4 Reasons to do the audiobook, too

A few years ago, after writing the book I referenced in chapter 2 of Amplify (about the essential oils), I sat down to read the audiobook. I’m not sure why it wasn’t a great experience, but it wasn’t. In fact, it was horrible.

I do know…

📣 I tried to read at the oddest times (between the kids’ naps)

📣 I found myself consistently interrupted

📣 I continued making mistakes and finding myself needing to re-record.

Furthermore, I was never happy with the way I sounded…

Who likes to actually hear the sound of their own voice on recording?

Why I read it

I wanted to sell my recording on Audible (Amazon’s platform, which was the only purveyor of audiobooks I knew about at that time), but I couldn’t. To upload to Audible— using ACX, their “self-publishing” affiliate— you must have a “zero sound” room. That means you can’t have any discernible background noise— at all. My audiobook clearly didn’t qualify.

While researching this, I discovered that ACX has a list of “readers” who market their services. They’ll read your book, allow you to approve their work, and then upload it to ACX. The two of you agree on the terms. Whereas you pay some of the professionals in advance, others will do the work for a percentage of the profits.

Short on cash (I was just then learning all of this) I found a guy named Peter who agreed to a 50/50 profit split, requiring nothing down. I chose Peter. (These pros have highlight reels, and they’ll willingly read a sample of your book to show you their capacity.)

Eventually, he read two books for me… the first book I wrote and the follow-up about the compensation plan. For a season, those profits readily rolled in.

Take 2, try again

A few years later, when the OilyApp project launched, I decided to take another shot at reading the books myself— all those new “short books” we were producing. By then, I was more comfortable with my voice, I’d been writing and speaking with greater frequency, and the time behind the podcast mic had acquainted me with the nuances of speaking for a non-live audience. (Trust me, it’s a different game than talking in front of a crowd.)

I read through my entire Healthy Hustle book one evening, listened back, and thought I heard a few hums of my fridge in the background.

“That’s impossible,” I thought. “I’m in a closet with sound-absorbing foam on every wall, and the Frigidaire is two rooms— and a hall— away.”

Not only were a few hums clearly tracked by ACX’s “quality check” experts (probably online software), the whisk of water moving through the lines and into the ice maker were clearly audible, as well. My soundproof closet clearly wasn’t “zero sound.”

Ugh. I decided I could spent a few thousand dollars creating a true home studio— and invest the time and effort required to learn how to engineer the audio and edit the final product— or I could hire a professional. It was an easy decision.

“Out-source the tech,” I said to myself. Early the next morning I was on the phone with a local studio, setting an appointment to go read the book. It went smoothly.

And, for a few more audiobooks, my partners and I gladly forked-over about $1,000 per book. The audio sounded great, I owned the rights to it (since I retained the books and the content), and we quickly recouped the investment.

But…

Making adjustments 

When it came time to reading my four LifeLift audiobooks, I decided I wanted to change-it-up. When you read in the studio— and for Amazon / Audible / ACX— they want you to just read the book.

“Stay with the words on the page,” they say. “No commentary.”

That rule makes sense. After all, an audiobook is— or should be— a hear-able version of the see-able book. Someone listening to the audiobook should be able to hold the printed book in their hand and follow along.

I didn’t prefer that rule, so I dodged it. I decided to read my LifeLift books— all four of them— and take license to add commentary and color to them. Yes, I read the book, but I also explained my graphics. I referenced some of the footnotes. I provided extra details— insights shared alone between me and the listener— that don’t exist in the printed book.

I like it better this way. I’m able to express my personality. I can connect with the reader. I’m more… me. (Moreover, it doesn’t require hours in the studio, it doesn’t cost a chunk of change, and it helps me with my editing process— as I’ll explain in a moment.)

It allows me to do “more” of a job, not less

I understand, it’s not the “industry standard,” but I believe this approach— at least in the beginning— might work well for you, too.

You see, my experience in the actual studio certainly did provide me with a (necessary) framework of how things should be done. Then, I was able to build on that and adapt— not to do less of a job but to do more of a job.

Moreover, the iPad I use to capture my audiobooks came equipped with the recording software, and the Yeti mic I favor cost about $100 (see this page for a list of the tools I use). I can setup quickly, and I can record anywhere.

A few weeks ago I sat down with my friend Randy. He developed a great resource for parenting your kids at every age. He calls it From Diapers to Dorms. It’s available as a book and as a video course.

I told him, “Make an audiobook as a bump on the checkout page.”

“I don’t have one,” he said, “and I don’t want to spend the money to go to a studio, hoping that it might sell.”

“First,” I told him, “it will sell. For sure…” I provided him with some of the stats from my site and a few of the content creators I helped platform. Then—

“Second, you don’t have to go into the studio. Just record yourself. Do it the right way— meaning read the introduction and the title and the copyrights and everything else. But also take some creative license with the project…” I shared my process with him.

The unexpected benefits

I found a few unexpected perks through my audiobook journey—

First, reading the book aloud is one of the best ways to make sure the message actually “makes sense.”

For sure, I always think the words flow because I write them. Sometimes they do, and other times they don’t. When I read them aloud, well… the sound doesn’t lie.

This provides me with an easy-edit.

You’re likely going to read and re-read your own words a few times during your editing phase anyway. Whether you’re looking for typos, sentence structure, or anything else… reading through the book aloud can provide you with one of these “passes” through the content. I’ve found the book need not be completely finished in order to “audiobook it,” as well.

The audiobook for Amplify was my seventh or eighth swipe at this material. Rather than sitting at a table with an editing pen in hand, once I was convinced I had the core dialed-in, I sat at the microphone, read a proof copy, and made a few tweaks to it!

That leads me to the next unexpected perk…

Second, reading the book is one of the best ways to catch typos and other oddities.

There’s no way to proofread your own text. Your brain automatically inserts what you meant to say instead of whatever you actually did say… and you miss your errors. But, when you read the book aloud, all of your senses come into play and— suddenly— you intercept errors which previously lurked unseen. It’s not uncommon for me to find 40-50 errors in one of my manuscripts when I sit down and lay the audio tracks.

Third, reading the book helps you refine the message and find your voice.

Reading is great practice for your podcast (see chapter 16), such that parts of your audiobook can actually be used for your podcast.

People will pay for convenience— so don’t worry that releasing some of your audiobook content as podcast episodes will cannibalize your sales. Quite the contrary; it will probably help you sell more!

Fourth, finally, reading the book offers you the opportunity to, as Jeremiah said, provide your reader with “generous additions.”

This matters. Being in someone’s ear is intimate. Especially when you provide them with “bonus content” and other “inside information.”

Ready to take the next step? 

Learn about opt-ins and offers in the FREE bonus content in Amplify Pro!

There, you'll see how an audiobook can triple your profit with each book purchased!