Finding the voice.

Without a voice, every draft sounds like a template. You need a sentence you can hand to the agent — and to a colleague — that describes how you speak.

Give three lines you already like (yours or found). Ask for a voice in one sentence, plus three words you use and three you do not.

These lines are ours:
— Bring paper you do not mind ruining.
— We start at ten; the first ten minutes are soft.
— Tea is on the back table.
Write the voice in one sentence. Then: three words we use, three we do not. No slogans.

If the sentence could fit any brand, it failed. It should sound like those three lines.

A voice you can paste at the top of a brief. Keep the use/avoid lists short enough to remember.