Lost My Voice

Voice, in terms of writing that is, can be loud or quiet. A writer can be obnoxious, opinionated and loud, or a writer can write in a very academic way and be quiet. Either way, its an important identity to establish. For me its really complex, and frankly my voice needs to hit the weights so that it doesn’t get bullied or pushed around anymore. Or maybe I need to go to writer’s voice therapy or something along those lines. From the time I was in the 4th grade and learned the 5 paragraph essay format, Intro-supporting body-supporting body- supporting body- conclusion, I have been conditioned to write academically.

The problem is that in school they teach you to write as if the reader is your enemy. He is trying to tear apart your argument, scrutinize you for unsupported ideas, question all your claims, and put you in your place for poor grammar. Naturally one loses his voice to an extent in a scary setting like this. He starts to write more conservatively, and over time gets less and less risqué from content to grammar.

I guess this is a good thing if you are writing a research paper, or a case study, or something similar that requires a straightforward no bullshit style. In terms of writing a personal blog it’s a bad thing though. It’s hard going back and forth between voices, and sometimes my own voice gets lost in my academic voice without me fully realizing it.

I have been trying to emulate Kyle Hackett’s voice(I wrote about him in the previous post below because he has found his career niche) . Its not that I want to write like him, use the same words or copy his style. I just want to emulate the freedom, the subconscious unfiltered train of thought that he lays on paper. Which by the way, flows out in his own voice with out effort or significant modification (as it should, for Kyle and everyone).

Kyle uses short sentences. Often sentences that technically and grammatically shouldn’t stand alone as complete sentences. I like it though because he writes as if he talking, which creates a personal tone and rhythm to his blog. It’s insightful and blunt, short winded but still illustrative. I like it because its easier to listen to or read then most writing I come across. It’s so informal that its like being part of a conversation as opposed to listening to a lecture. I feel like he doesn’t second guess his stuff that much, it comes off that way at least.

Kyle’s voice changes from post to post but not significantly. Its depends on what he is writing about.

This post is short and simple, nonetheless it is demonstrative of Kyle's voice. The post is Kyle's take on the evolution of American Apparel advertising which has gotten more and more provocative over the years. Finally in their newest add campaign, American Apparel has crossed the line into nudity. For kyle this was a great disappointment. (click here for the full add)

"I can remember when I was little, trying to see how far I could bend a stick before it broke. It was exciting pushing that limit (yeah, I grew up in Maine), but as soon as the stick broke there was a feeling of disappointment. American Apparel just broke the stick."

The thing that I admire most about Kyle's writing is his ability to express exactly what he wants to while retaining simplicity. Bending the stick and breaking is the perfect metaphor for the history of American Apparel adds. Its simple but it conveys the exact meaning he wants it to.

Relevant enough, in another post Kyle does what I’m doing now. He writes about someone else’s writing voice in their blog and why he likes it. He writes about Jake Davis’s blog, Jake being a pop-culture fashion blogger like Kyle. After reading a few of Jake's posts myself, I too have become a fan. Ironically, he writes like Kyle in many ways; partially beause they share similar insight into their field and partially because of pure coincidence. Both Kyle and Jake have strong voices though, and those voices make their blogs what they are just as much as the subjects they blog about.

Here is Kyle on Jakes blog:

“I’ve mentioned in the past I’ve become a fan of Jake Davis’s blog, and his latest post is a good example why. Jake is either a man of few words, using a quote or song lyric to make sum up the idea behind a post, or an eloquent editorialist, writing posts pertaining to the times and trends. Exploring how we’ve gotten to a certain point and what the impact will be. These posts are always well thought out, relevant, and strike a chord with his readers.

Blogs run the gamut. Some people like to opine idly about whatever shit they think is cool that day, this is where I fall. Others prefer to write nothing at all. And then others put some thought and time it to what they have to say, Jake is one of these guys."