Audiobook Advice for Writers from a Professional Narrator - Gwendolyn Druyor

Give Your Words a Voice

With the advent of easily downloadable digital audiobooks, a kind of revolution has taken place. More people than ever are listening for their literary fix. And with a service like ACX, the Audiobook Creation Exchange, it's easy for an indie author to expand into this market. Even if you don't have a lot of faith in the audiobook craze, "buy all the shelf space you can get" as my dad says.

Shortly after my epic fantasy novel, Hardt's Tale was published, a playwright friend of mine brought his copy into the lobby at the opening of his latest play. He gathered the waiting audience and announced that I was going to read a selection from my book. Surprise! I quickly decided to read a few paragraphs from the prologue which received generous applause. Over the course of the evening; while finding our seats, during intermission, and at the cocktail reception after the show, more than a few people approached to tell me how much they enjoyed my reading. A well-known actor in the Los Angeles theater community said (it wasn't really a question), "You are narrating your own audiobook, aren't you?"

Well I certainly was after that encouragement.

That's how my narration career began. Now, in late 2015, I've recorded ninety-two books and learned more about the process than I ever imagined there was to know.

Do your Research

If you want to jump on the audiobook bandwagon, start by listening. Listen to as many audiobooks in your genre as you can get your hands on. Heck, you might even find a narrator you adore.

Next, wander around on the ACX website. The site has lots of easy to understand FAQs about the process. Read it all. Know what you're getting into. And when you're ready, sign up as a Rights Holder (do be sure you hold the audiobook rights, btw) and set up your Title Profile. If you have any confusion, the folks at ACX are incredibly supportive and kind whether via email or their phone support line.

Make your Project Attractive

You want to set up your Title Profile (audition) with the same care you would use creating any sales listing. Narrators want to record books that are going to sell. It makes us look better. Plus, narrators are trying to gleam every smidge of information they can get from your listing that will help them make the best choices when interpreting your story. Give some evocative description of the characters in your audition selection; what have they just survived, what do they want from each other? Do you have a description of how they sound? Put that in your profile.

Keep it Simple but Specific

Your audition selection should include dialogue, preferably with your main characters. Dialogue is difficult. You want to be sure your narrator handles voices the way you'd prefer. If you write romance, include a love scene. You want to know up front how much heat your narrator is going to bring. Keep the selection short. Two pages at most.

Choosing your Narrator

When you listen to the submissions, listen first for the narrator's tone and interpretation. Do you enjoy their voice? Do they understand your style? But also listen for technical aspects of the recording. Are there a lot of hisses or pops? Background noise? Definitely listen with headphones, high quality ones if you've got them. If you like a voice and the production quality is high but they didn't quite get your tone or a character's voice, ask them to redo the audition (or an excerpt of the audition!) with your direction. A short exchange of messages can tell you more about how the narrator works and if your personalities will work well together.

Google the narrator. Listen to their samples on ACX. It's all very exciting, but take some time to make certain you've found a narrator you're going to love. Listeners want your series to be read by the same voice and you want someone who respects your direction and is easy to work with. For preference, you want someone who loves your writing!

Communication is Key

Writing is an art. Narration is a different art. Communicate often and positively and if your narrator doesn't understand your direction, reword your request. Find different ways of saying what you're going for. And remember how personal all this storytelling can be. Compliment your narrator. Let them know what you love about the work they are creating for you. As I often said when touring with Sex Signals, "If you tell me what you like, I can give you more of that."

About the Author:

Gwendolyn Druyor is an actor, author, and audiobook narrator who has travelled the world telling stories. She danced the cancan in upstate New York, bruised herself with pratfalls in Wisconsin, improvised musicals with Seth Meyers in Amsterdam, butchered the bard all over North America. Throughout her travels, Gwendolyn has stolen the magic of train stations, airports, theaters, and yes, hotel lobbies for her stories. She writes quick-read thrillers in her Killer on Call series as well as epic and urban fantasy. Her audiobook narration covers a wide variety of genres so just look for your favorites on Audible.

