Was Blind But Now I See– Text-to-Voice: An Underappreciated Editing Tool

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This post, from H.L. Dyer, originally appeared on the QueryTracker.net blog on 10/21/09.

So, we’ve already discussed the value of reading your work aloud during the editing process. This works amazingly well, especially for a specific scene or passage at a time. But, if you’re planning a full head-to-toenails edit, you’re gonna need an awful lot of tea and honey to read a full manuscript out loud.

Now, maybe some of you have spouses and/or BFF’s lining up for the chance to read your novel to you, but for most of us editing is a pretty solitary endeavor. 

If only there was someone else… someone who could read forever without getting hoarse or grumpy when you make them repeat the same sentence thirty-eight times in a row…

Well, if you have a fairly recent computer, chances are you do have access to such a person. Okay, fine, you have access to a robotic equivalent of a person, but still an amazing resource.

I’m talking about Text-to-Voice software.

I had heard that text-to-voice software was included on most recent PC’s (They are intended to assist users with visual impairments), but I’d never bothered looking up how to use it until a few months ago.

I find reading aloud to be a great editing tool, but impractical for completing a full edit at my (relatively high speed) pace. I have also noticed that when I read aloud from my manuscript, I sometimes still miss problems like missing or repeated words because I know what the text is supposed to say and my brain corrects the errors without my noticing.
 

Read the rest of the post on the QueryTracker.net blog.