Unmasking the Authentic Writing Voice

I used to think my “authentic” writing voice that was hiding somewhere for me to find, through experimentation and exploration. If I wrote long enough and looked hard enough, it would show up.

Clearly, I was not alone in that belief.

Whenever I ask ChatGPT for keywords, titles, or thoughts about writing voice, it always comes back with “ authentic writing voice.” In searching through the universe of people talking about voice, clearly it hears a lot about this authentic voice.

But what exactly do we mean by an authentic writing voice?

Is our authentic writing voice unique and identifiable, open to imitation or parody? In that case, only the most extreme or unusual voices would be authentic. That can’t be right.

One of the Merriam-Webster definitions of authentic is “not false or imitation.” Given that, here are a few likely candidates.

The unbidden, automatic voice

Sometimes when we write in a flow state, words seem to arrive from some other location. Strings of phrases or sentences appear like a gift.

Is that unbidden one your authentic writing voice?

And if so, does that mean we shouldn’t edit our work if we want to be authentic? Sticking to that belief…