Can I include code in .mobi to control the native voice synthesizer in a Kindle?
Some kindle models come with a text to speech software that has several optional settings. There is both male and female, as well as 3 speeds, which gives 6 different combinations.
In theory, a low budget writer could create a complete audio book using only synthetic voices, 3 male & 3 female. It would have the advantage of the smaller file size of a text book, but still allow for distinct character voices.
For this to work, there would need to be code in the book that switched between the 6 optional native voices. Assuming the user has activated the text to speech speech.
What (if any) code could I include a .mobi file that would control the native voice synthesizer?
2 answers
Go through it and work with description. Find places where your description of things (the settings, a character's look, how someone is feeling, etc.) are weak and strengthen them.
Action descriptions: "She ran down the street to get away from him." could be replaced with "Her breath was labored as she sprinted down Main Street. Every couple of steps she glanced over her shoulder, checking to see if he was following. By the time she was satisfied that he wasn't following her, she was out of breath and ducked into the nearest store for cover."
Setting descriptions: "The building was tall and formidable." could be "The office building that housed all of Dream Computing jetted up into the sky. In the afternoon sun, the shadow it cast was enough to blanket half of the town in its shadow. Jamie was glad she wasn't the one who had to hang hundreds of feet in the air to clean the massive windows looking out over the town."
Feeling descriptions: "Jamie's fear of heights kicked in when she got close to the window." "Jamie's heart thudded in her chest as she approached the window. When she was only a few feet from the large sheet of Plexiglas, her palms were soaked with her own sweat and the hairs on the back of her neck stood up. Gazing down at the little dots milling around on the ground, she became light-headed and quickly backed away. She prayed the one day she might overcome her fear of heights."
This is going to be your best bet for lengthening chapters without adding new scenes or useless information. Make your reader feel like they're in the story. If the character is scared or nervous or excited, the reader should be able to feel it.
This post was sourced from https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/863. It is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
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That is not possible in any of kindle eBook formats. Amazon is stripping all html which is not supported as they stated it in Kindle Publishing Guidelines. Also you don't have access to any of device settings - including Text to Speak.
This post was sourced from https://ebooks.stackexchange.com/a/5927. It is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
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