Sign up at her website http://www.GwendolynDruyor.com to be in on all the excitement.

Follow Gwendolyn on Facebook, on Goodreads, and @gwendolyndruyor on Twitter

Preparing for your Radio Interview: The Twelve Step Program

By

Dora Machado

So you've written this wonderful, powerful, marvelous book. Against all odds, it's now published, available on Amazon and ready to garner some well-deserved readers. You are in promo mode. Through your publicist's hard work—or perhaps through your own agency—you're booked to talk about your novel on a radio show.  You now have the opportunity to engage hundreds, perhaps thousands of people in a conversation about your work.

Are you ready?

Talking about our novels is not always easy for most authors. We spend the majority of our time writing our books, not talking about them. Many of us are introverts by nature and not used to the limelight. However, we all understand the need to promote our work. After all, nobody knows more about our novels, characters and storylines than we do. Publishers want and expect authors who are willing and able to promote their work. Readers want to hear from us.

I'm no expert, but after promoting four books, I've learned that preparation is key. Whether you are doing a live interview at your local radio station or a Web radio interview—also known as a podcast— here are a few simple things that any author can do to get ready:

1. Confirm the date and time a few days before the interview.

Sounds simple, right? Wrong!

When you agree to do a radio interview, most hosts will e-mail you instructions on how to go about it. In this e-mail, he or she will specify the date and time for the interview. Make sure that you clarify the interviewer's time zone. Otherwise, your timing might be off. In our global society, your radio host can be anywhere in the world, and most radio interviews, especially those on blog radio, are conducted live. If you are late or absent, your radio host will have to scramble. The worst interviews are those that don't happen.

2. Get clear directions prior to the day of the interview.

If you don't get instructions prior to the show, feel free to ask. Don't wait until the last minute. If you are driving to a radio station, confirm driving directions and think ahead. Allow yourself some extra time, just in case you get lost or hit traffic. If you are on Web radio, make sure you have the right phone number or Skype address to connect to. It's never a good idea to keep your host—and your audience—waiting.

3. Focus on your message.

What do you want to achieve by doing this radio interview? Are you promoting a new release? Are you looking for reviews? Are you promoting a personal appearance, a book launch or a particular aspect of your writing?

I like to make notes, usually a page or two that includes all the information I might need, including Websites, e-mail addresses, blogs, events, giveaways, dates. Notes can come in quite handy when your brain freezes mid-sentence. The website address you've given out millions of times before can suddenly evaporate from your mind when you are on air, along with your firstborn's name and your date of birth. Notes can help us snap back into the conversation, avoid awkward pauses and maintain focus.

Avoid mind freezes with handy notes prepared before the radio show

4. Verify the show's subject.

Most shows' Websites will post a blurb about your upcoming interview. Go to the Website and verify the details, especially if you have written more than one book. Not too long ago, prior to doing a recent interview, I went to the Website and noticed that the headline announced my latest release, but the cover picture and the synopsis belonged to a different book. I was momentarily confused. I contacted the host and the problem was quickly corrected. Verifying the interview subject and checking the promo on the Website helped to avoid on-air confusion.

5. Be prepared to tell your story.

Most radio hosts will ask you about how you became a writer and why. Be prepared to share yourself as part of the story. Be ready to explain what your novel is about. I don't mean for you to read the blurb on the back of the book. I mean conversationally. Become an oral storyteller if you can, brief and to the point, but compelling. Practice if you'd like. It might help you to become more fluid and natural.

6. Know your radio host.

Who is your interviewer? What matters to him? What kind of questions does she like to ask? A little bit of research goes a long way. Many radio interviewers are writers themselves. Visit your host's Website. A radio interview is about the host as much as it is about you. If you can engage the host, if you can find common ground and get her excited about your book, odds are your interview will be more engaging to the listeners and you'll come across better and more interesting to the audience.

