Skip to main content

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.
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!
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.
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
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!
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!
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!
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. :)
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

Popular Posts

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...

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...

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...

Free Christian Romantic Suspense Novels by Camy Tang / Camille Elliot

Curious about what my writing is like? Here’s a list of all my free books and the free short stories, novellas, and novels that you can read here on my blog. I’ll update this post as I add more free reads. Christian Romantic Suspense: Necessary Proof (Sonoma series #4.1, novella) Click here to buy the FREE ebook on all retailers Alex Villa became a Christian in prison, and because of his efforts to help stop a gang producing meth in Sonoma, he has been set up for the death of a cop. Can computer expert Jane Lawton find the evidence that will prove his innocence before the gang eliminates them both? Fantasy short stories: Pixies in a Garden in Kyoto There were pixies in the garden. Since she was in Kyoto, she was certain they were not called pixies, but she didn't know what they would be called in Japanese, and they certainly looked like what she imagined pixies would look like. The King’s Daughter The trees in the King's garden were full of colored pixie lights. The...

Writing Goals for 2007

Captain’s Log, Supplemental I considered cheating on my goals for this year, but decided I was being a wimp. So here they are: Here are the goals required by my contract: Book 3 in the series marketing info sheet due March 15th Book 3 manuscript due June 1st Book 1 substantive/line edits due sometime in Jan/Feb Book 1 galleys due sometime after that Book 2 macro edits due sometime in Spring? Book 2 substantive/line edits due, I’m guessing in Summer. Book 3 macro edits due sometime in October, I’m guessing Dang, laid out like that, looks like I’ll be busy. Here are my personal writing goals: Long-term goals: --Complete two manuscripts and a novella by December 31st, 2007 (I have to write the two manuscripts, but I’m trying to push myself and write a third project. I chose a novella since it’s easier than a full novel.) Short-term goals: --Write a short story this year (I keep putting it off because I’m such a perfectionist about it! I think I’ve got to get just the right plot, etc. bef...