Making YouTube narration

As more channels are made without showing a face or using the creator's own voice, TTS narration has become common. You get clean audio with no recording gear, and when the script changes you simply render it again. This guide runs through writing the script, choosing a voice, and using the subtitle file.

1. Write for the ear, not the eye

Text meant to be read differs from text meant to be heard. Drop a blog post in unchanged and the sentences run long, the breath runs out, and the point blurs. A few changes make it far more natural.

• Keep sentences short. One idea per sentence; if it runs past about 40 characters, split it in two.
• Use commas as breath. TTS pauses slightly at a comma and a little longer at a full stop. A comma just before the word you want to stress works well.
• Spell out brackets and symbols. "about thirty per cent" is read more reliably than "(approx. 30%)".
• A blank line between paragraphs. The pause lands naturally and the subtitles break cleanly.

2. Match the voice to the channel

The same script feels completely different depending on voice and speed. The combinations below are good starting points. Press ▶ on a few candidates and pick the one that sits best against your footage.

3. Fix awkward words once

English abbreviations, brand names and units are sometimes read oddly. Register them once under "Pronunciation fixes" on the main screen and they apply to every script after that.

• AI → 에이아이, SNS → 에스엔에스
• km → 킬로미터, kg → 킬로그램
• Any proper noun that comes up often, such as your channel or product name

Corrected words still appear in their original spelling in the subtitles, so the audio can say "에이아이" while the on-screen caption reads "AI".

4. Using the subtitle (SRT) file

Once the audio is made, a CC button appears in the results list. It is an SRT subtitle file with a start and end time for each sentence, aligned to the audio.

In a video editor

Most editors can import an SRT and turn it into a subtitle track. Put the audio at the very start of the timeline and import the subtitles — the timing matches exactly. If you add an intro before the audio, shift the whole subtitle track back by the same length.

Straight to YouTube

In YouTube Studio's subtitles menu you can upload the SRT as a file. Leaving them as viewer-toggleable captions rather than burning them in helps with search and lets people watching with the sound off follow along.

5. Split long videos

You can convert up to 10,000 characters at once, but for anything over ten minutes it is better to work chapter by chapter. When one part needs fixing you only re-render that file, and the sections are easier to find on the timeline. Numbering the file names — "01_intro", "02_what-you-need" — keeps the order straight.

6. Where to add the music

For a short video, or audio you will use without editing, Voice Factory's own background music (calm music, rain, waves) at 15–20% is plenty. If you plan to change the music scene by scene in your editor, set background music to "None" and take the voice alone.

Before you publish

• The script must be your own writing or something you have the right to use. A video that simply reads out someone else's article or book can raise copyright problems.
• YouTube's policies and monetisation rules for AI-voiced videos can change, so check their current help pages before building a channel on it.
• How far synthetic speech may be used commercially depends on the speech provider's policy. Check it before using the audio in advertising or paid content.

Related guides