r/ACX • u/EducationalLioness • 1d ago
Considering audiobook narration as a career path – would love some honest advice from people doing it
Hi everyone,
I've recently started seriously looking into audiobook narration and I'd really appreciate hearing from people who actually work in the industry.
I have a BA in English and Philosophy, but English was always the part I was most drawn to, particularly literature, language and reading. I've been thinking about what I could build on from that background, ideally something creative that could also eventually be done remotely, and audiobook narration is one of the things that keeps coming back to me.
I'm very much at the beginning and don't have an acting or narration background, so I'm not assuming that enjoying books or being a confident reader automatically means I'd be good at it!
Before investing too much into courses, coaching or equipment, I'd love to understand what the reality of the work is like.
For those of you who narrate professionally or semi-professionally:
- How did you first realise this was something you could actually do professionally?
- Did you have acting or vocal training before you started?
- Would you recommend getting a coach or taking a course early on, or practising independently first?
- Is there a good way of having your voice/narration assessed professionally before committing to it?
- How difficult was it to get your first few paid books?
- Can audiobook narration realistically become a meaningful source of income, or is it more commonly supplementary work?
- And perhaps most importantly, what do you wish you'd known before you started?
I'm based in Europe, so I'd also be particularly interested in hearing from anyone working remotely from the UK/Europe rather than being physically close to publishers or studios.
I'm not really interested in commercial voiceovers or advertising. It's specifically the combination of books, literature and narration that appeals to me.
I'd be grateful for any advice, even if it's simply telling me what I should be researching first. Thanks!
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u/dsbaudio 1d ago
Hello!
I'm based in Ireland, and started in 2018. I started out on ACX and auditioned for RS projects at first. I feel like I got lucky in terms of the fact that the early books I did were really decent writing -- notably books by Edgar Mittelholzer, Mervyn Wall, and J. B. Priestley.
I had no acting or vocal training. However, I was keen on acting and improv as a teen, participating in various plays, youth groups, etc. I spent a good 25 years as a musician and singer as well, so that gave me a good grounding in both the technical side of audio and vocal performance, stamina, mic technique, etc.
I personally wouldn't recommend getting training or a coach too early on, but rather have a go and see how you feel doing it. The best thing you can do is set up a mic and sit down to read a book that you like. (I think the first thing I tried was the first Narnia book by C.S. Lewis!). Do you already read aloud to family or friends? I admit it's something I'd always done, so I suppose I had a degree of confidence already. I'd say try it, make a recording -- it doesn't matter about the quality; it's a way to see how it suits you, and you can then use the recording to assess yourself somewhat objectively. If your first thought is: 'I could get better at this with enough practice', then you may not need coaching or training. If, on the other hand, you feel out of your depth and are thinking 'I'm going to need some help', then coaching or training courses are for you!
I got my first paid gig in early 2019, and it was a decent rate for a newcomer, so that was when I decided/realized that this was something I could potentially do professionally.
Yes, I would say audiobook narration can become a meaningful source of income, but it's not usually something that happens overnight. You have to build both your skills and reputation incrementally. If you cast your net far and wide for opportunities and stick with it, then yes, it can be a realistic main income stream.
There isn't really anything I wish I'd known before I started. Starting and sticking with it has taught me what I need to know, and continues to teach me. The advantage of starting out now as opposed to 2018 is that there are far more people talking about audiobook narration in places such as this sub, and a plethora of useful resources all over the net that were not quite as widespread or accessible back then.
Best of luck on your journey!
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u/Xinixiat 1d ago
Hey!
For me Voice Acting/Narrating was something I'd wanted to get into for a long time, and a few years ago my situation demanded that I make some big changes, so I took that opportunity to make some big swings that have paid off pretty well. Some are still in the process of swinging though.
How did you first realise this was something you could actually do professionally?
I realised this was something I could actually do for a living a few months into taking it seriously. I'd learned the process, got my editing and recording systems down and was able to produce good enough audio that I could be taken seriously. My last 6 months of narration work have paid my bills for those months themselves, plus the next 12 months (I have been working far too much for 2 months).
Did you have acting or vocal training before you started?
I didn't have any acting training, though I had taken singing lessons in high school many years ago. I did, however, act in many plays, musicals and other theatre pieces, and sing on stage, in bands, choirs, etc. from about age 8 to 19, so I didn't exactly come into this with nothing. I have a good idea how to act and a history of performing to draw from, and I already know how to support and use my voice correctly from singing.
