by Dave Haslett
Dvorak keyboard layout
Many people believe the standard QWERTY keyboard layout was designed to slow typists down to prevent manual typewriters from jamming. Slowing them down was never the intention; the idea was to separate the most commonly used pairs of letters. But the QWERTY layout does slow you down a little, because your fingers have to stretch further to reach the most commonly used letters. All that stretching can also lead to repetitive strain injury (RSI) and carpal tunnel syndrome, which can require surgery to correct.
Although we have no longer have any need for the QWERTY layout, it looks as if we’re stuck with it anyway. But there’s a much better way of laying out the keys. Dr August Dvorak designed the Dvorak layout so that the most frequently used letters are on the middle row, and you use your strongest fingers to hit the most common ones.
If I type ideas4writers on a QWERTY keyboard, only three of the letters are on the middle row: A, S and D. I have to stretch ten times to reach the other letters and number. But if I type it on a Dvorak keyboard, ten of the letters are on the middle row. I only need to stretch to reach the 4, R and W keys.
The general consensus among Dvorak devotees is that it’s around twelve percent faster than QWERTY. That might seem insignificant, but if you write a book every month you’ll save thirty days over the course of a year – which is enough time to write another book.
Dvorak keyboards are also more comfortable to use and cause fewer injuries, because you don’t need to stretch as much.
You can buy Dvorak keyboards, but they’re expensive and hard to find. Fortunately, you can easily set your computer to use the Dvorak layout and keep your current keyboard. You’ll find the keyboard layout option in your computer’s Settings or Control Panel.
If you keep your current keyboard but switch to the Dvorak layout, the keys will be in the wrong places, of course. You can get around this by learning to touch type using the Dvorak layout, so you don’t need to look at the keys. The typing tutor software I used – Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing – can teach you to use the Dvorak layout.
Amazon sells packs of stickers that you can put on regular keyboards. You can see the standard QWERTY layout through the stickers, but you can also see the Dvorak layout superimposed in a different colour in the corner of each key. Search for “Dvorak keyboard stickers”.
Amazon also sells keyboard covers with the Dvorak layout printed on them. You can slip the cover over your current keyboard and continue using it. They also sell blank keyboards that can be used with any layout.
If you write your books on a tablet computer or smartphone, you can download an app that replaces the regular keyboard with a Dvorak one. Or you could use a full-size wireless one.
Shorthand typing
Another way of speeding up the writing process is to use shorthand. You may have seen Pitman shorthand, which uses squiggles to represent words and sounds. It might allow you to take faster notes and keep up with the speed of someone talking, but it won’t help you type any faster. It’s also useless if someone else is going to type up your notes for you and they don’t understand that form of shorthand.
A better method is to drop vowels and unnecessary letters. For example, t ct st o t mt (the cat sat on the mat). The advantage of this method is that you only have to type half the number of characters, so you can type twice as fast – in theory at least. But until you get used to this way of working, you’ll probably have to stop and think about how to abbreviate some of the words, and that will slow you down.
If the abbreviation doesn’t pop into your head immediately, type the word in full. It’s faster than stopping to think about it.
EasyScript and ComputerScript
Abbreviating words would work much better if you had a formal set of rules to follow, and you always knew how to abbreviate a word. That’s exactly what EasyScript does. There are five simple rules, so everyone who uses it abbreviates words in the same way.
There are several advantages:
You can use EasyScript whether you’re writing by hand or typing.
It’s easier to learn than other forms of shorthand.
Most people can read what you’ve written, even if they don’t know EasyScript.
You can expand EasyScript into full text automatically using ComputerScript.
Here’s some text written in EasyScript:
H fstr u tpe, h qckr u wl expc suc.
(35 key presses)
And here’s the full version:
The faster you type, the quicker you will experience success.
(61 key presses)
There are three levels of EasyScript:
Level 1 aims to get you writing or typing at 40 wpm.
Level 2 takes you up to 80 wpm.
Level 3 goes up to 130 wpm.
Each level can be purchased separately, with or without ComputerScript.
Reaching the highest speeds will take considerable practice, but it’s worth persevering. Just like learning to touch type, you’ll reap the benefits for the rest of your writing career.
You can create a simplified version of ComputerScript using your word processor’s built-in AutoCorrect function. Enter the abbreviations and full text into the AutoCorrect list and your word processor will expand the abbreviations as you type.
