Audio books and/or Podcasts?

[deer of the dawn]

I would people to buy my book, and one suggestion was made to make podcasts of the book, releasing chapters a few at a time to stir up interest.

I also wondered if people would be interested in the audiobook. I rarely have my ears to myself, so I don't do audiobooks; it would only be an exercise in frustration; but I know lots of people like them for commuting, knitting, cooking, etc.

What do peeps think of these ideas? Do you like audiobooks? If you use them, do they usually have a musical track or sound effects, or is it basically someone with good expression reading the book?

Thanks!

[lorin]

I could not survive without them. I have a monster commute so I go through them like water. I do not buy them because the cost is huge. I rent them ala netflix at a site called Simply Audiobooks.

www.simplyaudiobooks.com/

I pay about 24 a month to keep two out at a time. And just like Netflix streaming, Simply Audiobooks does not offer everything you want but they offer enough to keep me a member. Listening to Under the Dome right now (blech)

[Frostheart Grueburn]

I spend 1,5h of every workday in public transportation, plus almost constantly work with my hands (drawing, stitching, embroidery...), so audio books are my preferred mode of accessing stories. Long periods of routine would get insufferably tiresome without them.

I don't like anything extra making noise in the background, but prefer just a single reader able to dramatize the characters well. This is of course a personal orientation, but all of my favorite readers are deep-voiced men without heavy twang in their accents and who can keep the pacing adequate: Michael Kramer, Jim Dale, Simon Jones, Christopher Lee, Lars Svedberg, Roy Dotrice, Rob Inglis (and undoubtedly John Rhys-Davies would belong to the list, if he ever decided to voice-act outside animated shows ). Audible.com allows one to listen to an excerpt of the recording before purchasing, so I can just drop it if I find the narrator's voice irritating.

[aTOMiC]

I've only just begun listening to books these past couple of weeks. A coworker lent me 4 books by Bernard Cornwell, his Saxon Stories series.
I have listened to the first two and I enjoyed the experience and will listen to more.

[aliantha]

I got a couple of audiobooks for a long car ride once. My problem is that my attention wanders and I miss stuff, and on a car CD player (while you're driving!) it's not that easy to go back and listen to it again.

My commute isn't really long enough these days for audiobook listening. I'd only get in half an hour or so, and I can read faster than someone else can read aloud to me....

That said, I know a couple of people who absolutely love them.

[Shaun das Schaf]

I got a couple of audiobooks for a long car ride once. My problem is that my attention wanders and I miss stuff

This is my problem too. And I've also fallen asleep while listening to them. (I wasn't driving at the time!) At least if I fall asleep whilst reading a hard copy version, I don't keep turning the pages. With audio books, I wake up in the morning and I've got no idea where I'm up to.

...and I can read faster than someone else can read aloud to me....

I can relate to this one too. I find myself getting a little impatient with the pace sometimes, which is no doubt related to wandering attention problem above. I should give them another bash though because my commute, when I make it, is an hour +. That said, I can get into work whenever I want so I tend to time my drive with The Book Show on Radio National. <-- Hoping there are other Australians here who feel as fondly about ABC RN as I do.

[Damelon]

My problem is that my attention wanders and I miss stuff, and on a car CD player (while you're driving!) it's not that easy to go back and listen to it .

That's my problem with them. I drive over an hour to work. I find my mind wandering when I try to listen to "traffic on the eights" and often miss the report on what I'm looking for. Try to listen to an audio book for that long? I haven't even thought of purchasing one.

[Avatar]

... I can read faster than someone else can read aloud to me....

Yep. I don't use 'em, and have no intention of doing so. Not my thing at all.

--A

[wayfriend]

I got a couple of audiobooks for a long car ride once. My problem is that my attention wanders and I miss stuff, and on a car CD player (while you're driving!) it's not that easy to go back and listen to it again.

I am in the same place. I tried listening to an audiobook during my commute. A lot of times I missed parts of the book because of traffic, and other times I felt I was not paying enough attention to driving. And I can't think of another way I would use an audio-book.

[High Lord Tolkien]

I have the Silmarillion audio book and I hate it.
But....that's just because I've been pronouncing hundreds of words in my head very differently than how Tolkien intended.