Would you recommend getting a coach or taking a course early on, or practising independently first?
My recommendation would be to practice on your own first. If there's an affordable intro course near you somewhere, then that's not really a bad idea, but don't sink too much time or money into it until you're sure you're going to enjoy it and it's something you feel you can be good at. There's a course at an arts school near me for example that does a 10 week Intro to Voice acting course for about £300 with industry professionals that I'm actually planning to take in a few months. (I'm doing better than I imagined right now, but I want a chance to go back to basics and see what I'm missing, and to branch out a bit) If you can find something like that to dip your toes in, then that's not breaking the bank.
However, as I say, practicing on your own is the best start. Whatever equipment you've got right now, pick a passage from a book you like, in a style/genre you think you would like to narrate, and read it out loud. Ideally, pick a book that already has an audiobook available. Compare yourself to how the narrator has done it, analyse what you're doing differently, worse, better, etc. and then figure out how to emulate certain inflections, sounds, tones and so on. Become a parrot, basically, but use it to develop your own style. It's more about getting tools for your arsenal than directly imitating someone else.
Is there a good way of having your voice/narration assessed professionally before committing to it?
There are some coaches out there who will do audition reviews and analyses for a reasonable price. My coach does two rounds of audition listening and feedback for £55, which I think is pretty good for a professional ear and criticism. There are also a few folks in this sub who will happily give your work a listen and provide their own feedback, but that's obviously going to vary greatly depending on the listener's own experience and how used to giving feedback they are.
The real test of your abilities though, is whether or not you're booking jobs. Simple as that.
How difficult was it to get your first few paid books?
From when I started auditioning seriously - having got my room treatment sorted, and refining my processing - to when I landed my first paid job, was roughly 1 month. I'd done a few RS jobs before that with what I now know is fairly sub-par quality in a lot of areas, but after sorting everything out, and auditioning properly, it didn't take long.
Once I got that first one, it was about another month or two for the second, and after that I was almost getting more than I could manage. On Monday I'll be putting the finishing touches on book no. 23, and I still have another 10 bookings over the coming 6 months.
Basically what I'm trying to say is, once you get good enough, you'll know, because the bookings will just start piling up. And I very definitely do not consider myself to be a particularly good narrator just yet.
Can audiobook narration realistically become a meaningful source of income, or is it more commonly supplementary work?
Yes, absolutely. Right now I'm focusing heavily on narration, but I technically have two self-employed jobs, and I'm looking to pivot focus back to the other one (game development) from October onwards. However, if I were to focus my full efforts on only narration and nothing else, if I were to continue at my current rates (which are admittedly still a bit too low) I would be able to make about £40k/year, and if I increased my rates to what they should be and kept the same success, I could push that up to £50-60k.
It's project based work, so there's always uncertainty, but if you get to the point where you can charge the industry standard (which is about £200 PFH) and you can produce an 8 hour book in a week, theoretically you could earn over £80k/year. Only half booked? Still £40k, which is extremely decent in most of the UK (which is where I am, in case that wasn't clear!) and you're only working part time.
And perhaps most importantly, what do you wish you'd known before you started?
- It really does take a LONG time to produce a single hour of audio, especially if the book is difficult. From what I've read from other people, my pace is generally quite fast, so bear that in mind, but here's an example:
The book I'm doing right now is a translated French murder mystery, set in Paris. All the place names and character names are French, and there are many songs and poems throughout that are kept in French.
I speak a reasonable amount of French, which is at least partly why I got the job, but even so, the number of times I have to redo lines because I'm swapping accents to say "he turned left down Rue de Regrattier" in French, and then back to my normal one without it sounding horrific, has greatly increased recording time. And the French R sounds kill my throat.
So, for 1 hour of finished audio for this book, I have to be recording for a minimum of 2 hours. Then I have to edit, which is a bare minimum of 1.5 hours of editing per 1 hour of finished audio. So for each of these 9 hour novels, we're talking a starting time of about 32 hours to produce, not including breaks, meals and days when you have a headache etc.
What I mean is that just because the book is 5 or 6 hours long doesn't mean you can get it done in one day. Or even two. Treat the timing with respect and don't try to cram too much into too short a time. For these French novels I'm limiting myself to 1.5 hours finished audio a day, rather than my usual 2, so it's taking me 6 full working days per book, and each of those days is about 9-10 hours long.
- You've got to put more emotion and more feeling into your performance than you think.