For a gentle start, use the following single-letter abbreviations:
b – be
c – see
d – and
f – if
h – the
q – queue
r – are
s – is
t – it
u – you
w – we
y – why
Text expanders
Another way of reducing the amount of typing you have to do is to use a text expander. There are lots of these available – an online search for “text expander” will find them.
Some text expanders work in a similar way to EasyScript, where you type abbreviated text and the software expands it into the full version as you type. Other versions work in a similar way to predictive text on mobile phones: as you type the first few characters of a word, you’re presented with a list of words to choose from. Click on one of these to insert it into your document, or type the number displayed next to it.
The best text expanders learn which words you use most frequently and move them to the top of the list, so you’ll need to type fewer characters. If you use words that aren’t in its dictionary, you’ll have to type them in full the first time, but it should remember them after that.
Text in full:
Writing made easy
(17 key presses including the spaces)
Using a text expander:
Wr4 m1 ea5
(8 key presses – the spaces were inserted automatically)
In this example, the word “Writing” was fourth on the list of words that appeared when I typed Wr, so I pressed the number 4 to select it. “Made” was first on the list when I typed m, so I pressed 1. “Easy” was fifth on the list when I typed ea, so I pressed 5.
Text expanders take some getting used to, but with enough practice they can speed up your typing significantly. Another advantage is that it’s almost impossible to make spelling mistakes when you use them, so young children and dyslexia sufferers should find them useful too.
AutoText
Some word processors, including Microsoft Word, have an AutoText function that lets you to store and recall frequently used phrases with just a few keystrokes.
I added the phrase “It was a dark and stormy night to Word’s AutoText gallery and gave it a short, memorable name: dsnite.
I opened a new document and started typing dsnite. After I’d typed a few characters, a box appeared showing the full phrase. I pressed the Enter key to accept it, and it was pasted into my document.
Each AutoText entry can hold multiple lines of text. You can use it to store anything you type regularly, such as:
your name and address
greetings and sign-off phrases (Dear Sir or Madam, yours sincerely, kind regards)
standard phrases (Thank you for your letter)
copyright information
your list of previously published work
a mini-biography for query letters
standard answers to frequently asked questions
and so on
The more you use it, the more uses you’ll think of, and the more time it will save you.
Stenography
For the sake of completeness, I’ve investigated using stenography, palantype and machine shorthand systems to write your book. You’ve probably seen them in just about every courtroom scene in films and TV shows. Proficient users can type at well over 200 wpm and keep up with real-time speech to create a transcript of everything that was said.
You need to press several keys simultaneously, forming a chord that represents a syllable, word or common phrase. The keyboards are usually connected to a separate computer or laptop, which translates the chords into text.
If these systems were affordable and easy to use, you could type your entire book in a single morning. But they’re quite expensive – about the same price as a high-end laptop in the case of the latest Stenograph machines. The software is sold separately and is also expensive. And you need special training, costing several thousand pounds, to be able to use it. According to one instructor, mastering the basics takes about a year, and full proficiency takes two years. Students are expected to practise for at least four hours every day during that time.
If you’re a trained stenographer, you’ll be able to write your book astonishingly quickly. But if you don’t have the equipment and you aren’t trained to use it, it’s probably not worth pursuing.
A better option would be to dictate your words, as you’ll achieve the same sort of speed for a fraction of the cost. We’ll look at this later in the chapter.
Writing on the move
If you have a laptop, tablet or smartphone, you can work in the garden, on the beach, or wherever you like.
If the thought of typing your book on a small screen brings you out in a cold sweat, you could use a fullsize Bluetooth keyboard, or even a folding one that you can pop in your bag. They’re widely available and work with any Bluetooth-enabled device – which is just about everything these days. Add a phone stand and a battery pack/portable charger and you’ll be able to work anywhere all day. Most phones and tablets also switch on in less than a second, so there’s no delay when you’re ready to get started.
If you find it difficult to see the screen in bright sunlight, you can get folding sun hoods for phones and tablets. Amazon sells several models.
Of course, you can also write anywhere using a notepad and pen, or by dictating your book into a voice recorder or app.
I mentioned earlier that I wrote the outlines for two books in a single afternoon using the Memo function on my phone. This was back in the days when phones only had numeric keypads. You had to press the 7 key four times to get the letter S. It was a painful experience, but at least I didn’t lose my ideas.
