J. Scott Bennett | Narrator
- Tango with Text
- Mar 18, 2017
- 7 min read
You mentioned that you have been narrating books for one and a half years, what made you want to do this?
I got into narrating in the summer of 2015. I am a middle school teacher throughout most of the year (reading and history). Like most teachers I get about two and a half months off in the summer. I was rather bored and looking for something to occupy the time. As an avid reader I was always downloading books for my e-reader. (I have a Kindle Unlimited subscription - a bargain for my wife and me.) Somewhere in downloading books to read I came across a link that described the Amazon service known as ACX (Audiobook Creation Exchange). I began to read up on it and thought it would be neat to try. At first I invested very little money in equipment as it was just a hobby. After a while (when I found out how much fun it was to narrate books and could actually make good money doing it) I invested more in a better computer, microphone, etc.
How did you become a narrator (the process you used)?
I see that I answered a lot of question two in my answer above. The process with ACX is pretty simple. One has to create a narrator/producer profile on Amazon's ACX website. Record some demos and provide background information. From there it is a matter of auditioning for available titles. When I first began I prepared about 10 auditions one Sunday and was surprised to find that I had been selected for a couple of them within a few hours. At that point I was "off and running." I've been doing it steadily since then.
Do you have any tips for anyone wanting to become a narrator?
I'm not sure if I'm the best or most qualified person to offer tips. However, from what I have learned I would suggest a new narrator should become part of some of the online forums for narrators/producers. I've learned so much from others in the business. There are online seminars and coaches available. Check out YouTube. There are all kinds of free resources/advice on narrating. (I especially relied on this when learning how to use the recording software. I still go there quite often to brush up on some of the technical stuff.) Also, if I have a character with a certain accent, I will try to watch some videos of native speakers to get the feel for the rhythm and cadence of their speech.
Other advice: don't spend a lot of money on software and equipment until you know you want to do this. There are many who find that sitting in a booth for hours a day reading is not for them. One can get good equipment inexpensively to begin with and upgrade later.
How do you prepare for a narration?
My preparation to narrate a book is pretty simple. I will read through the book and make some notes as I go. (If there are words or names I don't know how to pronounce, I will then start my research. I will make notes about the main characters - what does the author say specifically about their manner of speech (i.e. soft, gruff, accents, etc.) Then I will start recording. I always re-read a chapter just before I go into the booth. I also have some fun little vocal exercises I do to warm up the face and voice before I actually hit the record button. And hydrate. I will drink plenty of water.
Are you 'picky' about what you will narrate or are you a 'come one, come all' kind of a narrator?
I don't think I'm too picky. I've done many different genres and do not have any that I would preemptively rule out. That said, I try to stick to books that spark my interest and resonate with me. When I see books that are seeking producers, I will read a sample of them. If a book bores me from the outset, I don't think I would be a good fit for the narrator. However, I can be (for lack of a better word) somewhat mercenary. If I see a book that is offering a good "payday," I may audition for it even if it's not something I would ordinarily WANT to read for personal enjoyment.
For #MTW I listed to the two Abel Yeager novels by Scott Bell. Both were wonderful stories with several characters with different voices - how do you decide on the ‘voices’ for the characters?
If the character in a book is described as a person from a certain region or country, that is what I have to look at first. If an author or producer sends me a note at the beginning asking for a specific type of voice, that can be helpful also. However, if nothing in the book indicates what voice, or if the author doesn't give any direction, I will try to rely on "gut instinct." The voices I did for the Yeager books came from my time in the U.S. Air Force. I was trained as a Spanish translator and spent 4 years working with Spanish speakers from all backgrounds (but mainly Cuba and California). So I tried to imagine myself as one of my friends from those days.
How do you manage to keep the voices the same in the second novel?
Keeping voices consistent in a series of books can be challenging. I keep copies of all my audio files, and if I know there will be multiple books I will try to make a file titled characters in which I will put a sample of each of the main characters. When I go to start on a subsequent book that has some of the same characters, I will cue it up and listen to them. I recently had to do that with my Sorcerer's Saga series. There were several characters: dragons, wizards, etc. that I had to refresh my memory with.
Yeager's Law is 260 pages in print format and the audio is 9 hours 13 minutes. How long did it take you to prepare, narrate and then edit the recording? This will give us an idea of the time taken on the average book.
I never see the print edition of a book - I receive all of them as a PDF or DOC file usually. On average it takes from 4-5 hours for 1 finished hour. So a 9 hr. 13 minute book takes about 40-50 hours to complete. Since I work during the day at school, I try to get about 4-5 hours in at night. I put a lot of time in on the weekends. Therefore, a book about this length will take me the better part of two weeks. I think those who do audiobooks full-time can probably get 7-10 hours complete in a week.
What is your recording process?(eg. narrate for 20 minutes, rehydrate/ stretch/ bathroom for 5, return and repeat)
My process varies from day to day. For instance, I recorded three chapters last night on my next book. I recorded them back to back (they are about 1/2 hour each). Today I will spend time editing and proofing them. Editing involves taking out any bad takes and checking the timing. Then I will listen to the whole chapter while looking at the text to see if I made any misreads or mis-pronunciations. If I did, I will mark them to fix later. I'll do this for all the files before I try to go back for the pick-ups (which is where I correct any misreads). Then the file will be ready for mastering. (I hope I'm not boring you with the details). A short answer - I'll spend a few hours recording - then the rest of the afternoon/evening editing. For what it's worth, I always do a quick re-read of a chapter before I actually record it. If a chapter is VERY long - I will take a break about 45 minutes in.
Does anyone else in your family narrate books? and how do they support you during your working time?
I'm the only one in the family involved in narration - though I tried to get my sister interested. She and my older brother also have a background in theater. My wife supports what I do by trying not to make a lot of noise in the house when I'm recording (and keeping the cat out of the studio).
It sounds like you do this from home (comments about equipment etc) - how do you manage to keep your family (human and/or furry!!) out of this space?
We turned our spare room into a studio at home. I had my brother-in-law build an isolation booth and sound proofed it myself with acoustic foam and sound absorption tiles. I use a regular PC to do my editing. Probably the biggest investment (aside from the isolation booth) was my microphone. It was about $400 for it and so much better in quality than the first mic I used. Nobody (other than my little granddaughter has ever tried to go into my recording space. And my cat. She went in there once - so I try to keep the door shut)
And following on from that, would you prefer to keep it this way or have a spot away from home for this?
I absolutely love being able to record at home. I don't have to worry how I look, etc. However, it would be nice to record in a professional studio with a dedicated director and engineer. I often think how nice to be able to focus on the reading part and leave the other post-production stuff to tech gurus.
Are there any food or drink items you have to avoid when you are in the process of narrating a book?
I know that there probably are certain food items to avoid but I don't really worry too much about it. I do, however, have to make sure I have eaten at least something - otherwise I will get a lot of stomach noises in the booth - and that mic is VERY sensitive to pick up every gurgle.
This is all I can think of now. If anything occurs to me, I will shoot another e-mail your way. It's been fun.
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