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Karen@KarenCommins.com

Karen Commins

Award Winning

Atlanta Audiobook Share-rator™

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Hillary Huber

Press Page

9 January 2017

Last updated 19 January 2024

 

 

Interview Key on computer keyboard

 

To learn more about me, my narration, and audiobook production, please check out my comments and interviews on other sites:

 

Narrators Cup of Joe with host Daniela Acitelli

1/18/24 If Not This, What Else? You Never Know How Close You Are To What You Seek! with Anne Flosnik


10/5/23 10 Minutes with Joc with Jocqueline Protho


Audiobook Lovin’ Podcast with host Viviana Izzo

9/29/23 Season 5, Ep 3 Narrator Karen Commins


Narrators Cup of Joe with host Daniela Acitelli

12/8/22 People Spend More Time Planning Their Vacation Than They Do Planning Their Lives!


Clubhouse Narrator Focus with hosts Danielle Gensler and Alex Picard

10/27/22 Time Management

 

 


The Audiobook Club podcast with host John York

10/22/22 Karen Commins, Chief Cartographer of Narrators Roadmap & Audiobook Narrator

 

 


Clubhouse 

9/16/22 My Ask Me Anything

 

 


Audiobook Reader’s Review podcast with host Sarah Bacaller

8/1/22 Episode 2

 

 


Clubhouse Audiobook Industry Chat with hosts Stephanie Németh-Parker and Amanda Stribling

6/21/22 Public Domain Audiobooks

 

 


Clubhouse Ask an Audiobook Pro with hosts Hillary Huber and Vikas Adam

3/14//22 Narrator’s Roadmap

 

 


Narrators Cup of Joe with host Daniela Acitelli

10/5/21 What You Focus on Is Important So Focus On What You Want, Not What You Lack


ACX blog

6/8/21 Celebrating 10 Years of Storytellers: Narrator Karen Commins

 


The Journal

12/11/20 I was mentioned in the article Instructional writer reads, reviews all 940 bestselling novels of 20th century.

 

 


Wall Street Journal

11/1/20 The Secrets To Success as an Audiobook Narrator by Kate Murphy
The journalist quoted producers, publishers, and several narrators in this piece. Since I’m not a WSJ subscriber, I can’t see beyond their pay wall. I therefore researched ProQuest at my library and saved this PDF of the article.


 

VoyageATL 
4/29/20 Meet Karen Commins

 


Audiobook Narration For BeginnersAudiobook Narration for Beginners Podcast
Fellow narrator J. Rodney Turner hosts this podcast to help newcomers learn about audiobook narration. Audiobook narration is my favorite subject!

 

7/1/19 Episode 26: Karen Commins – Part 1
7/8/19 Episode 27: Karen Commins – Part 2
7/15/19 Episode 28: Karen Commins – Part 3


Georgia Radio Reading Service
4/17/19  I’m honored to be highlighted in the April 2019 newsletter as Volunteer of the Month.


ACX University
11/2/18 Acting With Intention
In this 16:31 video, I talk about setting career goals and staying motivated as you continue on your path. In the concurrent chat, I offered resources and answered many questions. You can find all of that ancillary material in this post.


The Audiobook Speakeasy Podcast

7/23/18 Episode 26: Karen Commins
Host Rich Miller is also an audiobook narrator, so it was a special delight to have a drink together and discuss all things about audiobooks in this 1:03.51 show.


The Postcardist

The Postcardist Podcast

6/22/18 Episode 22: Greetings From Karen Commins
In this fun and interesting 59:11 show, host Frank Roche and I talk about how I use postcards in marketing my business and so much more!


Build Book Buzz
4/4/18 How To Promote Your Audiobook
In this guest post, I answered 8 questions about audiobook marketing.


Spin Sucks
12/18/17 The Big Question: Audiobooks vs Reading
I explain 2 factors I use to determine whether I listen to or read a book for pleasure.


Animatron
11/29/17 4 Awesome Examples Of Social Media Contests (+ Tips How To Run Your Own Contest)
Hint: I entered a contest for a reason other than the prize.


