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I know authors who use the computer voice synthesizer to read their work aloud.I'm a visual person, not auditory (which is why I don't like audiobooks) so it doesn't work for me. I just go through multiple rounds of revision on screen and then send it off to my copy editor.
ALWAYS have your work read aloud by someone else as you write! That is what our critique group does, and it uncovers all sorts of awkward spots. We recently had two of our books made into audio books. We were blessed with FANTASTIC voice talent. The computer voice can never capture the essence of the characters. (Both our artists changed voicing for each character.)
Over time I have had several requests for audio versions of my books, but never really considered it. Is there really a market for audio books?
Leon wrote: "Over time I have had several requests for audio versions of my books, but never really considered it. Is there really a market for audio books?"there is a huge market for audiobooks
Lorna wrote: "ALWAYS have your work read aloud by someone else as you write! That is what our critique group does, and it uncovers all sorts of awkward spots. We recently had two of our books made into audio boo..."Lorna, the trick I mentioned with the voice synthesizer is merely what some people use to spot errors, like reading backwards. I don't mean to imply that you can produce an audiobook that way :)
Alp wrote: "there is a huge market for audiobooks"How huge? What genres? Do you have some statistics?
I've considered it for my books, but my target market is so small it probably wouldn't be worth the effort.
Ken wrote: "Alp wrote: "there is a huge market for audiobooks"How huge? What genres? Do you have some statistics?
I've considered it for my books, but my target market is so small it probably wouldn't be wo..."
statistics can be misleading and I'm not 100% sure how old some of this data is - but all indicators suggest growth
http://independentpublisher.com/artic...
http://goodereader.com/blog/audiobook...
http://www.digitalbookworld.com/2015/...
it all suggests good prospects for anyone willing to go the extra mile - doing it through ACX on a royalty share basis won't cost you anything upfront. That's just one option and it's worth doing a little research of your own.
Alp
Ken wrote: "I know authors who use the computer voice synthesizer to read their work aloud.If you have an old Kindle, they used to have a text-to-speech feature. It 'read' the book in a synthesized voice for you. My husband still uses his. However, it doesn't have the intonation, nor does it correctly pronounce all the words.
Ken wrote: "I know authors who use the computer voice synthesizer to read their work aloud.I'm a visual person, not auditory (which is why I don't like audiobooks) so it doesn't work for me. I just go throu..."
I just used the Read Aloud feature on Mac and it was great. Caught so very major errors that I "heard" but obviously missed. A bit off putting in a mechanical sound to the voice, but I'd always use it.
My sister has done two of my books as audiobooks. She's still in post production with the second but with the first I discovered how often I didn't use contractions in dialog. I had her correct for it as she recorded so the audiobook version isn't too stilted. But having learned that, I watched for it in book 2. I convert my book into epub and have Google Playbook read it in the computer voice to check for awkward passages, and I also do a read through in ebook form, because just the change in formatting helps things stand out. I've also been known to read the whole thing backwards, paragraph by paragraph. This helps me divorce myself from the story so I can focus on the writing.
I will also put distance between read-throughs to give my eyes a chance to freshen up. I never even look at it while the editor has it. By the time I get it back I can see it with much more distance and clarity.
Diane wrote: "I just used the Read Aloud feature on Mac and it was great. Caught so very major errors that I "heard" but obviously missed. A bit off putting in a mechanical sound to the voice, but I'd always u..."
Agreed the mechanical voice can be off putting but like you Diane I notice things I had not when reading through. I also found it helped me see if there were any serious hiccups in the dialogue flow.
Agreed the mechanical voice can be off putting but like you Diane I notice things I had not when reading through. I also found it helped me see if there were any serious hiccups in the dialogue flow.
Tanya wrote: "Diane wrote: "I just used the Read Aloud feature on Mac and it was great. Caught so very major errors that I "heard" but obviously missed. A bit off putting in a mechanical sound to the voice, bu..."I found the Mac Read Aloud feature very helpful after I had cataract surgery and couldn't read for a while. I named the voice Alex MacApple, and Alex helped me catch a bunch of mistakes in my manuscript. What drove me nuts was that he mispronounced my hero's name.
I use Scrivener to turn my manuscripts into ebooks, similar to printing out and marking up the manuscript. You'll find a lot of errors, as well as instances where you put the character's name five times on one page and none on the next page. And it's much easier to see where you need a paragraph break, a line break or a page break.I have a beta-reader who is blind and uses a program to convert epubs into spoken word. He's great at finding errors most people won't notice when reading, so, yes, having your work read to you can be illuminating. Getting someone else to do that works twice as well, because they are also new to the material.
Leon wrote: "Over time I have had several requests for audio versions of my books, but never really considered it. Is there really a market for audio books?"There certainly is for the blind, visually impaired or anyone who is too ill to read it themselves.
Shoshanah wrote: "Leon wrote: "Over time I have had several requests for audio versions of my books, but never really considered it. Is there really a market for audio books?"There certainly is for the blind, visu..."
Amazon seems to sell a lot of them.
What about books that contain photographs? A lot is missed without the photo to illustrate the book.
I've turned 2 of my novels into audio books. They're not just for people with disabilities. I know many people who listen to them for a commute, while they're at the gym and for relaxation. Fastest growing area of the publishing industry. Takes time and money to produce and you'll probably need assistance from a professional. I did not read mine. I hired actors to do it.A worthwhile project!
What kind of costs are associated with producing audio books? It seems to me that the cost would be difficult to recoup once all factors have been added up: studio, reader(s), cassette/cd, etc.
