Do You Hear What I Hear?

It is nearly Valentine’s Day which means Christmas is over. But a Christmas song is still running through my head.

The reason Do You Hear What I Hear? is playing in my mind has to do with my last post to y’all (I’ve been in the South two years, so I've earned the right to talk like that now). In that post I promised to tell you about an exciting new twist in writing and marketing books.

A few weeks ago, I received the first fifteen-minute sample of the audio version of Willard Manor. It is being done professionally by ACX, the audio division of Amazon. I listened to the sample, suggested a few minor changes, and a revised sample was then sent to me. I okayed that sample and now the entire book is being made into an audio book which should be completed by the end of March. Hooray! 

You might be wondering how expensive it is to use this service. I’m happy to tell you that it is costing me nothing. Zero. Zip. Nada. They make their money by taking half of any royalties I earn on the sale of my audio version. Since my sales of print or digital versions haven’t exactly put me in a different tax bracket, I’m afraid they might not make much. And the half of the royalties I get will be like found money. 

I was able to choose if I wanted a male or female to read my book, what age range the voice should be, what accent the reader should use, and what tone of voice the reader should have. The fifteen-minute sample was to see if I chose correctly for the way I wanted the book to sound. Beverly is the woman performing Willard Manor for me. When this book is finished, I will ask Beverly to do the audio version of my book, Leaving Mark.

There is nothing like writing a book and then clutching those first hot-off-the-press copies to your chest, smelling the print and running your hand over the cover. Now, with ACX, you can utilize yet another sense—hearing. It is an absolute thrill to sit back and listen to your words being read by a professional storyteller. You experience your book in an entirely new way and, let me tell you, it is mind blowing!
 

My audio version should be available through Amazon in March or April; I’ll keep you advised.

In the meantime, Happy Valentine’s Day! 

 Quote of the Day: The hearing ear, and the seeing eye; the Lord hath made even both of them. Proverbs 20:12