Episode 101 – All About Audiobooks with Will Dages from Findaway Voices

On Oct 17, 2019, Mark Lefebvre and Kevin Tumlinson from Draft2Digital hosted a live webinar “Ask Us Anything” Q&A about audiobooks, relaying questions from authors to Will Dages, head of Findaway Voices.

[image error]Screenshot from the webinar

This is a slightly abridged version of the audio track from this video, which you can see on YouTube.

Discussion includes the following topics:

Findaway Voices Giveaway Codes, how they work, how authors can request them and track their useStoryOrigin promotion site for audiobook giveaway codesHow to get started with setting up an audiobook via Findaway VoicesStandard calculation for determing finished audiobook hours (9300 words = 1 finished hour – or, for easier math, assume that 10,000 words = 1 hour)Typical studio production hours based on word count of the original manuscript (Most audio producers work on a 3 to 1 or 4 to 1 ratio – it, if the manuscript is 100,000 words, that’d be 10 finished hours and would most likely take 30 to 40 hours of production timeThe Voices Share royalty share program and how it works (50% up front payment for production hours and a 60/20/20 split for author/narrator/Findaway) – and how the buyout works if you want to get out earlyThe recent Audible text transcription controversyWhether or not an author can narrator their own books (spoiler alert: YES, you can, with the right setup/equipment/software)The origin of Findway Voices and the back story about the company Findaway, that has been around alot longer in the audiobook industryThe built in pricing suggestion tool in Findaway VoicesHow easy/difficult it is to update your audiobook (both metadata and audio files)The cost and benefit of using Findaway Voices for distribution VS going direct (spoiler: Findaway keeps 20% of your royalties)A little bit about how exclusivity with ACX to Audible worksThoughts about loading audio samples to YouTube or other ways of promoting their audiobooksAnd more…



Learn more about Findaway Voices

Links of Interest:

Draft2Digital’s Blog Post: Everything Audiobooks with Will Dages from Findaway Voices (Full Transcript)The YouTube Video of the WebinarEpisode 5 – Global Audiobook Opportunities for AuthorsEpisode 15 – The Process of a Writer’s Life with Kevin TumlinsonEpisode 22 – Finding My Way With FindawayEpisode 52 – The Three Co-Founders of Draft2DigitalFindaway VoicesPatreon for Stark Reflections