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AUDIOBOOKS Audiobook Narrator: Here's How To Prep The Book Before You Record (DIY Or Outsource) March 26, 2020  By Ann RichardsonAudiobook Narrator In these unprecedented times of turmoil and "shelter in
place," many people suddenly find themselves with loads of free time on their
hands. The search for temporary employment done from home can be daunting, but
take heart! There are some opportunities in the audiobook world that don't
require a degree, large muscles, or driving. Narrators are beginning to farm
out an important step in the audiobook creation chain, in an effort to support
unemployed friends, as well as keep themselves on schedule.
A quick background on the audiobook narration process... PREP BEFORE YOU READ In
order to turn out a top-notch audiobook, a narrator must "pre-read" the
manuscript before stepping into the booth, and be prepared to inhabit the
story, whether fiction or non-fiction. Much of this prep work is done at night
after we've already spent the day sequestered, narrating. As one can imagine,
this doesn't leave much time for family or extracurricular activities. If your
spouse, offspring or best friend suddenly needs income and something to occupy
their mind while they're not mingling in public or touching their faces amidst
the current Covid-19 crisis, it could be a win-win situation if they could prep
a manuscript for you! PAYING FOR PREP
How much to pay a prepper? You might want to barter with
family members (cleaning the garage or walking the dog can be more valuable
than money sometimes), or you might want to pay friends/associates the going
market rate for this service. There are organizations that specialize in
manuscript preparation for audiobooks, and the first one that comes to mind is Rip City Research. But for
this article I'm focusing on the individual who is new to prepping. Preppers usually
charge by the hour (independent of the runtime of the audiobook) and rates range
from $25 per hour to $45 per hour or more. GET ON THE SAME PAGE How do you communicate exactly what you need to a person new
to prepping? The process will flow smoother if you're both on the same page,
and headaches will be avoided if details are established up front. Plus, you
don't know what you don't know (or what THEY don't know), and it's best to be
specific with your needs. I'd like to take this opportunity to mention that
Karen Commins' website NarratorsRoadMap.com
has a section dedicated to the subject of prepping an audiobook, and it even
includes comprehensive guidelines to her iAnnotate process. But for brevity and
ease of quickly sharing, following are two guides I've put together that a
narrator can share with someone new to book prepping. One is for non-fiction
and the other for fiction. Obviously, there is overlap of information, but I felt
the need to create two separate guides, given the stark differences between the
two types of literature, so they can be shared separately. How To Prep A NON-FICTION Book
There is no need to give a synopsis of each chapter or a
description of characters, unless it's a fictionalized, story-style learning
text. Skip the Table of Contents, any indices and glossaries as well as
footnotes. Do include research on call-out boxes, tables, graphs, charts, unless
otherwise specified. Pronunciation research should include all foreign words, proper
nouns, and any seldom used words that are outside common usage, with links to
audible pronunciations. You may need to consult several sources in order to
find an authoritative answer. The first pronunciation listed in a dictionary
may not be correct for this book. Also, names of cities, towns, and streets
should be pronounced the way the locals say it. For instance, Milan, Georgia is
pronounced "MYluhn". Submit only completed research in one
document/spreadsheet, unless otherwise discussed. Think like a narrator as much as possible. ALL of
the words will have to be spoken, and every one of them must be
pronounced correctly! Valuable
research sites include: www.Forvo.com, and www.audioeloquence.com (for foreign
words) Note: you may not find the pronunciation on any of these
sites. You may have to do further research online or consult a local
establishment via phone or find another creative way to get the correct
pronunciation. PRONUNCIATION SPREADSHEET EXAMPLE  Example of words (in bold) to research in a non-fiction manuscript:
How To Prep A FICTION Book Story synopsis can be from the inside cover of the book,
or back flap or Amazon listing. Chapter synopsis should be brief yet
comprehensive. Acting suggestions are not necessary, but rather, focus on
significant developments in each chapter including main plot points and all spoilers. Example:
Character descriptions should include name, relation
to other characters (especially if this is revealed in a plot twist later in
the book), any significant physical descriptions or descriptions of vocal
qualities. Any other hints that would help a narrator solidify a character's
voice would be helpful, such as if a character was hard of hearing, or a
high-ranking military officer, or was an abused wife with low self-esteem. List
any factors that will help a narrator make a voice choice. Examples:
Pronunciation research should include all foreign
words, proper nouns, and any seldom used words that are outside common usage,
with links to audible pronunciations. You may need to consult several sources
in order to find an authoritative answer. The first pronunciation listed in a
dictionary may not be correct for this book Also, names of cities, towns, and
streets should be pronounced the way the locals say it. For instance, Milan,
Georgia is pronounced "MYluhn". Submit only completed research in one
document/spreadsheet, unless otherwise discussed. Valuable
research sites include: www.Forvo.com, and www.audioeloquence.com (for foreign
words) Note: you may not find the pronunciation on any of these
sites. You may have to do further research online or consult a local
establishment via phone or find another creative way to get the correct
pronunciation. PRONUNCIATION SPREADSHEET EXAMPLE  SUPPORTING EACH OTHER I hope that this health crisis soon resolves, and life gets
back to mostly normal. It would be nice if we learned, by living through this
experience, how to shop smarter, be kinder and more conscious of how we
interact with and support each other, even when contagious illness is not
looming over our heads. In the meantime, hopefully this article helps
facilitate us supporting others by sharing some of the work, if we can. I invite you to visit my blogs on my website for
more information on what it takes to be a successful narrator, outside of the
booth. ------------------ ABOUT ANN Ann Richardson has been
narrating for major publishers as well as independently published
authors since
2008. She has been awarded multiple AudioFile Magazine Earphones
Awards, as well as having been a finalist in the Voice Arts Awards competition in
2016, 2017, 2018, and
2019. She is a guest instructor at VoiceOne in San Francisco, teaching
audiobook narration, and from time to time speaks to author groups and
at
writers' conferences about the process of making an audiobook. |
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Stay well!
:)