7. Listen to the program.

Hosts love it when you are a regular listener of their shows. If you are not a regular listener, become one. If you can't, then try to listen to as many shows as you can prior to going on the show. Most radio shows have easily accessible archives posted on their websites.

8. Identify the show's format and trends.

Listening will give you a sense for the show's style, speed, cadence and format. Most shows have a standard format: a pre-recorded introduction, a live introduction, a greeting, the interview and a conclusion. Listening will give you a clear idea of the show's specific structure and how long each sections tends to run. Most radio hosts will give you a few minutes at the end of your segment to say anything you want. This is an important opportunity for you to address the listeners and convey your message.

9. Pinpoint the host's style.

Listening to the shows will also give you a sense for the host. What's her interview style? Is she formal and deep? Is he light and funny? Does she talk a lot during the interview or does he prefer to let you do most of the talking? Is there a lot of laughter and bantering or is the tone of the interview more subdued? Fitting in with the host's style is important. You want to achieve some sort of chemistry. Remember, the chemistry between you and the interviewer will set the mood for the listeners and engage them—or not—in your discussion.

10. Recognize the questions likely to be asked.

Listening to earlier shows will also help you establish the kind of questions that the host likes to ask. Some hosts will always ask the same questions. If that's the case, you can actually plan your answers. But even if the questions are not always the same, hosts have patterns that you can easily identify when you listen to their shows.

Make sure you have copies of your books handy prior to beginning the radio interview

Be prepared!

11. Consider the “where.”

Where will you be during the interview? Will you be at home, at the office or at a hotel? I'm not kidding. This is important stuff. Recently, I did a radio interview while staying at a seaside resort. My room had an enviable view of the beach, the pool, and the nine-thirty AM water aerobics class, where the instructor shouted directions over a cranked-up microphone that echoed in my room and rattled my bed.

The bathroom ended up providing an alternative, sound-proof solution, but I learned my lesson. Make sure you are in a place where you can have a measure of privacy. You don't want the dog barking and the kids barging in. When stuff like that happens—oh, yes, if you do enough radio interviews, it will happen—you have to laugh about it. But if you can, select the right place for your interview and avoid the grief.

12. Consider the “how.” 

Will you be doing your interview over Skype, on a landline or on your cell phone? These are important decisions and best made in advance. Technological failures are the number-one problem that most authors face when doing radio interviews. Connection failures are common. The Internet can work arbitrarily in places and batteries conk out in the middle of interviews all the time. 

Select your technology in advance. Make sure you have a good connection. An equipment test run is always a good idea. Watch the weather. Violent thunderstorms throw everything off. You can't control nature's fury, but you can make sure that your batteries are fully charged, your chargers and power cords are nearby, and you have a backup plan, just in case.

"Be prepared" is the scout's enduring motto. As we authors contemplate our next radio interview, it should be ours too! 

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Do you have some author radio interviews you'd like to share? Post the link in the comment box. Good or bad, it doesn't matter. Let's have fun! D.

Here are some of my latest radio interviews:

Stories from Unknown Authors with host Rene Hand. http://www.blogtalkradio.com/storiesfromunknownauthors/2013/08/28/interview-with-dora-machado-for-the-curse-giver

A Book and A Chat with host Barry Eva: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/across-the-pond/2013/08/31/a-book-and-a-chat-with-dora-machado

A Writer's Resolution

A Writer’s Resolutions

It’s that time of year again. Time to take stock of accomplishments, of progress on your goals for the year, and to look forward with great expectations to the new year ahead. First and foremost, my wish for all my friends, family, and readers is for enough of everything, and lack of nothing. I am so grateful for my wife, my son and daughter, my extended family, all my friends and you, the readers. I am truly blessed.

