Finding your voice

Finding your voice in academic writing is often a struggle for graduate students. What does it mean to express ‘voice’ in academic writing? How do you 'own' your ideas when so many relate to the work of others? How can you make your voice heard, when you need to be objective?

The simple answer is practice. You need to develop confidence about your mastery of your subject and authority with respect to your arguments. These things tend to emerge later in the process as you develop a greater sense of your argument and the nature of your contribution.

There are a few writing activities and linguistic tips that can help you with this, so it may help you to make an appointment with an Academic Skills Advisor in the library to discuss your needs.

Some basic tips

• Work out the ‘story’ of your research – if you don’t yet know what you want to say, it will be difficult to write confidently.
• Ensure that most of the topic sentences for your paragraphs are written in your own voice – avoid starting with the words of others.
• Be direct in your sentences – avoid long introductory clauses or embedded clauses.
• Don’t be afraid to draft in the first person, even if you revise this out later.
• Look at some journal articles in your discipline. Where can you detect the attitude of the writer to their material? What kind of language do they use to communicate this?
• Don’t forget to signpost your writing for your reader – tell them what you are doing.