How to Read a Podcast Script Without Sounding Like You’re Reading

My script said “leave”. My mouth said “ditch out”. Nobody listening ever knew, and that’s exactly why your script is the problem, not your voice. If you sound like you’re reading when you record, someone has probably told you it’s your voice. Smile more. Slow down. Warm it up. It’s very rarely your voice. It’s the page. In this episode I play you the line I couldn’t get through last time, take Dennis (of imaginary biscuit tin fame) through the wrong fixes, and tell you what happened when I tried to say the same passage twice, word for word, with 30-odd years of practice and the script right in front of me. I couldn’t do it. Most scripts are written to be looked at. Long sentences, the important bit buried mid-clause, words nobody says out loud. Your eyes can go back over a sentence. Your listeners’ ears can’t. Your mouth knows that, so it argues with the page the whole way through, and that argument is what people hear. The fix takes one voice memo and a bit of humility. It’s at 07:57 if you want to skip straight to it. Chapters 00:00 The line I couldn’t read 01:05 Dennis has a lovely voice 02:40 Scripts are written for eyes 04:30 One job: say it twice 06:22 Why good writers sound worse 07:57 The fix: let your mouth rewrite the page Links Ep 98, the quality floor episode: https://podmastery.co/episodes/heres-what-definitely-wont-make-your-podcast-sound-better/ When it’s bigger than how you sound reading: podmastery.co/need-podcasting-help Free 7-day podcast makeover email course: podmastery.co Listener survey (free download as a thank-you): podmastery.co/listener-survey