We’re nearly halfway through “June Is Audiobook Month,” the annual celebration of our favorite spoken word format, and the audiobook community’s month-long observance got us wondering what our authors and producers are doing to promote the audio format. Are you talking about audiobooks on your blog? Running giveaways using your promo codes?
Tell us how you are joining the Audiobook Month fun in the comments, and use the info in the links below to keep yourself writing and recording beyond the month’s end!
Earlier this month Audible Studios, ACX, and AudioFile Magazine teamed up for this spring’s open casting call. You submitted a record-smashing number of auditions, and we were thrilled to hear so many great new voices!
Both Robin and Kat were impressed with Hollis’ ability to entertain with the material. Robin notes, “Hollis grasps the author’s point of view and ‘gets’ the humor,” while Kat was swayed by her “wonderfully pleasant voice” and ability to “weave the narrative of Counterclockwise and keep the listener engaged and entertained.”
Update: Listen to Hollis’ winning audition below.
Turning to Raiders!, Kat found that Josh “adds another level to the entertainment of the story of Raiders! He is very invested in the story, and you can tell that he’s really enjoying the material he’s narrating.” Robin noted that Josh “is able to balance the narrative view and the energy of the two boys.”
Update: Listen to Josh’s winning audition below.
Actor Josh Goodman
The narrators won’t have to wait long to cash in on those contracts, as production will begin shortly. Hollis and Josh will voice the two books and Audible Studios’ Grammy-winning team will handle the production. Watch for Raiders! and Counterclockwise from Audible Studios this later this summer. In the meantime, why not try one of the over 3,700 open castings on ACX today?
ACX’s resident audio scientist first joined us on the blog last month, when he discussed the theory and best practices for encoding audio. Today, he’s back to discuss the bedrock of any successful audiobook production: file management.
File Backup and Preservation
Anybody who has produced a lengthy audiobook will tell you that it can be rather arduous. After hours of prep work, days of recording your narration, and several additional days of editing, QC and mastering, the last thing you want to have happen is a disastrous and sudden loss of all your hard work.
As a former Audible Studios engineer and digital expert witness, it didn’t take long for me to realize the importance of backing up my work. While it may be obvious to some producers that data backup is important, learning file storage and archiving methods appropriate for audiobooks is key to your project’s success. Today, I’d like to go over some best practices i have found from my reasearch on sites like https://www.flashbackdata.com/data-recovery/server-raid-recovery/ for data preservation and how you can help prevent any tragic file loss for your next ACX production.
5 Keys to Proper File Management
SAVE, SAVE, SAVE. Make a habit of saving your work every five minutes. It takes almost no time at all and will ensure that, if data loss occurs, you will be able to recover most of your current work. The keyboard shortcut to save is almost always “Ctrl+S” in a Windows program, and “Command+S” in a Mac program (command is the “⌘” key on your Mac keyboard).
Each chapter’s audio file should be backed up upon completion of each stage of production:
Completed Recording Backup – The WAV or AIFF file containing the completed raw recording of your chapter.
Completed Edits Backup – The WAV or AIFF file containing the completed edits to your recorded audio.
Mastered Audio Backup – The WAV or AIFF audio file created after putting the Completed Edits Backup file through your mastering chain.
Encoded Masters – The Mastered Audio Backup file that has been encoded to MP3 for ACX submission. This is your final, retail-ready audio.
At the end of each day of production, you should make a backup of your DAW session, making sure the filename contains the day’s date.
Each time you make a backup of your work, it is strongly recommended that you store the files in two storage locations. (We recommend doing automatic backups to an external hard drive as well as cloud storage. More on that in a bit!)
Until you are ready to encode and submit your audio to ACX, back up all audio as WAV or AIFF files. No chapter file should be backed up as an MP3 unless it is 100% complete and ready for ACX submission. Making changes directly to an MP3 will lower the audio quality of your final production.
