Hello Lovelies,
As I've been twittering away behind the scenes work, a question occurred to me.
Do any of you have experience
self-publishing AudioBooks?
In short, I had a friend that was reading the 'Lost' story the other day and she made repeated comments about how much she would love to experience it as either an audiobook or as an audio-play. Me, being the whore-of-audiobooks that I already was, felt a tad surprised that I had never genuinely considered the possibility of turning stories into audiobooks. For some reason, I always thought that you needed to have a big-name publisher behind you to get any traction.
After a cursory search, I was rather pleasantly surprised to find that the opposite might be true, however it still looks like it might be more complicated than simply doing a regular self-publish of written works. It seems that Amazon ACX might be the ideal option (much like their e-book publishing), but I'm not sure. A review of their system looks like I might need to select and pay specific narrators whereas I actually have a couple of voice-actors who are close friends of mine and who I'd prefer to work with early on.
That said, if I were restricted to certain narrators and decided to maybe just publish the audio at a minor cost (I'm thinking, like, $0.99 or something...something just stupid cheap), I'm not sure how one would go about appropriately selling that product.
With the exception of Xenophobia (which is still heavily in rewrites), I can't imagine too much more that would qualify for audiobook status yet, so it doesn't seem worth it to pursue some sort of corporate publisher and would much rather be able to self-publish smaller works...perhaps like a collection of short stories or something.
So, I wanted to bring it up to you.
I know some of your are amateurs like myself and some are a great deal more talented and more experienced. Have any of you had experience with creating and/or selling self-published audio books? Have you used ACX or do you have any strong recommendations?
As always, I'm doing research for myself, but I always love to bring your opinions into the fold. I cherish your honesty and your insight and they're a great deal more trustworthy and comforting than my standard google searches.
Thank you as always.
- RB
I've only listened to one audiobook and didn't care for it. I read much faster than listening to an audiobook. But I know a lot of people love them.
ReplyDeleteI actually read drastically faster, as well. That said, audiobooks provide me an avenue to 'read' when I would otherwise be unable to. Working, driving, doing chores around the house, biking/walking/running/working out, etc. All are times I can enjoy a book I otherwise wouldn't be able to. :)
DeleteMy audiobook was made via my publisher (St. Martin's press), but I did reach out to the narrator to thank her. I'd say getting a true actor/actress is the key if you want the voice to really come alive.
ReplyDeleteI've toyed with audio but never taken the step.
ReplyDeleteDiane Wolfe is the audio guru. She could probably answer any questions.
Keep us posted. Wishing you much luck.
I only have an author experience with audio books. I really worried about "hearing" my words because I'm with Marshall McCluhan when he says, "The Medium is the Message." I'd created a story I intended to be delivered via the written word. When the publisher told me they were going to do an audiobook I was nervous. However, I did respond to the actor's interpretation. In fact, I liked hearing my story interpreted through an actor's voice. Also it gave me a greater understanding of how ideas are changed through different media. One caution: Get the right voice artist. I heard a very famous author's book on tape while on a road trip. Horrid. And I have a hard time reading that author's books now without flashing back to that audio tape from hell. Sandra's right. Check with Diane. She has experience.
ReplyDeleteI'm afraid I have no experience of publishing audio books. I have listened to them from time to time in the car and my husband does listen to them quite a bit and I know he enjoys them. Hope you get some great advice from others, it must be exciting to hear your words like that.
ReplyDeleteI'm still working on my first book, so I no little about the audiobook publishing process, however, I've found myself drawn to books that have a $2-$3 audio book option. Listening to stories while I drive the work is a great way to catch up on my reading, since I spend all my spare time writing instead of reading these days.
ReplyDeleteIn case you haven't thought of this already, have you tried researching podcasts? That might help you find resources to do audiobooks on your own, or people capable of giving advice. I listen to a horror story podcast regularly, and I know other short story ones exist, so there's definitely a market out there for something like this. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteThis is something I am planning to look into this summer. I love listening to audio books and I am trying to learn all I can. Happy to see your post and the comments. If I find anything that might help you I will let you know. :)
ReplyDelete~Jess