So I sat down to write out my goals for the coming year, and tried to be realistic about them. I thought I would share them with you all for two main reasons. First, nothing happens without a plan. It helps to set out a map if you want to get somewhere, and goals can work like that. They clarify your intent, and give you a place to work toward as you progress in your writing. Goals can be interval, marking progress over 3 months, 6 months, whatever you choose. They can also be longer term, but they need to be concrete and measureable in order to be truly effective.

Second, I have realized over time if you set a goal, and make it public, you are engaging a whole lot of people in the act of helping you stick to it. Don’t believe me? Try announcing your new weight loss goals toyour friends and family, and count the number of times they ask how your diet is going. So here is my list of literary goals for the new year:

1. Read more. I know that sounds a little contradictory, but that is how I learn the rhythm, the pacing and the overall feel I want toput in my stories. And it isn’t that I want to read just mysteries. I learnedover time that any well written story will do, because there is always
something to be learned.

2. Write 2-5 pages a day, every day. Sounds like a lot? Well, it is the same pace my daughter set for herself as she participated in the local middle school’s NaNoWriMo exercise and at the end she had a 10,000 word story. If my 13 year old daughter can show that much discipline, so can I. Also, at this point, I have three works in progress, including a new Joe Banks novel. I’m sure I can find something to write about.

3. Regularly contribute to Murder by 4. Self serving, maybe. But my day job has been so demanding that I have not been able to hold up my regularly scheduled day for participation with some of the most talented writers I know. It is another simple way to hone the blade, as it were, and continue to write for an audience. Also, in researching some of the articles I’ve written, I’ve learned more about the craft and business of writing. I am happy to share that with you.

4. Save the hard edits to the end. Nothing slows my progress like re-editing in the middle of the first draft. I know from all the really successful writers I’ve read that you do the major edits at the end, and you sort the wheat from the chaff and fine tune your work. But I can’t help it, I still do it. So this year I promise to save the clean-up to the end, and will use that period to send a more complete story to my publisher.

It’s a short list, but manageable. I hope this helps you set some goals for your writing, and I wish you all the success, love and luck to make you happy in the next twelve months. Now if I can only do something about losing those extra pounds...

The Three P's of Writing

copyright 2011 Ron Adams

I have had an occasion to witness the turmoil of some writers and publishers when things don’t go according to plan. It was a sad thing to watch, and I am grateful to have maintained good working relationships with all the parties involved. I offer, therefore, some assistance for the new, budding, aspiring, frustrated writer still working on getting their masterpiece into the hands of the readers. Please take it for what it is, and I hope these tips can be of some help. I call these the three P’s of writing.

PROFESSIONAL – First and foremost, writing and writing well is an art form, one which most of us have invested our hearts and souls in. But publishing is a business. It is a for profit enterprise where the writer must learn to become the best business person they can be, and be willing to approach it in a professional manner. Life is not fair, and the business world is not fair, either. Approach every interaction with your agent and editors in a straightforward, respectful, and professional manner, and most of the time it will be returned in kind. Not always, mind you, but you will be better served in that approach in the long run.

POSITIVE- Remain as positive as possible in all your dealings with your agent, editor and publisher. Adopt a can-do/will-do attitude towards all interactions. Be willing to listen to those that may have more expertise, and offer what expertise you can bring in a positive, constructive manner. A problem solver is easier to work with than a problem bringer.

PHILOSOPHICAL – A while back, a friend of mine got me and my wife involved in a network marketing business. Yeah, I know, but I did learn a valuable lesson. They have a philosophy of some-will-some-won’t-so-what in regards to their business. Not the worst approach to take to this business. When going through the process of promotion and building your writing career, listen to those you believe in and trust, listen to the experts, and remember some things will work, some things won’t. So what. Doing is better than not doing, trying is more productive than not trying.

And if I have to add a fourth, it would be PERSEVERANCE. Keep learning, keep growing, and keep believing in yourself and your goals. I can’t promise that any of these will get you on the best-seller list. But I do believe that a positive, professional writer with a philosophical approach, who perseveres in the face of adversity, will be one that agents, editors and publishers will want to work with.

