Dealing with client expectations and concerns is a popular topic in audiobook narrator communities. Read on to find out how I do everything that I can to eliminate these concerns for myself and my clients. I’ll probably take it personally, but click here if you want to skip to the good bits so you can stop procrastinating and get back to work.
An Audiobook Narrator Needs To Communicate
Communication is key.
No, you’re not looking at a memo from your office job working in a typing pool (do they still have those?) at some consulting firm.
I know, it’s a corporate buzz phrase along the lines of “You need to stick to your core competency,” “You need to build consensus,” or “We really need to move the needle on this.”
Things that get said too much tend to fall on deaf ears after a while, no matter how important they may be. Unfortunately, in the case of audiobook narration, it needs to be said again: Communication is key.
The Letdown
Think about the last time you went to your favorite restaurant.
Maybe you got all fired up on the way there thinking about that favorite dish you were going to order. Maybe you, like the rest of us in these tough pandemic times, have been waiting for that perfect meal out for months.
Now you’re finally sitting at the table with your little napkin tucked into your collar and your fork and knife clutched tightly in your fists like a ravenous cartoon character.
Without even looking at the menu, you know exactly what you want and you place your order confidently. You eye the waiter exiting the kitchen and heading to your table.
This is it! Your mouth waters as she places the plate in front of you and…
It’s not what you ordered!
What do you do?
You’ve waited all day to eat because you wanted to stuff yourself with the perfect meal. You’re too hungry to send it back now.
So you eat it, disappointed in your day and your life.
Order Up!
“So how does this relate to being an audiobook narrator?” you ask.
Well, think about how much work goes into writing a book. Especially a novel.
Writers have given up a part of themselves to these stories. Their characters are their children. They didn’t just throw some words down on a page. They developed these characters.
The authors gave them lives. They know them intimately. They’ve likely given them voices in their own heads.
So what happens when you fail to meet those expectations and they find that out at the end of the book?
Something About A Fly... And Honey?
Some of you may be thinking “tough luck”.
You might be thinking that that’s what the first 15-minute checkpoint is for. And you’d be right.
Mostly.
How many of you have narrated a fantasy epic with more important characters than you have highlighter colors? Do you honestly believe that you can get all of them into a simple checkpoint file for the author to approve?
How can you know which characters the author is most connected with or which characters they want a generic voice for?
The answer to this is: You ask!
I see so many people in the audiobook narrator community doling out advice about dealing with authors or rights-holders.
Their advice is generally spiced with a fear of the overbearing and micro-managing author.
That is a valid concern.
But taking a hardline approach with a standoffish attitude should never be your first line of defense.
We're All On The Same Side, Here!
You and your clients (in this case your author or rights-holder) should be a team.
You should be aiming not only to complete the project and collect a check but to satisfy your client.
Maybe they have a back catalog of works that they will be looking to turn into audiobooks.
Maybe they have a community of friends and colleagues that might be looking for an audiobook narrator and that they carry some sway with.
If you failed to meet or exceed their expectations, do you think you will be asked back or put forth for any of that work?
I doubt it.
They’re likely to leave with a sour taste in their mouth about you and the voiceover and narration industry as a whole.
I know, I know...
So how do you avoid that?
In my few years working as an audiobook narrator, I’ve developed some best practices whenever starting on a new project.
Let me start by acknowledging a few things.
First, you are protected to a certain extent after the checkpoint is approved. That approval does give you the green light to produce the rest of the project and make certain artistic decisions on your own.
Second, no I am not advocating for letting an author micro-manage the entire production. And I’m certainly not telling you to leave that door open.
Third, I wholeheartedly agree that within your audiobook agreement, you should stand your ground if the rights-holder is being unreasonable about changes and edits to your production.
Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, let’s go over the steps to Zac’s New-Production Checklist.
Zac’s New-Production Checklist
1. Be Upfront About Your Rate And Timeline
This is SO important.
When an author contacts you with interest or an offer to produce an audiobook, it means they liked your audition.
You have something of an upper hand here.
Now is not the time for fear. Let them know what your rate is. Be confident in presenting that rate.
You know you’re worth it.
Do you require a deposit up-front? Tell them now.
It is also important that you don’t over-promise on the deadline.
You know how long it takes you to deliver a top-notch project (or you should).
I see people paralyzed by fear after the author asks if they can be done by a certain date. It is your job to educate them on certain aspects of a project.
I have NEVER been turned down at this stage because my schedule is too full.
If you’ve done a good enough job of building value for the client, they will gladly wait in line for their turn.
This is also a great time to educate new authors about the current backlog of productions in ACX’s Quality Assurance queue.
2. READ THE BOOK!
This SHOULD go without saying.
Now that you’ve got a shiny new contract and manuscript, now is the time to read the whole thing.
Use whatever method works for you to mark up the manuscript. I use my awesome Surface Pro 7 and Surface Pen to highlight character dialogue so that I can recognize it on the fly in the booth.
You should also be keeping track of any questions you have for the author. Accents, pacing, voices, and background info/references (for things such as cultures, songs, etc.) are all fair game, here.
As a side note: I like to keep a list of any typos that I may find (actual or suspected) as well. This is by no means what I’m being paid to do, but the authors always appreciate it and it takes me no time at all.
3. Set Up A Call With The Author
This is where we get to the true teamwork.
I come into this meeting (usually Google Meet or Zoom) prepared with all of my notes from my readthrough.
NOW is the time to ask the author all of those questions that you have.
- What kind of accents does the author expect from you?
- What does the author envision for the main character?
- Does the author want the narrator voice to be the same as the main character or different? (This one is pretty big, in my experience, even in first-person novels.)
These are all crucial questions for your client.
This is also a good point to ask the author if there is a particular portion of the book that they are worried or concerned about. If they have something they are worried about getting just right, that might be a good candidate for your First 15 Minute Checkpoint.
This way you can really assuage any fears the client may have.
The Wow Factor
Above all, your job is to provide a product that the client is absolutely thrilled with.
You want them to come back to you in the future.
More importantly, you want them to tell all of their author friends about you.
I mean, they’re going to do that anyway. It might as well be all praise.
In business, there is frequently an adversarial relationship between the service provider and client.
That’s all well and good for the overworked employee being abused by every customer they see. But there’s no room for that in THIS industry.
Even if you’re not working for a royalty share, this is a PARTNERSHIP that benefits you and the author.
You should treat it that way.