The above practices are important habits to form. Should you ever need to make changes to your files or fix an error found by our audio QA team, having consistent backups at each stage of your production will ensure that changes can be easily committed. For instance, if you master a chapter file only to discover that you want to re-record a particular line of dialog, doing so would be as easy as opening up your chapter’s Completed Edits Backup file and re-recording the line. Without this file, you will be forced to record and master your new dialog to a different file and paste it on top of your old Mastered Audio Backup file. Things can get messy!
Data Storage Options
File preservation is important, but it is undoubtedly a hassle. Luckily, file storage is more versatile, cheap, and reliable than ever before. We producers can take advantage of not just excellent portable hard drives, but specialized software and online backup services as well! We recommend the options below.
Portable External Hard Drive – The easiest and quickest file storage solution is to simply purchase an external hard drive. We love the Seagate Expansion drive series, which has a 1TB option priced at only $64.99. Cheap and easy to use, these drives should be on the shopping list of every beginning ACX producer. However, using it can be a bit clunky, as you must organize all of your files manually.
Backup Scheduling Software – Luckily, there exists software for both Windows and Macintosh platforms that aid file backup. We strongly recommend that Mac users utilize the built-in Time Machine feature on OSX to automatically back up and organize your files on your external hard drive. For Windows, I love the free FBackup by Softland. Both of these tools are easy to use and can be configured to automatically back up your files to external locations every night, or even every time the file is modified.
Cloud Storage – Amazon, ACX’s parent company, knows as well as anyone how important reliable storage solutions are for consumers. AWS, Amazon’s online web storage platform, is the leading “cloud storage” solution on the web. What is cloud storage exactly? In essence, it is a series of interconnected servers which safely handle and store massive amounts of data for customers of all stripes. Amazon provides this service to consumers for free as Amazon Cloud Drive. Upon signing up, all users receive 5GB of free storage! Using Amazon Cloud Drive in conjunction with the free Cloud Drive App, you can automatically back up your files to the Amazon Cloud Drive network without needing to lift a finger. Once you finish installing the Cloud Drive App, simply follow the on-screen instructions to set up your computer for automatic nightly backups.
In following these best-practices, you may save yourself and your rights holder from a potential disaster, and you will be putting your best foot forward by amply protecting both your hard work and your rights holder’s intellectual property.
What is your file management and backup process? Do you use any of the methods Andrew recommends above?
Today we bring you part two of ACX producer Karen Commins‘ guide to audiobook marketing for narrators. Part one can be found here.
A Narrator’s Look at Audiobook Marketing – Part Two
The goal of marketing is to make your audiobooks more discoverable and to develop an audience. In part 1 of my discussion about marketing, we looked at reasons why audiobooks aren’t more widely accepted and three ways to create lasting connections to your audiobooks in the consumers’ minds. Today, we’ll look at four more ways to promote your audiobooks.
1. Be Detail Oriented.
Once your audiobook is released on Audible, check the listing for it on Amazon. It should appear on the same product page as the other editions of the title (paperback, eBook, and hardback).
Sometimes the audiobook is orphaned onto its own page. If that’s the case, send an email to Amazon from the Help/Contact Us page, succinctly list both edition pages, and ask them to combine the editions.
If the book is part of a series, you’ll want to ensure that the series link is used on Audible. I’ve had success in sending an email to Audible from this pageto request that the series link is added.
The easiest people to sell to are the ones who already are fans!
I also create a Google Alert for the topic of the book and/or do specialized searches so I can track mentions of it online, then I comment about the audio version on any blogs, forums, or other place where people are discussing the topic.
2. Be Real.
Many people tend to think of marketing as an online activity. However, some of your best results may occur when marketing directly to people in real life.
Tell everyone who asks you that you’re an audiobook narrator, whether you’re at a networking event or an informal gathering with family and friends. You can also volunteer to speak at writers’ meetings.
