Thank you IWSG for this April 6 posting and your co-hosts Joylene Nowell Butler, Jemima Pett, Patricia Josephine, Louise - Fundy Blue, and Kim Lajevardi
Hello! I've been offline for awhile, so I was pleased to find this group is alive and well. You never cease to amaze me. May this be one of your best writing periods in life yet. We certainly have been through a lot these past two years!
Regarding the suggested topic of the month, I'd like to put in a plug for Audio Books in general. For some reason they fell out of favor with me after my children were grown and gone. Fondly, I remember traveling to the library and checking out DVD books before embarking on the many road trips we took over the years as a family. As we were a day's ride from family across state, we listened to quite a few books on tape.
One of my favorite memories was listening to a radio version of the first Star Wars movie, broadcasted on NPR. (We had either taped these or ordered a DVD; can't recall). I was later surprised at how much detail was missed in the movie itself. The audio version had added a whole new dimension to the story and characters, and to this day, I almost love the radio version more.
I think a good point can be made for what makes a good audio book and what does not. You've all experienced the fiction book that is easily skim-read, you know, the kind with little holding power word-wise. But there are others you read word for word because they paint such vivid pictures in your mind. These and nonfiction are the best on audio.
So back from that period when audio books existed in my life, I have turned a corner and started listening to books again. Thanks to Amazon's 'Audible' offerings, I recently signed up for the $7 version as an experiment. Since my husband and I now live an hour away from major services, we find ourselves on the road at least once a week. I've started with the purchase of nonfiction books, since we have different tastes in fiction, but I'm contemplating earplugs and book downloads to my Smart Phone when I'm outdoors gardening.
I'm hoping this will increase the yearly number of books I read, which has been pitifully small. My only complaint is the cost of Audible for the full version, which is $14.95. I may eventually opt for the full version, since selection is otherwise limited. It does however add to the cost of a book if you don't read a lot, so as I said, this is an experiment for me. But then the goal....is to read more.
I'm curious as to the cost of making an audio book and if authors in this group have been successful. And, how on earth do you do it? What are the do's and don't's of this process? It's my understanding, your readership needs to be pretty high for audio books to be profitable. Nevertheless, I do see a lot online, so I'll see what others have to say.
All the best, Sharon
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Sharon M. Himsl
Published: Evernight Teen
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Welcome back to the IWSG!
ReplyDeleteMy publisher handled making all of my audio books, so no idea on cost although I doubt it was a lot.
People listen to them while exercising and doing tasks, so I'd say get some earplugs and try listening on your phone and see if you enjoy it.
Thank you! I really appreciate your visit. I was late starting the hop. Have missed blogging and taking my writing more seriously, which IWSG challenges me to do. Surprised too at the positive feedback on publishing audio books. Really thought it was something most authors lost money on...so whole new perspective now. :)
DeleteWelcome back! And I'm also a big fan of audiobooks. About half of my reading these days is actually listening, because I love being read to and because I can do other things (exercise, housework, driving) while still "reading."
ReplyDeleteThanks, Janet. Just finished audio book '1995'. I visited your hilarious blog. Laughed at the dishwasher spa. For some reason, I REALLY relate to that. Ha-ha. Article about your Mom. Wow, a powerful and real topic. My mother (now 96) has been living with my husband and me since 2020, the start of pandemic. It's been up and down but mostly good. It's my gift to her and hers to me, but there are days when...
DeleteI've been offline for quite a while, too. Funny you mention the Star Wars radio broadcast. I won a cassette of the radio broadcast of The Return of the Jedi by commenting on a blog a few years ago. I've never been much into audiobooks, but I loved listening to it. I should see if I can find copies of the first two movies and listen to them all as a marathon.
ReplyDeleteNeat that you remember these treasures too. May have been cassettes, now that I think of it. It's been awhile!
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