# How to read your work aloud



## M. LeRenard (Dec 5, 2008)

So I've always given the advice that's it's helpful to read one's work aloud, the thought being that doing so would make it more obvious where things don't flow well or are simply poorly put together.  But if my English 254 class this semester has shown me anything, it's that not everyone knows how to read a piece of writing out loud with some degree of accuracy.  Since I think that this is both a necessary skill for editing and a necessary skill for writing in the first place (I'll elaborate more on that later), let me give a few helpful ideas about reading writing.  And of course, if anyone wants to add anything, please do so.

First of all, pace is governed by punctuation.  The general rule is that where there's a comma or a colon, there's a pause, and where there's a period, question mark, or exclamation point, there's a longer pause.  For example, the two sentences, "Billy, could you go to the bank for me?  I need forty dollars so I can replace that eggbeater I broke the other day." would be read: 'Billy *pause* Could you go to the bank for me *long pause* I need forty dollars so I can....'.

You might be thinking to yourself, "But I already knew that!"  If you are thinking that, good for you, but consider this: how often do you actually pay attention to punctuation as you're reading?  Do you glide over it and barrel forth, or do you stop for a millisecond to take note that it's there?  If you're a somewhat average person, you might be surprised by your answer.
If you're in the first bracket, put yourself in the second.  Pay attention; slow down, look carefully, and exaggerate the details.  The goal is to get so used to acknowledging punctuation that you start to add these pauses and inflections automatically.  It will sound unnatural at first: keep practicing until it sounds natural.  Record yourself if you have to, or have someone listen to you as you read and throw pebbles at you every time you say something weirdly.  Whatever works.

Also, strong words require emphasis.  If somebody asks you, "What the hell do you think you're doing?" they likely don't do it in a monotone.  'Hell' might become 'HELL', 'doing' might become 'DOing'.  The voice could rise on 'DO' and fall on 'ing'.  Now, it's a convention that you don't add these little trinkets like capitalization or interrobangs or what have you into your actual writing, but the voice in your head should always be acting out the scene as you'd act it out in the real world.

Along those lines, think about how you make words stand out yourself in normal conversation.  There's a difference between "There's no such things as magic," and "There is no such thing as magic."  If you don't think so, think about accentuation: why would you separate out the 'is' on the second and not the first?  To put accent on it, in most cases.  If you wanted to make it really obvious, you'd write the second sentence, "There-is-no-such-thing-as-magic!"  Consider everything you write based on how you inflect the words yourself, and how other people inflect words.
You should apply this while you're writing as much as while you're reading what you've written.  If you want Character A to sound less like a robot, by definition he's got to sound more like a person, and that means making his tone of voice come out in the writing.  And the best way to do this, I've found, is if you act out the words he's saying out in your head while you're writing them, and then applying the right grammatical tools to make it look like what you just heard.

But really, the key to all this is to LEARN GRAMMAR.  This is what these rules are for, really: to get your point across in the clearest way possible.  If you understand what all those dots and dashes and squiggly lines are supposed to mean, it will both enhance your ability to comprehend writing and to put forth comprehensible ideas with your own words.  You'll be able to hear it, and it won't be writing anymore, but conversation.  In fiction, and maybe even more so in poetry, that's your goal.  People hate to read a report, but love to take part in a conversation; make them believe they're doing the latter.


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## Chanticleer (Dec 6, 2008)

Leave it to M. to post something intelligent (you still owe me gallery comments by the way.)

I might add that any sort of practice in oratory can help you with this process. taking part in a community play or just sitting around playing D&D can help you understand how people talk and, perhaps most importantly, that different people talk in different ways.

For me the problem has never been flow or clarity, but ensuring that each character maintains their own voice. Reading each line of dialogue aloud and making corrections can go a long way to ensuring that each character expresses themselves distinctly.


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## kitreshawn (Dec 6, 2008)

One minor addition.  If you really want to stress emphasis on a word there are always italics.  Avoid underlining, italics is best for giving a word extra strength.

This is best done in dialogue or when a single fact needs to be made very apparent.  But don't overuse it either.  You should maybe have one or two in a chapter (or short story) at the very most.  The less often you use this the greater the impact when you do use it.

Italics can also be done to separate internal monologue if you wish.