Here’s another real world marketing idea: except in the case of futuristic, sci-fi universes, most books are set somewhere. Can you market to people in that area?
As an example, my Dixie Diva cozy mystery series is set in Holly Springs, MS. In every book, the annual Pilgrimage, which is a tour of antebellum homes, is discussed at length, and some of the local businesses are key to the story lines.
Holly Springs, home of the Dixie Divas
My husband and I went to the Holly Springs Pilgrimage this year. I talked about the audiobooks to the people I met, got lots of great pictures and videos that I can use on my blog and in book trailers, and made a note on my event calendar to create a local newspaper ad and/or postcards in time for next year’s Pilgrimage.
You can also be real without leaving your home. In this terrific video, award-winning narrator and teacher Sean Pratt advises how you could, and why you should, use snail mail in your marketing efforts.
Speaking of mail, my email signature includes a link to my books on Audible. You may find some other ideas about being real in this post from my blog.
3. Be Social.
I use social media extensively to promote my audiobooks, and I’ve learned that different sites are good for different things.
Hashtag marketing (putting a ‘#’ in front of your key word, like #audiobook) can be your friend across many different sites. If you can find a relevant way to link your book to a current hashtag search term, like a newsmaker, TV show, or event, you have made it that much easier for new fans to find you and even share your content with their followers. Narrator and publisher Mike Vendetti often utilizes hashtags that tie in to a TV show.
Sometimes a news event will be a perfect tie-in to your audiobook’s story line.
Although I’ve only shown examples from Twitter, hashtags are searchable on:
Now, let’s look at five social media sites ranked in order of my opinion of their current usefulness in audiobook marketing. I’ll offer a tip or two for each site along the way.
People may contribute the most on the site they learned first. If I were starting now, I would probably start with Goodreads, since it is all about books! Here’s what I do to market my audiobooks on Goodreads:
First, I created a Goodreads author page, and I add the audiobook edition on Goodreads for each of my titles as they are released. You’ll see a link on the title page to add a new edition.
After filling out the form to create your edition, you can ask a librarian to combine the audiobook edition with the print and ebook editions in this librarian’s group. You’ll have to look for the current thread of Combine Request in the folder.
I also make sure to visit the Goodreads Audiobooks group, which filled with audiobook addicts! Within the Goodreads Audiobooks group, you can announce new releases under the “General” tab and give away promotional codes under the “Promotions” tab. There’s even a Goodreads Romance Audiobooks group specifically for fans of that genre!
A member of Goodreads recently wrote: I’ve discovered Twitter as a means to let narrators know when I really enjoy what they do.
If you don’t want to be a broken loudspeaker on Twitter, you can find other audiobook enthusiasts easily by signing into Twitter and subscribing to my three comprehensive lists of audiobook tweeps. You’ll be able to stay focused on audiobooks and correspond with audiobook folks without following all of them individually. You’ll do well to visit these links.
SoundCloud is a great way to share audio files on social media and around the web. First, create an account, then upload your retail audio samples. Include the audiobook cover as the image, add tags, and link to your book on Audible in the “Buy“ link. You can then share those recordings on your web site, in blog posts, and other social sites. Note that you might need to pay for more storage depending on the number and length of samples you upload.
I was astonished to see that PostHypnotic Press has attracted over 900,000 followers on SoundCloud, and that number continues to grow! Publisher Carlyn Craig graciously offered this advice:
As for why we have so many followers, it seems to me that, as with other social media, the more you participate the more attention you get. It is first and foremost a place for creators to share their work, and as such, it does an admirable job. It offers great tools, like the “Embed” and “Share” tools. I love the Twitter media player, for instance, and we use SoundCloud to host all the audio on our site. I do try to be active every day, even if it is only to tweet a few SoundCloud samples.
I suspect that one reason for their tremendous success on SoundCloud is that they have created a number of playlists of genres or titles by author, like this one.
