[EN] The Publisher’s Guide: Key steps to the realisation of an audio book

How do we realise an audio book ?

To realise an audio book requires a lot of technics from its author. This implies a mastery of the book to be adapted; as it will enable him to establish a list of requirements needed for its conversion to an audio content. This process can be done following some key steps that we have been able to bring out, having made some researches on the topic.

Who are the beneficiaries of this tutorial ?

• publishers
• Authors
• writers
• the audience

What are the requirements ?

• To be keen of reading
• Know how to use a computer
• Have an idea on what to be conceived

What are the necessaries (material /software) ?

• A computer (PC or MAC)
• A console or a recording
• A physical book
• Some wiles (music, effects, sounds)
• Some storage struts (CD, DVD, VCD)

The six steps of an audio book realisation

This occur after the publisher has received the physical book, to be converted into an audio content, from an author.

• Choosing a book
• Choosing  comedians
• Interpreting  texts
• Recording
• Mastering / mixing
• Exportation

CHOOSING A BOOK

This is known as the first step in realising an audio book. Here, discussions take place between an author and the publisher in order to find out which book is going to be converted into an audio content. In other words, the author has to present a list of books to the publisher for him to deeply assess them, taking into consideration  parameters like the content, the story, the characters involved, their emotions and the message the author is trying to pass to the audience. The publisher is not only choosing a common book, but a specific book   that can be interpreted and adapt into an audio content. Therefore, he will be able to look for people or comedians who will find ways to make the audience feel the story as it is narrated in the book.

CHOOSING COMEDIANS

This is the most important step in the realisation of an audio book. Choosing comedians is like deciding on what the story is going to look like from the beginning till the end. The publisher, head of the project, looks for people who can interprete texts, acting it as it is in the proposed book. If he doesn’t get what he wants from a comedian, he can look for another one. The main aim here is to deliver the message with all the emotion as in real life. That is why the comedians should stay focus on the texts that has been given to them. Each of them is responsible of his text, so they are the ones to make it lively an attractive for the audience to better understand what is actually happening in the book. If the publisher fails in choosing the right comedians for this issue, he should be sure that his audio book will neither captivate the attention of the audience nor will it be bought if sold on the market. The stake is gigantic.

INTERPRETING TEXTS

Interpreting texts is the third step in this process. This is where the chosen comedians are actually acting the book according to the requirements of the publisher and the role of the character they are representing.

RECORDING

This occur when the texts have already been interpreted and validated by the publisher.

MASTERING/MIXING

Here, all the elements involved in the realisation of an audio book are combined together, arranged and put into an assemblage. When mastering or mixing them, we are trying to put insert the voices of our comedians where they are supposed to, adding sounds, effects and a background music so it could form a whole. After this step, we can have our audio content ready to be inserted into the storage strut of our choice.

EXPORTATION

This last step is where the audio content is introduced into a storage strut (CD, DVD, VCD) for its distribution and commercialization.

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WATCH OUT: In some cases, the writer or author is in charge of the realisation of his audio book because he owns a recording studio. As a result, a good number of activities are commissioned, that it, they are done by some professional in the domain.

by Danielle Pigha Penanjo