Acuity Training
9/12/17 Adobe Productivity — 69 Experts Reveal Their Top Tips
I always say technology is my friend, and I offer 2 tips here: 1 on Photoshop, and 1 about Adobe Export PDF


Business News Daily
6/15/17 Evernote: 7 Features You Should Be Using


FanGirlNation Magazine
5/24/17 Interview With A Narrator: Karen Commins


The Author Biz podcast

1/30/17 Marketing and Promotion for Audiobooks, episode TAB104
Author and host Stephen Campbell and I talk about ways authors can promote their audiobooks.


Stacy Juba, author of Fooling Around With Cinderella
1/5/17 Part 1 about me as a person
1/7/17 Part 2 about the audiobook production process


The James Altucher Report, Dec. 2016 (private subscription)


Amy Metz, author of Murder & Mayhem in Goose Pimple Junction
10/14/16 part 1 about me as a person
10/20/16 part 2 about the audiobook production process


East-West Audio Body Shop webcast with hosts George Whittam and Dan Lenard
6/22/15 EWABS Episode 193 Audiobook Roundtable


Wendy Pitts, fellow narrator
3/5/15 Monthly Mentoring column


April Holgate audiobook listener/reviewer
12/30/15 Update
12/28/14 Original Interview


Advertising Age Magazine

2/15/10
I responded to an editorial about Super Bowl ads and noted that those without voiceover were not as effective.


LibriVox Community Podcast

12/19/08 Episode 93  Starting at :28, I talk about getting started as a volunteer reader.


The Publicity Hound blog

1/28/07
I advised a voiceover talent who wanted to know actions they could take to market themselves.

 


Kiplinger Personal Finance Magazine

June 2006
I was profiled in a story about home improvements after we learned some hard lessons about contractors in building an addition on our house for my studio.

 

 

Filed Under: Audiobooks, Marketing, Narrators, Press Room Tagged With: Adobe, Amanda Stribling, Amy Metz, Anne Flosnik, April Holgate, Basil Sands, Clubhouse, Dan Lenard, Daniela Acitelli, Evernote, FanGirlNation, Frank Roche, George Whittam, Hillary Huber, interview, Jocqueline Protho, Narrators Cup of Joe, Postcardist, Stacy Juba, Stephanie Németh-Parker, Stephen Campbell, Vikas Adam, Wendy Pitts

Audiobook Roundtable on EWABS

30 June 2015

Last Monday was Ladies’ Night on the East West Audio Body Shop (EWABS) show! On  22 June 2015, I was excited to be a guest on the show and talk with hosts George Whittam and Dan Lenard about my favorite thing — AUDIOBOOKS!

My narrator colleagues Hillary Huber and Ann M. Richardson and publisher Carlyn Craig, founder of Post Hypnotic Press, joined me as guests.

In our 1.5 hours on the show, we covered a variety of topics of interest to both new and experienced narrators.

At one point, I compared the job of audiobook narrator to that of a baseball player. I summarized my thoughts in the graphic below.

[Read more…] about Audiobook Roundtable on EWABS

Filed Under: Audiobooks, Away From the Mic, Business, Narrators, Other Videos, Videos Tagged With: Ann M Richardson, audiobook, baseball, Carlyn Craig, Dan Lenard, EWABS, George Whittam, Hillary Huber, Post Hypnotic Press

How To Become An Audiobook Narrator

27 September 2014

Are you thinking about getting into voiceover work? You’ll want to read this article that is devoted to that topic.

If you’re specifically interested in becoming an audiobook narrator, read on!

As you probably know, audiobooks have become mainstream entertainment. Consequently, many voiceover talent, screen and stage actors, and people in other fields are eager to become narrators. As I wrote previously:

A good narrator will make the performance transparent and SEEM like the easiest thing on earth….just like talking. However, good narrators usually have completed professional training in voice-over and also have thoroughly prepared the material they are reading by researching pronunciations and determining characterizations before they ever walked into the recording studio.