YouTube is another visual site. I don’t know that you’ll have much success if your video only shows a cover of the audiobook. I think people would quickly grow bored and find a true video.
I loved creating a couple of book trailer videos! I plan to create more since the videos are evergreen products that I can always use, especially with hashtags! Here is an example of a book trailer I’ve created:
Remember that social media sites are a constantly moving target. I also add my videos to my blog and my web site. Of all the places on the Internet, my blog and site are the only pieces of real estate that I own!
4. Be Productive
If the variety and means of marketing audiobooks seems overwhelming, just remember that the best way to have more natural reasons for promotion and rack up more sales is to produce more audiobooks. You gain momentum every time you have a new release!
What are your favorite site-specific social media marketing tactics? Share them with your colleagues below!
Audible Approved producer Karen Commins is a prolific audiobook narrator who has completed over 20 titles on ACX. She is also a skilled audiobook marketer, working independently and with ACX rights holders to drive sales of her productions. Today, she joins us to share the first installment of her thoughts on audiobook marketing and some of the tactics that have brought her success.
A Narrator’s Look at Audiobook Marketing – Part One
ACX Producer Karen Commins
After picking and performing a great royalty-share title on ACX, the next question many narrators and producers have is: “How do I market my audiobook?” Others ask: “Why do I need to market the audiobook? Isn’t marketing the job of the rights holder?”
Let me answer the second question first. Whether I’m paid per finished hour (PFH) or on a royalty-share (RS) deal, I always publicize my audiobooks because:
I want the world to know that I am an audiobook narrator! As a result, I have come to the attention of authors and publishers, and I’ve received ACX offers for books for which I didn’t audition.
Marketing is a value-added service that I offer my clients.
I have seen my sales numbers and the ensuing royalties for my RS audiobooks increase as a direct result of my promotion.
In addition to these reasons for marketing, I encourage other narrators to promote their books because, while audiobooks are a rapidly growing industry, the majority of people have never listened to an audiobook!
Those entrenched in the audiobook world may be quite surprised by this fact, but people resist audiobooks for several reasons:
The earliest audiobooks were only available to those with vision impairments. Some people do not realize that audiobooks are now mainstream entertainment!
Some devout readers won’t even invest in an e-reader because they like the feel of the actual book and the experience of reading the actual pages.
In past centuries, only the most educated people could read. Even in modern times, learning to read could be a difficult skill to master. Some readers still stigmatize audiobook listeners as “cheaters” if they choose to hear the text instead of reading it with their eyes.
So now you know what you’re up against. But with the right tactics and proper execution, you can become a skilled audiobook marketer who exposes new listeners to your work. Once you’ve decided that you want to market your audiobooks, we’re back to that first question – how should it be done?
Before I offer you some ideas, I want to address one misconception that seems prevalent with those who are new to marketing.
You’ve probably heard or read that it’s essential to repeat your message many times to get the attention of your potential buyer. I’ve seen updates on social media sites where the writer applied that advice literally.
They remind me of a broken loudspeaker continuously blaring the same phrases: BUY MY BOOK! READ MY BLOG! WATCH MY VIDEO! MY BOOK IS FOR SALE! HAVE YOU READ MY BLOG? MY VIDEOS ARE GREAT!
“Repeating the message” doesn’t mean that you say the exact same thing every time! If you use the same general words to present the same general theme, people will stop caring what you have to say. TV advertisers know they have to find new way to express their message. They change commercials frequently while keeping the underlying message the same.
“Repeating your message” really means that you are creating an association in the consumer’s mind.You create this association by continually and consistently letting the world know in a variety of clever ways that you are an audiobook narrator and that you have interesting audiobooks that they might enjoy.
Here are 3 ways to create those associations to your message.