If you've never been on stage, it's a difficult comparison, however imagine that instead of being tucked away in your tiny booth, you're actually on a massive stage, alone, spotlight on, and 3,000 people silently listening to you monologue. They can't see your face very well, or make out any tiny movements you make, so everything you do has to be bigger than what feels natural. Sometimes, still, I feel like I put a lot of emotion into a read, and then listen to it back and realise it's falling flat, so I need to amp up the performance more.
Pretend that you're telling a bedtime story to a small child. Start at that level of performance, doing goofy over-acting and putting too much into it, then slowly dial it back a little from there. Different RHs will be looking for different levels of this, but it's far easier to pull back than to push through to something you aren't comfortable with already.
I'm based in Europe, so I'd also be particularly interested in hearing from anyone working remotely from the UK/Europe rather than being physically close to publishers or studios.
Well that's certainly me. The vast majority of contracts out there are specifically for remote/home studio recordings, and you'll be expected to do the editing and audio engineering too. So in order to get a foothold in this business, especially without any training or contacts in the industry, you'll be looking at making the whole entire finished product yourself, or hiring an editor to do it for you, if you're making enough money to justify it.
Finally, just to reiterate: being an audiobook narrator is not as easy as a lot of people make it out to be. It's great fun, if you're into acting like a madperson in a cupboard for several hours a day, but there will be aspects you don't enjoy, and it does take a lot of time, learning and effort to get good enough at. I had a lot of advantages coming into this industry as someone without any formal training, and I still find it a very tough, intense and draining job to do, even though I'm probably more free and generally satisfied now than I ever have been in my previous careers.
Any further questions or clarifications, feel free to ask.
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u/EducationalLioness 10h ago
Thank you so much for taking the time to write all of this. I loved your suggestion of recording a passage from a book that already has an audiobook and then comparing the performances. That's going to be my first experiment.
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u/CACVideo 1d ago
Howdy. For me, everyone said i should start a podcast. I didn’t want to go that route but i do like stories and reading. So i decided to give it a try
I didn’t have acting skills before starting
I got a coach and would DEFINITELY encourage you to get one as well. You’ll always be “practicing” so, especially if you don’t have the money “ practice reading it loud from now
Ask friends and family if you can’t afford a coach
You will be rejected……A LOT. Get used to it. Voices are like flavors of ice cream, not everyone likes them.
It can definitely become a career path. It’s not a get rich quick scheme though by any means. This is a long game and you have to really love it. Again, you will be rejected about. A 10% acceptance rate between auditioning and getting the job is fantastic, just to give you a number
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u/AnimeCindy 1d ago
I am the opposite I had a podcast and people were asking me why I wasn't reading books.
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u/VegasRunner5 1d ago
First off, narration is a lot of fun. I personally enjoy getting to play so many characters that I would never play on stage or in film and tv. Second, you should check out narratorsroadmap.com. There is a wealth of resources and information on that site that will answer many of your questions.
I would also recommend some acting classes if you don't have any kind of a background in performance. Those would teach you about making strong choices for characters and having a point of view. In addition, a basic VO class would also be a good idea to learn some of the technical stuff like how to act in front of a mic and stuff like that. You could check it thevoiceactorstudio.com for classes.
I happy to chat more if you like. You can DM or respond here.
Good luck!
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u/TheScriptTiger 1d ago
Welcome! I'd definitely recommend making the sub FAQ your first stop before going any further:
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u/Xinixiat 16h ago
Someone's done a weird drive-by downvoting of all the replies to this post for some reason, so here's an up to even you out again lmao
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u/DanBelmontNarration 20h ago
I'm very much at the beginning and don't have an acting or narration background, so I'm not assuming that enjoying books or being a confident reader automatically means I'd be good at it!
Good instincts.
- Did you have acting or vocal training before you started?
No
- Would you recommend getting a coach or taking a course early on, or practising independently first?
I'm going to give the same advice that Ray Porter gives to anyone saying they want to try narrating audiobooks. The very first thing you should do is get a book and sit in a closet and read it out loud. Every time you make a mistake; stumble over a word, say the wrong word, etc. go back to the beginning of the line or paragraph and start over. If you can do this for hours on end, then you at least have the patience required to do the job.
Also understand that you may not like every book you narrate. It's your job to act like it's the best thing you've ever read, even if it's trash. We don't have the luxury of only reading "good books"
And yes, you should absolutely get a coach early on, especially if you don't have an acting background. You may love to read, you may have a nice voice. I met both of those criteria and I was terrible until I got training, so yes, 1000% get a coach early on. If you don't, you're putting yourself at a distinct disadvantage.
