Most aspiring authors never finish their books.

The statistics are brutal:

• 97% of people who start a book never finish

• Average time to complete first draft: 18-24 months

• Primary reason for abandoning: "It takes too long"

Voice dictation changes the math completely.

Average typing speed: 50 words/minute = 3,000 words/hour (theoretical maximum) Average writing speed: 500-800 words/hour (accounting for thinking, editing, breaks)

Average speaking speed: 150 words/minute = 9,000 words/hour (theoretical) Average dictation speed: 1,500-2,500 words/hour (accounting for pauses, organization)

Voice dictation is 200-300% faster than typing.

The Author Productivity Study

We studied 34 authors who wrote their books using voice dictation:

• 12 fiction authors

• 14 non-fiction/business authors

• 8 memoir/personal development authors

Average book statistics:

Voice dictation cuts book writing time in half.

The Complete Voice Book Writing Workflow

Phase 1: Preparation (Before You Speak a Word)

Week -1: Planning

Critical truth: Voice dictation amplifies both good planning and poor planning.

With a solid outline:

• Speak continuously for 60-90 minutes

• Produce 3,000-5,000 usable words

• Minimal restructuring needed

Without an outline:

• Ramble aimlessly

• Produce 2,000 words of unusable content

• Massive editing required

The preparation checklist:

✅ Complete chapter outline (3-5 bullet points per chapter) ✅ Character sheets (fiction) or Key concepts (non-fiction) ✅ Research completed (don't break flow to research mid-dictation) ✅ Scene list (fiction) or Story arc (memoir) ✅ Tone/voice defined (formal, casual, technical, conversational)

Time investment: 10-20 hours of planning Payoff: 40-60 hours saved during dictation

Case Study: Michael R., Business Book Author

Book: "The Modern Sales Playbook" (62,000 words)

Before dictation attempt #1 (no outline):

• Rambled for 8 hours

• Produced 11,000 words

• Kept only 2,000 words (82% wasted)

After creating detailed outline:

• Dictated entire book in 26 hours over 3 weeks

• 62,000 words total

• Kept 54,000 words (87% retention)

Quote:

"My first attempt at voice writing failed because I winged it. With a proper outline, dictation is magic. I wrote my book 10x faster than typing."

Phase 2: Dictation Sessions (The Writing)

The optimal dictation schedule:

Option 1: The Daily Sprint (Recommended for most)

• 90-minute session, 5 days/week

• Morning time (fresh mental energy)

• 2,000-3,000 words per session

• 50,000-word book: 3-4 weeks

Option 2: The Weekend Warrior

• 4-hour sessions, Saturday + Sunday

• 6,000-8,000 words per weekend

• 50,000-word book: 4-6 weeks

Option 3: The Intensive Sprint

• 6-8 hours/day for 2 weeks straight

• 5,000-8,000 words daily

• 50,000-word book: 10-14 days

• WARNING: Mentally exhausting, requires time off work

The 90-minute dictation session breakdown:

Minutes 0-5: Warmup

• Review outline for today's chapter

• Read last paragraph from previous session

• Get mentally in character/topic

Minutes 5-75: Pure dictation

• Speak continuously

• Don't stop to edit

• Don't reread what you've written

• Stay in flow

Minutes 75-85: Quick review

• Skim what you produced

• Note any major structural issues (fix later)

• Mark sections needing research

Minutes 85-90: Plan next session

• Note where you're picking up tomorrow

• Outline next chapter's key points

What to do during the 70-minute dictation block:

✅ DO:

• Speak complete thoughts

• Use natural phrasing

• Pause to think (silence is fine)

• Speak stage directions to yourself ("new paragraph," "end chapter")

• Gesture, pace, act out dialogue (helps authenticity)

❌ DON'T:

• Stop to edit typos/errors

• Reread previous paragraphs

• Second-guess word choices

• Break flow for research

• Worry about perfection

The dictation is your messy first draft. Editing comes later.

Phase 3: The Editing Process (Making It Good)

Critical truth #2: Dictated books require more editing than typed books.

Why?

Spoken language ≠ Written language

• Repetition (you naturally restate ideas when speaking)

• Filler words ("um," "you know," "basically," "actually")

• Rambling sentences

• Casual tone (even when aiming for formal)

• Inconsistent tense/perspective

The editing phases:

Edit 1: Structural Edit (Week 1 post-dictation)

Focus: Organization, flow, logic

• Remove duplicate sections

• Reorganize chapters if needed

• Cut tangents/rambling

• Ensure logical progression

• Fill research gaps

Time: 15-20 hours

Edit 2: Line Edit (Week 2)

Focus: Sentence-level quality

• Fix grammar/syntax

• Improve word choice

• Tighten prose (remove 20-30% of words)

• Smooth transitions

• Enhance clarity

Time: 20-25 hours

Edit 3: Copyedit (Week 3)

Focus: Polish and consistency

• Fix remaining typos

• Consistent formatting

• Check facts/citations

• Standardize style

• Final proofread

Time: 10-15 hours

Total editing time: 45-60 hours for 50,000-word book

Compare to typed book editing: 30-40 hours

You're editing 15-20 hours more, but you saved 60+ hours in writing time.

Net time saved: 40-45 hours

Phase 4: The Revision (Making It Great)

After the three edits above, you have a good draft.

To make it great:

Beta readers (2-3 weeks):

• Send to 5-10 target audience members

• Gather feedback on clarity, engagement, flow

• Identify confusing sections

Final revision based on feedback (1 week):

• Rewrite unclear sections

• Add missing context

• Cut boring parts

• Enhance weak chapters

Professional editing (2-4 weeks):

• Hire developmental editor (structure)

• Hire copy editor (polish)

• Hire proofreader (final pass)

Cost: $1,500-$4,000 depending on book length and editor rates

Fiction-Specific Dictation Strategies

Dialogue Dictation

The challenge: Typed dialogue has tags and formatting.

"I can't believe you did that," Sarah said. "What choice did I have?" Mark replied.

Voice dictation approach:

Speak the dialogue in character voices:

[Higher voice] "I can't believe you did that, Sarah said." [Deeper voice] "What choice did I have, Mark replied."

Speechly learns to:

• Recognize quote formatting from context

• Capitalize proper nouns (character names)

• Add dialogue tags appropriately

Tip: Practice character voices before dictating. Helps differentiate speakers.

Action Scenes

The challenge: Action is fast-paced. Dictation must match energy.

Technique: Speak faster during action sequences.

"John ducked. The bullet shattered the window behind him. Glass exploded everywhere. He rolled left, grabbed his weapon, returned fire."

Speaking speed matches scene pacing = better prose quality.

Emotional Scenes

The challenge: Conveying emotion through spoken words.

Technique: Actually feel the emotion while dictating.

Crying while dictating a sad scene = authentic emotional prose.

Authors report: Readers can "feel" which sections were dictated emotionally vs. clinically.

Setting Description

The challenge: Visual details are hard to convey without seeing the words.

Technique: Visualize the scene completely before speaking.

Close your eyes. See the room. Then describe what you see as if to a blind person.

Result: Rich, immersive description.

Non-Fiction Specific Strategies

Research Integration

The challenge: Non-fiction requires facts, data, citations.

Workflow:

Method 1: Research first, write second

• Complete all research

• Organize notes by chapter

• Dictate with notes visible

• Insert citations verbally ("citation Jones 2023")

Method 2: Mark and fill

• Dictate full draft

• Say "research needed" when you hit a gap

• Go back and fill citations/data during editing

Most authors prefer Method 2: Maintains dictation flow.

Case Studies and Examples

The challenge: Specific details, numbers, names.

Solution: Type out case studies beforehand. Dictate analysis around them.

Example structure:

[TYPED] Case Study: Company X increased revenue from $2M to $8M in 18 months.

[DICTATED] This growth demonstrates the power of focused positioning. When Company X shifted from generic consulting to specialized SaaS sales optimization, they immediately differentiated from competitors. The 300% revenue increase validates the positioning framework I've outlined in previous chapters.

How-To Instructions

The challenge: Step-by-step processes require precision.

Technique: Outline steps first (typed list), then dictate explanations for each step.

Typed outline:

1. Research target audience

2. Create positioning statement

3. Test messaging

4. Refine based on feedback

Dictated expansion: "Step one, research your target audience. This isn't just demographics. You need to understand their specific pain points, the language they use to describe problems, and the solutions they've already tried..."

Result: Clear, actionable instructions with context.

Common Challenges and Solutions

Challenge 1: "My dictated prose sounds too casual"

Solution: Edit for formality during Line Edit phase.

Dictated: "So basically what happens is the algorithm looks at the data and figures out patterns."

Edited: "The algorithm analyzes the dataset to identify recurring patterns."

Most authors over-correct for casual tone, then edit back slightly for readability.

Challenge 2: "I keep losing my train of thought"

Solution: Better outlining. Add mid-section waypoints.

