How To Become an Audiobook Narrator
It’s not a get-rich-quick scheme
Over the last month, I have spent my time wading into the waters of audiobook narration. Full disclosure, I am not an expert by any means, but here is what I have learned so far.
- The first thing you want to do is research. There are numerous resources available to those looking to join the industry such as ACX.com and Narratorsroadmap.com. I also looked for personal accounts from narrators talking about their experiences.
2. After this initial round of research and dipping my toes in the water, I put myself through Sean Pratt’s suggested test (Sean has been a narrator for 17+ years). Sean says before jumping into the deep end of narration that you should spend multiple hours a day for two weeks reading aloud to yourself alone in a closet. If you make a mistake, you stop and go back to the beginning of that sentence and redo it, just like you would if you were recording. If you enjoy what you’re doing at the end of the test period then proceed.
3. Begin to find out what type of equipment you will need.
This part is not as clear-cut as it seems. There are a number of folks out there talking about becoming audiobook narrators as a type of get-rich-quick, easy peasy, side hustle. In reality, it’s quite a bit more complicated than that and it required an initial investment in terms of both time and money (though if you are willing and able to put that time and money in, it can be a great side hustle).
To learn more about this from someone who has been successful in the industry, I suggest you read Andy Garcia-Ruse’s book called, “How To Become An Audiobook Narrator: An In-Depth 10-Step Guide for Success.” You can find it in the Kindle app for around a dollar.
4. If after the previous three steps, you still feel like audiobook narration is for you, start to lay the groundwork for how to make this career goal a practical reality.
By this I mean, ask yourself the questions of where you would record. Do you want to do it at home or rent a studio space? If you want to record at home, where in your house can you set up shop? You need a quiet space that has been sound-treated: a small room where hard surfaces are covered so the sound isn’t bouncing off the walls and coming back to your microphone. This is achieved by covering walls and ceilings with foam, blankets, and/or fabric.
What equipment do you need? Do you have a good laptop or a computer and monitor? Do you have cables long enough to leave your computer outside of your recording space while keeping the monitor inside? Computers and even most laptops make enough sound that your microphone will pick it up when you record.
Do you have a microphone? If that answer is yes, is it a high enough quality mic to create a professional quality product? Generally speaking, this means you will want an xld microphone, which requires an audio interface so that you can connect it to your computer. There are some usb microphones that produce a high enough quality sound to be usable for a beginner, but if you want to make a career out of narration, you want to invest in the higher quality setup as early as you can.
You will need software to record your voice and for doing post-production mastering. This software is called a Digital Audio Workstation or a DAW. There are a number of free DAWs available, as well as some really high-quality software that is not free. I am using Presonus Studio One (shortened to Studio One) for my DAW. There is a learning curve for each type of DAW, some steeper than others. Studio One has many tools that, once you learn how to use them, can really speed up the time it takes to record and edit. There are also courses that can help you learn how to use the software. Sweetwater.com is a great place to buy your equipment and software, and they also offer a Studio Once course (though it seems to assume you have a good deal of background knowledge, that I do not possess). Another course to help you with the Studio One learning curve is offered by Don Baarns, a voice-over artist, coach, and expert on the tech side of the voice over industry. You can find the course at redbaarnsaudio.com and can get additional support from Don in one of his numerous Facebook groups for voice-over artists. This step takes a lot of time and it should not be rushed through.
If you feel that post-production is not for you, that is ok. It is possible to outsource this step. Outsourcing has pros and cons. The pros: the bulk of the time required to produce an audiobook is spent in post-production. If someone else is doing this for you, you get to take on more jobs. Outsourcing to a professional audio engineer also can produce a very high-quality product, which is what you want. The con: Outsourcing isn’t cheap. You with be spending a large portion of your income on a project paying your audio engineer. This is not a con for everyone. Time is money is just as true as money being money. So, it’s really more about deciding how you want to pay- with your time or with your money.
Do you have an external hard drive?
5. Connect with the audiobook narration community. Learn who the top narrators are and pay attention to them. Learn from them. Follow other narrators, voice over artists, and authors on social media. While you do this, be kind. Each voice is unique and beautiful. Some voices are prefect for certain projects while others are pristine for something else. There isn’t a need or an advantage to viewing others as competition.
6. After you have spent time practicing and learning how to use your DAW, record a practice audiobook. Choose a book in the public domain and record it in the format you would be required to for audiobook publication on ACX and donate it to LibriVox.org or one of a number of other hosts for such projects.
The reason for recording and publishing a public domain audiobook before trying for paid work is that you want to make sure you actually know what you are doing and how to deliver the product before you audition to bring a new book to life for an author who has just put their blood, sweat, and tears into their story. Taking on a paying project for practice can hurt the author, book sales, and your future career. Fake it ’til you make it is not going to cut it in this field, and is not professional.
7. Have professional headshots taken, create a website, and increase your social media presence. Producers and authors want to know who they are hiring.
8. Record and upload samples of your narration to acx, upwork, fiverr, voices, etc. Some of these services are pay to play, while some will cost you nothing to create a profile and add samples.
9. Begin auditioning, go to events in the narration community, and up your networking game. You can improve your skills and network at the same time by connecting with narrators who are already successful and who offer coaching. There is always room for you to get better at your craft and each coach brings something different to the table that can help you to be a better person, colleague, and performer.
10. Remember that to be successful in this career, you need to play the long game. There are very few actors who land huge roles and watch their careers bloom after their first audition. Rejection is a part of life, even more so in any type of acting work. Rejection now doesn’t mean you will always be rejected. It just means you haven’t found the books written for your voice yet, but those books are out there waiting for you. So keep going. And keep listening to audiobooks!
There is so much more for me to learn, but I’ll keep checking back in as I learn it in case it helps you too.