Manway?
Who the heck is Manway?
Oh, Man-wee? Ok.

[Menolly]

Does the reader of your copy of The Silmarillion claim they confirmed the pronunciation of the names? From what I hear, not all readers bother with the due diligence Scott Brick does with his recordings...

[Holsety]

I don't normally use audio books, but when I got my relatively tiny-size MP3 player (it's like, 4 gigs IIRC) my brother put on "Three Bags Full," a really charming book aboot sheep solving a murder mystery. I enjoyed that, and the reader added a lot because the sheepy voices were great.

[MsMary]

Thought I would resurrect this thread.

I listened to a lot of audio dramas and audio books these days, mostly Doctor Who stories that I get from Big Finish.

I've also been enjoying a few podcasts:
Radiolab's podcasts are usually pretty interesting.

Imaginary Worlds, a podcast "about science fiction and other fantasy genres -- how we create them and why we suspend our disbelief" has been a lot of fun to listen to.

Israel Story - fun to listen to stories about Israel and Israelis. Sort of an Israeli "This American Life."[/url]

How about the rest of you? Anyone listen to some good podcasts or audio stories? Please share.

[deer of the dawn]

I have, apparently, the same problem with posting on KW as many of you do listening to audiobooks and driving. I forget I even made a post... lol... I would have corrected my Engrish in the first line a long time ago if I had revisited.

A college friend of mine has done some of the This American Life episodes (also composed the intro music for TEDtalks, brag brag) and I do love that kind of thing. I miss NPR sorely in Africa. The app was blocked for Nigeria when I tried a few years ago but things have changed; I can listen to TEDtalks on my phone so that might work now as well.

I will check out some of your links, MsMary. Thank you!!!

[Avatar]

I never revisit my own posts. Only other people's.

--A

[Cagliostro]

I like audiobooks. I don't have much of a commute these days so it isn't something I listen to a lot at the moment, but find spoken word really helpful on long car rides when I get tired and all the songs are buzzing me to sleep. I find it useful in waking up the brain and good and interesting thought.
With that said, there are a few that really do it for me. David Sedaris I always default to his audio. I don't buy his books - I buy his audiobooks because the way he (and sometimes his sister Amy) tell the stories on the audiobooks is soooooooooooo much more entertaining that the books I have read from him. And I went to a reading at a local bookstore here and got my audiobook signed, which sucks since it was cassettes, and despite still having a few places to play them, I'm holding on to them simply because of the signing.
Audiobooks read by Douglas Adams have greatly enhanced the listening for me. Even more than the radio versions of the same book, I prefer listening to the author. Same with Neil Gaiman, as he has an exquisite voice that simply makes the telling better.
And even though it isn't a book, on trips I usually bring along a Jello Biafra spoken word album to entertain me for a while, despite how irritating his voice can be.
I do have to say that most audiobook readers tend to lull me to sleep, and the story has to be really good to keep me interested or I find my mind wandering. Sadly, and maybe I shouldn't say this, but I also found the same of Scott Brick. Having met him and being a Facebook "friend" with him, I find him very fascinating, and his reading live of Donaldson was fantastic. I really truly like him as a person and the occasional posts I see of him on Facebook cements that, but as a reader from the copy of Runes of the Earth I have, I had a hard time keeping my attention on the story. Then again, it may have been the fault of the story and should probably give something I like much more, such as the Gap series, a try.

[Avatar]

Haha, I was gonna say, Runes perhaps not the most scintillating of listens...

--A

[Hunchback Jack]

I listen to audiobooks almost exclusively these days. I don't get much time to read, so audiobooks are a great way to escape while commuting or doing something else at the same time.

It's slower though, of course. I guess I'd average between 2 and 3 books a month, whereas my reading speed would be close to twice that.

HBJ

[Avatar]

My commute it too short, even if I could devote the attention to it while driving. The speed issue is the biggest one for me though.

--A

[Rigel]

I've never gotten into audiobooks, but I'm a big fan of podcasts. I've got a core set that I've stuck with for a while (Scriptnotes, Market Foolery, and The Skeptics Guide to the Universe). More recent additions include Filmspotting, I Was There Too, Pop Culture Happy Hour and Ask Me Another.