Do you hear the words in your head when you read?

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NewTime
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16 Jun 2019, 12:42 pm

I always do. Some people don't, but I can't imagine being able to read without hearing the words in my head.



nick007
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16 Jun 2019, 3:06 pm

I'm an auditory thinker so YES I do


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Magna
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16 Jun 2019, 3:17 pm

I can't imagine it any other way. How can a person read without hearing each word in their head as they read it. That's a thing??



Claradoon
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16 Jun 2019, 3:26 pm

Yes I hear while I read silently; it adds to the pleasure of the book (usually).
I remember spoken words for a long time.



IsabellaLinton
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16 Jun 2019, 3:49 pm

I hear the words but I also see swirls of colour associated with the words / letters, because of synaesthesia.
I'm not sure how people could read without either of these phenomena because that's all I know.


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Trogluddite
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16 Jun 2019, 4:08 pm

Usually yes; I've no chance of taking in the meaning if I don't hear the words in my mind. Finding a word which I don't know how to pronounce really makes me stumble, especially if it's an invented word with no normal pronunciation (alien names in science-fiction books, for example.)

On the other hand, I'm good at skimming a text and picking out the patterns in the word shapes to lead me to something that I'm trying to look up. I also have a strong compulsion to read words wherever I see them, even if they're mundane or I already know what they'll say, and this is more to do with shapes and patterns than the meaning of the words. There's rarely a voice in my head when I'm doing this. I can sometimes proof-read for spelling and grammar errors for page after page and have no memory at all of what the narrative was. I think this may because I was/am hyperlexic; it's common for hyperlexic children to be good at spotting the patterns in words and sentences, but less good at getting the meaning.


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NewTime
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16 Jun 2019, 4:21 pm

Magna wrote:
I can't imagine it any other way. How can a person read without hearing each word in their head as they read it. That's a thing??


Well, people born deaf who have never heard any of the words spoken are able to read, so it is clearly possible. There are also people capable of hearing that can read without hearing the words in their head. It just isn't something I can imagine doing.



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16 Jun 2019, 4:43 pm

Ah. Yes. I hear words as I read but they are in my outer brain (As I call it). I have a strong deep inner brain which works in picture form, so I am doing two things at the same time. I am using both outer and inner parts of my brain at the same time where while the outer brain converts what I read into words, at the same time the inner brain is converting these words into pictures if that makes sense. I also seem to have the ability to use one or the other? When I am using my brain to think for myself I tend to use one or the other I believe. When God talks it is my deep inner brain and when other spiritual things speak it is my outer mind that hears them.
The mind is fascinating. I can't say if my mind is different from other peoples minds.
I can also feel things in my kind on both the spiritual and electromagnetic levels etc. For example, if I go near a pylon or near a phone mast (Or put a mobile phone near my head) I can feel it in my outer brain or mind. It is so strong with a mobile phone that I sometimes have to hold the phone away from my ear and hope I can hear the other person speak. Sometimes phone calls can be painful if I need to put the phone next to my ear. Other things I can hear without my ears are various waves used by military. For example, when the birds die out at sea if the beam used to kill them passes here I can feel it also. A lot of experients like this have been happening where birds and fish and insects have died. I can also at times tell when the beams have been used which set off earthquakes, though some have been natural so are felt through my body rather then my mind.
I assume others can sense things like this but may not realize what they are? Some come in the forms of mild headaches but I am able to hone in on the actual thing which is causing them, like a demonic being or a specific energy beam being used.
I can sense the electronic animal scarers and hear bats etc. Some people say they can't hear bats but at times they are so loud how can you not hear them? :lol: Mind you, sometimes I don't hear them if my ears are not tuned in. It depends how alert my mind is at the time.


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CockneyRebel
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16 Jun 2019, 7:36 pm

I hear the words that are spoken by each character when I read silently.


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SilentJessica
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16 Jun 2019, 8:29 pm

I always do. I’ve read that it’s a bad habit to have, but I can’t imagine not doing it because it still happens when I try to stop.

I hear every thought I have, too. When I listen to music, sometimes I picture the lyrics in writing, and I’ll see different fonts. I do the same with some of my thoughts.


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Borromeo
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16 Jun 2019, 9:13 pm

I see words in writing when I talk, and can act out the stories when I read. It looks like the way a typewriter does--scrolling text. Incidentally that is why I always have loved typewriters. I used to restore them and now I have three--had to sell off a few vintage ones and keep two from the twenties and one from nineteen thirty.

If this happens to you, try watching some old silent movies--from about 1922 to 1928 they were very high quality, especially Harold Lloyd's romantic comedies. Those are fun. Acting out the voices in your head makes them a real treat.


