tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post1299875848802978415..comments2024-03-28T06:59:34.982-06:00Comments on Blood-Red Pencil: Things I Learned From Listening to Audio BooksDanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14471919576687777886noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-64727263287451092582016-12-13T09:48:59.054-07:002016-12-13T09:48:59.054-07:00Thanks for stopping by, Pia. I am doing more "...Thanks for stopping by, Pia. I am doing more "writing" via Dragonspeak and finding it a helpful tool. I'm compiling newspaper columns for a historian to create a book for him, and dictating is so much faster than typing.Maryannwriteshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09479027709233807149noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-14843084354533541672016-11-28T07:41:32.559-07:002016-11-28T07:41:32.559-07:00YES, I find reading aloud is one of the most valua...YES, I find reading aloud is one of the most valuable exercises to improve flow. I also do a fair amount of my 'writing' by speaking it aloud into a recorder and editing as I transcribe. Thanks for posting about this. I will add a link from my Twitter account!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02331034078773380334noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-81804571866461672612016-06-04T09:36:24.783-06:002016-06-04T09:36:24.783-06:00Oh, and I read all my books out loud. Catches lots...Oh, and I read all my books out loud. Catches lots of awkward phrasing.Polly Iyerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05729656119287702191noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-19139518092044795282016-06-04T09:35:39.559-06:002016-06-04T09:35:39.559-06:00Excellent piece, Maryann. I agree about listening ...Excellent piece, Maryann. I agree about listening to Parker. It really did get annoying, but I also found it annoying in print. I'm not the only one who did either. I have four audios of my books. The first reader, excellent, by the way, added attributions, and I made her take them out. Since she voiced characters differently, she didn't need them, and I didn't want them. I have stopped listening to audios because the reader's voice was so annoying, but on a long trip, driving alone, I stock up my car with audios from the library.Polly Iyerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05729656119287702191noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-53210932071453939782016-06-01T14:10:47.834-06:002016-06-01T14:10:47.834-06:00This is a great piece, Maryann. I have significant...This is a great piece, Maryann. I have significantly reduced my use of dialog tags since I began my first novel nearly 20 years ago, and I encourage writers I work with to do the same. Those tags have their place when the speaker needs to be identified, but not at the end of every little bit of conversation. <br /><br />"I don't like that idea," Maggie said, frowning. <br /><br />Maggie frowned. "I don't like that idea." <br /><br />When read out loud, the second one clearly is the winner.Linda Lanehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16056682992943171805noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-13956462043444245402016-05-31T14:21:00.539-06:002016-05-31T14:21:00.539-06:00I never thought about the way listening to audio b...I never thought about the way listening to audio books might actually help my craft, Maryann. I always just thought of it as a way to access books if you have a long drive or a lot to do around the house and no time to read. But, you've convinced me I should give it a whirl. What a great learning tool you've discovered!Carahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04051728774050516027noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-32364531708258420162016-05-31T09:07:31.714-06:002016-05-31T09:07:31.714-06:00Thanks for the excellent points in your comment, E...Thanks for the excellent points in your comment, Elle. I learnt a long time ago when editing for a client down under not to change it to learned. :-) <br /><br />I try to avoid those aside comments altogether unless the comment is something integral to the story. Even then, I usually try to make it two sentences. Maryannwriteshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09479027709233807149noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-47745540268622700112016-05-31T09:03:20.906-06:002016-05-31T09:03:20.906-06:00Good suggestion, Diana.Good suggestion, Diana.Maryannwriteshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09479027709233807149noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-24127177056246334802016-05-31T09:02:56.012-06:002016-05-31T09:02:56.012-06:00Thanks, C.T. I have been in writer's groups fo...Thanks, C.T. I have been in writer's groups for many years and, like you, I learn a lot from listening to others as they read their work.<br /><br />One thing I realized after I wrote this post is that the style of writing that Parker used, and the time he wrote, was so different from now. The dialogue tags were handled differently then. If you pick up a novel written in the 70s or 80s there are all those dialogue tags in them.Maryannwriteshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09479027709233807149noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-84115453613532676202016-05-31T08:03:12.389-06:002016-05-31T08:03:12.389-06:00I think it is helpful to record your final draft a...I think it is helpful to record your final draft and play it back with a copy of the manuscript in front of you. Highlight the parts that sound off and go back and edit them.Diana Hurwitzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18216220574149672733noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-60076236438621713092016-05-31T05:49:53.629-06:002016-05-31T05:49:53.629-06:00You've had a really rough time with this, Mary...You've had a really rough time with this, Maryann - it is good to have you back, and glad you're finally feeling better. *hugs*<br /><br />I have learnt (not learned :-P ) a great deal from reading books out loud to my children (and I often edit on the fly as I read). Two things really stand out: firstly, dialogue tags, as you mentioned, too - I usually skip the modifiers on these, especially if I read the dialogue in, say, a normal voice and the dialogue tag says "she whispered". Too late now to whisper it. Sometimes I skip the tag altogether if it is really obvious who is speaking, or if I'm using a different voice for one character. Secondly, using clauses in the middle of a sentence for an aside comment can cause a lot of confusion and the need to backtrack, especially for children, e.g., "She wore a blue dress, which she had bought at a flea market and instantly fallen in love with, to the ball." These seem okay when reading the text because the reader can skip quickly back to check what "to the ball" refers to, but speaking such sentences places a disconnect between the two parts of the original sentence and it's much harder to keep track of when listening. And it's so simple to just separate the sentences. Books for children need to be simple sentences for the exact reason that they are sometimes read aloud. Audio really is a different medium.Elle Carter Nealhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02266309723919011181noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-14626236474479955502016-05-31T05:20:02.298-06:002016-05-31T05:20:02.298-06:00Great post. So glad you're recovering and writ...Great post. So glad you're recovering and writing again! I joined a local writers group that reads short passages aloud for most of the meeting time, and it has made a difference in my writing. Hearing authors and genre I wouldn't normally read has sharpened my sense of description and dialogue, and taking my own turn has made me much more aware of the impact of my writing on audience. Your comments about dialogue tags is so informative-- thank you!!C. T. Collierhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07056021289925210090noreply@blogger.com