Bob wrote: "What kind of costs are associated with producing audio books? It seems to me that the cost would be difficult to recoup once all factors have been added up: studio, reader(s), cassette/cd, etc."ACX is effectively free. You audition narrators and if you go with split royalties their work is free. Cover is your book cover, blurb is blurb, The only new requirement is the audition section from your MS.
As for return - it will depend on how popular your book is and whether new listeners sign up as a result of selecting your book.
I haven't used ACX for producing the audio book, only distribution. Sounds great for free! Splitting royalties? Who's tracking? What if it doesn't sell? The actor doesn't recoup? I'd like to know more.
Marcia wrote: "I haven't used ACX for producing the audio book, only distribution. Sounds great for free! Splitting royalties? Who's tracking? What if it doesn't sell? The actor doesn't recoup? I'd like to know m..."ACX tracks the royalties. If I sell on Audio, Amazon, or Apple, the check comes from ACX. If books don't sell, neither the writer nor the voice-over artist gets paid. I don't sell a lot of audio books but since there's no up-front money, it's cost effective.
Audiobooks are a huge market, agreed. I'm not all that into it, personally, as I prefer a book in my hands. But I can certainly see the huge benefits of it.
It's the fastest growing part of the publishing industry. Needs attentive marketing.
I just read this fake review of Austen's Pride and Prejudice and loved it - I think I am probably guilty of doing the same in 'Review Group' and some of the authors who reviewed my debut book The Governess said similar things (though not so outrageously)!!! It's an lol moment for sure!http://www.buzzfeed.com/shannonreed/j...
I was required by the publisher to reduce the 111,000 word manuscript used for the print and electronic formats to 85,000 words (8 hours listening time) in order to satisfy the criteria used by various vendors to establish the selling price for the audio download and CD formats.Once edited and approved, samples of previous works by three professional narrators (2 males & 1 female) were provided from which to choose. Since the story is told in the first-person by the main character, a male, one of the male narrators, Stephen Rozzell, was chosen.
During production, as each chapter was completed, I was provided with a copy to listen to and point out errors. A final approval was signed and production began. The audio download and audio book on 9 compact discs were released within weeks of the paperback format.
Jim wrote: "I was required by the publisher to reduce the 111,000 word manuscript used for the print and electronic formats to 85,000 words (8 hours listening time) in order to satisfy the criteria used by va..."From 111,000 to 85K is a slog! How long did it take you?
Thanks, Noorilhuda, for the link—it was hilarious! And sadly, so true-to-life.
Jan wrote: "Jim wrote: "I was required by the publisher to reduce the 111,000 word manuscript used for the print and electronic formats to 85,000 words (8 hours listening time) in order to satisfy the criteri..."Jan,
Approximately 80 hours. The difficult part was re-writing the lead-in and follow-up paragraphs and dialogue to insure continuity. Many who have only listened to the audio book formats, without reading either the paperback or e-book, have commented that they would not have known that the audio book was abridged, if it was not noted on the cover of the CD case.
Leon wrote: "Over time I have had several requests for audio versions of my books, but never really considered it. Is there really a market for audio books?"I know Joanna Penn is a huge evangelist of Audiobooks because they've become an important source of income. Sure, it's only 5% of her total income (see breakdown here), but as she points out: it's 5% you wouldn't get otherwise. Plus the production cost of the audiobook can be close to 0 if you go through ACX and do a royalty-share deal with a narrator.
But the most important thing is not how important audiobooks are now, it's how important they'll be in 5 years. Google Auto and Apple CarPlay, coming in 2016 in every newly manufactured car, streaming audio, is certainly going to be a game changer.
The quarterly sales report issued by the publisher provides a breakdown of sales by format, not only for the previous quarter, but year-to-date as well. Though probably not representative of consumer preference for the industry as a whole, it may be of interest to some.April 1, 2015 through June 30, 2015 (9 Units)
Format/Units Sold/Royalty (15%)
Paperback (380 pages): 2 (22.2%) - $6.90
E-Book (Kindle/Nook/Tablet): 7 (77.8%) - $9.45
Audio Book on CD (9 discs): 0 (0%) - $0
Audio Book Download: 0 (0%) - $0
Aug. 9, 2011 through June 30,2015 (944 Units)
Format/Units Sold/Royalty (15%)
Paperback (380 pages): 467 (49.5%) - $1,485.60
E-Book (Kindle/Nook/Tablet): 421 (44.6%) - $506.25
Audio Book on CD (9 discs): 34 (3.6%) - $127.50
Audio Book Download: 22 (2.3%) - $72.60
Two questions to those of you who've had books reviewed by the big guns (the likes of Publishers Weekly, Booklist, etc.): 1.) What approach works the best to increase chances your book will actually be reviewed? (assuming you're not doing the paid option).
2.) Do you have to hold back all versions of your book from publication, or only those that you have sent out for review? For example, some of the review pubs require you to send a copy (of the print book) 3-4 months in advance of the publication date. But can you publish the audiobook version in the meantime?
That process included, naturally, listening to my own words being read out loud by a complete stranger - WOW! and WHOA!!
Aside from the complete and unadulterated joy of listening to my own words being performed by the voice talent, the process highlighted things which no aspect of the prior editing process had revealed. It was a revelation.
As of now, having someone read my story out loud to me is an essential part of the editing process for all of the stories which get published by the Project.
I'm pretty sure I can't be the first person to discover this editing marvel.
Please share your methods and experiences of the review and editing process.