Lately I’ve been listening to the book Braiding Sweetgrass on afternoon walks or whenever I putter in the kitchen. It’s narrated by the author, Robin Wall Kimmerer, which makes the experience all the more enjoyable. She sinks her essence into the material AND she sounds like a pro.
Now, I’m not typically an audio book consumer.
I tend to read prescriptive non-fiction, which makes sense since I’ve built my business around the genre. I know how much useful information these books provide, information I want to track. I like to mark up my paperbacks and take copious notes in the margins. (These notes have a name: marginalia). I go back to these passages again and again, particularly when I know they’ll inform whatever project I’m working on. An audio book doesn’t really allow me to do that easily.
I’m always surprised when my entrepreneurial friends report that they listen to non-fiction audio books almost exclusively. They can’t imagine consuming books any other way. Their preference, many claim, stems from their ADHD. That, and they’re super busy, so the only way they can get to a book is if they slip it in alongside some menial task.
The publishing industry has spotted the growing audio trend as well. According to Publishers Weekly, audio book sales have risen by double digits every year for the last eleven years. They report that these consumers are becoming increasingly diverse.
More and more of our authors at Summit Press Publishers have decided that they want to create an audio version of their book, not just a paperback (or hardcover) and an e-version. They know that their audience is far more likely to consume audio than anything else, so they want to meet them where they live. Which is smart.
The choice then becomes, to have a professional actor narrate their book, or to narrate the book themselves.
And that’s where things can get sticky.
It’s one thing to write a book, it’s another thing entirely to narrate it well. Most authors get this.
It’s one thing to have a professional actor in a proper sound studio do the job, another thing entirely to set up shop in your living room and hope your dog doesn’t lose his beans because he’s spotted a squirrel.
And yet… Braiding Sweetgrass….that enjoyable experience created by the author who feels her story and loves her body of work. She’s no Meryl Streep, but God does that woman allow you to be with her as she takes you through the journey.Someone has taught her well. She knows how to hold your attention like a pro.
And you can do this too.
Which means you need to learn a thing or three from someone who knows what they’re doing.
If you’re at that point where an audio book makes sense for you and your audience. Then you’re going to want to learn from a master, a professional actor who has taught voice over narration since…I don’t know…the turn of the last century? Since dinosaurs roamed the earth? You catch my drift.
My friend David Lawrence is running a 3-part workshop that will give you a solid lay of the land so you will know what is required. If you’re even flirting with the idea, jump on in. You’ll be glad you did.
