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Karen@KarenCommins.com

Karen Commins

Award Winning

Atlanta Audiobook Share-rator™

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Archives for 2016

Karen Commins’s Audiobook Resources For Authors

23 December 2016

Last updated 17 November 2022

Are you an author or publisher who is ready to get your titles into AUDIOBOOKS?

The fantastic info found in this list of links will better prepare you for the task, especially if you plan to use Audible’s Audiobook Creation Exchange (ACX.com) for the production process.

You’ll also find a lot of specific information about the audiobook production process by reading the Knowledge Base articles on my site NarratorsRoadmap.com.

Subscribe to the ACX blog and my blog for authors for on-going news and features about audiobooks.

The resources listed below were found on a variety of sites and are organized by topic.

 

Thinking About Audiobooks

Karen Commins’s Setting Sail Into Audiobooks video
In this 41-minute video, I:

  • explore the audiobook landscape (beginning at 2:43)
  • explain reasons every author should produce audiobooks of their books (beginning at 7:23)
  • demonstrate Amazon Whispersync capability between an audiobook and Kindle ebook (beginning at 10:19)
  • offer specific tips about ways to write with audio in mind (beginning at 12:09)
  • advise the viewer about the audiobook production process and gives concrete information about using ACX.com to create an audiobook, including payment for production costs and distribution options (beginning at 22:04)

Planning Your Trip to Audiobook World rack card infographic

Audiobooks: A Multitasker’s Best Friend

Authors: Want to Create Audiobooks of Your Books?

Audiobooks: The Next Big Thing

Hearing Voices: Why Audiobooks Are Suddenly Chic: RWA 2014 Handout/Resources

Going Further With Audiobooks: A Conversation with J. Daniel Sawyer

Audio Publishers Association Getting Started

From Written to Spoken Word — Part One: Bringing Stories to Life

Video (35:32) Full Interview on Audiobooks with John Marshall Cheary

  • John Marshall Media produces audiobooks for all the major publishers.
  • Note the timestamps in the Youtube description to jump to specific points about the video, most of which relate to the categories below.

All About Audiobook Production for Authors (comprehensive)

 

Writing With Audiobooks in Mind (Hint: You’ll Become a Better Writer!)

Some Thoughts on the Lost Art of Reading Aloud

ACX Guest Post: Wendy Lindstrom on Writing For Audio

The 6 People You Have to Be When Line Editing Your Novel

4 Ways Planning For Your Audiobook Can Make You a Better Writer

Ask Correia #17: Writing for the Ear, Tweaking Your Writing to Work Better in Audiobook Form

John Scalzi: Writing For Audio Made Me A Better Writer, Period

From Written to Spoken Word — Part Two: Writing for Audio

Audiobook 101 for Authors VA Festival for the Book 2021

 

Audiobook Rights and Production Overview

Links to Help Authors Know Their Rights

Securing Audiobook Rights: The Rights You Need to Bring Your Audiobook to Market

Should You Sell Your Audiobook Rights?

How Julianne MacLean Got Her Audio Rights Back

Understanding Audiobook Production: An Interview with Rich Miller

Jane Friedman’s Audiobook Publishing and Distribution: Getting Started Guide for Authors

The Ultimate Guide to Self-Publishing Audiobooks

How to Self-Publish Audiobooks: 16 Tips from Indie Authors

 

Distributor Comparison Chart

My chart on NarratorsRoadmap.com is for site members only and compares 6 popular distributors across 22 individual criteria.

 

Author as Narrator

Much More Than Just “Reading”

Should Authors Narrate Their Own Audiobooks?

Why Authors Should (Almost) Never Read Their Own Audiobooks

 

Advice, Articles, and Tutorials to Help You Get Started With ACX

Frequently Asked Questions About Audiobooks

ACX How It Works and FAQs

How to Make an Audio Book Using ACX (Step-by-Step) best tutorial I’ve found — with screenshots

ACX 101 For Authors and Rights Holders – Part 1: Preparation

How to Win Listeners and Create Great Audiobooks

The ACX Author’s Audiobook Checklist

How to Avoid 3 Costly Mistakes on ACX

Cure For The ACX 7-Year Itch

 

Payment Options and Narrators’ Views About Royalty Share Projects

Authors, Can You Afford to Produce an Audiobook?

