How to Upload Your Auio File to Acx

Audiobooks are a fantastic growth marketplace for authors, narrators and producers alike, and I've been working with fabulous narrators for my fiction since ACX opened upwardly in the UK in 2014.

Only every bit a reader, I much prefer to listen to non-fiction sound in the vox of the author themselves, so I decided to tape i of my ain books, Business for Authors: How to be an Writer Entrepreneur. Here are the lessons I learned in the process.

This article first appeared in an edited version on the ACX web log on 31 March, 2015.

(1) Make sure you record the highest quality sound

There are specific technical requirements to publish audio on ACX then that the customer has the best experience possible. You can reach this level of quality past recording in your ain dwelling, but only if you can get rid of the various noises that may pollute the audio, which you may not even hear anymore.

I'm a podcaster then I'1000 used to recording and editing audio, simply when I listened to the sounds of my flat, I could hear planes overhead, cars going past, the rattle of someone in the garden, and the occasional yapping of a dog exterior. When I tried recording, I had to proceed going back and redoing sections which was a waste matter of time.

Andy Marlow in the recording and mixing studio

Instead of persisting with that process, I hired professional person audio producer (and musician) Andy Marlow, who has a great petty studio just a bus ride away from me in South London. We worked in two hr slots and Andy made sure that the quality of the initial audio was splendid, every bit well as mastering the file for the final product load.

(2) Prepare yourself for recording

It'south surprising how tiring recording audio can be. I was exhausted after each two hour session, considering it was substantially a performance. You lot take to put energy and expression into what you're saying. You have to focus your eyes on the words yous've written for an extended menstruation.

And in a professional person studio, you might be shut into a small-scale padded box, which takes some getting used to! Hither are my tips to manage yourself during the sound procedure.

• Schedule sessions a few days apart if you're new at recording to ensure you take enough energy, especially if you're an introvert like me. People tin can hear exhaustion in your vocalism, so respect your audience and make sure you're at full strength when starting and stop before your vocalization begins to drop. Having a specific fourth dimension scheduled will too ensure you get the recording and production done in a manageable corporeality of time. As a ballpark effigy, it took 7 sessions of ii hours each to get to a finished audiobook of half-dozen.5 hours, although there was probably well-nigh one.25 hours of raw audio per session.

• Try to avoid dairy before recording or anything that might give you backlog phlegm or clog your throat. Try cleaning your teeth and create a routine and so that you know your voice will exist ready for speaking. If yous're ill or your vocalism is affected in whatsoever way, you'll demand to postpone, as i of the ACX requirements is to keep your voice at a similar level beyond recording sessions.

• If you lot 're recording around mealtimes, make sure you take a snack with you. Tummy rumbling, or borborygmi (what a lovely word!) can destroy a recording session! And from personal experience, don't take peanut butter or anything that gives you a 'cloggy' oral cavity feel.

• When you're recording, attempt to modulate your animate and then y'all don't end up belongings your breath. I institute that I needed to end sometimes for deep breathing during longer capacity. I would definitely consider a voice double-decker for help with this if I was recording more than ofttimes every bit it definitely affected my stamina. Professional actors and vox artists can

  

  Joanna Penn in the padded recording cell 🙂

  record for a much longer catamenia as they have mastered this.

• Yous will need to read from a tablet or Kindle or other electronic devices since you tin can't make folio turning noises. Remember to plough off any wifi connection on the devices and ready to Airplane mode every bit they tin brand a static noise on the audio even if you can't hear information technology when recording.

• While you're reading your volume aloud, y'all will inevitably find things that you want to alter, peculiarly if they are things that don't work and so well in audio, for instance, lists of resources that are website links. If you self-publish your books, information technology's very easy to make changes. I just made a note on my Kindle of what I wanted to change and and so updated my ebook file to match to ensure Whispersync would work. My friend and fellow writer, Orna Ross, has changed her process to record audio before publishing the ebook as reading aloud has given her a new perspective on editing.

• One other point on changing files. I would recommend that you only tape audio versions for those books which will remain static for a few years. If you lot take technical books, or other books that require updating annually, then information technology'due south probably too much piece of work to tape it as you will demand to alter information technology later if yous want to keep the Whispersync matching. I decided not to tape How to Market a Book for this reason, equally I accept already done two versions in xviii months and volition no doubt update it again in the time to come.

• Each ACX file needs to exist a single chapter of the book, so make sure you lot record in these smaller files, rather than creating files across capacity. This volition make it easier to load afterwards. You besides need to create opening and closing credits, the text of which is provided in the ACX technical notes.

(3) Larn some editing skills to keep the costs down

You tin pay a producer to edit the audio files every bit well as record and master them, simply this will make your costs per volume higher, meaning less profit for the project. Since I already edit sound for my podcast, and I had high quality raw sound files, I decided to do the edits myself.

Here are some specific tips:

• If you make a mistake when recording, clap your hands so you create an obvious spike on the sound file that you can use to find the error later. If you lot mess upwardly a lot, it can be easier to go back to the kickoff of the paragraph to get a smooth read. Your error rate volition increment as yous become more tired, so make sure that you take breaks. I constitute that forty minutes was the maximum time I could spend reading "in the box" before I needed a break.

• You can employ free editing software similar Audacity or whatsoever comes on your computer. Make sure that you use the Cross Fade function when cut the file. I used Amadeus Pro on the Mac which has a Smart Edit function with car-cross fade. I did commencement to get Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI) pain in my wrist during the editing process so I would recommend sorting out an ergonomic mouse and keyboard if it's something you're going to practise regularly.

• The ACX technical requirements mean you take to add a few seconds of Room Tone at the beginning and cease of the file. We recorded this separately and and then I just used the pre-cut segments to top and tail each file which made the process quick and easy.

• Afterwards editing, there needs to be a QA listen to the audio to ensure all the cuts are done properly and the audio matches the book. Since I was truly sick of hearing my own voice by this stage, I employed my Virtual Assistant to do this footstep for me. Most of the files were fine, but in that location were a couple of instances where I had repeated myself without editing the error, so this QA footstep is crucial to avert issues after.

• High quality sound files are very big and because you'll be sending them back and forth, you tin't utilise email for this. They will as well make full upwards your computer retentiveness really fast. I used Dropbox as a method to transport the edited files to my VA and the terminal files to the producer.

For more recording and editing tips, I recommend Audiobooks for Indies past Simon Whistler which has a lot of useful information whether you want to record your own books, or piece of work with a narrator.

Would I do information technology again?

This process has given me a renewed respect for audiobook narrators, because at present I know how hard the job is and how many hours become into recording and editing a book. Information technology was much harder work than I expected!

However, it was definitely rewarding and I will be recording other non-fiction books in the future because I call up readers especially enjoy listening to non-fiction in the vox of the creator.

It too gives the entrepreneurial writer another production in their concern, and if yous'd similar to acquire more than virtually that, check out Business organisation for Authors: How to exist an Author Entrepreneur, available at present on Audible as well every bit in ebook and print formats. You tin can too find it here on iTunes.

Do you take whatever questions or comments about narrating your ain audiobook? Delight exercise go out them below and join the chat.

stamperbubtroge42.blogspot.com

Source: https://www.thecreativepenn.com/2015/04/20/record-your-own-audiobooks/

Share this post