Dave Courvoisier's Blog

Archive for the ‘audiobooks’ Category

LOVE this short video Pat posted a few hours ago.

Having experienced one of his brilliant audiobook workshops, I know of what he speaks.

On FaceBook?

Watch the video HERE.

CourVO

Everyone pretty much agrees that AudioBooks are a bit of a different animal among the panoply of niche voice opportunities that stand before the working voice actor.

The general word right now is that the AudioBook Publishing industry is fertile ground for new work, ’cause the medium of audiobooks (helped along by iTunes) is booming.

A newsletter the other day from James Adams offered an especially cogent assessment of the AudioBook Publishing industry, and I’m repurposing most of it below, with the express permission of Mr. Adams.

Here’s his resume’:  James Adams is the former Managing Editor of the London Sunday Times, CEO of United Press International, founder and CEO of iDEFENSE, a cyber intelligence company, Board member at the National Security Agency and NCIS, author of 13 bestselling books on warfare and intelligence and currently Chairman of ADRevolution http://adrevolution.com.

Yeah, I know…pretty impressive.  You’ll concur after reading his articles below.

Please pay special attention to the final article:  WHAT PRICE NARRATORS?

Thanks James!

CourVO

Read the rest of this entry »

Voice-Coach/Psychiatrist/Enabler/Connector/Sage/Mentor/Branding Wizard Nancy Wolfson and partner Anna Vocino are announcing a kick-A#%^ seminar later this month on AudioBooks.  They’ve landed about the best 3rd-party for this party they could hope for:  Hillary Huber.

Hillary has not only done a ton of AudioBooks, but is a veteran of live announcing for the Emmy’s, and People’s Choice awards, among other achievements in VO. (see bio below)

I had the honor of studying with Hillary at a Pat Fraley audiobook workshop/weekend, and learned SO MUCH.

Knowing Nancy and Anna, this March 31st event will cover all the audiobook bases and more.

I’ve taken the liberty of reprinting their newsletter/annoucement below so you can see the straight story.  It has all the links you need to sign-up.

If this is where you want to go in voice-acting, you need to be on this call!

CourVO

Read the rest of this entry »

What’s a fair price for earnest work?

The quibbling over that simple question can cost you money if things aren’t laid out clearly from the outset.  Now I understand why some Voice actors demand a contract, and at least some pay up front.

Here’s a real-life example (names omitted to protect the innocent):

.
APPROACH

A friend approached me about recording the first chapter of a newly-written book.  The author is a multi-millionaire, rags-to-riches CEO of a hugely successful XYZ firm.  The book is his inspirational personal story of how entrepreneurship lifted him out of life’s early disarray to find wild success.

My friend is handling some of the online marketing and SEO challenges for this company, and needed the chapter narrated ASAP for a deadline to launch a certain milestone for this company.

COMPLETION

Within 24 hours, I had the chapter narration done, editing completed, and file delivered with a smile.  My friend was grateful for the favor, and promised payment whenever I invoiced.

The uncertain but hoped-for promise in all this was that I may eventually get the nod to narrate the entire book. 

CONFLICT

When the author heard my read, he liked it, but HIS public relations people were telling him since it was such a personal story, that maybe HE should narrate it.  That’s still undecided.  We all know there are just a handful of authors who have the wherewithal to artfully narrate their own book.  I don’t know…maybe he’s one of those.

Regardless, when my friend attempted to pass the cost of my narration on to the author, this is the response we got:

“I asked for a test version just to hear how he sounds with the book. I wasn’t expecting an invoice for the test or I would have had him reread it with changes until it was a finished to my satisfaction. I am considering him for the full audio, but that phase isn’t ready as of yet. My understanding was this was his bid for the entire project and not something I was paying to test."

ANALYSIS

Let me offer a handful of observations:

It strikes me as somewhat insincere that a guy who’s a self-made millionaire based on principles of entrepreneurship (as stated in this very book)…is unwilling to recognize the efforts of another entrepreneur in setting a fair price for earnest work.

Granted, there may have been a miscommunication between my friend and the author, and it’s to his credit that my friend is stepping up to offer compensation even though the author is unwilling.

Finally, disregarding the quibbling about whether the narration was an “audition” for the whole book, or verbally-contracted work…an “audition” or “scratch-track” of this length (18 mins) would certainly demand SOME renumeration.  No?

LESSON

Some voice actors have a hard ‘n’ fast rule about signed contracts, and at least some pay up front.  They say it’s just a matter of time before you get burned.  I haven’t been burned yet, and my business doesn’t have the force of, say, a Jennifer Vaughn or a Harlan Hogan.

How do you, or would you handle this?

CourVO

The indefatigable Jeffrey Kafer — voice actor, award-winning audiobook narrator, spurned Microsoft employee —   is now running his own AudioBook Publishing business.

