Both maybe? I think he's right, but he will also likely gain cred for it. I'm skeptical of his 'making an enemy of Amazon' bit. That seems a little theatrical.
I agree. I’m sure his main reason for doing it is coming from a good place. But he’s not going to let the financial potentials go to waste, and Spotify/Speechify likely gave him better deals. Plus, controlling the gossip narrative was probably the win/win scenario that convinced him to go through with it.
Wow, this is great info! I wasn't aware there were so many options out there. I've been annoyed by Audible on more than one occasion, so it's good to know they're not the only show in town. I also use Chirp, which is kind of like BookBub for audio. They send me daily discounted audiobooks in genres I've selected. They might be available elsewhere as loaners, but I'm funny about buying content. But I'll definitely be checking some of these others out!
I wonder how one goes about commissioning (is that the right word) an audiobook?
Please, don't knock yourself out! I was just sort of speculating out loud... I wouldn't know where to begin if I was to have an audiobook made, but it just seems like it couldn't hurt ;-)
I found a possible resource called Voices, which might be what we're looking for. I'm sure there are other options. I'll update if I find any good ones.
This looks really interesting! Thanks for the info. It's fun to listen to some of the voices and imagine whether they suit the character or not... Still plenty of time to figure things out, but lots to think about!
Awesome writeup, Winston! I'm thinking about audio for The Stars Will Fall, but I am focused on getting an ebook out first and seeing how Vella might work. Once that's done I'll shift to the audio. Thanks for the info!
Thanks, Brian! Let us know what Vella is like, or if you go with a different option. Good luck on your audio journey! Are you going to record it yourself?
Super helpful article, Winston. You’ve given me a roadmap for audio. Especially since I’ve recently had some real problems with the AI readers on Substack. 🫣
Thanks, Adrian. Glad you found it useful. And the AI readers are going to become commonplace soon. I read somewhere that Audible, Apple Books, and Google Store were all testing their own AI speakers for audiobooks. I might need to a do a separate article on that in the near future.
I use some of these alternatives you mentioned as distribution channels for my novels. I have only produced one audiobook so far (limited funds preventing me from doing others at the moment) but I've distributed all my novels to Scribd and Libby (through Overdrive). I love having the freedom and flexibility of reaching the widest possible audience.
Brandon Sanderson challenging Audible is a good thing in my opinion. Audible (like parent company Amazon) needs to be challenged. For the longest time, they had a return policy that let readers return audiobooks over a period of several months after purchase and would take royalties away from the author for each return. You had a sizeable portion of audiobook readers returning books after listening to them and both indie and traditional authors were losing a massive amount of royalties. Audible has since reformed its return policy, but it has a track record of various shady dealings with authors.
Hey John, thanks for reading and commenting. That's great that you've been able to produce an audiobook. That's a big deal! Going wide is a huge step because you want to be able to cater to your readers where they like to read. I'm not there yet, but I'm glad to hear you've had some success going that route. I may need your help in the future!
In regards to Sanderson, I think any author with that much influence almost has a moral duty to call out corporations like this. I'm shocked other big names haven't said anything. Well, I take that back. I'm not shocked because they found their success, so why risk everything they've built to help out others?
That return policy sounds atrocious. I'm glad they got rid of it. I've been seeing rumblings of that policy in other areas like KDP. I wonder if that is still a thing on some platforms? Returning a book, unless it's a scam, accidental purchase, or clearly not edited, shouldn't be allowed. I know Steam prevents you from returning a game on their account if you've registered a certain amount of time on it. I wonder if that could be implemented somehow, like after so many pages you can't return it. But even then, there are usually preview chapters. I digress.
Audible is here to stay. The only way we can affect change is to funnel our attention and dollars via other channels until the message is heard. Even if there is no message to be sent, these other platforms are so awesome and worth checking out!
😲😲😲😲😲😲 not done but that’s my reaction so far. I didn’t even know about alternatives to audible
Thanks for sharing some alternatives! Will investigate
Thanks for reading, Freya. Let me know if you find something you particularly enjoy when you do!
