Finding My Voice

I admit that writing isn’t my strongest skill.

At the same time, I know that writing is part of my mission.

Therefore writing is something I need to get good at.

That is one of the reasons I started blogging. My blog gave me a place to share what I wrote and people to be accountable to. It also became a place to practice.

But I wanted MORE practice. I felt like I needed to find my voice; to be more authentic and readable.

My first idea was to write more; do some journaling and reflecting; find more stories in my daily life.

I started with a 30 day writing challenge. I’m actually not very far into it—only on day 13—but I have enjoyed the opportunity to write as ME. Some of the days I have written without thinking while other days I’ve had to skip and ponder for a day and instead write from another prompt.

Day 1–LIST 10 THINGS THAT MAKE YOU REALLY HAPPY

(I felt so good after writing this. The list came so naturally. There is nothing grammatically correct about it, but the way I wrote it felt right. This is straight from my journal and in no particular order.)

1. A day where I got a lot done/things were crossed off my to-do list.
2. A good talk/audio/podcast.
3. Hanging out at the table after a meal and talking as a family.
4. When ALL my kids listen to me read aloud from a picture book. (This actually happened the other day. I started reading to Faythe and Ephram. Then Dyllan climbed down from the couch to listen. Braedi and Corbin wandered in from other rooms and sat down on the floor to listen. It isn’t very often when they will all listen to a picture book.)
5. Conversations with Jonathan.
6. Hearing wisdom from the mouths of my kids/seeing them make good choices/knowing that they are good kids/hearing praise about them from other adults.
7. Eating some yummy treat that Lola made and/or peanut butter and chocolate.
8. Homemade bread right out of the oven with butter.
9. A good book/story.
10. Seeing my kids take care of each other/play with each other/put each other’s needs first.

Day 3–WHAT ARE YOUR TOP THREE PET PEAVES?

1. When people get angry–>for crying out loud, learn to control your emotions!
2. People who aren’t aware of social cues.
3. I used to get irritated when people were late but now I kind of just expect it and plan accordingly. Instead number 3 is. . .

Hypocritical behavior—when people are annoyed with another person’s actions when they do the exact same action.

Day 8—SHARE SOMETHING YOU STRUGGLE WITH

I often find it difficult to put my thoughts into words. I think it is because I see in pictures. I wish I could just take a snapshot of what my mind sees and is trying to say and broadcast it as an image/hologram. As part of that I also struggle with expressing myself well. That is why I steal quotes. I often hear someone else say exactly what I’m feeling/want to say. I couldn’t say it any better so I use their words.

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I know I haven’t arrived at “writer” status, yet.

I’m still on the journey of finding my voice.

I hope as I continue to write and you continue to read, that we will notice a difference.

If you are on the same journey as me, maybe you will find these tips I found helpful. I’m still working on some of them but the ideas ring true.

write

You don’t get better at anything without practice. Most people say “practice makes perfect”. I’ve heard it differently though—“perfect practice makes perfect”. If you practice something incorrectly over and over you aren’t going to get perfection. So take the time to adjust and edit. Maybe that means asking someone to critique your writing. Or it might just mean rereading it yourself and rewriting. And sometimes it can even go as far as getting a writing coach.

free-write

Write whatever comes to your mind—let the thoughts flow. Write without stopping to think or edit.

read, read, read

One way to become a better writer is to read the works of great writers. How does your favorite author connect with their readers? How does their writing make you feel?

know your why and who

What is your purpose for writing? Are you informing, motivating, educating? Also know who you are writing to. Imagine your ideal reader and write to them.

engage in some form of writing everyday

Read. Write. Think. Imagine. Dream. Discuss. Edit. Create. Share. Play with words in some fashion every day.

be yourself

Be honest. We find ourselves through our honesty.

remember to have fun