The Cost Of Audiobooks

Audiobook Options for Indie Authors (and when it’s worth paying for production yourself)

ACX Narrator rates & other things I’ve learned

Attracting the Right Narrator: Royalty Share vs. Per Finished Hour

Let’s talk about Royalty Share and Marketing

To voice Royalty-Share Audiobooks… or not. That is the question.

How to Pick the Right Royalty Share Project

7 Reasons Why Your Book is not Getting Auditions on ACX

Negotiate Your Perfect Deal with Royalty Share Plus (be sure to read all of the comments and go through the links in the ACX help system as they provide more explanation)

How to Pay for Audiobook Production

  • Don’t be in a hurry to do your whole series at one time. Save the royalties from the first book to pay the costs of the 2nd one.
  • Use the creative exercise described in this article to uncover other sources of funds.
  • The chart below summarizes funding options for audiobooks created on ACX.

 

Auditioning and Choosing Your Narrator

Karen Commins’s 2-part series in InD’tale Magazine:

  1. Author Seeks Narrator: MUST Love Books
  2. From Casting A Narrator to Happily Ever After

All About Audition Scripts

Two Ways to Estimate Your Word Count

What Authors Can Do For Narrators

5 Tips For Choosing a Narrator

How to Make Sure You Never Find a Narrator For Your Audiobook

How I Chose a Narrator For My Audiobook

Choosing the Right Audiobook Narrator

One Email That Isn’t a Scam

How to Create an Audiobook PDF Companion Document for ACX, iBooks, and More

 

The Finished Audiobook

What Happens When Your Audiobook Ends Up Sounding A Lot Different Than Expected

Karen Commins’s 3:03 video demonstrating Whispersync technology

 

Audiobook Marketing

Karen Commins’s Audiobook Marketing Cheat Sheet

6 Low-Cost Avenues For Greater Audiobook Sales

The Elements of a Well-Reviewed Audiobook

How to Submit Your Audiobooks for Review in AudioFile Magazine

This Is The Reason Facebook Pages Are Still Useful For Authors

 

Other Sites to Assist Indie Authors

AudiobookRevolution.com — Casting, production via ACX, narration, audiobook directing

BigHappyFamilyAudio.com — Distributor

FindawayVoices.com — Distributor

Homecooked Books – Marketing services

NarratorList.com — Distributor comparison info in addition to narrator profiles

SpokenRealms.com — Distributor

TheAudioFlow.com — Casting, production, promotion

 

Filed Under: Audiobooks, Authors

Karen Commins — Your Audiobook Producer

17 December 2016

Want to create an audiobook of your book but feel overwhelmed about the process?

Concerned that you will pick the wrong narrator?

Afraid that you will need to spend hours that you don’t have in requesting changes to an unsatisfactory production?

Sit back and R-E-L-A-X!

In fact, you can head to the beach because you’ve found an experienced producer and narrator to whom you can hand off your book without worry!

Karen inside her WhisperRoom in her studio

As a full-time and Audible Approved audiobook narrator, I love interpreting your words on the printed page and creating a pristine recording that allows today’s ultra busy people to take a mental vacation. And who doesn’t need one?!

My rights holders are thrilled with the final product and the ease with which they receive it. They don’t request corrections because none are needed!

How I make the process easy for you:

🌴 Typos in the text? No problem. I say it correctly as I record. I’ll send you a list of typos that I find.

🌴 Accents? Sure! I’m a native of Atlanta and excel at Southern accents. I also research and perform other accents as needed in the text.

🌴 I’m highly selective about my audiobooks. I only audition for and accept projects when my voice and style are IN BEST SERVICE OF THE TEXT. My other titles may even help to sell your book!

🌴 Scientific or technical books? Yes! I earned a MS degree in computer information systems and worked over 25 years in highly technical IT positions. I can present your text with complete authenticity as I actually understand the words coming out of my mouth!

🌴 I strive to create the best production possible. I pay meticulous attention to detail to offer:

* Clarity
* Consistency in performance
* Compelling pacing
* Consummate editing and sound quality
* Correct pronunciations of names and places

🌴 I always supply your perfect recording within and usually ahead of the deadline.

🌴 I have a BA degree in radio and TV journalism and am an excellent writer. I can help you adapt your book to better suit an audiobook.

🌴 I have studied audiobook narration with Grammy award-winning director Paul Ruben and legendary talents Pat Fraley and Scott Brick, to name a few of my teachers.

🌴 I created an Audiobook Marketing Cheat Sheet to aid the rights holder in creating and implementing your marketing plan.

