Read everything you write out loud. This takes a lot of time but it is time well spent. Only when you read it aloud can you read like a reader. Scanning over the text, writers often read what they think it says there.There are five reasons to read aloud:
1 Mistakes are hard to spot, whether they are typos, improper punctuation, incorrect words; they are easier to find when the work is read aloud.
2 Language is lyrical but it shouldn’t turn into a full-blown musical. Assonance and alliteration are poetic but they can drag the reader out of your novel.
3 Reading aloud helps to develop a consistent Voice: your style of writing.
4 Characterisation is enhanced when you read your work aloud. The main characters can be portrayed more effectively when they have a recognisable voice too.
5 Reading aloud to yourself or others; making videos to listen to your delivery from the perspective of your audience: are all great preparation for the readings you will asked to participate in, when you are a published author ;)
Whether you are at the start of your new WIP or in the final stage of editing: reading aloud is an effective tool.
I spent yesterday - when I should have been blogging - reading. I love it when a book sucks me in. I love Charlaine Harris' writing.
