Finding your voice as a writer (or brand) requires you to try on a few for size.

It’s like buying a suit. You’d never purchase a suit without first slipping it on and doing a few turns in the mirror. Even then, you get it tailored.

Try on what Hemingway sounds like. Do the same with Baldwin, Didion, Woolf, Kerouac, Bourdain—god, I love Bourdain—Fitzgerald, Plath, Steinbeck, Babitz, Morrison and O’Conner. Try them all on. Be greedy.

When you’re first getting started, you will sound like a bad impersonator of these greats. Keep writing, though. Loosen the grip on the pen some. Inject your own beliefs. Your own style. Your own metaphors. Your own personality. Tailor the voice. With time, you will make the voice your own.

When you’re a young writer (or brand), you should always start by copying someone you admire. It’s too difficult to be original. Be patient. Write your heart out. Originality will come.