Finding a Voice

If you keep up with my blog, you know I’m writing a children’s book that is highly anticipated by my son. I’m feeling the pressure of a deadline from an eight year old, and it may be as bad as having an editor on my case.


The rough draft is complete. The story is on paper with words that swim before my eyes as I read and reread them, trying to figure out what I need to do to make the story match what’s in my head.

I keep trying to find the voice of a child to tell the story, but my inner editor keeps pouncing on every simplistic word and description, and the end product ends up formal and stuffy, so unlike a child’s voice.

So I began paying attention to the stories my students tell. First, let me warn all parents that all children, no matter what age, love to tell stories about their families. The phrase “way too much information” was invented for the stories we hear from students.

My students are always requesting my stories though. They’ve even wanted several to be retold. So how come the words don’t flow onto the paper as easily?

I think it’s because my inner editor shuts off when I tell a story to a class full of students I want to impress with certain details. My voice, which is filled with imperfections and sarcasm, doesn’t worry about how I’m supposed to be writing. I’m not staring at the words on the page and seeing all their flaws.

But how does one turn the inner editor off when one is an English teacher? My students would be scandalized if I wrote grammatically incorrect.

They listen to my stories though. They appreciate that I can tell a story about when I was their age and actually get them. They even enjoy the sarcasm because it makes them laugh. That’s the voice I need to get on paper.

So I will return to the blank page and see if I can write the story that is in my head instead of what my inner editor is waiting to pounce on with her red ink pen.