VOICE: The Secret Power of Great Writing (Bell on Writing) Paperback – October 14, 2015

I've been writing for 30 years. In my early days, I devoured books on writing and studied Writer's Digest magazine like the sacred text of literary skill. But after a while, it all started to sound the same. There were only so many things you could say about how to write a story. I stopped buying books on writing and let my WD subscription lapse.Instead of reading about writing, I wrote. And wrote. I finished my first novel. I wrote some more. At conferences and workshops I heard writers and editors talking about this one holy grail that everybody sought: a VOICE that "sang", a voice that stood out in the slush pile, a "fresh" voice, a "unique" voice. So I took workshops on "finding your voice". It was all very kumbaya and mystical. IT DIDN'T HELP.It's painful to be told there's something lacking that would make your writing stand out and be noticed if it were there. And it's maddening that nobody seemed to be able to tell me what it was or how to develop it.I've taken classes with James Scott Bell at writing conferences. I've purchased his books. He's an excellent teacher and has a way of explaining things that is logical and clear. But I admit... when I first heard that he was writing on the topic of "voice" I thought, "What could he possibly have to say that would help? Nobody can define that thing. Nobody seems to know what it is."As cliche as it is, I tip my hat to Bell. I give him a deep Chinese bow, full of respect and honor. (Okay, that's my writer melodrama coming out, sorry!) Not only does Bell break the concept of "voice" into its component parts, he offers exercises that will help us develop it in our writing and includes scores of examples so we can SEE voice in action and analyze it. Not only that, but I've read his recent thriller release, Romeo's Rules (A Mike Romeo Thriller), and Bell himself has applied these principles to good effect. In writing Mike Romeo, Bell has captured that hard-boiled, wry-humor voice that I most enjoy for heroes in that genre. So the man practices what he preaches.All around, if you want to develop (or strengthen) that elusive quality of "voice" in your writing, this book is a must-read.

Finally!! Someone actually demystifies “voice,” that elusive quality no one in the writing/publishing world seems willing or able to define. In the introduction to this short and to-the-point book, author James Scott Bell says, “Every time there’s a panel of agents or editors at a conference, when they are asked what they’re looking for in a manuscript, someone always says, ‘A fresh voice.’ But no one can agree what that is.”Why? Why is it so hard to explain something that all good writing must exhibit? How the heck are writers supposed to develop voice when we can’t even get a straight answer on what it is? I’ve always been frustrated by this ambiguity. For years, I resigned myself to thinking voice is like your shadow—you can never really put your finger on it, so you just have to develop all the other aspects of your craft until one day, voilà! You turn around and suddenly your writing has great voice, which shines as clear as day for readers and editors, although you yourself can never quite grasp the outline of it.VOICE: The Secret Power of Great Writing tears down the veil and explains in concise, clear language what voice is and how every writer can cultivate it. I’m so glad Bell wrote this book, because a quality that every good writer is expected to develop should be attainable with study and hard work. It should not be a cryptic status bestowed by a secret society on the honored— but never enlightened—writer. If you’re tired of the mystery and ambiguity surrounding voice, pick up this book. You’ll get a no-nonsense definition (wow!), examples, practical tips, and exercises to help you transform your prose from blah to brilliant.

An amazingly well written exposition of the power of voice. The literary examples were stunning. I learned a lot. Must read.

I've enjoyed Mr. Bell's fiction and found his books on writing to be very valuable. I just purchased Voice a few days ago and finished it tonight. Another diamond work for Mr. Bell. While there is no shortage of books on writing, I like the fact that I came away with fresh ideas that I hadn't seen before. I even got so excited about one section that I sat down and pounded out 300 words in a blink because the teaching fired my imagination.I'm now going to go back through to the sections I highlighted and apply it to a couple of my works in progress.A great book at a very reasonable price and loaded with sound advice with concrete suggestions on how to apply it.Well worth the investment.

I really enjoyed How to Write Pulp Fiction and moved on to Voice.It's conversational in style and speaks to the author that wants to sell fiction moreso than to the highbrow crowd.I especially appreciated the wide range of great examples that illustrate various approaches to voice.Also lots of different advice. You can take or leave the bits that work for you.

Clear description. Helpful suggestions and exercises. And good examples. A nice read.

Seitdem ich mit dem Schreiben angefangen habe, sah ich immer häufiger den Hinweis, beim Schreiben eine originelle Stimme für sich selbst als Autor zu entwickeln. Ich selbst tat mich mit dieser Empfehlung schwer, da mir bei meinem Schreibstil nichts aufgefallen ist, was an sich als einzigartig zu werten ist.In VOICE: The Secret Power of Great Writing zeigt James Scott Bell, dass die Schreibstimme nicht unbedingt alleine vom jeweiligen Autor abhängt. Vielmehr besitzen Genre, Charaktere und die Handlung selbst den größten Einfluss auf die Schreibstimme für jeweils ein individuelles Werk haben. Die eigentliche Aufgabe eines Autors besteht darin, diese Komponenten zu einem sinnvollen Ganzen zu kombinieren. Das zuerst kompliziert anmutende Konzept wird verständlich und anschaulich mit vielen Beispielen beschrieben und erklärt, auch auf die Hintergründe wird eingegangen. Nach dem Grundkonzept folgen auch diverse Kapitel mit Beispielen zu den bekanntesten Genres.Bei VOICE: The Secret Power of Great Writing handelt es sich um informatives Werk für Autoren und solche, die es werden wollen. Insbesondere eignet sich das Werk, um mehr über das Thema der Schreibstimme zu erfahren.

Great book for those who want to improve their writing and find out what the whole "voice" thing is all about. Small chapters packed with information and exercises make it an easy and rewarding read. And the exercises are geared towards helping you fix your current project, as opposed to writing random scenes.Also invaluable are the examples at the end, showing you voice in different genres.It helped me understand not only voice but also tone and why word choice is so important. Everything I read about in other how-to books but never fully understood. Which goes to show that a great teacher can teach even the more hopeless.This book was so good, I immediately bought three of Bell's other books.

I enjoyed the book. I have several by the author and he has an interesting way of picking literature apart and pointing out what makes it tick. The book is heavy on examples. It does a good job of quantifying the elusive quality of Voice into something more graspable. Worth a read if you're struggling to understand the concept.