This is a smart move, as the AudioBook Publishing repeatedly comes up as one of the most resilient businesses in the economy, consistently showing up in surveys as a burgeoning sector of opportunity for publishers as well as narrators and distributors.

Jeffrey is a go-getter, and a persistent force in the industry.  I, for one, salute his enterprising spirit, AND his new enterprise.

Give it a look, especially if you’re an author.

Click HERE.

CourVO

….publishing industry, that is. 

This statement from Becca Price, of the AudioBook Publishing ListServ:

October was a good month for book sales.  Nearly every category saw a positive increase.  The increase in adult hardcover is probably attributable to Dan Brown’s The Lost Symbol.

    * Adult paperback increased 37.5% to $130.4 million.
    * Children’s/YA hardcover fell 0.5% to $87.9 million.
    * Children’s/YA paperback increased 20.2% to $52.7 million.
    * Adult hardcover rose 6.3% to $259.9 million.
    * Adult mass market was down 1.8% to $61.2 million.
    * Audiobooks dropped 1.8% to $19.7 million.
    * Ebooks were up 254% to $18.5 miillon.

Note the next-to-the-last line, re: drop in AudioBooks.

BTW, you might find LOTS of interesting tips about the AudioBook Publishing industry on that ListServ.  Send a note asking for a subscription to this address:  audiobooks-owner@list.audiodiversions.com.

Also, the quote Becca makes above was gleaned from an article on a blog written by a collection of readers who love fiction called:  “Dear Author,….”

You can find it HERE.

CourVO

‘Guess I never thought too deeply about audiobook-narrating requiring a specific microphone, but after reading THIS article on the Open Book Blog, I can see the wisdom of it.

Check it out…there’s a nice explanation here of the different types of mics regardless of whether you’re into long-format narration or not.

CourVO

Call me crazy, but lists fulfill me.

I’m sure it has something to do with my OCD tendencies, or  maybe it’s my inherited pack-rat genes, but there’s something about a list that seems so….tidy.

Well, I’ve been at it again, and this is a list you may want to follow on Twitter, especially if you’re interested in being an audiobook narrator.

But let’s recap:

First, I created the Twittgroup for VoiceActors VOICETWITTER…which is now almost 300 strong and has some very helpful ways of gleaning information from all of those who signed-up.

Then…when Twitter started allowing lists to it’s general API, I started the VOICEOVERISTS list, which has about 430 profiles of voice over people and a few studios.  This list is currently being followed by almost 80 people.

Last night, I started my 3rd list…for people and publishers in the business of audiobooks.  You’ll find that list HERE.  So far, it is following almost 40 Twitter profiles.

For the Twitter lists, all you have to do is get to that link, and follow the list like you would any person’s profile on Twitter.

Hey, I did all the work…all you have to do is sign-up or follow along to reap the benefits.

See?  My craziness works in your favor!

CourVO

…only better.

VoiceOverXtra’s John Florian pushed me to summarize the give and take on Synthetic Voices exposed on this blog recently, and put it into article form.

The result is on John’s very popular site.  Click HERE.  Thanks, John, Peter Drew (who is quoted), and others who had input on this issue.

CourVO

There’s been a lot of traffic recently on a forum populated by AudioBook readers, bantering about issue of computer-generated voices.

That topic is traditionally disdained by a group so dedicated to the finer nuances of a good read. These are serious audio-book listeners who celebrate the various human narrators, and the interpretation each one brings to a narrative.

But something new and improved has surfaced, and it’s making some converts even among this hard-core group of those favoring the real human voice.

So listen to the samples at LOQUENDO and then I’ll finish up below.  It’s an international site, so you have to scroll down to hear the US/English samples.

——————————

So….whadya think?  I agree, it’s the best computer generated voice I’ve ever heard.

Much of the give ‘n’ take on this forum moved into the realm of where the artistry is in this sort of software solution…and how would the audiobook publisher business model change.  Beyond that, the discussion also addressed who has rights, and what is the revenue stream.  Can a programmer replace a narrator?  How labor-intensive and artistry-intensive is that?

This hard-core group of audiobook aficionados, agrees this is the best “fake” voice they’ve heard, but also agree it’s not there…yet.

Which, of course prompts the question: “When?”.

Text-to-Speech and voice recognition programs (eg. Dragon Naturally Speaking) have always been reliant on complex formulas or algorithms that incorporate the finer points of artificial intelligence.  They’ve steadily gotten better with each new jump in computer speed and function.

It’s likely that we’re not far from a computer-generated voice accomplished enough to satisfy a sector of buyers who aren’t as discerning as the audiobook group mentioned above.

So now, I’ll state the question that has already likely bubbled-up in your own mind:  “Is this likely to hurt yet another sector of jobs/clients now available to us as voice-actors?”

Your thoughts?

CourVO