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## Xipoid (Dec 6, 2008)

Okay, not topic related (or would it be), but there definitely needs to be a reduction of the number of sticky threads. It is becoming mildly confusing.

I vote that the following threads are left as sticky and the rest lose their status (nothing personal Renard):
1) Critique
2) Looking for writers
3) Common Errors



I wish I could read my own aloud, but I feel silly doing so, like I'm speaking with my imaginary friend who wants me to seek medical help.

Though those are some good points (even if a bit rudimentary), but I guess there are people who, as you said, need them. That came off a bit haughty.


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## M. LeRenard (Dec 6, 2008)

> you still owe me gallery comments by the way


I do?  On what, in particular?  And why?


> If you really want to stress emphasis on a word there are always italics.


Sure.  And like you said: use sparingly.  Basically you only should use them when you feel it necessary to guide the reader completely on how something should sound (because otherwise you don't think your whole point is getting across).  I'd call it a last resort mechanism, but it seems to be accepted in modern writing, so it's an okay last resort mechanism.

Edit: What the hell?  Why did this become sticky?
ADMINS, KNOCK IT OFF.  I appreciate the enthusiasm, but for Christ's sake...!


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## Chanticleer (Dec 6, 2008)

M. Le Renard said:


> I do?  On what, in particular?  And why?



Ok, you probably don't really _owe_ them to me, but you did say you might leaf through my gallery way back when: http://forums.furaffinity.net/showthread.php?t=25740 (third post from the bottom)


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## M. LeRenard (Dec 6, 2008)

Done and done, Chanticleer.


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## Poetigress (Dec 6, 2008)

Xipoid said:


> Okay, not topic related (or would it be), but there definitely needs to be a reduction of the number of sticky threads. It is becoming mildly confusing.
> 
> I vote that the following threads are left as sticky and the rest lose their status (nothing personal Renard):
> 1) Critique
> ...



I'd agree with those three.  

As I recall, we've requested that the other stickies be removed a number of times, but nothing has been done.  I guess we have to contact admin directly?


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## Poetigress (Dec 6, 2008)

kitreshawn said:


> If you really want to stress emphasis on a word there are always italics.  Avoid underlining, italics is best for giving a word extra strength.



I don't understand the difference you're implying between underlining and italics.  As I've always understood it, underlining is used in manuscript format to indicate italics.


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## foozzzball (Dec 6, 2008)

Poetigress said:


> I'd agree with those three.
> 
> As I recall, we've requested that the other stickies be removed a number of times, but nothing has been done.  I guess we have to contact admin directly?



I'd suggest adding on 'a tip when uploading stories to FA' to that list.


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## Jax (Dec 7, 2008)

M. 
Again you prove yourself a resource. I take reading to an extreme, recording my work with hopes of actually offering an audio version of my novel. I used to narrate professionally, albeit my product was training materials. Not exactly a capstone of my carrier. Today I just play with this. I suppose not every style of writing would lend itself to this, but it certainly helps develop an effective style. It is just one tool in becoming your character. 
A happy amateur!


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## robotechtiger (Jul 6, 2009)

Depending on your reasons for recording your work, you might also want to consider shelling out a few bucks for some relatively decent recording equipment.  Speaking from experience, I can tell you that your standard Logitech $40.00 headset will NOT cut it if you're looking for a good sound, unless you're a wiz at audio editing.

From a podcasting point of view, your target 'entry fee' should be around $100.00 for a decent microphone.  When I first started, I began with the aforementioned Logitech setup and...well...let's just say I had my work cut out for me in terms of getting the audio to sound right.

After that I dropped $100.00 on a Plantronics DSP headset, and it works great as far as headsets go.  It's a USB mic, so there's very little futzing around required to get a decent sound.  The only problem with it now, is that you can hear the creaks from the headgear when I'm recording.  I attribute that to age and use, but it's still a pain in the butt.

My next purchase will be a Snowball mic, which is a pedestal mic that a lot of people have told me is the cat's meow.  It's also available for about $100.00.  I should be picking one of those up in the next month or so, then we'll see how well it works.

EDIT:  Also, here's a great link for making your own pop filter for your microphones.  They say you can do it for under $10.00, so I'll be finding out soon enough:

Build your own Pop Screen


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