July 12, 2021
Are audiobooks the future of book sales? Do you have your stories on audio?
First it was large print books and books for the blind. Then there were books on tape. Now we moved into proprietary formats based on what platform you listen on. Alternative ways of reading have been around for years.
I own copies of James Bond books as MP3s that I got back in the late 90s. (I think – I’ve transferred them from one PC
to another so many times that I’ve lost track of when I got them.) I listened to them when I was doing chores that didn’t demand my total attention but found my enjoyment was based on the voice of the narrator—when the narrator changed in the middle of the series I didn’t like it—and I never got ‘addicted’ to the format.
To be honest, I don’t understand people who listen to audiobooks when they’re driving. I need to concentrate on the road, and the radio is background noise to keep me company, especially on long drives. I can’t imagine trying to pay attention to a book and still giving traffic the needed attention. Even on the long, flat, lonely stretches of Wyoming roads, you never know when someone is going to fly around you doing over 100 mph. Obviously, that changes if you are the passenger and someone else is driving.
Are audiobooks the future? Maybe, in the same way that ebooks were the future not too long ago. There will always be an audience for all forms of books – print, ebook, and audio, as well as any form that hasn’t been invented yet. (Neural implant, anyone?)
I’ve looked into audio for my books. (NOT Audible, because that’s part of the Amazon monopoly.) I looked is as far as it’s gone. The price to have audio books done right is out of my budget and I don’t have the skills or equipment to do it myself. It’s more than just reading your story out loud. I think I’m an expressive reader, but I am aware of the slight mistakes I make. To have a recording edited to make it error-free would be more work than many editors would tackle. I need to sell many more of my books before an audio book would fit into my plans.
We have authors on this hop that have audiobooks, and I’m looking forward to their input. You can find them by following the links below.
As always, until next time, please stay safe.
July 12, 2021
Are audiobooks the future of book sales? Do you have your stories on audio?
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Now, I have listened to a few audio books in my distant past. I was devouring the James Bond books, and there were some the library didn’t have on the shelves. I found an audio download of the books and grabbed the ones I needed to fill in the gaps. (Back in the day when audiobooks were on cassette or CD.)