Weak outline:

• Chapter 3: Marketing strategies

Strong outline:

• Chapter 3: Marketing strategies

  • Social media fundamentals (platform selection)

  • Content creation workflow (batching example)

  • Paid advertising basics (budget allocation)

  • Analytics and optimization (case study: Company X)

Detailed outlines prevent wandering.

Challenge 3: "I repeat myself constantly"

Solution: This is normal. Fix in Structural Edit.

First dictation: You might explain the same concept in Chapter 2 and Chapter 5 because you forgot you already covered it.

Structural Edit: Remove redundancy, keep the best version.

Don't fight repetition during dictation. Let it flow, cut it later.

Challenge 4: "The editing takes forever"

Solution: Dictate slower. Pause more. Think before speaking.

Fast dictation: 3,000 words/hour, 60% retention (lots of editing) Thoughtful dictation: 2,000 words/hour, 85% retention (less editing)

Net time is similar, but thoughtful dictation produces better first drafts.

Challenge 5: "I can't 'hear' my characters' voices"

Solution (fiction authors): Cast your characters.

Imagine actual actors playing each character. Speak in their voice.

Character: Grizzled detective Actor imagined: Clint Eastwood Voice: Gravelly, terse, world-weary

This technique dramatically improves dialogue authenticity.

Real Author Results

Sarah K., Thriller Novelist

Book: "The Silent Witness" (78,000 words)

Previous book (typed): 14 months first draft This book (dictated): 6 weeks first draft

Quote:

"I spent 10 years typing novels. My first dictated book was done in 6 weeks. The editing took longer, but overall time was half. I'll never type a book again."

Quality comparison: "The Silent Witness" has better reader reviews than previous typed books.

Why? More natural dialogue from voice dictation.

Marcus T., Business Book Author

Book: "Remote Team Mastery" (52,000 words)

Time to first draft: 19 days (90-min sessions) Editing time: 48 hours over 3 weeks Total time: 6 weeks (outline to published)

Quote:

"I dictated my entire book during morning walks. My dog got in great shape, and I wrote a book. Win-win."

Revenue: $47K in first year (mostly Kindle + audiobook)

ROI on time invested: Massive.

Jennifer L., Memoir Author

Book: "Finding Home" (64,000 words)

Emotional challenge: Reliving traumatic experiences.

Dictation advantage: Could cry while talking, capture raw emotion.

Quote:

"I couldn't have typed this book. I would've been too detached, editing as I wrote. Dictating let me feel everything and pour it out. The emotional authenticity made the book powerful."

Result: Traditional publishing deal (advance: $35K)

The Tools You Need

Required:

1. Speechly ($29/month)

   • Real-time dictation

   • Custom vocabulary (character names, terminology)

   • Works in any writing app

2. Writing software (free or paid)

   • Google Docs (free, cloud-based)

   • Scrivener ($50, best for novels)

   • Microsoft Word (if you already own it)

3. Decent microphone

   • AirPods Pro: Excellent ($249)

   • Blue Yeti: Great for desk work ($100)

   • Laptop built-in: Works but not ideal

Optional but helpful:

4. Outline software

   • Notion (free)

   • Workflowy (free)

   • MindNode ($40)

5. Editing software

   • Grammarly (free version fine)

   • ProWritingAid ($20/month)

   • Hemingway Editor (free)

Total required investment: $29/month + writing software

Compare to:

• Writing course: $500-$2,000

• Writing retreat: $1,500-$5,000

• Voice dictation is the highest-ROI writing investment.

The 8-Week Book Writing Schedule

Week 1: Preparation

• Finalize outline (15-20 hours)

• Research completion

• Set up tools

Weeks 2-5: Dictation

• 90 minutes daily, 5 days/week

• 2,500 words/session average

• 50,000 words total over 4 weeks

Week 6: Structural Edit

• Reorganize chapters

• Cut redundancy

• Fill gaps

Week 7: Line Edit

• Improve prose quality

• Tighten writing

• Enhance clarity

Week 8: Copyedit & Polish

• Grammar/typos

• Formatting

• Final proofread

Result: Finished manuscript in 8 weeks

Compare to average first-time author: 18-24 months

The Bottom Line

Writing a book is a dream for millions.

Most never start. Most who start never finish.

The barrier isn't ideas. It's time.

Voice dictation removes the time barrier.

50,000 words typed: 62-100 hours minimum 50,000 words dictated: 20-30 hours

You can write a book in a month.

Not because you're superhuman. Because you're speaking instead of typing.

Your book is inside you. Voice dictation gets it out.

Start Your Free 7-Day Trial →

(34 authors interviewed. 31 finished their books. 91% completion rate.)