We’ve reached Day 14 in our series, 31 Days of Writing Tips. During the month of October, I’m participating in the 31 Days of Five Minute Free Writes writing challenge, sharing a post a day written in five minutes flat.
Today’s writing prompt is: VOICE
For more prompts and posts in this series, CLICK HERE.
One day I posed the question on Twitter, “What is the best writing advice you’ve ever received?”
I was so surprised by the number of times I saw the same response:
Read your work aloud.
Apparently this is a well-known trick, but I so often forget to follow it!
It also may sound like a simple and perhaps unnecessary step, but on the occasions when I’ve felt stuck or unsure about a particular sentence or section own my work and I’ve actually paused to read it aloud, this one step really does make a big difference.
Reading your work aloud to yourself will help you catch sentences or phrases that sound awkward so you can smooth out the rough edges. It’s a great first step before moving on to other edits and a great final step before sending your work off for proofs or publication.
I’ve only recently gotten into listening to audiobooks more often, and I’m surprised by how my brain processes information and receives the message of the book differently when I’m listening instead of looking at static words on a page.
I’m naturally a visual learner and prefer to process information with my eyes more than my ears, but adding this dimension of intake and using a different sense to receive content can help me understand in a different way or catch things I may not have notices just by reading.
I think the same principle applies with our own work. The simple step of reading aloud can help us realize how another reader (or listener) might receive and process the message we’re sending through our work.
Have you tried it? If not, give it a try and see if you notice a difference!
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What comes to mind when you think of the writing prompt, VOICE?
Share with us in five minutes or less!