I have been hired to narrate titles in these genres:

* Biography
* Childrens
* Classic Fiction
* Contemporary Fiction
* Comedic Chick Lit
* Mysteries and Thrillers
* Romance
* Self-development

My soundproof studio shown above is outfitted with a Whisperroom and Neumann TLM 49 mic as found in top recording facilities.

You can hear my demos, see all of my titles, and read highlights of my reviews on other pages of this site.

I’m an audiobook narrator/producer who collaborates with my clients so that your story can be delivered — and remembered — in this frenzied world.

Want to hear how I’d perform your book? Contact me today for FREE audition!
Karen@KarenCommins.com
470.737.NAR8  (6278)

I Invite you to read the many articles I’ve written to aid authors.

 

Filed Under: Authors

The Christmas Present

11 December 2016

My super-talented and energetic narrator friend Xe Sands had this wonderful idea:

December…the time to give thanks for those things that have sustained us through the past year. For narrators, a huge part of that is YOU, the listening community! As we wind down 2016, we want to give back to you, our listeners, who help make our job so rewarding, and who travel with us on each audiobook journey. SO! Over 60 narrators have partnered to bring you FROM THE HEART – recordings of poetry, essays, stories, excerpts, songs, etc. – throughout the month of December.

I’m so thrilled to be among this group of exceptional narrators and offer you a free reading! Today, I present “The Christmas Present” by Richmal Crompton. In this short (11:55) Christmas tale from 1922, Mary learns that the best presents don’t cost a thing.


Thanks to Xe for spearheading this project and to a favorite audiobook blogger Jennifer Connor at the Literate Housewife blog for her generous publicity of this project throughout December. I encourage you to visit Jennifer’s site to catch up on narrators and their readings from earlier in the month, as well as those to come.
Happy holidays!

Filed Under: Audiobooks, Narrators, Recordings, Short stories Tagged With: audiobook, Christmas, From The Heart, Jennifer Connor, Literate Housewife, narrator, Richmal Crompton, short story, Xe Sands

Stop Complaining About Noise

30 November 2016

In a recent Inc. Magazine article titled 7 Ways Successful People Have Better Mindsets, this quote practically leaped off the screen at me:

The biggest problem is thinking of problems as problems. Successful people know that when you focus on problems you have more problems, but when you focus on possibilities you have more opportunities.

It’s true. Our thoughts and words have tremendous creative power in shaping our lives. In fact, in one of my first blog posts 10 years ago, I wrote that nothing is more powerful on this planet than the words you think and speak. Everything that exists now was first a thought in a person’s mind. Speaking the thought out loud gives it creative power.

Wayne Dyer used to say, “What you think about expands”, and “You can’t get enough of what you don’t want.” When we’re repeatedly talking about something with energy and emotion, we’re actually telling the Universe, “please send me more of this.”

That’s great when we’re enthusiastically and excitedly talking about our latest audiobook contract or marketing plans. However, the same principle is at work when we’re animatedly griping about the leaf-blowers in the neighborhood.

An army of leaf blowers is coming soon to your neighborhood!

I can’t count the times when I’ve read posts from audiobook narrators in Facebook groups in which they whine about the external noise from the neighbors cutting their grass, planes flying overhead, nearby construction projects, or any other thing that interrupts their recording sessions. The people bemoaning these (first-world) problems seem to expect empathy from everyone else. If challenged, the complainer would say he’s merely venting off steam with people who understand the situation.

I never respond to those types of posts. If I did, I’d say, “Quit your bellyaching, and DO something about your recording space! It’s not up to the world to be quiet in order for you to have a cocoon of silence for recording.”

Before anyone gets offended at my harsh statement, let me add that I have walked in the naysayer’s shoes. In order to solve my multiple issues with an extremely noisy environment, I replaced all of the windows in my house and custom-built an additional room on my house with soundproofing techniques.

More importantly, I don’t respond because constant complaining really goes much deeper and has a more pronounced effect than most people realize.

Have you ever noticed that, when you’re sick and you tell and re-tell the story about all of your symptoms to everybody you know, you feel worse with each telling?

When I used to gripe about people yakking loudly on their cell phones or children screaming in restaurants, it seemed more and more of them would show up around me. OF COURSE THEY DID! I repeatedly focused my attention and poured lots of negative emotion in my comments about how much those situations annoyed me! I had an epiphany one day when I realized I had been saying, “We are a magnet for obnoxious children” — literally summoning the very condition I wanted to avoid!

