Audiobook Project (200th Post!)

Huh. 200 posts. Shouldn't I get a sticker or a free bottle of wine or something?

There's something I've intended to do for a while, and I think it's about time I followed through. I want to record audiobook versions of my completed stories.

I've already done two, and although the audio quality isn't super high (hell, it's a $15 microphone, what do you expect?), I think I did a halfway decent job at the performance. Out of the two that I've recorded, I've edited one together, but the other is still in the rough.

You see, I'm a bit of a perfectionist when it comes to recordings like this. I'll sometimes read the same line or paragraph a dozen different ways until I get a version that I like. It improves the finished product, but makes editing a lot more difficult.

If I'm going to pursue this, I need a plan. And here it is: first, finish revising the stories. My post from two days ago mentioned how I wanted to clean up what I've already done before moving forward. Once I've edited a story, I should sit down and do a read through aloud. Twice in the past (here and here), I've posted about the merits of doing a verbal read through, so I won't go through them again. During this step, I'll quickly note where things sound odd, or where I stumble, then consider revising there.

Next, I'll record each one. I'm not going to post them here, since posting them in a public forum would count as first audiobook publication, and I'd like to be able to sell that later. But if you know me well enough to have my email address, then I probably wouldn't have any problem sending them to you once they're edited.

What's the point of this? I've always enjoyed the medium of unabridged audiobook. In fact, certain stories simply lend themselves to that kind of format. I think Dickens is best read aloud, for example, and P.G. Wodehouse, well performed, simply comes alive. If I can hear what my stories sound like in that same medium, maybe I can brush up the quality of my prose accordingly.