In response to the voice issue raised by Dawn I sat down to write this entry. The time limit of ten minutes is meant to be happening here, but with bubby playing on the floor behind me I'm not sure that ten minutes will happen all in one go.

For me voice is what the reader tunes into the moment they begin to read. The voice might belong to the main character, or simply the narrator, whoever that might be in the story. For example; I enjoyed the voice of the main character in Joyce Carol Oates We Were the Mulvaneys. The voice of the male character was so strong I had to keep checking the front of the novel to see that I was really reading a female writer. Another example; Blackberry Wine by Joanne Harris is narrated by a bottle of blackberry wine residing in the basement of the main character, although this is not made clear in the US editions of this novel.

In each example I was aware of who was telling the tale and the voice was credible, even if the bottle of wine sounds ridiculous to write here and now. I was drawn into the tale by that bottle and believed everything it had to say. Voice must do exactly that; sound credible to the reader's ear. Even articles need this. As soon as the reader scans the words the subject must hook them, of course, but the voice of the writer must reach in a do more than simply hook them. The voice must relate, understand or amuse and immediately. While a voice is unique to every writer, I think it's something we need to have in firm control.

There is a man, sorry for not recalling who he is, who claims to be able to identify any writer by their works alone. He was used to prove the anonymous author of the controversial novel Colors (US spelling) and has proved certain historical works belonged to Shakespeare and other famous historical works. Although he has his critics, who doesn't, he is probably onto something. But, I feel, depending on the kind of writing you're tackling, a writer needs to employ different strategies for sounding different to their readers.

Nothing could be more boring to the reader than to have the voice sound exactly the same each time you open a book by a favourite author. Favourite authors have obviously done something right. They've found the credible voice of their character or narrator and have honed it to be a reliable witness to the details or story that follows. I would not continue to read MC Beaton mysteries or Anna Jacobs historicals or Derek Hanson Lunch With... series if they sounded the same every single time.

If one writer can write in several different genres, take Anna Jacobs for example who also writes teen, children and modern tales, as well as articles on writing, then voice is not something set in concrete. But it does need to be a tool we can use. Writers need to be aware of voice in whatever they're writing. The point of this exercise each day, I imagine, is to establish the voice of our own personalities. In doing this we are meant to learn our strengths and weaknesses. I know this is something regular journal and blog writing has done for me.

The practice of writing each day as a regular routine is a part of my life. Even when in hospital having my baby boy, I took my journal and wrote in it whenever I got the chance. I believe, and hope I'm correct, that I have developed a strong voice, in doing this regular writing practice. I'm such a strong advocate for this practice I even made an online group to encourage others to do it, too. Since I've been so busy lately I've left the running of Daily Writing Practice to one of the faithful members. I suppose I should get back into it, but I just don't have the time I once did.

The point of this entire entry is simply to say, I now need to work on presenting a different voice for each of my other works. I need to look at the novels I've written and identify if there is a strong voice in my narration. Are my characters speaking a clear voice the reader can identify with? I need to employ the right voice for my articles and other writing, too. Anyway, my little mister is complaining and I need to go tend his needs. I actually enjoyed that session and hope my readers find it enlightening, too.