VOICE is the sound of writing done well, whether read silently or spoken aloud. Many attempts have been made to define it, but there simply is no way to tell what it means in a few words. To say that voice is the hallmark of a good writing style, to say that it is writing that succeeds in some way to becoming music, is to beg the question. But of one thing we can be sure of: voice is the signature sound of a writer who knows his subject delightfully well and feels about it deeply, someone who can deftly orchestrate the various instruments of the writing craft to make an intimate connection with the unseen reader.

To get a better idea of what voice is, let's first take a look at an otherwise competent writing that doesn't seem to show feeling about its subject: