VOICE

There used to be a time when I'd read a Gary Smith story and fume about how great of a writer he is. About how through his 5,000-plus word narratives he could mix-and-match his words into a story that is nearly impossible to put down.

As I flipped through the pages of Sports Illustrated and reading Gary's words, I'd go off on how great he is and how much I suck rather than try and figure out what made him so great. How is it that HE is a four-time National Magazine Award winner, and little ol' me is still working my way to the top. I've grown up a bit since then, though, and these days, there isn't as much fuming as there is mesmerizing.

What strikes me about Gary Smith being as great a writer as he is is his understanding of life around him, of being able to look at a story, pick out its underlying themes and incorporate his voice, albeit very subtle, and turn it into a very powerful narrative.

And while most of his narratives have enough drama to run the course of the story, his added touch with his voice, dropping in a brief question or slipping in a clever line that makes you sit back and say, 'Whoa!', is just incredible.

The thing I'm beginning to realize with voice*––thanks largely in part to Gary Smith– –is how powerful it can be. Sure, a narrative can survive on its own and still be great, but voice gives it that little extra flair. It's like ice cream, for example, great on its own but adding some chocolate, pecans and whip cream make it that much better.

[*When I say voice I don't mean it in the sense of first person and using 'I' in a narrative. I'm with David Granger, editor-in-chief of Esquire, when he says that first person is killing journalism***.]

Being 22, though, and just getting started in this business––more so just getting started with narrative––I'm still working to develop my voice, to develop my writing style. So far I've been like a mutt, I guess you can say, taking pieces from "Rapture of the Deep" by Gary Smith, a dose of "The Things That Carried Him" by Chris Jones, a chapter from "The Rapist Says He's Sorry" by Tom Junod, "Staying the Course" by Wright Thompson, "Frank Sinatra Has A Cold" by Gay Talese, among all the other fine narrative writers to ever grace the pages with their words.

So with great hope, I imagine that one day I will join their ranks. That one day I'll be able to write like this:

"When it's all done, you'll have to decide which side of the water's surface to see the myth through, and who got the moral of the story right. Those who see the half-naked woman inside the hammerhead shark and say, "Of course, because that's where she lives now." Or those who see it and say, "Of course, she was devoured.' Remember one thing: It was Audrey who drew the picture."*

[*An excerpt from Gary Smith's "Rapture of the Deep".]

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***Having said that, I do believe that there are those cases where 'I' works (see "Rapture of the Deep"* when Gary writes, "But I've always felt it was best to start with the half-naked woman."), but even so those cases are so rare that it's probably best not to use it at all.

*For the record, "Rapture of the Deep" is probably my all-time favorite narrative, in case you haven't already noticed.