Taming the Dragon – Tips for Dragon Naturally Speaking

I use Grammarly for proofreading because my wrist is broken and sometimes Dragon Naturally Speaking listens as well as a four year-old boy.

Whether you are using Dragon Naturally Speaking out of choice, or due to circumstances, there are a few simple steps you can take to make your experience better.

1. Take time for training. Under audio, you will find a section called, “read text to improve accuracy.” The selections me feel long, but over time the improvement in Dragon’s ability to dictate your words is worth the investment. Take time each day to read one of the selections. When you complete the reading, Dragon will make changes to your profile. This takes some time, but the patient.

The alternative to training could be sentences like this: Where is the mother this little one Russian Mark are they running some kind of Dickerson in here?

I have no idea what I was really trying to say.

2. Create a list of your commonly used command. Learning Dragon is similar to learning another dialect. I want to say, “strike that,” but what I need to say is, “scratch that.” I can’t tell you how many times I saw strike that, strike that, strike that, typed across the page. Here’s a link to common commands.

3. Start with one paragraph at a time. You’re most likely going to end up with a few sentences like my example above. If you wait too long, you won’t have a clue what your original thought was. I know this isn’t the best way to write, but if you take the time now, eventually you’ll be freed, and you’ll be able to go for a page at a time without checking Dragon’s dictation. Be patient, time now will save you from much hair-pulling later.

After a couple of weeks using Dragon Naturally Speaking, I assure you, the program is another valuable tool for writers. It’s just not an instant solution to being one-handed.

Any other suggestions? Are you using Dragon? Have you considered starting?