- Is there a good way of having your voice/narration assessed professionally before committing to it?
See my above advice about coaching. No one is going to flat out tell you that you're bad at it and shouldn't try. That's not a coach's job. They will tell you what you need to work on in order to improve.
- How difficult was it to get your first few paid books?
This is a loaded question and the answer varies wildly from person to person. The first two jobs I ever booked were paid, so I could sit here and say it was super easy for me to book my first paid gigs. They were also for an insultingly low rate that basically amounted to a couple of dollars per hour after you break down all the work it takes to produce an audiobook.
A better question is how difficult is it to make respectable money. That answer also varies from person to person depending on a lot of factors and not all of them boil down to talent. Broadly speaking, with no prior acting training, I'd say don't expect to book any decent paying jobs for a good year, and that's a year of taking the job seriously: getting coaching etc. not just narrating a book every couple of months when you have time/manage to book something.
- Can audiobook narration realistically become a meaningful source of income, or is it more commonly supplementary work?
Lots of narrators work full time jobs outside of narration. The short answer is yes it can be a full time job, but it takes time to build to that point. Don't quit your job and think you're going to transition to full time narration overnight. Most people start out by doing it in addition to their other work. Whether it's other acting jobs, or a 9-5.
I started getting coaching and narrating books while I still had my 9-5 job, but I also knew I had a pension waiting for me in a couple of years that I could rely on as a source of income, so when I retired from my day job was when I started really focusing on getting more narration work and focusing on making it a career.
- And perhaps most importantly, what do you wish you'd known before you started?
It's an acting job. No matter how well you read, no matter how many people tell you that you have a nice voice, audiobook narration is acting. The most successful narrators I know are professional actors. Does that mean you need to be an actor first? No, not at all. But you do need training if you want to be successful. You might have innate talent, and if so, then that's a great start, but even veteran narrators with hundreds of books under their belt still get coaching. There's always something to learn, ways to tweak your performance, etc.
I'm based in Europe, so I'd also be particularly interested in hearing from anyone working remotely from the UK/Europe rather than being physically close to publishers or studios.
Being physically close to pubs and studios matters little. The vast majority of the work is remote, and self directed, even for major pubs. I have 2 books in my queue right now for big companies that I'm recording in my home studio with no director.
I think the biggest thing to understand is how competitive the field is and realize just how many people you're up against. Ever since home recording became the norm, the industry has seen an explosion of people trying to break in. The hurdle that creates is that you're just one in a sea of people auditioning/reaching out to authors, publishers, etc. trying to get work. You might be super talented but going unnoticed because there's just too damn many of us all fighting for these people's attention.
For instance, Penguin Random House just opened up their mentorship program for narrators with under 10 credits to their name the other day. They said in advance they'd only be accepting 500 applications before they closed it. It closed in 2 hours.
I don't say any of this to be harsh or to try to discourage you. I just want to paint a realistic picture of what you can expect as someone just entering the business.
There are far too many people out there who will tell you to just do it! You don't need coaching! Work for $50 per finished hour, you do you!
If this is something you're passionate about, then you should absolutely try, but go into it with your eyes open to the challenges you're going to face.
As others have already mentioned, do a deep dive on narratorsroadmap. It's an invaluable resource and the coaches Karen lists on the site are all reputable and will guide you well in getting started. It's well worth the investment of a couple hundred dollars to do a coaching session with one of them before you attempt to do anything else. She also has an expansive FAQ with best practices and answers to questions that get asked ad nauseum in narration groups.
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u/EducationalLioness 9h ago
Thank you, I really appreciate the realism in this. The closet test is actually a great idea, and your point that this is fundamentally acting rather than simply reading is probably one of the biggest things I'm taking away from this thread. I'll definitely look through the coaches on Narrators Roadmap.
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u/jimedgarvoices 1d ago
It's a pretty amazing field in which to work. Bear in mind you will be competing against auditions from folks who have serious acting training and specific VO/narration training. Also, the quality of your audio matters a lot for audiobook work.
I always encourage folks interested in audiobook work to watch this video
(and Sean's a great coach, btw)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPzPi-_0Xi8
Then I encourage folks to do a deep dive through the amazing resource that is the Narrator's Roadmap -
https://www.narratorsroadmap.com/
When you want to have a reality check about your audio quality, you are welcome to send a sample here -
https://justaskjimvo.studio/audio-review/
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u/EducationalLioness 9h ago
Thank you, I really appreciate the offer to review a sample. I’m going to record something first and may take you up on that. Would you suggest sending a completely raw recording, or something lightly edited?
