SUMMARY

In this episode of Pen to Pod, Mikayla Kimes delves into the concept of writer's voice, sharing insights from her experiences and others. She emphasizes the importance of discovering one's unique voice through reading and writing exercises, analyzing excerpts from short stories to illustrate how voice impacts storytelling. The episode also discusses the distinction between author voice and character voice, and how emotions can shape writing. Kimes provides practical exercises for listeners to explore their own writing voice and looks ahead to future episodes.

TAKEAWAYS

• Finding your writing voice is a journey that requires exploration.
• Voice is the imprint of ourselves on our writing, shaped by personal experiences.
• Short stories are an underrated form of writing that can enhance understanding of voice.
• Echoing and imitating writers you admire can help discover your own voice.
• Writing about something you hate can reveal your true voice and emotions.
• Your writing voice is a reflection of who you are as a person.
• Relaxation is key to writing authentically and quickly.
• The combination of author and character voice creates a rich narrative.
• Studying short story anthologies can provide diverse perspectives on voice.

MENTIONS

The short stories we read from are:

• Mirror Ball by Jack Skelley
• Coyotes by Zoë Rose

Next solo episode we will be talking about:

• Vampires Never Get Old: Tales with Fresh Bite edited by Zoraida Córdova and Natalie C. Parker

Literary Cleveland's INKUBATOR 2024

Resources used for this episode:

• Lecture by Nardine Taleb, "Raising Your Voice."
• How to write fiction: Meg Rosoff on finding your voice
• How to Find Your Writing Voice: 5 Methods from Famous Writers
• A Surefire Technique for Finding Your Voice

by Josh Sippie