How did my Prius Become my Beta Reader?

A strange question, no? Or is it? With the amount of technology available in your car these days it’s almost scary.  So, I bought a new car after my last car ended up a write-off after an encounter with a Buck in the remote north. I’m fine. I swerved enough to keep him out of my windshield, but I’m afraid the deer did not fare as well. This origins story about my new car, notwithstanding, leads me into the title content of this post: How did my car become my beta reader?

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So, as I’ve mentioned, the car is loaded with tech. I’ve only had her a week but already I’ve discovered she can play an integral role in my writing career. You see, I rarely find myself actually reading aloud my stories back to myself. And honestly, it’s a very good practice to get a better idea of whether the dialogue sounds authentic.  So, enter Car. That’s her name, original, yes? I’m driving around, monitoring the new digital hybrid score on my dash when a beep alerts me to a new message coming through from my phone. The message comes up on Car’s 7” screen and I press ‘Read’ assuming I’d be reading the email from the screen. But lo and behold, Car takes it upon herself to read the incoming email, and each previous email. Eureka! That’s when my car became my beta reader.

That evening I emailed myself a large portion of my latest work, hoping to listen to a third party, unbiased reading from Car. Sure enough, I drive to work the next morning, check my messages on Car’s 7” screen, scroll through my emails and find ‘Message for Car to Read me’. I’m thoroughly amused by this and press ‘read’ on the screen.  Car reads out who sent the email, the date and time and then the title. Then she launches into the text direct from my latest book.  I listen. I laugh at the awesomeness of it. My brainchild. My car now in my employ in more than just shuttling me around. Now she’s my beta reader 😊

Watch the video now.