--- {"title": "How to Draft Design Proposals by Voice in 2026", "description": "A practical guide for landscape architects to turn spoken notes into design proposals, with drafting steps, tool options and checks before sending.", "url": "https://xpdaily.com/how-to-draft-design-proposals-by-voice-for-landscape-architects/", "date": "2026-10-28"} --- A practical guide for landscape architects to turn spoken notes into design proposals, with drafting steps, tool options and checks before sending. Landscape architects can draft a design proposal by speaking the draft out loud and turning it into written text, then editing it into a clean proposal. Ready the brief and notes first, pick one way to capture speech, and check the tool's current details before you start. | Option | How it turns speech into a draft | Program fee | Card fee | |---|---|---|---| | Paper and pen | You write the proposal by hand | not published | not published | | A notes or word app you already own | You type, or you speak into the tool's own dictation feature | not published | not published | | QuickDictate | Types what you say into the window you are using [^1] | Free for personal and other noncommercial use, with no subscription or account [^1] | not published | ## What you need before you start A design proposal is a document outlining a proposed landscape design. Ready a few things before you start dictating. - **A quiet room.** Voice dictation reads the words you say, so background noise adds mistakes you have to edit later. - **The proposal notes in front of you.** The client brief, the site constraints and the design intent give you the words to speak. - **A list of plants, materials and numbers.** Keep the list on screen while dictating, then check names, quantities and measurements against it afterward. - **A window to type into.** An editor, chat box, terminal or web form will take what you say, as long as it has focus. [^1] - **One way to capture speech.** This can be paper and a pen, an app you already use, or voice software. Pick one before you start. - **A check of the tool's current details.** Fees, platforms and limits change, so confirm them on the maker's page first. Set up the room and notes before you open the window. If you need to pause, save the draft and review the structure when you return. ## Step by step These steps work with a pen or with voice software. 1. **Open the window you want to type into.** Keep the brief and the site notes on screen beside it. 2. **Read the client brief once.** A proposal that answers what was asked is easier to dictate than one built from memory. 3. **Dictate a working title and an opening line.** Keep it plain, as if speaking to the client. 4. **Speak the body in order.** Cover the site and its constraints, the design intent, the plant and material list with the numbers, and the maintenance notes. 5. **Say it like a first version.** Do not stop to correct as you go. 6. **Stop when the draft is down and read it back from the top.** This catches what the screen does not. 7. **Fix spellings you use often.** Plant labels and client names come out right next time once you note them. 8. **Re-dictate or rewrite any sentence that reads wrong.** Do not keep a confusing line because it was spoken. 9. **Add the headings, list the quantities and tidy the spacing.** A proposal reads as a finished document, not a transcript. 10. **Read the finished proposal once for flow before you send it.** Listen for a tone that suits the client. If you split the work across sessions, save the draft and review the earlier sections before continuing so the proposal stays consistent. ## Tools that can do it Landscape architects can draft by hand, in an app they already use, or with voice software. Here are options to consider. **Paper and pen.** You write the proposal by hand and then type it if needed. Nothing is published here about price or limits because it depends on what you already own. **A notes or word app you already have.** Check whether it supports speaking directly into a document. Prices and limits differ, so check the app's own details before choosing. **QuickDictate.** QuickDictate is made by the team that publishes this site. QuickDictate is one option. It is a Windows program that types what you say into whichever window you are using. [^1] You hold a key while you talk, or press it once to start and once to stop, and you can change both keys. [^1] What you say is typed into whichever window has focus, such as an editor, chat box, terminal or web form. [^1] QuickDictate can use ElevenLabs, Deepgram, OpenAI, AssemblyAI, DashScope or Google, and that provider bills you directly. [^1] With five of the cloud providers, words appear while you are still talking. [^1] Choose Local in Settings and install a speech model such as Whisper Large v3 Turbo, and dictation then needs no internet connection or API key. [^1] Profiles can change the provider, language, vocabulary and formatting depending on which app is in focus. [^1] You can list words and phrases that are sent to the provider to help it recognise them, and a replacement table fixes spellings such as "Chat GPT" to "ChatGPT". [^1] Saying "scratch that" discards the text you just dictated instead of inserting it. [^1] While you are dictating, other apps' audio is muted or turned down, and it goes back to its old level when you stop. [^1] QuickDictate runs only on 64-bit Windows 10 and 11, with no Mac or Linux version. [^1] It is free for personal and other noncommercial use, with no subscription or account. [^1] From v0.9.0 on it is source-available under PolyForm Noncommercial 1.0.0, and commercial use needs a separate licence. [^1] It is delivered as an .exe file on GitHub with a built-in updater that works silently. [^1] If you sign in, you can sync preferences such as hotkeys and language between PCs. [^1] ## Common mistakes to avoid **Dictating without the notes ready.** Reading names and plant amounts cold makes more errors. Keep the brief and the site list on screen. **Stopping to edit every line.** Editing as you go breaks the flow of the draft. Let the first version come out, then fix it. **Skipping the read-back.** Reading the draft out loud can help you spot incorrect plant names, swapped numbers and sentences that do not match the intended design. **Letting background noise in.** Dictate somewhere quiet where conversations, construction and traffic are less likely to interrupt your speech. **Forgetting to check the tool first.** Fees, platforms and limits change. Confirm the current details on the maker's page before you rely on it. **Sending the first draft.** A proposal is read before it is built. Read it once for tone, then send it. ## Frequently asked questions ### Is QuickDictate free for landscape architects? QuickDictate is free for personal and other noncommercial use, with no subscription or account. [^1] Cloud providers bill you separately for their service. [^1] Commercial use needs a separate licence, so a practice that bills for its work should check that licence before relying on it. [^1] ### Does QuickDictate work offline? Yes, once it is set up. Choose Local in Settings and install a speech model such as Whisper Large v3 Turbo, and dictation then needs no internet connection or API key. [^1] QuickDictate can use ElevenLabs, Deepgram, OpenAI, AssemblyAI, DashScope or Google, and the selected provider bills you directly. [^1] ### Which speech providers does QuickDictate use? QuickDictate can use ElevenLabs, Deepgram, OpenAI, AssemblyAI, DashScope or Google, and that provider bills you directly. [^1] With five of the cloud providers, words appear while you are still talking. [^1] With five of QuickDictate's cloud providers, words appear while you are still talking, so you can see the text as you dictate. [^1] ### What does scratch that do in QuickDictate? Saying "scratch that" discards the text you just dictated instead of inserting it. [^1] It is the only voice command shipped. [^1] For plant names and client labels that keep coming out wrong, a replacement table fixes spellings such as "Chat GPT" to "ChatGPT". [^1] ### Can QuickDictate run on a Mac or Linux computer? It cannot. QuickDictate runs only on 64-bit Windows 10 and 11, with no Mac or Linux version. [^1] QuickDictate runs only on 64-bit Windows 10 and 11, so landscape architects using another system need to check the current details of a different voice tool before choosing it. [^1] QuickDictate is free for personal and other noncommercial use, with no subscription or account. Cloud providers bill you separately for their service. [^1] - [Visit QuickDictate](/go/start) ## Sources [^1]: QuickDictate's own description of itself (the product of this site's publisher) (/go/start)