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IsabellaLinton
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16 Jun 2019, 10:48 pm

Borromeo wrote:
I see words in writing when I talk, and can act out the stories when I read. It looks like the way a typewriter does--scrolling text. Incidentally that is why I always have loved typewriters. I used to restore them and now I have three--had to sell off a few vintage ones and keep two from the twenties and one from nineteen thirty.

If this happens to you, try watching some old silent movies--from about 1922 to 1928 they were very high quality, especially Harold Lloyd's romantic comedies. Those are fun. Acting out the voices in your head makes them a real treat.


I see words in writing when I speak, as well. I even see their colours (synaesthesia). I sometimes picture my hands typing the words I'm saying. I type really fast with both hands so I can imagine / feel my fingers flying. I read and write (type / compose) in my dreams as well, which I've heard is very, very rare. That's cool that you have old typewriters. I have a ribbon one and an electronic one still.


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Magna
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16 Jun 2019, 10:56 pm

I did some ad hoc research on this subject; I asked my wife if she hears the words in her head when she reads. She said she does not. I told her I don't understand that at all. I literally can't read without hearing the words as I read them. Also, when I do read, the voice isn't my voice and isn't someone else's voice. Human sounding and not robotic. Not male or female; I would say neuter. Devoid of accent. When I read fiction the voice does change if the character is male or female though as I try to imagine what the character's voice sounds like.



IsabellaLinton
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16 Jun 2019, 11:00 pm

Magna wrote:
I did some ad hoc research on this subject; I asked my wife if she hears the words in her head when she reads. She said she does not. I told her I don't understand that at all. I literally can't read without hearing the words as I read them. Also, when I do read, the voice isn't my voice and isn't someone else's voice. Human sounding and not robotic. Not male or female; I would say neuter. Devoid of accent. When I read fiction the voice does change if the character is male or female though as I try to imagine what the character's voice sounds like.


I only hear my own voice. I only hear accent if the writer used dialect.

I asked a friend who is hard of hearing about whether they "hear" the words, and they said they do hear them but they're jumbled. Interesting! I still don't know how a person with functional hearing could read and not "hear" the words in their head. That concept confounds me.


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Lost_dragon
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17 Jun 2019, 11:35 am

The voice I hear is usually a variant of my own. However, the pitch, speed and tone may vary depending on the description. Also, a character's inner thoughts can sound different from their spoken voice. Especially if they are trying to hide information from the other people in the scene. For example, trying to be tough but feel secretly insecure.

When I start getting into a story, certain words become silent, such as said. I'll hear the character's voice, but the said part won't register as much. Or if they gasp, I won't hear "Oh wow" gasped Jason", but "*Gasp* Oh wow" in Jason's voice. Although if I think the words sounded happy, but it ends with "s/he said solemnly" it can throw me off. Then I repeat the line with that information. I see and hear it my head, similar to watching a TV show. Except I also smell, can imagine the feeling of textures and how something tastes if relevant.

I find it somewhat annoying when the author only describes their characters quite late into the story. Usually I'll just fill in the gaps. So even when I haven't been told details, I'll imagine how a character's hair or clothes move and look during the story. Partly based on what I know, the rest I just guess on. Unfortunately, if I've been imaging short ginger hair but then I'm informed that the character actually has really long black hair then it takes some readjusting. Or if they've been wearing combat boots for three chapters, but it only just mentioned that and I assumed that they were wearing white trainers all this time.

Personally, when I write characters, it usually goes in this order;

- Speech, but not much detail about how they do so (yet). Little hints towards their personality.

- How they move and hold themselves. Body type (short/tall, skinny/fat etc). This sometimes comes before speech. Certain patterns in behaviour may crop up consistently throughout the story.

- Information about the clothes (including shoes, and possibly accessories) they wear. How it moves (especially if the character is wearing baggy jeans, a cape, cloak or a flowy skirt). If they mess with their clothes at all (i.e. pull at long sleeves, curl their tie up absentmindedly). Might crop up again.

- Eye and skin colour. Facial features such as freckles. Hair colour and how their hair falls and moves, may involve the clothes (long hair getting slightly caught in a dress zip, or perhaps getting tucked under a cardigan).

-How they react to the world. What they are sensitive and not as sensitive to. Their likes and dislikes. Although, this might be mentioned earlier than this.

- More insight into their personality, and focus on speech patterns. I usually rewrite dialogue at this point, to make sure that my characters don't sound the exact same.

Not all on the same page though, of course. :lol:

Disclaimer: This isn't a definite guide; it's just what I do.


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EzraS
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17 Jun 2019, 12:26 pm

Yes. And if I know what the author sounds like I can hear their voice in the narration bits.