Following my interview with Violet Phillips, about narrating my memoir, Hiking Naked: A Quaker Woman’s Search for Balance, a reader asked a question I hadn’t thought to ask. Here’s what Violet told me about how long it took her to record the manuscript.
As with so many creative efforts, it depends: on deadlines, schedules, and studio and engineer availability. For this book, which has a playing time of just over six-and-a-half hours, Violet described the following steps to record it.
I read for at least two hours each day. At that pace, it took a week altogether—to just do the recording.
The next steps are all the audio engineering: 1) editing the files and 2) doing the post-production. This all took about another week and a half. So, it basically took about two weeks.
I find what people don’t really know about narration is that there are steps involved. The reading is one component. The audio engineering is another—usually much longer—part of the process. It’s all about hitting the deadline and planning out the recording/editing time needed to get the book done.
Thanks again to Violet for her skill and passion for speaking the words writers like me have written. And thanks as well to Homebound Publications for making my memoir available in paper, e-book, and audiobook. I hope you’ll consider listening to Violet’s beautiful voice. You can order the audio version here: Hiking Naked – audiobook.
*Afterthoughts are my blog version of a practice followed in some Quaker meetings. After meeting for worship ends, people continue in silence for a few more minutes during which they’re invited to share thoughts or reflect on the morning’s worship. I’ve adopted the form here for last-day-of-the-month brief reflections on headlines, quotes, books, previous posts, maybe even bumper stickers and refrigerator magnets.
Photo above courtesy time.com.
Iris Graville - Author 