Speed reading

Captain’s Log, Stardate 05.04.2007

I totally want to learn to speed read. My friend Georgiana found a website and posted a few tips on her blog:

Speed Reading 101

If I could speed read, I could read so many more books than I do now! I think my biggest problem is sub-vocalizing my words. I don’t think I’ve EVER not done it. I don’t know if I’d be able to not do it. If that makes any sense whatsoever.

Anybody have tips?

Comments

Ronie Kendig said…

Oh, man! I wanna learn, too. There is this one book "The Evelyn Wood Seven-Day Speed Reading and Learning Program" that I'm trying to get through. It's helped me move a bit faster and improve my comprehension a tad, but I'm still nowhere near a speed reader.

Fri May 04, 05:36:00 AM 2007

PatriciaW said…

I remember the Evelyn Wood program from TV commercials back in the '70s. Me, I already read pretty fast but now if I could inhale books, I could really make a dent in the TBR list!

Fri May 04, 09:07:00 AM 2007

Winter Peck said…

I'm with ya. If I could read faster than I already do, my TBR would go down a lot faster too. That and I could get in equal amounts of reading and writing time.

Course, I cheat sometimes. I'll read large chunks of the book, skip even larger chunks and get the main gist of the book wihtout reading it all.

Fri May 04, 11:12:00 AM 2007

Missy Tippens said…

I had some sort of speed reading class in high school, but I just didn't get it at all! I think reading all the time later after high school is what helped me speed up. Just pain ole practice.

Also, Camy, I'm tagging you for blog tag! I hope you'll come to my blog to see the details. Come out to play. :)

Missy

Fri May 04, 07:43:00 PM 2007

Rich said…

I took the Evelyn Wood Speed Reading Course many years ago--I think when Evelyn was still a young girl!!

The whole trick was using hand motions to "draw" your eyes down the page. Moving your hand fast forced your eyes to move faster than they would on their own, not giving you time to sub-vocalize. It tooks quite a bit of practice, but comprehension actually increases--a lot.

They taught us techniques for different types of material, but that is the basic concept. It really works. I still use it sometimes when I need to hurry through something (though of course not when I'm critiquing one of my writing buddies!

Fri May 04, 09:17:00 PM 2007

AnnaLiza said…

since i don't have good comprehension skills, i try to practice speed reading in a quiet place. key word= try. hehehe. thanks for the link. i love a good book!

Fri May 04, 10:12:00 PM 2007

Georgiana Daniels said…

At least you had a good score on the quiz! LOL, I'm picking up some speed, but still falling way behind the rest of you! Maybe I can hit 300 WPM sometime next year--it's a wonder I get anything read at all!

Mon May 07, 10:12:00 AM 2007

Katie Hart - Pinterest Manager said…

I've always read fast (I guess one reason is that I don't subvocalize - I didn't even know what that was!), so it was neat to get an opportunity to test myself. I came out at 575 (despite distracting TV show playing in the background), with 100% comprehension. The computer screen made it hard. I'm guessing I'm closer to 700 or 800, especially with fiction.

Some suggestions - try to allow the words to create a picture in your mind without focusing on each word. Also, practice on thrillers. :)

Mon May 07, 03:41:00 PM 2007

Anonymous said…

So far as sub-vocalising goes in relation to speed reading. I had always believed, perhaps mistakenly so, that there is NO comprehension without sub -vocalisation

Sat May 12, 08:39:00 AM 2007

Michael’s Scarf knitting pattern

Michael’s Gray and Brown Scarf I had just written a scene in Lady Wynwood’s Spies, volume 5: Prisoner where my character Michael gives the heroine a very significant scarf. When looking for a stitch pattern, I found the one used in “#31 Comfort either for a Lady or Gentleman” in The Lady's Assistant , volume 2 , published in 1842 by Mrs. Jane Gaugain, pages 125-126 (click on the link to view and/or download the free PDF of the digitally scanned book). When I did test swatches, it turned out to be a pretty eyelet pattern that looks like branches or vines winding upward. I tried the pattern as a parallelogram scarf and discovered that the pattern has a changeable orientation, looking vertical or diagonal depending on how you looked at it. So I decided to use this pattern, knitted as a parallelogram, as Michael’s scarf. I decided to use a smaller needle and add a slip stitch in the pattern to make the eyelets a bit more close and less lacy. When paired with a brown an

Grace Livingston Hill romances free to read online

I wanted to update my old post on Grace Livingston Hill romances because now there are tons more options for you to be able to read her books for free online! I’m a huge Grace Livingston Hill fan. Granted, not all her books resonate with me, but there are a few that I absolutely love, like The Enchanted Barn and Crimson Roses . And the best part is that she wrote over 100 books and I haven’t yet read them all! When I have time, I like to dive into a new GLH novel. I like the fact that most of them are romances, and I especially appreciate that they all have strong Christian themes. Occasionally the Christian content is a little heavy-handed for my taste, but it’s so interesting to see what the Christian faith was like in the early part of the 20th century. These books are often Cinderella-type stories or A Little Princess (Frances Hodgson Burnett) type stories, which I love. And the best part is that they’re all set in the early 1900s, so the time period is absolutely fasci

The Wedding Kimono in the Clean Romance Books promo

My book The Wedding Kimono (writing as Camy Tang) is in this Clean Romance books Bookfunnel promo. Every book in the promo is FREE when you sign up for the author’s email newsletter. Check out the promo and all the great FREE clean romance ebooks! You might find a new favorite author! Clean Romance Books Bookfunnel promo

