Webtoon text to speech that reads the speech bubbles
Ordinary text to speech can't read a webtoon, because the words are drawn into the art. LiveComics reads the speech bubbles off the art itself: import an episode, press play, and every bubble is read aloud as the strip scrolls, top to bottom.
Why can't text to speech read a webtoon?
Because there is no text to read. A webtoon episode is a tall image, and the words in its speech bubbles are part of the picture, like the art around them. Read-aloud apps and screen readers speak text, so they pass straight over the dialogue. To hear a webtoon, something has to read the bubbles first.
How a webtoon is read aloud here
Each episode is read top to bottom, bubble by bubble, the way the strip was drawn. Very tall strip images are cut where the strip is blank, usually the gap between two panels, so no bubble is split, then joined back into one seamless scroll. As each line plays, the strip glides to the bubble being read, and you can scroll ahead or back whenever you like. Turn on subtitles (CC) to see the words in plain type while you hear them.
Who reads the lines
A male and a female narrator read every line, each line in the voice that matches who is speaking. The voices are synthetic, which is what lets every bubble of every episode be voiced. Sound effects drawn into the art play as real sounds, with a soundscape under each scene, and the voices and the sound effects have their own volume sliders.
Four steps to hear a webtoon
- Make a free account. No card is needed.
- In your library, press Add and pick the episode's CBZ, CBR or PDF file. You can add several episodes at once.
- Choose Voiced and check the price it shows before you go on.
- For the reading type, pick Manhwa, one long vertical scroll read top to bottom, and press Add. When the episode is ready, open it and press play.
What is free
Your account and a 1 GB shelf for your own files are free, with no card. An episode added as Pages only reads as one long scroll at no cost. Having it read aloud is the Voiced import, priced in credits by its length, and you see the price before you add it.
Straight answers
Does a webtoon read to you?
Not on its own. In most webtoon episodes the dialogue is drawn into the image, so there is no text for your phone's read-aloud or a screen reader to speak. LiveComics reads the bubbles off the art and speaks them in order, on the episodes you import as CBZ, CBR or PDF files.
How do I get a webtoon to read to me?
Import the episode and press play. Add its CBZ, CBR or PDF file to your free shelf, choose Voiced as the import and Manhwa as the reading type, and every speech bubble is read aloud as the strip scrolls. The price is shown before you add it.
Can text to speech read manhwa?
Not ordinary text to speech, because the words are part of the picture. Manhwa needs a reader that finds each speech bubble and reads its words off the art first. LiveComics does that, top to bottom, then reads the lines aloud in synthetic voices as the strip scrolls.
Can you listen to webtoons?
Yes, the ones you import. Bring an episode as a CBZ, CBR or PDF file and LiveComics reads it aloud as it scrolls, with the drawn sound effects. You can hear a sample first, free and with no account.
Is there a free manhwa audiobook?
No, not for free here. Reading your own webtoon as a scroll is free, but having it read aloud is priced in credits by length, and you see the price before you buy. The free streaming shelf is comics and one manga, with no manhwa on it yet.
Does every character get their own voice?
No, not on your own uploads yet. A male and a female narrator read every line, each line in the voice that matches who is speaking, and the voices are synthetic.
Can it read episodes inside a webtoon app?
No. It reads the files you import into LiveComics, not episodes inside another app or website, and it is not connected to any webtoon platform. An episode you have as a CBZ, CBR or PDF file, such as a DRM-free purchase or your own comic, imports like any other file.
Does it work in other languages?
Yes. It reads the lettering in the language it was drawn in, and once an episode has been read aloud you can buy it in another language too: the dialogue is translated and voiced again, and the original stays there to switch back to.
Does it work on my phone?
Yes. It runs in the browser on any phone, tablet or computer, and your shelf also opens in the iOS, Android and Windows apps.
Is it free?
Yes, to start. The account and a 1 GB shelf are free with no card, and an episode reads as a scroll for free. Having it read aloud is priced in credits by length, and you see the price before you add it.
Manga read aloud · Audio comic books · Read CBR and CBZ online