1. Be Authentic
I recently read an author’s blog article about book trailers. She commented that other authors feel pressure to do something like a book trailer because “everyone else is doing it.” She wisely pointed out that you should do what is authentic for you. Don’t feel like you have to do it all, or any particular thing if it’s not you. As Shakespeare said, “to thine own self be true.” You’ll find millions of articles and videos from experts and gurus who will tell you all of the “rules” for any type of marketing. Don’t be afraid to break the rules and do things your way!
2. Be Consistent
It helps to view marketing as a system or process, not an isolated action. I certainly don’t do all of my promotional activities in one day or even in a week. The key is to regularly discuss your audiobooks. One way to be consistent is to alwayspromote your new releases.
Narrator Andi Arndt offers this great advice about promoting new releases:
One thing I’ve figured out that seems important is to be sure and tag the author, audio publishers AND print publisher in social media posts.
It has been helpful to think of it as a congratulations to the author and publishers, and to follow their lead. Look up the press they’ve carefully put together for the book and use THEIR quotes, summary, description, so you’re reinforcing their marketing messages. Reviews from Publishers Weekly and Kirkus provide great material. The positive stuff, that is!
With a little thought and planning, you can find reasons to talk about your audiobooks on days other than the release days. Your growing fan base is interested in progress on your current book, funny quotes from it, etc.
I created an annual event calendar where I can connect the people/themes/events in my audiobooks with something in the news. I can create updates ahead of the date and use them each year.
For instance, my Blue Suede Memphis mystery series is set in – you guessed it — Memphis, and the main character is a tour bus driver. The titles of the books are plays on the names of famous Elvis songs. I can promote the series of books on Elvis’ birthday. On 13 July, I’ll talk about the audiobook Hound Dog Blues because it will be the anniversary of the release date for Elvis’ hit record Hound Dog.
Think of marketing your audiobooks as yet another way to express your creativity. After you receive that email from Audible with your 25 promotional codes, you can write a fun blurb to give them away, as illustrated here by narrator Christa Lewis.
She really makes you want her audiobook! And who knows – maybe someone who misses out on the download code is intrigued enough to BUY the book!
If you pay attention to what your publishers and authors are promoting, inspiration for a tie-in promotion may come beating down your door. One day, I noticed that author Barbara Silkstone wrote a blog post where her character Wendy Darlin (who is voiced by Nicole Colburn in audiobooks) interviewed Sasha McCandless, who is the main character in the series of books I’ve narrated for Melissa F. Miller.
I contacted Nicole about her interest in recording her character’s lines. We both obtained permission from our authors to record that blog installment like a radio show. The resulting recording was fun to create, thrilled our authors, and has been something that we continue to publicize.
Coming up in part two, I’ll share some more ways to create those coveted associations to your message. I’ll also give you site-specific social media tactics geared to make your audiobooks more easily discoverable.
ACX is proud to present our latest Audible Studios open casting call. This is your chance to audition for Audible‘s Grammy-winning producers and land an audiobook contract to voice one of two great titles! And as an added bonus, we’ve invited special guest Robin Whitten, Editor and Founder of AudioFile Magazine to aid in the selection process!
Raiders! The Story of The Greatest Fan Film Ever Made is the wild, true story of two young friends who realized their impossible dream of remaking Raiders of the Lost Ark shot by shot, and how their friendship survived all the challenges the 7 year amateur film shoot threw their way. Robin and the Audible Studios producers will be listening for an engaging male voice who can bring out the adventure and ingenuity in this story.
Female VO’s can audition for Counterclockwise: My Year of Hypnosis, Hormones, Dark Chocolate, and Other Adventures in the World of Anti-Aging. Author Lauren Kessler investigates the world of anti-aging, aiming to separate the hope from the hype. The result is a thoughtful, hilarious, and informative tale of what’s really possible when you get serious about taking charge of how well and how quickly you age. The ideal voice will be a smooth female who can express the thoughtfulness and straightforward scientific details in this story with a smile.