I’ve learned — not that I’m always successful at it — that I have to keep my attention focused on WHAT I WANT, not what I don’t want.

The loud children and cell phone talkers in public are still around, but my reaction to them has changed. When I find myself getting annoyed by them or other irritants, I speak out loud affirmations like, “I am focusing my attention on what I want, which is a pleasant, enjoyable dinner.” Almost immediately, the environment — or at least my perception of it — shifts for the better.

Frequent grumbling doesn’t just steal your joy (and that of others around you) in the moment. You can be setting yourself up for an unfulfilled life.

I’ll leave you with these profound thoughts from Elizabeth Gilbert’s book Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear: 

Quit your complaining. It’s not the world’s fault that you wanted to be an artist. It’s not the world’s job to enjoy the films you make, and it’s certainly not the world’s obligation to pay for your dreams. Nobody wants to hear it. Steal a camera if you must, but stop whining and get back to work….

…most important, you’re scaring away inspiration. Every time you express a complaint about how difficult and tiresome it is to be creative, inspiration takes another step away from you, offended. It’s almost like inspiration puts up its hands and says, “Hey, sorry, buddy! I didn’t realize my presence was such a drag. I’ll take my business elsewhere.

…I have felt this phenomenon in my own life, whenever I start complaining. I have felt the way my self-pity slams the door on inspiration, making the room feel suddenly cold, small, and empty. That being the case, I took this path as a young person: I started telling myself that I enjoyed my work. I proclaimed that I enjoyed every single aspect of my creative endeavors—the agony and the ecstasy, the success and the failure, the joy and the embarrassment, the dry spells and the grind and the stumble and the confusion and the stupidity of it all. I even dared to say this aloud. I told the universe (and anyone who would listen) that I was committed to living a creative life not in order to save the world, not as an act of protest, not to become famous, not to gain entrance to the canon, not to challenge the system, not to show the bastards, not to prove to my family that I was worthy, not as a form of deep therapeutic emotional catharsis . . . but simply because I liked it. So try saying this: “I enjoy my creativity.” And when you say it, be sure to actually mean it.

Photo: Hector Alejandro/Flickr
 

Filed Under: Away From the Mic, Law of Attraction, Narrators, Observations Tagged With: complain, Elizabeth Gilbert, leaf blower, noise, Wayne Dyer

A DEAL You Can Get Any Day And Is Good All Year

28 November 2016

The Monday after Thanksgiving is known as Cyber Monday, when lots of people are on their computers shopping for deals. Friends, have I got a DEAL for you!

I spent the morning searching for a special item to add to one of my collections.

This prize doesn’t cost much and can be purchased for the same low price any day of the year.

I’m talking about a library card — not just any library card, mind you, but a non-resident library card.

Of course, you should start your collection of cards with one from your city or county library. Most libraries offer local residents a free card since the library is funded through tax dollars. Learn what your local library has to offer and use it.

However, you’ll discover that getting a non-resident card to a second library system may be very useful since libraries offer different digital services. You’ll want to shop around for 1 or more non-resident library cards that fit your needs.

In addition to the cost of the card, you’ll need to determine whether the library accepts on-line registrations. I viewed at least 2 dozen library sites across the country, and most libraries require you to apply in person.

The cost for a non-resident library card is usually minimal, although some places like Kalamazoo, MI charge a 3-digit figure equating to a resident’s property tax.

Once you acquire the library cards you need, their benefit to your career as an audiobook narrator can be immeasurable in at least 4 ways:

Performance

I listen to audiobooks every day. I’m not only listening to the story, but I’m critically listening to the narrator and production quality. Each one is a mini-masterclass in performance technique that aids my own interpretations.

Overdrive, Hoopla, and Recorded Books are the largest services that supply digital audiobooks to libraries. Two libraries with Overdrive accounts choose different audiobooks for their patrons to download. With multiple library cards, you’re sure to find an audiobook you want to hear.

Periodicals

I went shopping for my 2nd non-resident card this morning because I want to read Publishers Weekly (PW) magazine. Sure, I could pay the $180 subscription fee on Zinio.com to get a digital subscription or the $249.99 to Publishers Weekly for them to cut more trees and deliver the magazine to my house.

I’d rather pay much less and support a library at the same time!

I had noticed that my 2 libraries both offer magazines through their Recorded Books portal (formerly Zinio). As an aside, my libraries also have other fabulous options from Recorded Books, such as ArtistWorks for art and music instruction! Neither had Publishers Weekly in their account, so I searched Google for a library that does. I’m planning to head over to a neighboring county tomorrow and pay $30 for a year’s access on their non-resident card.

