Audiobook!

Don't ask me why I suddenly became obsessed with my novel formerly known as The Apple, because I have no idea. Something sparked it, but I can't remember what. Nevertheless, if you've been reading along, you know that I basically reconstituted it. 

Number one, I changed its title to What We Conceal. As I mentioned before, I'm not in love with the new title, but at least it better represents the book. I also did a bit of housekeeping.

Once the new version went live, I noticed that my KDP book page showed that it qualified for an audiobook. I know; I know ~ it's virtual voice, but do you have any idea how much a voice actor would charge for narration? For a mid-career level narrator, it would cost me anywhere from $2,000 to $3,000. Even if I chose someone just starting out in narration, I'd still have to pay around $1,200. I don't have anywhere near that kind of money.

I didn't just jump into it blind. KDP offers a ton of voices. Its female voices with an American accent total fourteen. That's actually not bad. I initially narrowed my selections to five, then down to two, and the one I ultimately chose fit the tone and age of my main character as I imagined her. (Yes, you can easily identify a voice's "age".)

No, I haven't listened to the entire thing. It's almost eight hours, for God's sake! An author has to be hopelessly in love with her manuscript to read or listen to it a thousand times, and I re-read that manuscript countless times before I published the book. So, I don't know how many words my virtual narrator managed to mispronounce, but I'm betting there are a few. So be it.

Here's my thought process: The novel, when it was known as The Apple, sold two whole copies. Now it's four years old and going nowhere. What could I possibly have to lose? What better book to experiment on? Where's the downside?

Lemme tell ya, turning a written work into an audiobook is the easiest task ever (on KDP, I mean). No uploading, no cover creation, no screen upon screen of decision-making. You choose your voice and choose your price. That's it.

I was clueless about pricing, though. I have a Spotify premium membership, and I've added a few audiobooks to my queue, but I have never listened to any of them. I suppose if I was still working, listening to an audiobook would help pass the time, but am I just supposed to sit here, hour after hour, as an audiobook unfolds? I'm a multi-tasker. I can't just sit. Needless to say, I've never purchased an audiobook, so I had no idea what the average price of one is. Google tells me that for the length of my novel, the going rate is $15.00 - $25.00. Really? Wow.

I priced mine at $6.99.

Perusing the audiobooks on Amazon, they're all priced at $0.00. I belatedly realized that's because Amazon wants people to purchase an Audible membership. I have no idea what the actual non-membership prices are, since I wasn't about to "click to purchase" any of them. (Bet they're more than $6.99, though.)

The "good part" of not selling is it allows an author to experiment. I did download the audiobook for $1.99. As the author, Amazon gave me a price break. And I will listen to, well, not all of it; but at least some of it to find out how good or bad it is. I do have the option of turning Running From Herself into an audiobook, too, but I'm leery. Running From Herself is my baby; I don't want to mess it up. And Microsoft Word's virtual narrator couldn't, for the life of her, pronounce the name "Layah" correctly. If KDP's narrator has the same problem, forget it. 

Bottom line, if you'd like to hear a sample of What We Conceal, you can listen here or here. 

And don't forget, the novel (in ebook form) will be free starting tomorrow. (Click on the cover to take you there.)

(Who says I'm afraid to market?)