Discover your voice
If someone read a passage out loud from your favorite author, chances are you would know her without the reader having to identify her. You immediately recognize her voice and style of writing. It feels and sounds authentic to you. Ultimately as a writer, that’s where you want to be. You want to have a brand that’s uniquely yours and recognizable to your followers. It really doesn’t matter the genre you’re writing in, what’s important is that you discover your voice and hone it so that people begin to connect with you.
Know your audience
The clearer you are about who you’re writing for the more authentic your story becomes. If you claim you’re writing for the general public, that tells me you’re writing for a phantom reader. You’re hoping that your story will connect to this ghost reader without really knowing what he’s interested in reading. On the other hand if you tell me you’re writing for single women in their 40s who’ve never been married, it becomes easier to picture your audience. You can find out what interests them and romance them with your writing. Once you’re clear on your niche then your writing can become personal as if talking to an old friend. You may just find that your audience in turn will reveal more about themselves and that will enable you to remain relevant and special to them.
Continue to Grow
Writing is still very much a craft which means we all can improve our writing skills. We can learn better ways to build suspense or make our characters more vulnerable. It’s been my experience that writers who create an annual personal professional development plan to strengthen their craft reap great returns on their investment. Successful writers still attend writing workshops, network with their peers, mentor local writing clubs and engage in activities that grow their skills.
Of course there are other ways to keep your writing unique but I think these three are indispensable.
Although diversity issues are his niche, every now and then Dr. Taylor will share information about writing, marketing and publishing for readers. This article was written when his novel, Lakeside University Cover Up was on virtual tour.