The contracts to record these titles have an estimated value between $1,300 and $1,595 USD (£951 & £787 GBP), and the chosen actors will record these titles in their own home or professional studios, leaving the post production to Audible Studios.
In addition, this casting is an opportunity to build a lasting relationship with Audible Studios. Dawn Harvey, winner of the Sex and the Single Girlcasting call, has found recognition and continuing audiobook work with Audible Studios:
Being cast as the narrator for Sex and the Single Girl brought recognition to my name among many narrators. When I attended APAC last year, my name was familiar to so many people that I had never met. Subsequently, I was added to Audible Studio’s roster where I have since voiced 6 books for them, and was able to join SAG/AFTRA as a direct result.
Working with Audible Studios and their friendly, knowledgeable studio team is always a delight. There is no doubt that booking Sex and the Single Girl has really made a difference to my career.
Visit ACX.com, and create a free account to upload an audition. Auditions are open Thursday May 1 – Friday May 16 at 12:00PM ET. The selected actors will be announced on or about May 28, right here on the blog. Full casting call rules and restrictions can be found here.
Today, we’ve got a crash course for ACX rights holders on choosing the right narrator for your book. How does an author know which voice is best to bring their work to life? We’ve got 5 tips below that you can use to hone in on the perfect producer for your title.
1. Better the narrator reads a little too slow than a little too fast.
Proper pacing for your title can be hard to nail down. Romance will have a different pace than action books or adventure novels. Different scenes within your title may require a slightly different read based on the content. But overall, it’s better for your narrator to err on the slower side than rush through the material, leaving listeners in the dust.
Listen to the following example of a passage read too quickly:
Notice how it’s hard to distinguish between dialogue and descriptive text. The poor listener is left in the dust, with no time to comprehend what’s being conveyed to them.
Now, let’s listen to the same passage read a little too slowly:
The pacing is a bit deliberate perhaps, but at least the listener can settle into the story and process what’s being read.
2. Character voices should sound natural, not over the top and “cartoonish.”
Another aspect of narration that will quickly turn off listeners is ridiculous sounding character voices. When in doubt, understated is best. Narration that hints at a new character speaking is better than a jarring change in tone. Here’s a clip of a silly, distracting character:
Yeesh! Who could listen to that for the length of an entire book? Now, let’s listen to the same clip with a more measured, understated read:
Much better. Notice how the narrator subtly hints at a change in tone, trusting the reader to pick up on the change in character. (Thanks to Victor Bevine for providing the audio examples above.)
3. Check to see if the narrator has other audiobooks on Audible, and read the reviews.
Proper pacing and character voices are definitely an art, and you shouldn’t feel bad if you’re new to audiobooks and unsure what sounds best. If that’s the case, we recommend you take advantage of the combined knowledge of Audible’s listeners! If the narrator has books already for sale on Audible, check the reviews of those titles. The “What Members Say” section can be found on each title’s product detail page, under the “Publisher’s Summary” section.
Note that Audible has ratings and reviews specific to performance, not just for the story itself. You can also scroll down further and read opinions from individual Audible Listeners. Many are as attached to their favorite narrators as they are their favorite authors!
4. Ask for your fans’ opinions.
Author Hugh Howey linked his fans to the ACX sample search and asked for suggestions. If you’ve already started receiving auditions, you can download them from ACX, post them to your website using a service like SoundCloud, and poll your readers with easypolls or another free online polling tool.
This is also a great way to build some advance buzz and get your fans excited for your upcoming audiobook!
5. Trust your instincts
You know your book better than anyone. If something doesn’t sound right to you, it probably won’t sound right to others. If you’re unsure about a particular voice, use ACX’s sample search to invite a few of our 15,000 narrators to audition for your book. We’re confident that the perfect voice on ACX, ready to narrate your title!
How do you find the perfect voice for your title? Tell us in the comments!
This January, ACX and Audible Studios teamed up to bring you our latest open casting call. The New Year, New Gig casting received hundreds of fantastic auditions and gave actors the opportunity to have their voices heard by Audible Studios’ team of industry-best producers.
