story in 3D and in color. 

We want our readers to shout at a character when he/she makes a wrong choice or scream something like, "Over there! It's over there!" During this last reading challenge I slammed the book shut because I couldn't bear to read what happened next, obviously the character made the wrong choice. But one minute later I couldn't stand not knowing. I fumbled to find the page because I had to know what really happened.

Inner voice opens the door or turns the camera towards the brain of the character. What is the character thinking and not saying. What does the character want to do/wish he could say instead? 

This last week I read Love Starts with Elle by Rachel Hauck and found many examples of inner voice. With Rachel's permission I have included a small sample from this wonderful book to use with each point:

1. page 140
     "Um, he dumped me." For a lawyer, Candace could be dense at time.

Although this story is done in third person, this line "for a lawyer, Candace could be dense at time" melted the fence between 1st and third person. It told me Elle's impression of Candace without a lengthy description or dialogue. The inner voice statement should be a short, concise, to the point perspective.

2. page 137/138
     Muttering to herself, Elle opened all the blinds, shoved open the windows, and clicked on the fan. By the pitch of the studio's shadow in the grass, she figured it to be late afternoon. 
     Angela Dooley suing her? What was wrong with that woman?

Obviously something bothered, Elle, she's shoving windows and muttering. The reader is invited into Elle's head to find out why. No letter is suddenly presented, no summons, no phone call to shed light on her agitation, the reader simply steps deep inside Elle's head to gain more than her POV, we feel her heart, her ache.

3. page 5/6
    "I won't be long." But the front door was blocked by Huckleberry Johns and his fish tank of eco art. Oh please, not tonight. 

The inner voice clarified the problem. We know the door was blocked and Elle couldn't get past. A simple excuse me could have solved the problem, right? Not in this case. Without the tagged on inner voice we wouldn't know Huckleberry needed much more than an "excuse me." He wanted hours of Elle's time.

4. page 39 (scene hint: Elle is house shopping with her fiance.)

     "Well, babe, what do you think?" Jeremiah clicked his phone closed and walked toward her.
    "It's big. Lovely." Too new, too cold. 

Characters can be elusive or seemingly polite, holding back true thoughts then getting hooked into something they don't want. This component of inner voice builds a relationship with the reader. Displaying the sarcastic thought popping into the character's head not only let's the reader stand next to the character, it lets the reader stand in the character's shoes. 

Here are some other tips for inner voice:

1. Inner voice is only from the POV character. 
2. Inner voice is not intended to be informative-the purpose is to build a relationship with the reader, clarify a problem, feel the character's heart and ache, is always short-concise-to the point.
3. Inner voice is not directional: statements like: walked up the stairs, raked their hair, opened the door, stomped across the room, laughed, cried, etc.  All of these tell an outward response which could be a cover-up and not the true feelings of the character. 

Inner voice is essential to forming a deep relationship between the reader and the character.

What examples can you share of inner voice?

Last week Angie, my Alley Cat friend, and Jeanne T, an Alley Cat pal joined me in the reading challenge. We had a great time connecting as friends. Won't you join me this week? I chose my next book: House of Secrets by Tracie Peterson. What book would you like to read in the next two weeks? email me at mimary_vee@yahoo.com


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This blog post is by Mary Vee
Mary lives in Montana with her husband and loves to hear from her three college kids. She writes contemporary Christian fiction and loves to pen missionary and Bible adventure stories.

Come Step into Someone Else's World with Mary's writing

To learn more about Mary, visit her blog http://www.mimaryvee.blogspot.com/
Or email her at mimary_vee@yahoo.com