Before you do anything toward actually becoming a narrator, my first question to you is:

Do you actually LISTEN to audiobooks? If not, your first step should be to start listening to books. You can borrow audiobooks from the library or buy them on Amazon, Audible, and iTunes.

My second question to you is:

Have you taken my Audiobook Narrator Self-Assessment Quiz? I list 30 questions and discuss the answers in a series of 4 articles to help you decide whether you would be a good fit for this type of work. Take the quiz and come back to this post if your answers point you toward pursuing this career.

Develop Skills

If you have never recorded an audiobook, I suggest that you first watch prolific and award-winning audiobook narrator and teacher Sean Pratt‘s video “So You Want to Be An Audiobook Narrator”. Warning: You will be tested again!

Audiobook narration requires different skills than commercial voiceover or theatre acting, though either or both disciplines are very helpful toward becoming a successful narrator.

A great way to start developing these skills is to record for the blind, either locally or through Learning Ally. This option is a wonderful way to gain and practice skills in storytellng and production while being of service to the community.

I previously suggested that people volunteer for LibriVox. Be warned that LibriVox releases its recordings into the Public Domain, which means someone else could sell your recording and/or harvest your voice for AI without any compensation to you. For that reason, I no longer recommend newcomers volunteer there.

To do volunteer work through these sites, you would need a computer, a microphone, and some sort of audio editing program. Since Audacity is a free audio editor, many people start recording with it and move up to a Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) that offers non-destructive editing. Be aware that proficiency in audio recording and editing comes with a learning curve. I wrote an article that lists 7 ways to get up to speed on your DAW. You also can do a Google search to find innumerable videos and blogs to help you learn audio editing techniques.

You might have to go to a designated studio to record for the blind as many of those organizations do not utilize remote narrators.

Like any performance art, audiobook narration is a highly competitive BUSINESS. It’s not a field in which you should expect on-the-job training. When you are cast to narrate a book, you are expected to know how to complete the project within your deadline.

I recommend that newcomers take classes from established coaches before creating a demo to gain work. Listeners expect a very high level of performance and pristine audio free of background sounds, mouth noises, etc.

Pat Fraley is a fabulous and highly entertaining voiceover and audiobook teacher. He often teaches narration classes with Scott Brick, a superstar narrator in the audiobook industry. If you can’t get to one of their classes, Pat also has home-study courses on his web site, along with The Gypsy’s Guide to Professional Home Recording. This guide is an excellent resource to help you create a better sounding studio on a budget. You’ll find other terrific, vetted audiobook coaches and consultants linked in the Connections section of my NarratorsRoadmap.com home page.

Find Work

With a demo and some storytelling and production skills, it’s time to start marketing yourself for work. Audible’s Audiobook Creation Exchange (ACX.com) is a terrific site for beginners and professionals alike. Narrators can establish a profile that includes an unlimited number of samples. Author, agents, and publishers — collectively known as rights holders — post titles for which narrators can audition. Everyone participates for FREE! Audible created the site in 2011 in order to produce more audiobooks for the ever-growing market.

First, I recommend that you read my article and its comments on the ACX blog titled How to Act Like an Audiobook Narrator. Next, read my article 4 Keys to Becoming a Successful ACX Audiobook Producer.

You may also want to get my 3-hour webinar Put Yourself in the ACX Driver’s Seat, in which I go through the ACX system and show you how to evaluate listings and maximize your experience on the site.

The video below will give you some more info about working as a narrator through ACX, as well as some introductory coaching. Listen closely when Pat Fraley, Scott Brick, and Hillary Huber, another award-winning narrator, offer performance direction to some volunteers.

Be sure to watch the videos posted on the ACX site to learn how to create retail-ready audio that will meet ACX’s technical standards.

The majority of books posted on ACX are paid on a royalty share basis. You receive no money up front but receive royalties on each sale for 7 years. The royalty percentage is currently capped at 40%, which means you and the rights holder would each earn 20% of the proceeds. You will NOT earn 20% of the retail sales price due to the variances from Audible member credits, price reductions, Whispersync sales, and foreign currency exchanges. Due to the monetary risk involved with royalty share projects, many narrators refuse to do them.