Dictation: write as fast as you can speak
Normal speech can exceed 200 wpm. You’ll probably speak more slowly when you first start dictating your book, as you’ll need to think about what you’re saying. But if you practice regularly, you should be able to get close to your normal speaking speed. I’ve found that my regular speech is 230 wpm, which is around twice as fast as most professional typists can type.
Many people who’ve tried dictating their books have run into problems. They tend to dry up mid-sentence or struggle to find the right word. I had similar problems the first few times. The secret, as we’ve already seen, is to focus on one section of your book at a time. Spend five minutes thinking about that section before writing or saying a single word, and rehearse what you’re going to say in your head.
If you dictated an 80,000-word book at your normal speaking speed, you could write the whole thing in one day.
As well as getting your computer to transcribe your dictation into text for you – which we’ll look at in a moment – you could also give the recording to someone else to type. Most voice recorders and smartphone apps let you download the recording and send it to someone else. You could get on with dictating the next section of your book while they type it for you.
It’s worth spending some time recording your voice and playing it back. You need to find the best settings on your voice recorder, the best speed to speak at, how close to hold the recorder or microphone, how loudly you should speak, and so on.
If someone else will type your work, send her a sample recording too, and make sure she’s happy with it.
Dictation Software
If you install voice-recognition software, your computer will be able to understand your voice and type up your dictation for you. The latest computers and phones have basic voice-recognition built-in. But for best results it’s better to use professional voice-recognition software, such as Dragon. Once you’ve trained it – by reading some of your work out loud and correcting any mistakes it makes – you should be able to speak at your normal speed. It will get it right most of the time, and becomes more accurate as it learns your voice and writing style.
The cheapest version is the Home edition. It allows you to dictate into your computer using a microphone. But it doesn’t have the option to transcribe text from a recording.
The Premium version costs more, but it has the transcription option, so it’s the best one to get in my opinion. The recordings need to be clear, of course, so you’ll need a good quality voice recorder or app. There’s a list of compatible recorders on their website.
Some versions of Dragon come with a cheap headset microphone. Don’t use it, as you won’t get good results. Don’t use a wireless headset either, as there’s a delay in the signal reaching the software, and it makes more mistakes. Use a good quality wired microphone , or use a voice recorder or app.
Don’t look at your screen while you’re dictating. You’ll keep stopping to correct things, which will take you out of the zone and slow you down. Close your eyes, or get up and walk around, and speak freely. You can fix the mistakes later.
Scott Baker has lots of advice and information on using Dragon software, choosing the best microphone, headset, voice recorder, and so on.
Software for fiction-writers
Over the years, several novel-writing software packages have come and gone. As well as making the writing process faster, they claimed to guide you through your story, ensuring it was complete and well-told.
The only one of these that I liked and is still available is StoryWeaver. I also like WriteItNow and Scrivener, which don’t guide you through your story, but do make creating, organising, outlining and writing it easier.
StoryWeaver
StoryWeaver consists of a set of “cards” containing questions, suggestions, ideas and information about your story. There are over 200 cards, split into categories which are listed down the left of the screen.
The main categories are:
Inspiration
Development
Exposition
Storytelling
Each of these is further subdivided into:
Plot
Characters
Theme
Genre
Follow the cards in order, starting with your plot idea. If you don’t have one yet, they suggest combining three random words to make a story. Or you could use one of the techniques we looked at in Chapter 4.
The cards then guide you through the process of expanding your plot, adding characters, coming up with problems and issues they need to overcome, and so on.
You then move on to the next category and continue expanding and developing your story.
Each card contains a clear explanation of what to do, some questions to answer, and suggestions and examples on how to proceed. If you work through them all, you’ll create a well-rounded outline of your story with no holes
in the plot and no weak characters.
The cards are simple to use, and are much more comprehensive and wide-ranging than you might suspect at first glance.
I’ve tested the software thoroughly, and I’m confident that it will always lead to a solid outline that you can develop into a great story.
StoryWeaver is available for Windows PCs and Macs for a very reasonable price. More details and screenshots are on their website.
WriteItNow
WriteItNow is as a combined word processor, database, organiser, and idea-generating package, aimed specifically at novelists.
The tabs at the top of the screen let you to see an overview of your novel, and you can examine or work on the chapters, scenes, characters, events, and locations.
You can use it to generate and store ideas and make notes, and it helps you create detailed characters. I like the movable sliders that show the strength or weakness of their various attributes: strength, health, wealth, intuition, reliability – or whatever you like.
A chart shows the relationships between the characters, and there’s a timeline of the key events.
