Voice

"Tina Ghudiyal is a poet at heart, and a procrastinator by choice. But she manages to find few hours to write copy at Soso's Creative Agency. 

It's common to see such sign offs by writers today. In columns, in blogs and every other place that a writer is trying to be creative.

Trying. To be creative.

You read something like that for the first time and it's like that smile which never makes it to becoming a full fledged laugh.

It's like ha funny. Not a hahahahahahhahahaahhah funny. (A friend described one of my previous posts like this once. I was disheartened. But today I know what she means.) 

No offence to the first person who signed off like that. The first clever man or woman, who decided to assert his or her identity in a rather original manner.

It was new and charming. 

Today, when I read it for the fifteenth time I pity that fine writer who unknowingly invented a formula. 

Now when Anil, the vacationer at his vocation signs off his article in any media, a part of me pities him.

To have a voice of your own as a writer is rather difficult.

You have to speak different words.

Have a unique tone. Use a sensible volume. 

And it has to be done in all honesty.

Being honest in communication, might come naturally. But to stay honest is a task.

It's easy to start sounding like an advertisement you've heard.

It's tempting to entertain an audience always waiting to laugh, cry or comment.

It's daunting to make a statement without expecting a reaction. 

Or fearing ridicule. 

Writing in your own voice is one of the hardest things to do.

You need to discover who you are, in order to know what you want to say to everyone.

You need to master the skill of catching the thoughts that fall out of your brain and keeping them close.

When you put together those words to form a piece of art it becomes a precious treasure. A classic.
And you would gladly read it again and again, just to appreciate the sound the words make in your head.Now if you can do all of this, if you can write like that with just pure heart and no head, I sincerely request you to not sign off with something this unoriginal.

-Neelie is a part time adult and a full time dreamer, hoping to find a voice of her own.

I sound so cool.