Audiobooks are extremely popular. People listen to them while commuting, exercising, and during many other activities. They also listen on a wide range of devices, with 46% of smart speaker owners saying they've used their speakers to listen to audiobooks. But what goes into recording an audiobook? Learn more about the steps that come between the author writing the book and the completed audio version below.

Hiring a Narrator

One of the most important parts of recording an audiobook is hiring a narrator. A narrator needs to be someone who knows how to bring the story to life with their voice. Some authors will narrate their own books, but others are better off hiring a professional. Once the narrator is hired, they need to prepare for the job by getting familiar with the book and figuring out the best way to record it.

Recording

Recording an audiobook takes time and money. The narrator will be recording in a studio, where they'll need to allow for plenty of set-up time to make sure everything is ready for recording. They'll also need to allow for extra time during recording. People make mistakes or need to do several takes in order to get the best one. For longer books, they'll also need to schedule multiple recording sessions since fatigue can result in a bad performance from the narrator. This can cause the process to take longer, but it also provides the best end product when the audiobook is published.

Editing

Once the recording process is done, the audiobook needs to be edited. This will require someone with experience in audio editing software to take the recordings and get them ready to publish. There are many steps that go into editing the book, including adjusting the sound on the recordings and cutting out unnecessary space. The end result is the polished audiobook that you listen to on your commute.

There is a lot of work that goes into creating an audiobook. Much like a published print book, the story needs to be packaged in a way that is professionally done and appealing to customers. With a good narrator and editor provided with the equipment they need, a good book can become a great audiobook.