Paul Heitsch is a regular reader of this blog – you can subscribe in the upper right of this page – and saw the announcement we posted at the beginning of January. Chatter about the contest in Facebook narrator communities further spurred him into action.
“After reading the script, I just took to it right away,” he says. “It’s a beautifully written book, and the characters are very vividly drawn. I just felt that I knew these people, and I know exactly how they sound when they talk. I attribute that, more than anything else, to being chosen for this book. I felt so comfortable in this material. That allowed me to give a really good read in my audition.”
Paul has wrapped production on The Game Player. Look for the book, and listen for Paul’s read, on Audible in March!
Amy Landon, the actor cast as the voice of Hidden Steel, was relatively new to ACX when she auditioned for the casting, having waded in with a number of shorter titles since the fall of 2013. She knows her strengths, though, and auditioned for Hidden Steel because it fell right in her wheelhouse.
She shared these words about her latest project: “Hidden Steel is in a style I work on a lot, and really enjoy and feel comfortable in. I do a lot of romance and in particular a lot of cheeky, saucy heroines. Hidden Steel definitely falls in that category, though I think with a bit more mystery, intrigue, and action thrown in. The book is super fun, exciting and funny!”
You be able to hear Amy’s read of Hidden Steel on Audible in April. Stay tuned to this space for information on our next open casting, in conjunction with VO2014 in Atlanta!
2013 has been a great year for the ACX blog, helping actors and authors become better audiobook production partners. This year, we offered the expertise of Audible’s studio team, merchandising group, top-selling authors and award-winning producers, and you voted for your favorite stories with your clicks. Before we say goodbye to 2013 and get ready for a bigger, better 2014, take a look back at our top posts from the past year.
10.ACX Success Story: Kevin Pierce – Prolific ACX producer tells how ACX helped him make the transition from radio and TV to audiobook production.
5.Four Questions to Ask Before You Audition – With over 3,000 titles open for audition on ACX, we took a moment to guide actors towards auditioning for the title that’s best for them.
4.ACX Studio Gear Series Part 3: Headphones – No, not the kind you listen to music with! The fourth spot on our list is occupied by this critical tool to help producers better hear themselves.
3.Money Talks – Paying, and Getting Paid, For Your Audiobook – Does money make the world go round? This post gives authors a better understanding of the ways to fund their audiobook production, as well as info on how they’ll be paid once it’s on sale.
2.ACX Studio Gear Series Part 2: DAWs – A Digital Audio Workstation is the software needed to record, edit, and master your audiobooks productions, and we covered the pros and cons of the most popular options.
1.ACX Studio Gear Series Part 1: Microphones and Preamps – The bedrock of a good sounding recording got the full treatment in our most popular post of the year, as we ran down various options for equipment across all price levels.
What was your favorite post from 2013? Tell us in the comments!
As we enter the final weeks of 2013, listmakers near and far are weighing in on the “Best of 2013”. Whether you’re looking for inspiration while writing or recording, in need of a break from hours of creative work, or just looking for your next great listen, you’ll find something to love in our roundup of the Best of The Best of 2013.
Audible’s Best of 2013: Check out the best listens in every category from Audible’s editors, as well as listener favorites.
Now that you’ve got a feel for the best written and spoken words of 2013, think about how you can apply what you’ve learned to your writing and recording in 2014. What trends did you notice this year? What genres topped everyone’s list? Take good notes, share them below, and let them lead you into a productive and successful 2014!
The contracts to record these titles have an estimated value between $1,300 and $1,595 USD (£951 & £787 GBP), and the chosen actors will record these titles in their own home or professional studios, leaving the post production to Audible Studios.
Paul Heitsch
Audible’s Best of 2013
The NY Times Ten Best Books of 2013
Audiobook Creation Exchange Blog (ACX) 