By Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig
Many (including author Joanna Penn) have predicted that audio, via podcasting and audio books, will increase in popularity due to the launch of Apple CarPlay and Google Cars.
And indie authors do have the option to publish to an audio book format through ACX.
Questions to ask ourselves before delving in:
There are a few things to consider before we get started. First of all, are we qualified to narrate our books ourselves (do we have the necessary equipment and expertise…and time…to take it on)?
If we would rather use a professional narrator/producer, would we rather pay the narrator/producer upfront (do we have the cash on-hand) or would we rather participate in a royalty-share option?
Do we want our audio book exclusive to ACX or non-exclusive? My opinion…ACX gets our audio books on Audible, Amazon, and iTunes and ensures us a 40% royalty (unless we opt to share that royalty with a narrator). Although I usually don’t condone exclusivity for authors, here I can’t see the point in going non-exclusive and getting the 25% royalty. Besides, anyone interested in the royalty-share option must be exclusive to ACX.
If we choose royalty-share, are our book sales and social media presence strong enough that our project looks appealing to narrators? If so, we need to pitch our presence and our sales on our audio book audition listing under “additional comments.” We should understand that narrators who consider royalty-share options are taking a tremendous risk in terms of their time—this may result in fewer auditions for us to choose from unless we’re fairly successful authors with a good track record.
We also need to consider how we want our books to sound while being read. More about that below.
Production options:
When we list our book for audition, we have the opportunity to choose what type of voice we’re ideally looking for. This includes gender and age of narrator, but also the style of voice. Here’s a sampling of the style options:
announcer, articulate, brooding, deadpan, engaging, enthusiastic, female narrating a male part, feminine, flirtatious, frightened, girlish, hip, host-interviewer, husky, hysterical, informed, ingénue, inspirational, intimidating, male narrating a female part, masculine, mature, nasal, perky, raspy, refined, snarky, sheepish, soothing, storyteller, sultry, upper-class…you get the idea.
My thoughts on ACX: Although audio books don’t supply me with a staggering amount of income, the income it does provide is pure profit and a consistent monthly payment. My only part in the process has been choosing narrators, listening/proofing the finished audio, modest attempts at promoting the audio book, and then receiving checks. The narrator, as the producer, has the bulk of the work…taping, editing, and formatting/uploading the finished product.
Have you explored going into audio books yet? Are you an audio book listener?
Elizabeth writes the Southern Quilting mysteries and Memphis Barbeque mysteries for Penguin Random House and the Myrtle Clover series for Midnight Ink and independently. She blogs HERE and curates links on Twitter as @elizabethscraig that are later shared in the free search engine WritersKB.com.
Many (including author Joanna Penn) have predicted that audio, via podcasting and audio books, will increase in popularity due to the launch of Apple CarPlay and Google Cars.
Questions to ask ourselves before delving in:
There are a few things to consider before we get started. First of all, are we qualified to narrate our books ourselves (do we have the necessary equipment and expertise…and time…to take it on)?
If we would rather use a professional narrator/producer, would we rather pay the narrator/producer upfront (do we have the cash on-hand) or would we rather participate in a royalty-share option?
Do we want our audio book exclusive to ACX or non-exclusive? My opinion…ACX gets our audio books on Audible, Amazon, and iTunes and ensures us a 40% royalty (unless we opt to share that royalty with a narrator). Although I usually don’t condone exclusivity for authors, here I can’t see the point in going non-exclusive and getting the 25% royalty. Besides, anyone interested in the royalty-share option must be exclusive to ACX.
If we choose royalty-share, are our book sales and social media presence strong enough that our project looks appealing to narrators? If so, we need to pitch our presence and our sales on our audio book audition listing under “additional comments.” We should understand that narrators who consider royalty-share options are taking a tremendous risk in terms of their time—this may result in fewer auditions for us to choose from unless we’re fairly successful authors with a good track record.
We also need to consider how we want our books to sound while being read. More about that below.
Production options:
When we list our book for audition, we have the opportunity to choose what type of voice we’re ideally looking for. This includes gender and age of narrator, but also the style of voice. Here’s a sampling of the style options:
announcer, articulate, brooding, deadpan, engaging, enthusiastic, female narrating a male part, feminine, flirtatious, frightened, girlish, hip, host-interviewer, husky, hysterical, informed, ingénue, inspirational, intimidating, male narrating a female part, masculine, mature, nasal, perky, raspy, refined, snarky, sheepish, soothing, storyteller, sultry, upper-class…you get the idea.
My thoughts on ACX: Although audio books don’t supply me with a staggering amount of income, the income it does provide is pure profit and a consistent monthly payment. My only part in the process has been choosing narrators, listening/proofing the finished audio, modest attempts at promoting the audio book, and then receiving checks. The narrator, as the producer, has the bulk of the work…taping, editing, and formatting/uploading the finished product.
Have you explored going into audio books yet? Are you an audio book listener?
