#193. How Dictation Can Help You Write Faster With Sarah Elisabeth Sawyer

Fiction Writing Made Easy

Learn how dictation is your secret weapon for capturing story ideas, supporting overall health, and writing up to 3,000 words per hour.

Are you curious about how dictation can improve your health and mobility, enhance your natural storytelling flow, and revolutionize your time management—even if you've tried and failed at it before? Well, then, you'll love this episode with Sarah Elisabeth Sawyer.

Sarah is an author who's published 19 books—11 of which she wrote entirely through dictation. She now teaches other writers how to do the same so that they can write faster, spend less time sitting at their computers, and overcome perfectionism that stops them from getting words on the page.

Be sure to tune in. You'll hear us talk about things like:

[03:33] Why Sarah failed at dictation for years and the surprising mindset shift that made everything click into place.

[06:40] The 3 unexpected benefits of dictation that have nothing to do with writing speed but will change how you think about it.

[09:14] How Sarah captured 1,200 words in just 20 minutes while washing dishes (the scene that would've been lost forever).

[15:48] Why your brain freezes when you try to dictate your fiction and exactly how to create those missing neural pathways.

[25:43] The dead-simple "open bracket" trick for adding quick notes mid-sentence without breaking your creative flow.

[31:40] The surprisingly simple text message exercise that retrains your brain for dictation even if you had trouble with it before.

Whether battling perfectionism, dealing with chronic pain, or just curious about dictation for writers, this episode gives you the practical steps to get started without expensive dictation software or complicated equipment.

⭐ Follow & Review

If you loved this episode, please take a moment to follow the show and leave a review on Apple Podcasts! Your review will help other writers find this podcast and get the insights they need to finish their books. Thanks for tuning in to The Fiction Writing Made Easy Podcast! See you next week!

🔗 Links mentioned in this episode:

• Check out Sarah’s Dictation + Scrivener Power Combo Mini-Course and use code FWME to get $50 off your purchase.
• Dictation For Authors Quickstart Guide (Free)

Click here to register for my FREE training: 3 Things You Need to Write Your Novel in 2025.

FREE QUIZ: Take this 30-second quiz to get a custom action plan that'll help you move from stuck writer to published author!

Support the show

👉 Looking for a transcript? If you’re listening on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, scroll down below the episode player until you see the transcript.

Chapters

1. Overcoming Dictation Challenges (00:00:00)

2. Introduction to Dictation Benefits (00:03:40)

3. Sarah's Dictation Journey (00:07:11)

4. Health, Storytelling & Time Management (00:10:08)

5. Technical Aspects of Dictation (00:17:11)

6. Writing Speed & Practical Application (00:22:35)

7. Dictation with Writing Software (00:29:47)

8. Getting Started & Final Advice (00:37:21)