A twofold post in some ways. Always strive to be who you are, not what you think you should be, or someone tells you to be. Goes without saying, but what the heck? 😉
We have certain mannerisms, expressions/speech patterns, views, appearances, and so forth that define who we are. Each and every one of us is unique—like a twinkling star in the vast, ever-changing sky. That’s pretty damn cool. We should rejoice in that.
That relates to personal/private lives as much as professional ones. We can spend months, if not years, determining our style (how and what we’re going to write), how we want to be perceived and, yes, who we are as authors.
As in our personal lives, we’re influenced by outside sources—nothing wrong with that, long as we recognize and hold on to who we are. When we begin to mimic [talk, advocate, look like] someone else, then the uniqueness and originality is nonexistent. The voice we project belongs to another.
Admire fellow writers and artists and give credit and compliments where due. Read, read, read. Learn, learn, learn. And . . . yes . . . write, write, write. Don’t emulate someone to the point where you’ve become an imitator, an impersonator. That deprives the reading world of a[nother] potentially great novelist, playwright, poet, or blogger. It robs the world of you.
Nothing comes easy. That’s a given. And it may prove a challenge, even a struggle, to determine the unique person you are . . . and find that distinctive [exceptional] voice that is solely yours. Don’t cheat us—or yourself—of that.
Shine as only you can.
The Writer's Grab-Bag 