However, money isn’t the only consideration when deciding whether to accept a royalty share offer. This article outlines other pros and cons of royalty share agreements.

If you decide to audition for royalty share projects, you’ll find some helpful tips about choosing a good project and managing your expectations in this post.  It also links to my post about my audiobook marketing articles on the ACX blog.

You should establish a profile on ACX if only to join the Facebook group named Indie (ACX And Others) Audiobook Narrators and Producers. Members of this very active group range from the newest person to industry veterans with years of experience and 100s of audiobooks to their credit. You could spend weeks reading and learning from the helpful discussions listed in the comprehensive group FAQ, which I created and maintain. The FAQ contains a link to a spreadsheet of proofers and editors.

Auditioning on ACX is just one way to find work as a narrator. I listed 9 other ideas in this essay. One of those suggestions was to start your own audiobook production company. I did (!), and I outlined my steps for you here. One narrator made a spreadsheet of the top 50 books they had heard, researched the producers and publishers associated with them, and contacted all of them. Another option is to license the audio rights to a favorite book, cast yourself to narrate it, and publish it yourself! This article will give you inspiration for that approach.

Manage Your Time

Once you start your first project, you might be surprised how much time is required to narrate, edit and master an audiobook before release. A rule of thumb is that 6 or more hours are needed in real-time for EXPERIENCED people to produce 1 finished hour of audio. While this blog post explains more about it, the time breaks down as:

  • 1 hour to pre-read each hour’s text and research pronunciations
  • 2 hours to record an hour’s worth of text (allows for re-takes due to stomach rumbles, coughs, or any other kind of mistake or noise)
  • 3 hours to edit, proof, and master the hour you just recorded

Not all of these tasks are necessarily performed by the narrator. The narrator working at home either must do them or pay another professional to do them. A book with a 10-hour finished time therefore may require 60 hours in real time to create.

You can use the word count to estimate the the finished time as described in this article about determining your rate.

Study Other Resources

I also recommend that you read these thoughtful articles and guides from other narrators about getting started in audiobook narration:

  • “Breaking Into Audiobooks” part 1 and part 2 by Rachel Fulginiti
  • “Curious About Becoming a Narrator? Learn to Fish…” by Ann Richardson
  • Become A Narrator by Erin deWard
  • Two Cents by R. C. Bray (click on the menu option)
  • So you want to record Audiobooks… by Marissa DuBois

You may also find these books and audiobooks from industry veterans to be very helpful:

  • Audiobook Narrator: The Art of Recording Audio Books by Barbara Rosenblat
  • Audiobook Narration Manual: How to Set Up a Home Studio and Record Audiobooks for a Living by Derek Perkins
  • Acting With The Voice: The Art of Recording Books by Robert Blumenfeld
  • Storyteller: How to Be An Audiobook Narrator by Lorelei King and Ali Muirden

While other people who call themselves narrators have written books and/or created on-line courses, I’d advise that you look at the author’s audiobook credits on Audible before deciding to buy. Some people with little to no actual experience in this profession have written books to cash in on the audiobook boom. If most of the books in a narrator’s portfolio have a finished time of 3-4 hours or less and/or are book summaries, diet plans, or cookbooks, I suggest that you spend your money on a product from a more well-established person who has narrated popular genres.

You’ll find even MORE resources on my site NarratorsRoadmap.com!

Being a professional audiobook narrator is the fulfillment of a dream for me! Is it also your dream? By taking the actions you’ve read here, you’ll be on your way to bringing your own dream to fruition! I’d love to hear from you when you publish your first audiobook!

 

Last updated 10/30/21

Filed Under: Audiobooks, Narrators, Voice-Over Tagged With: ACX, Audacity, audiobook, Hillary Huber, Learning Ally, Librivox, Pat Fraley, Scott Brick, Sean Pratt

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