Voice in writing can seem elusive and hard to define. It’s more than just style it’s rhythm, energy, attitude, and the unique fingerprint of a narrator or character. Voice is shaped by culture and history as much as the mechanics of language.
In The Sound of Story, author and writing teacher Jordan Rosenfeld demystifies voice and its close companion, tone, offering writers the tools to develop and refine their own. Through contemporary examples, this book explores how syntax, point of view, emotion and more shape voice on the page. Whether you’re crafting fiction or nonfiction, this book will help you shape and refine voice to create compelling, authentic narratives. It empowers writers to wield voice and tone with purpose, increasing their chances of publication, and delivering a compelling story that leaps off every page.
The Sound of Story will be published January 26, 206. Sibyl Writing Craft provided an early galley for review.
Voice and tone are things I don't tend to initially think about when I am writing fiction. They often end up being a by-product that comes out of my plots and dialogue. So, a book like Rosenfeld's is good at helping me think about those aspects earlier in my process. I can see voice being especially important when chosing a first-person narrative point of view. If your main character is telling the story, a unique voice is very critical to make the book sing properly.
I apperciate how each chapter is layed out, especially with the In Summary and Voice Lessons (Writing Exercises) at the back of each one to help tie it all together. This was a good approach for the subject matter.
Overall, I found these instructions delivered in an informative and not overly academic way. Writers will definitely get some good pointers from this book.
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