Audio Books...

[Gary Compton]

So publishing is changing. I suspect the paperback is dying a slow death (unless TBP can come up with a new model which we are working on)but ebooks and audio is growing. Tantor Media, Ralph Kern and ourselves have Endeavour out there and it is doing very well.

I can just imagine on a long lonely drive, sticking on a good book on my Ipod.

So with that in mind I am looking at the possibility of building a recording booth at Tickety Boo Towers and am looking for recommendations for narrators. It would mean a week away but at our expense and a fee of course.

Someone suggested the authors (in some cases) would be good to read their own stories. Not sure if that would work.

Chrispenycate (a sound engineer) is advising/offering to help.

The downloads seem to be where it's at so what is everyone's thoughts?

 

[Jo Zebedee]

I think it would be an exciting venture - and have been asked if there is an audio version - but proper talent for the voices is critical, hence it could be expensive.

 

[Gary Compton]

But there are aspiring narrators just like the aspiring writers that we started with at TBP. Yes, clearly talented but an aspiring narrator might not be as expensive as a "name"

Jeff has the perfect voice for it.

 

[TheDustyZebra]

I don't imagine you'd want to pay for MY "week away" to visit your recording booth.

 

[Stephen Palmer]

I've been surprised by how much I'm enjoying the audio reading of Lord Of The Rings. There's lots of potential for audio - and it's already very popular.

Let me know if you need any recording advice. Decades of experience here.

 

[Ray McCarthy]

@Gary Compton
No doubt people with recording experience, the setup and gear could simply upload suitable files to you.

 

[Gary Compton]

This audio concept, as I suspected is growing. I have been surprised on the advice/input/offers. This will happen...

 

[Gary Compton]

It was suggested that the authors narrate their own books. This could be a problem - Kare, Kur, Core, Kerr, Kire, Karr? Can we put subtitles on audio?

It might work for some but not others. LOL The only one I can think of who is posh enough is Boneman.

Sorry Jo and the rest including me, ya na warra meen! XXX

 

[ratsy]

I do a mean Kermit the Frog

 

[Jo Zebedee]

It was suggested that the authors narrate their own books. This could be a problem - Kare, Kur, Core, Kerr, Kire, Karr? Can we put subtitles on audio?

It might work for some but not others. LOL The only one I can think of who is posh enough is Boneman.

Sorry Jo and the rest including me, ya na warra meen! XXX

I am not the narrator you're looking for.... (I could do my N.Irish books but not the space opera one. Culchies in space is not the desired effect.)

 

[Ray McCarthy]

This audio concept, as I suspected is growing.

Since about 1890. They used cylinders, then discs, reel tapes, cassette and cartridges (as well as special one for the blind), back to discs (CD), now it's MP3 and/or Flac downloads.

Hungary or Vienna or some place even had audio readings on the phone network, like BBC R4 "Book at bedtime", but more than 15 years before radio broadcasts started, about 1905 I think!

Unlike reading a book, you can do it while driving, gardening, washing, decorating etc.
Cassettes were good as they automatically remember where you got to even if you listened to something else. I need new apps for my netbook, phone, tablet, laptop etc, as not one of them remembers position in a file if you listen to a different file meanwhile. The Archos PMP and Kindle I have can't be upgraded. So they will never be very good for audio books.

 

[Gary Compton]

I am not the narrator you're looking for.... (I could do my N.Irish books but not the space opera one. Culchies in space is not the desired effect.)

I know, I was just having a laugh. XX

 

[Stephen Palmer]

I can say from personal experience that even a professional narrator reading a novel is not an easy task - for reader and author. There are all sorts of traps, not least accidental mis-readings, which the author has to go through word by word, line by line… but if you get it right it works really well.

As I've said elsewhere, I'm currently listening to Rob Inglis' reading of The Hobbit and Lord Of The Rings, and I can hear where they've edited in/out sections, it happens surprisingly often - the smallest changes in voice inflections. Anybody crafting a full audio recording is going to need major sound editing skills.

 

[Ray McCarthy]

It needs a lot of practice and also familiarity with the text. Shorter chapters help!

 

[thaddeus6th]

The thought of having to listen to my own damned voice [to check for sound quality, mistakes etc] is like the content of Room 101. Not sure I'd be posh enough for Sir Edric anyway.

Although not my cup of tea, audiobooks do seem to be increasingly popular. I wonder if the shorter length of Temple/Treasure would be a help, hindrance or indifference. Do people prefer massive audiobooks, or shorter ones?

 

[Parson]

I have really listened to a bunch of audio books. Ever since Kindle and Audible teamed up, you can often get a digital recording for a book for $3.99 or less. I'm a part of Kindle Unlimited and there are several books that you can get both the ebook and the digital recording for free.

As I do a considerable amount of reading for an audience, (any Parson would) I've thought about trying to catch on as a reader, but don't know enough about how it's done to really make a stab at it. I am reading "The Art of Recording Audio Books" by Barbara Rosenblat and feeling fairly inadequate in the accent department. Perhaps in a couple years when I retire. We'll have to see.

 

[Juliana]

But there are aspiring narrators just like the aspiring writers

College students at acting school, perhaps? Looking to start making a name for themselves and gain experience?

There are all sorts of traps, not least accidental mis-readings, which the author has to go through word by word, line by line… but if you get it right it works really well.

I haven't worked with audiobooks, but edited videos in a previous life, and the worst part was dealing with the voiceovers. Nightmare, getting it all lined up smoothly and not sounding too glitchy!

 

[chrispenycate]

The 'authors reading their own books' does not generally give the same quality as professional voice artists, but the public like them because a) it is their actual author and b) if(s)he doesn't know how the story goes, who does?

There are thousands of youngish actors living on the edge of poverty, doing bit parts in TV documentaries and (in the case of one young lady who probably couldn't come for a month or two, as her son is less than a month old) playing a corpse in Casualty (I believe she was alive at the beginning of the episode and had one line). If you can be flexible, and 'yes, if anything comes up you can complete the reading when you're free again', these people can work very cheaply. You can even offer royalties on the sales - tiny quantities of money, but it's about pride.

 

[Gary Compton]

Chrispy - here's what TBP has in mind. I have a company specifying the insulation etc but these structures are already in place and most of the walls are brick.

 

[chrispenycate]

Argh my eyes, my eyes. White text on yellow?!

Yes, I was thinking of a wooden box (floating) but that should do fine for speech, with a bit of surface absorption/diffusion. Ventilation, floating floor? No trucks in neighbourhood?