SeanDareOnline.com

One of the writing tricks I didn’t think would work, but has become an invaluable tool in my writing toolbox, is reading out loud. Before I publish a post I will have reread/rewritten it many, many times. When I feel I am close to a finished product I read the post out loud. I am amazed at the number of errors I find this way that I wouldn’t have found if I didn’t read it out loud. Small things like commas, or the same word used twice in a sentence, which were overlooked before, become glaring errors when I read the work out loud. I can’t tell you how valuable this tool really is.

There are a couple of caveats however. 1. You don’t want to read your work out loud too early in the re-writing process. The sheer number of mistakes you will find will discourage you at this stage. Reading out loud is akin to fine sandpaper. You use it when the work is already mostly smooth, not before. 2. You have to overcome your fear of sounding silly. Reading out loud is considered a sign of low intelligence. You have to be willing to look like a fool at your writing desk in order to keep from being a fool in you published work.

Other than that, reading your work out loud is a great way to see if it “sounds” right and flows properly. The next time you are writing something, even if it is something as short as a one sentence email, try reading it out loud right before you send/publish it. You will be amazed at how well this works!

- Sean

P.S. I read this post out loud and found two mistakes I didn’t catch during the four rewrites it took to get it ready. (Make that three mistakes, I found one in the P.S. also!)