Why Voice Dictation?

I participate regularly in a small writing group.  During one of our meetings, many of us discussed our preference for handwriting our stories, journal entries, and thoughts, preferring pen and paper to get our ideas down.  The struggle happens when we want to move them from the notebook to computer.  My typing skills aren’t the best.  I am slow, a terrible speller and I often get distracted by my mistakes as I see them come out of my fingers onto the screen. 

That's where voice dictation comes in.  I can only speak for the apple devices like the iPad and iPhone, but I am sure the counterparts have similar ways.  As long as you have a microphone on your phone, you should be able to figure out a way to make this work for you.

Method 1: Using the Notes App + Microphone

The first way I do this is by using the Notes app on my iPad. Here’s how:

• I open a new note and tap the microphone on the keyboard.
• I simply talk out loud and it types my words as I go.

Method 2: Using the Voice Memos App + Transcription

The second way I like is the Voice Memos app. This works best when I’m interviewing someone or having a conversation I want to capture exactly.

• I hit record in the Voice Memos app.
• Then, I tap the little speech bubble icon, which turns the recording into a transcription.
• Note: This works better on the iPhone than the iPad.

Once I am done with either of those ways:

• I then copy and paste this into ChatGPT and ask it to edit the content using my own words.
• Then I ask it to format it into a downloadable .docx file.
• I then copy and paste as plain text to a new document. I like to get rid of any of the ChatGPT coding as well as place myself as the author.

A Word of Caution About Editing

While ChatGPT is incredibly helpful, I always do the following:

• Double-check everything. Sometimes I’ll ask ChatGPT to leave notes explaining what edits it made.
• Read the final version out loud to make sure it still sounds like me. Sometimes the first time I read it, it sounds fine, but then I go back and read it out loud and I realize something is not right, so I can go back and tweak.  This is only really important if you are wanting to publish something.  You want to make sure it is YOU.  If it is for your notes or your eyes only, maybe it is fine to leave as is.
• Always fact-check. I just did a “5 Favorite Book Recommendations”. It very nicely added the Authors of the books as a favor to me even though I did not ask.  When I was editing the final copy, I realized ChatGPT gave me the wrong author!

There are many ways to apply this to your own note taking and writing.  Whether you are dictating notes from a journal or out driving, walking or in the shower (my favorite) when that amazing idea pops into your mind, try using this handsfree way to capture those thoughts before they leave!

Margaret Gartlgruber longs for moms to know how important their call to motherhood is and that they are more than enough!  As a semi-retired stay-at-home mom, Margaret writes of her experiences, strengths and hopes in Catholic family life hoping to encourage young moms to embrace their vocation. She contributed to Cloud of Witnesses, a Praise Writers publication. Her work can be seen at  https://ruledbybananas.com