- Yes, you've written a book
and now you want to record an audiobook for it.
First, virtual high five for being awesome.
I love audiobooks and listen to them while I'm walking to
and from work.
And I know a lot of people listen while they drive.
So you're tapping into a market of people
that probably wouldn't actually read your book,
but they will listen to you reading it.
So now how do you get yourself ready
to record your audiobook?
That's what we're talking about today, so stick around.
(upbeat music)
Hey, I'm Julie the Book Broad.
Award winning author
and founder of a fabulous self publishing service company
called Book Launchers.
One of the things we help our clients
with is audiobook production and distribution.
If you have the budget for it,
there are a lot of reasons to create an audiobook.
We've already talked about
whether you should do an audiobook
and whether you should be the one to narrate it or not.
Those videos are here and here.
Actually probably both linked over here.
(laughing)
And one of my favorite YouTube besties, Fee O'Shea,
asked how to go about recording an audiobook,
so today we're gonna help you get ready
for going into the studio to record.
And I guess that's something else to cover.
Can you just grab a mike and hit record?
Maybe, if you don't care about selling your book on Audible.
Audible has a really strict quality standard
and a lot of books get rejected
due to not meeting their audio quality.
Not to mention,
the audiobook listener doesn't tolerate lower quality
like a podcast listener might.
But you can set up a home studio
if you're okay to invest in the equipment for recording
and soundproofing.
That's what I did with my second book, "The New Brand You"
and I had the help of an award winning audio producer
and editor who also acted as my voice coach,
but she called the local Long and McQuade store,
had them set out the equipment I had to buy,
and we tested and tested
and tested until I had it all set up just right.
Next time, I'm renting a studio.
(laughing)
All right, so getting ready for this.
Do expect to be in the studio for probably two
to three hours for every 10,000 words in your book
and expect it to be physically demanding.
I loved it,
but I found I could really only do
about six hours a day recording and it was intense
and I wasn't as prepared as I should have been.
It was my fault.
I expected it to be way easier than it was.
So next time, here's what I'll do
and here's what I advise you and our clients to do.
Number one, read your book out loud at least once before.
This is a great way to finalize your book by the way.
You'll find things that you missed in all other edits.
Guaranteed and it's also a great opportunity
for you to find places that you need to pause,
(breathing) breathe.
Commas mean breathe.
And also to check how you'll pronounce certain names
and places that you might be uncertain about.
Number two, record a chapter and run it by a voice coach.
This is not the same as podcasting or public speaking.
There are accepted techniques and ways to speak
so that you are connecting to your listener
and creating engagement with your book,
especially after you've been in the studio for six hours.
One of the big things I had to do was slow down my speech.
(laughing)
As a few somewhat unkind YouTube viewers have noted,
I get excitable and I speak really fast when I get excited.
So with an audiobook, every single word needs to be read,
heard, and understood.
So go slower than your natural pace in most cases.
We also have habits.
Maybe we don't pronounce our Ts as well as we should
or we raise our voice at the end of sentences
that are statements.
A voice coach will help you will all of this.
They'll also help you figure out when you should breathe.
Like I mentioned, you breathe at every comma or period
or you'll find yourself breathless a lot,
but the coach will help guide you through this.
Finally, on the day of recording,
my advice is to avoid any foods
or drinks that will give you phlegm.
(laughing)
For me, that's spicy foods and dairy products.
Also avoid anything fizzy
'cause you don't want to be burping.
(burping)
Seriously you might be laughing at me,
but this is so real.
You do want to keep hydrated.
Tea with honey and lemon, hot water, water,
maybe energy drinks, but be careful
because sugar and caffeine can dehydrate
and have the opposite effect that you want on your voice.
Bring snacks.
Fruit and nuts are great options I think.
Sadly, chocolate doesn't work.
I tried.
Phlegm.
Most important, have fun.
This is your book, baby,
and you're bringing it to life
in an entirely new and cool way.
Enjoy the process and thanks for the question Fee.
If you've got a question,
go ahead and post it in the comments below
and I just might shoot a video for you.
And while you're here, smash that thumbs up button
because it makes me happy
and tells YouTube this content is cool.
And comment because commenting is super cool
and we can become YouTube besties
like I have with Fee O'Shea
and other amazing folks like Gene Hobbs, KevinObie1,
Dave Otey, and David Wong.
Thank you for being here, commenting, and sharing.
I am so, so grateful.
Now, we've got so many other cool videos for you to watch.
This one, really fun.
And this one all surprise in your writing
and my husband played a little joke on me.
(laughing) Click on one and I'll see you there.
I can't wait to hang out with you some more.
(upbeat music)