Both maybe? I think he's right, but he will also likely gain cred for it. I'm skeptical of his 'making an enemy of Amazon' bit. That seems a little theatrical.
I agree. I’m sure his main reason for doing it is coming from a good place. But he’s not going to let the financial potentials go to waste, and Spotify/Speechify likely gave him better deals. Plus, controlling the gossip narrative was probably the win/win scenario that convinced him to go through with it.
Wow, this is great info! I wasn't aware there were so many options out there. I've been annoyed by Audible on more than one occasion, so it's good to know they're not the only show in town. I also use Chirp, which is kind of like BookBub for audio. They send me daily discounted audiobooks in genres I've selected. They might be available elsewhere as loaners, but I'm funny about buying content. But I'll definitely be checking some of these others out!
I wonder how one goes about commissioning (is that the right word) an audiobook?
Glad you liked the info. I hope you find something you can use. I haven’t heard of Chirp, but I sure do like Bookbub so I might like Chirp, too.
I have no idea how to commission an audiobook. I’ll look into that and get back to you.
Please, don't knock yourself out! I was just sort of speculating out loud... I wouldn't know where to begin if I was to have an audiobook made, but it just seems like it couldn't hurt ;-)
I found a possible resource called Voices, which might be what we're looking for. I'm sure there are other options. I'll update if I find any good ones.
https://www.voices.com/
This looks really interesting! Thanks for the info. It's fun to listen to some of the voices and imagine whether they suit the character or not... Still plenty of time to figure things out, but lots to think about!
Awesome writeup, Winston! I'm thinking about audio for The Stars Will Fall, but I am focused on getting an ebook out first and seeing how Vella might work. Once that's done I'll shift to the audio. Thanks for the info!
Thanks, Brian! Let us know what Vella is like, or if you go with a different option. Good luck on your audio journey! Are you going to record it yourself?
Super helpful article, Winston. You’ve given me a roadmap for audio. Especially since I’ve recently had some real problems with the AI readers on Substack. 🫣
Thanks, Adrian. Glad you found it useful. And the AI readers are going to become commonplace soon. I read somewhere that Audible, Apple Books, and Google Store were all testing their own AI speakers for audiobooks. I might need to a do a separate article on that in the near future.
Oh, and my lad’s onto the third Mistborn book so Sanderson should be calling you soon about your commission.
🤣 that’s awesome
I use some of these alternatives you mentioned as distribution channels for my novels. I have only produced one audiobook so far (limited funds preventing me from doing others at the moment) but I've distributed all my novels to Scribd and Libby (through Overdrive). I love having the freedom and flexibility of reaching the widest possible audience.
Brandon Sanderson challenging Audible is a good thing in my opinion. Audible (like parent company Amazon) needs to be challenged. For the longest time, they had a return policy that let readers return audiobooks over a period of several months after purchase and would take royalties away from the author for each return. You had a sizeable portion of audiobook readers returning books after listening to them and both indie and traditional authors were losing a massive amount of royalties. Audible has since reformed its return policy, but it has a track record of various shady dealings with authors.
Hey John, thanks for reading and commenting. That's great that you've been able to produce an audiobook. That's a big deal! Going wide is a huge step because you want to be able to cater to your readers where they like to read. I'm not there yet, but I'm glad to hear you've had some success going that route. I may need your help in the future!
In regards to Sanderson, I think any author with that much influence almost has a moral duty to call out corporations like this. I'm shocked other big names haven't said anything. Well, I take that back. I'm not shocked because they found their success, so why risk everything they've built to help out others?
That return policy sounds atrocious. I'm glad they got rid of it. I've been seeing rumblings of that policy in other areas like KDP. I wonder if that is still a thing on some platforms? Returning a book, unless it's a scam, accidental purchase, or clearly not edited, shouldn't be allowed. I know Steam prevents you from returning a game on their account if you've registered a certain amount of time on it. I wonder if that could be implemented somehow, like after so many pages you can't return it. But even then, there are usually preview chapters. I digress.
Audible is here to stay. The only way we can affect change is to funnel our attention and dollars via other channels until the message is heard. Even if there is no message to be sent, these other platforms are so awesome and worth checking out!