4 Things You Need To Budget for When Hiring an Audio Book Narrator
July 22, 2008
The Written Word
Literacy is one of those special gifts that we possess as members of the human family.
It is a joyous pastime, a tool for learning, and the pages of a book unlock doors to great adventures in periods and locations we could only dream about visiting.
With the richness of a tapestry, the written word is one of the most cherished and time honored traditions that we have in our day preserved for us by previous generations and developed by ancient civilizations spanning thousands of years.
Enter Audio Books
In recent years, the popularity of and subsequent demand for talking books has skyrocketed, thrusting publishers into the new arena of digital publishing and a newfound need for audio book narration.
A Picture Paints a Thousand Words (and Books Have More Than That!)
Think about your favorite books, now think about how many pages there are in those books… think about how long it takes you to read them.
Usually when we think about books and how long they are we only consider page count because it is obvious visually, documented and tangible, but this is where the potential to be lead astray occurs when it comes to having the voice over recorded and budgeted for…
1. Page Count VS Word Count
Gloria T. Delamar, author and creative writing instructor, says that knowing the number of pages is not enough to give a clear picture of the length of a manuscript, revealing that it depends on how many characters-per-inch (cpi) it was printed at.
Example:
If printed at 10 cpi, there will be about 250 words per page, making the manuscript about 12,500 words; if printed at 12 cpi, there will be about 300 words per page, making the manuscript 15,000 words. A heftier manuscript of 250 pages can mean the difference between 62,500 and 75,000 words.
The average paperback novel consisting of 140-320 pages (double spaced) has a word count spread that ranges from 35,000 - 80,000 words.
2. Preparation
a) Just like anything else, a voice talent will need to review the manuscript for words and names they are unfamiliar with which inevitably involves some research.
b) Voice talent also need to develop the voice of the narrator and characters to best reflect the tone of the book, the author’s intention and also bring their own unique interpretation to each one. If you’ve heard books narrated with multiple character voices, it’s not an easy feat to shape each character and then record the different voices while maintaining their integrity as individual characters consistently over the course of the novel.
3. Recordings Need to Be Edited
Reading aloud without stumbling and in character is a challenge for most but the editing really takes the cake in the labour intensive department.
Once the voice over is recorded, a painstaking process begins where each sentence is listened to and edited if need be, a process that takes nearly 3 times as long as the voice over recording to complete.
4. Distribution of the Audio Book
How the audio will be used is an important factor. Let your voice over talent know how the audio will be distributed as it may affect the final price.
Examples of distribution are:
a) Independent distribution
b) National distribution through audio book publishers
c) International distribution / Online distribution via Audible.com or similar services
Sounds Good But What About Rates?
Have You Ever Hired a Voice Talent to Narrate an Audio Book?
Let me know the title of the audio book and where we can find it!
Cheers,
Stephanie
Storytelling in the Digital Age
July 17, 2008
Talking Books
Whenever a new book hits the stores, its audio counterpart isn’t far behind, in fact, the current trend is to release the audio version at the same time as the printed publication. You can find audio books just about everywhere from your local bookstore, to the library to online hubs such as Audible.com and independent retailers.
What’s the Market Like?
There are currently 4000 audio books being recorded each year. According to the president of Blackstone Audio, Craig Black, this figure will balloon to 24,000 over the next four years. Why? Because of the success of downloadable audio books on the Internet! With virtual inventory, publishers save a considerable amount of money that would have been spent in publishing, and this is a very attractive solution for publishers with very little risk.
How Do Publishers Find Voices?
With the rise of technology and opportunities via the world wide web it is easier now than ever for audio book publishers to find voice over talent to narrate their audio books. Finding the perfect voice is as quick as a simple keyword search via your favorite search engine, and just like that, professional narrators are only a click away.
Trends in Audio Book Narration
Have you listened to any audio books? Which ones?
Looking forward to hearing from you,
Stephanie
