Your writing voice is the deepest possible reflection of who you are. The job of your voice is not to seduce or flatter or make well-shaped sentences. In your voice, your readers should be able to hear the contents of your mind, your heart, your soul.
Interpretation
Your writing reflects your true self and should convey your thoughts and feelings authentically.
This quote emphasizes that a writer's voice is a profound expression of their inner self, going beyond mere stylistic choices or surface-level engagement. It suggests that genuine writing resonates with readers when it authentically conveys the writer's thoughts, emotions, and essence, allowing for a deeper connection between the writer and their audience.
In practice
A motivational speaker might use this quote in a workshop about self-expression through writing.
It's not that he lacked poetry. But his poetry was of the body, not the mind. He spoke it in the way he moved, the way he held a hammer, rowed a boat, built a fire. I, on the other hand, was like a brain in a box, a beating heart in a coal scuttle.
This element of surprise or mystery — the detective element as it is sometimes rather emptily called — is of great importance in a plot. It occurs through a suspension of the time-sequence; a mystery is a pocket in time, and it occurs crudely, as in "Why did the queen die?" and more subtly in half-explained gestures and words, the true meaning of which only dawns pages ahead. Mystery is essential to a plot, and cannot be appreciated without intelligence.
Music is such a great communicator. It breaks down linguistic barriers, cultural barriers, it basically reaches out. That's when rock n' roll succeeds, and that's what virtuosity is all about.
It's a maddening thing in itself to look at an old poem of yours. To translate it is even more maddening.
New Orleans cats don't play a lot of solos unless they got something to say. It's not an ego thing like it is with some other musicians. You say what you gotta say and then shut up.
Parodies and caricatures are the most penetrating of criticisms.
The funniest thing is that all the things every director goes through, I thought I could shortcut, but there was no getting around those issues.
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