Lady Wynwood’s Spies book 1 in Amazon Prime Free Reads

Lady Wynwood’s Spies, volume 1: Archer in Amazon Prime Free Reads My book was chosen to be included in Amazon Prime Free Reads. If you have Amazon Prime, you’ll be able to borrow my book for free. Now’s the chance to read Lady Wynwood’s Spies, volume 1: Archer if you haven’t yet! Read Lady Wynwood’s Spies, volume 1: Archer free on Amazon

The Gentleman Thief in Free Historical Fiction Bookfunnel promo

My book The Gentlemen Thief (writing as Camille Elliot) is in this Free Historical Fiction promo. Every book in the promo is FREE when you sign up for the author’s email newsletter. Check out the promo and all the great FREE historical fiction ebooks! You might find a new favorite author! Free Historical Fiction promo

No Cold Bums toilet seat cover

Captain's Log, Stardate 08.22.2008 I actually wrote out my pattern! I was getting a lot of hits on my infamous toilet seat cover , and I wanted to make a new one with “improvements,” so I paid attention and wrote things down as I made the new one. This was originally based off the Potty Mouth toilet cover , but I altered it to fit over the seat instead of the lid. Yarn: any worsted weight yarn, about 120 yards (this is a really tight number, I used exactly 118 yards. My suggestion is to make sure you have about 130 yards.) I suggest using acrylic yarn because you’re going to be washing this often. Needle: I used US 8, but you can use whatever needle size is recommended by the yarn you’re using. Gauge: Not that important. Mine was 4 sts/1 inch in garter stitch. 6 buttons (I used some leftover shell buttons I had in my stash) tapestry needle Crochet hook (optional) Cover: Using a provisional cast on, cast on 12 stitches. Work in garter st until liner measures

Marketing Information Form, part two

Captain’s Log, Stardate 05.26.2006 Blog book giveaway: My Monday book giveaway is A GIRL’S BEST FRIEND by Kristin Billerbeck . My Thursday book giveaway is LIFE INTERRUPTED by Tricia Goyer . You can still enter both giveaways. Just post a comment on each of those blog posts. On Monday, I'll draw the winner for A GIRL’S BEST FRIEND and post the title for another book I'm giving away. Stay tuned. Continued from Marketing Information Form, part one : More stuff they want to know about my book: Other covers: What styles, fonts, colors? This is one area I didn’t really think about, but I listed the few covers that I thought conveyed the sort of atmosphere I wanted for my book: WHAT A GIRL WANTS by Kristin Billerbeck . The cartoon design is fresh, cute, clean. SASSY CINDERELLA AND THE VALIANT VIGILANTE by Sharon Dunn . This book, more than the other Ruby Taylor books, conveyed Ruby’s character—her vibrant red hair, bohemian dress, sassy post-modern attitude. THE TROUBLE WITH LACY B

Tabi socks, part deux

Captain's Log, Stardate 07.25.2008 (If you're on Ravelry, friend me! I'm camytang.) I made tabi socks again! (At the bottom of the pattern is the calculation for the toe split if you're not using the same weight yarn that I did for this pattern (fingering). I also give an example from when I used worsted weight yarn with this pattern.) I used Opal yarn, Petticoat colorway. It’s a finer yarn than my last pair of tabi socks, so I altered the pattern a bit. Okay, so here’s my first foray into giving a knitting pattern. Camy’s top-down Tabi Socks I’m assuming you already know the basics of knitting socks. If you’re a beginner, here are some great tutorials: Socks 101 How to Knit Socks The Sock Knitter’s Companion A video of turning the heel Sock Knitting Tips Yarn: I have used both fingering weight and worsted weight yarn with this pattern. You just change the number of cast on stitches according to your gauge and the circumference of your ankle. Th

Hosea 14:2

Lord Jesus, Thank You that we can freely come directly to You and pray to You. Thank You that You died for our sins on the cross and we can be forgiven. “Forgive all our sins and receive us graciously, that we may offer the fruit of our lips.” We praise and thank You, Lord, for how wonderful You are. We lift our hearts to You in praise today. Amen 主イエスよ、私たちが自由にあなたに直接近づき、あなたに祈ることができることを感謝します。あなたが十字架で私たちの罪のために死んでくださり、私たちが赦されることを感謝します。「私たちのすべての罪を赦し、私たちを慈しみ深く受け入れてください。」主よ、あなたがどんなに素晴らしい方であるかを賛美し、感謝します。私たちは今日、賛美のうちにあなたに心を捧げます。アーメン

Keriah's Narrow Crescent Scarf

In my series Lady Wynwood’s Spies, my character Keriah is more emotional than her friend Phoebe, and so when writing about her in Lady Wynwood’s Spies, volume 6: Martyr , naturally I described her scarf as having more lively colors than the greens and blues that Phoebe favors. I didn’t really have a particular yarn colorway in mind when I wrote the scene, but when looking through my stash to knit her scarf, I found the Carnival colorway in Knit Picks Chroma Twist Fingering, and it was absolutely perfect for her. Chroma Twist Fingering is discontinued, but you could knit this in Chroma Fingering or any other color-transitional yarn. In the Regency era, a tri-color 3-ply yarn like Chroma Twist Fingering would probably not have been sold in shops, but it also may not have been completely unheard of. It is made by simply dying the wool rather than the finished yarn, and then the dyed wool would be split into 3 parts and each part spun into a single ply, before all three plies

Search This Blog