TIP: Some libraries listed PW in a PDF as an available title, but I had to look at their actual magazine page to determine whether it really was included. If they have it, be sure they are showing the current issue as I saw several sites that indicated it was limited to archives. Also, some libraries have Flipster accounts for their magazines. I don’t know whether Publishers Weekly is available from Flipster.

Polylinguist

My library cards can help me achieve my long-held goal of becoming polylingual. (Most people would say “multi-lingual”, but that word wouldn’t fit with my alliteration.) Both of my cards give me on-line access to Mángo Languages. Even if I don’t take an entire course, it’s helpful to listen to these conversations when working on accents for an audiobook.

Proficiency

I got my first non-resident card from the nearby city of Smyrna a few months ago after learning that some libraries give card holders access to the fantastic on-line training site Lynda.com.

While they aren’t audiobook-specific, the Lynda video courses are professionally created and come with a transcript and materials. You can preview the Pro Tools 12 Essential Training at this link, but classes on every popular DAW are available. In addition to courses on DAWs, Lynda offers loads of classes in marketing, social media, web site design, and other topics useful to your audiobook business.

Like the magazines, Lynda is a subscription site. You pay either monthly or yearly. They charge more for the plan that includes the exercise files. When I started with Lynda in mid-2015, I paid $34.99 per month for the courses and exercise files. Last December, I paid a discounted price of $242.89 for a year.

In contrast, my Smyrna Library card cost $50, and I get to take advantage of all the other services from the Smyrna Library as well.

As you can see, the cost savings of the library cards over the regular price of these subscriptions is a DEAL!

Do you have a library card? Please leave a comment and let me know how you use it!

 

Updated 6/6/19 to change Recorded Books and Zinio references

Filed Under: Audiobooks, Away From the Mic, Business, Narrators, Voice-Over Tagged With: audiobook, cyber Monday, deal, library, narrator, non-resident, Publishers Weekly

How to use Karen Commins’s Audiobook Twitter lists

27 November 2016

You can easily find other audiobook publishers, bloggers, narrators, and enthusiasts by signing into Twitter and subscribing to one or more of my 4 comprehensive lists of audiobook tweeps. I believe that I have developed the most thorough lists of audiobook folks on the Internet! I continue to update these lists as I learn of people who should be included.

Each Twitter list is for reading tweets from a curated group of people. You can’t tweet to the list.

Its usefulness lies in the fact that all of these people are grouped together in one place. You’ll be able to stay focused on audiobooks and correspond with audiobook folks without following all of them individually.

  • Audiobook Narrators
  • Audiobook Publishers
  • Audiobook Blogs and Reviews
  • Audiobook Podcasts
  • All Audiobooks includes industry professionals from all areas of the business (publishers, narrators, bloggers, reviewers)

To subscribe to any of my Twitter lists:

Using your browser, login to Twiitter.
Click on one of the links above.
From the List page, click Subscribe to follow the list.

You can follow lists without following the individual accounts in that list.

How to find and contact audiobook reviewers on the list

If you click on Members, you can see the description of their Twitter profile. (See the picture.) You may be able to tell at that point whether they are a good candidate to review your book.

You also can click on each one and see their tweets and link to their web site.

Once on the reviewer’s web site, you can look at their review policies and get their email address. This page from the Geeky Blogger’s Book Blog outlines details you’ll want to include in your pitch.

The publisher list has over 100 employees from various audiobook companies. The list makes it easy to reply to and/or retweet them, which is a soft and convenient way of keeping your name in front of them!

I hope this info helps! I encourage you to create your own lists of authors and others who are important to your career. You can choose to make your lists private or public. If you have other questions about Twitter lists, check out this page from the Twitter help center.

If you’d like more tips about being organized for success, check out my blog article Putting the “I’ In OrganIzed, I use Evernote.com as my info and idea storehouse. If you decide to get an Evernote account, I’d love it if you used my referral link.

 

Last updated 8/14/20 to change to new Twitter URLs

6/11/19 to include link to podcasts

19 June 2018 to correct a link, include a comment about the publisher list, and add a couple other explanatory lines

1 December 2017 to include links to Literate Housewife and Geeky Blogger’s Book Blog

 

Filed Under: Audiobook Bloggers, Audiobooks, Marketing, Narrators

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