Advice for the Rookies from a Rookie

A number of people have asked me recently how I write. They say things like, “You know, I have always wanted to write a book, but I don’t…” And here you can fill in the blanks. Have enough time, enough talent, know what to write about, know if I’m interesting enough, know if people would like my stories, know if they’d like me. So I thought I would write some of my thoughts about writing from an Everyman perspective.

These are just my ideas, not at all Gospel. I am a middle-aged guy with no degrees in literature, journalism, or creative writing. I am a husband and father first and foremost, who has a day job, and who writes detective stories at night. I have been blessed to be part of such an amazing group of writers, and as the new guy on the block I wanted to share some perpective on my writing experience. If these ideas work for you, then by all means take what you can from them.

1. Read. Simple enough, right? But reading is where you learn what you like, and what you don’t like, in a story. It’s where you pick up on language, expand on ideas from other writers, and charge the batteries in your imagination. Read stories you enjoy. If you like mysteries, for example, read several authors to find a style and voice you can relate to. Historical romances your thing? There are some wonderful writers in that genre. The point is, if you want to write, you have to read. And now on to…



2. Pay Attention. Inspiration is a goofy thing. You never know when or from where it will come at you. I can also tell you, from my experience, it is usually subtle. One day a few years ago I was sitting in the parking lot of a car repair shop along the lake just south of Buffalo, NY, on a typically grey January day, waiting for my wife’s cousin to drop off her car and take her back to our house. As we drove home, Lake Erie was an expanse of grey snow and ice heaved at the shore line, stretching out until it was impossible to tell where the frozen lake ended and the cloudy sky began. I thought, this would be a lonely place to die. Eighteen months later my first novel, Lake Effect, was set against the very backdrop I described as my detective hero unravels the case of two children murdered on the icy shore. I can’t tell you the number of times I have come across little tidbits of life that find their way into my stories. Paying attention to the little things makes all the bigger things easier.



3. Stop, look, and listen. And smell and taste while you’re at it. Books are a wonderful way to convey your ideas, but if you want to add texture and substance, you have to use all your senses. It’s not enough to say you ate delicious Buffalo chicken wings, though to be honest that should be enough. From what I understand, there are a few people that have never eaten Buffalo wings before. For those people, you can tell them about the steam rising off the plate of red-sauced chicken parts, awash in a sea of hot sauce and butter, the creamy Bleu Cheese dressing a cooling accompaniment to the tangy, spicy wings. Are they fried crispy, or are they soggy and saucy? Are they mild enough to give to a four year old, or do they leave your lips stinging as they light your throat on fire? The more real you make it, the more into the story both you and your readers will be.



4. Embrace rejection like a 13 year old at a middle school dance. My wife and I have been married for 23 years, have two ten year old kids, and find we agree on the most important things. But she doesn’t care for the Joe Banks series I have written at all. Just isn’t her cup of tea, and you know what? We’re still married, we still love each other, and she still supports my writing. Make your story as good as you can make it, and learn as much as you can from people who tell you constructive ways to improve. Failure, and rejection, is nothing more than the opportunity to do it better the next time. I think that’s true no matter what.



5. Have a sense of humor about it all. A wise old man once told me if you can’t laugh at yourself, someone else will laugh at you. In my day job as a physical therapist in a nursing home, I had a resident walk with me as part of his exercise program. We chatted back and forth for several minutes, and finally Arthur turned to me and said, “You know, this is a nice place. I think it might make a nice nursing home.” He thought about it, then started laughing. It was a genuinely funny moment, and reminded me not to take myself, or what I perceive to be my problems, too seriously.

Then, when you’ve got all that sorted out, keep notes on what you see, do, smell, taste, feel and hear that you might be able to use in a story. Figure out how you feel about it, and how you would react to a situation as you get to know your characters. Then write it all down. All of it. Don’t worry, you can sort it all out later. That’s what the editing process is for.