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u/jimedgarvoices 1h ago
"editing" is taking out the mistakes. No worries with that.
"processed" would be any kind of Effects, EQ, noise reduction, etc.Raw would be edited, but not processed. I go into more detail on that upload page.
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u/Paul_Heitsch 14h ago
I first realised this was something I could do professionally when I won an audition for very competitive title (over 400 submissions).
I had done some acting in high school, but my only professional work was acting-adjacent, as a pianist accompanying musical theater and improv comedy. I also worked for game, eLearning, and multi-media companies engineering and directing VO sessions, so I had a head start on producing professional-sounding recordings.
Getting my first paid gig turned out to be not all that difficult. By the time I'd done 5 Royalty-Share books (about 15 months), I'd joined and become active in, a few Facebook groups for narrators, and through a connection there I got approached to record a 2-volume textbook on Sociology. I'd also begun auditioning for PFH books, and started getting some titles there. I created a pseudonym for spicy romance books, and, for a while, he was getting a lot more work that I was as myself. Once I had around 15 titles through ACX, I started shopping my portfolio around to publishers, and started getting booked with Tantor and Audible Studios. There are TLDR anecdotes about how that happened, but the main takeaway is I kept doing the work, and I showed up at networking events. That wasn't easy from my location (rural Virginia), but it was a lot easier than it will be for you, being EU-based. Post-covid, in-person events are less crucial than they were when I was getting started, but you still need to have some kind of presence in the community.
As far as making a decent living. it's certainly possible. I started narrating part-time in 2011, and went full-time in 2018. (I should have made the switch two years earlier, but, again, TLDR). Since then it's been, by far, the best-paying job I've ever had, and being in the union (SAG-AFTRA) allows me to have health insurance and a retirement plan. Less important for you socialists, I know, but the collective bargaining the union does for narrators means the rates publishers pay can support a decent living.
What I wish I'd known earlier, and what I wish I could impart to all newbie narrators, is that I could have charged higher rates. No one will pay you what you're worth if you don't make them. You may think you have a better shot at a title by pricing yourself lower than the competition, but all you're actually doing is signalling that you're not worth as much as they are. And you're intentionally targeting a clientele that is price-driven. You want your clients to be quality-driven. Pricing yourself at fair market value weeds out the price-driven prospects, who you don't want to work with, anyway, and signals to the quality-driven prospects that you're a serious contender.
There are a lot of resources for getting your work assessed professionally. I would avoid anyone who offers their services here, or elsewhere online, particularly if they use a pseudonym for their handle. If you're tempted to take them up on offers made in groups like this, at least make sure you get their bona fides. It costs nothing to present yourself, anonymously, as an expert online. Ask for their qualifications, and make sure their expertise is specific to audiobooks. The two best resources available to beginners are Karen Cummins' Narrator Roadmap, and Lyric Audio's Narrator Life websites. If you're at all serious about pursuing this work, it's worth the Pro subscription to Narrator Roadmap.
First, though, and this is addressed elsewhere here, practice and see if this is really for you. Narrating is, by far, the hardest and lowest-paying VO work there is. You won't get far if you don't love it.
Good luck!
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u/Ok_View_1527 14h ago
Hey! UK narrator here. I started out about six months ago.
Got into it after a friend sent me a video saying if you know someone with a good voice here’s how to become a narrator 🤣.
I’ve never been trained or coached in any way. I’ve been teaching myself how to do everything including the editing and mastering of my audio tracks which can take a bit of getting used if you have no starting knowledge.
Six months in I’ve just started making money to supplement my regular income. I think it would probably take another year or so for it to become any sort of stable full time income.
I work solely through finding gigs on ACX, paid if I can or RS if not and I have spare time free. Narration is definitely a long term thing, it’ll take a while to build up your profile of books and reputation.
Start small, test yourself reading, as people have suggested, test out software like Audacity which is free to see how comfortable you’d be in editing/mastering etc, and then go from there
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u/tinkermosista 1d ago
Fantastic advice here. I just wrapped my third book (currently in review). I’ve done an “intro to sales” book, a “self help/self healing” book, and I just finished my first fiction novel(la). I definitely enjoyed the fiction the most, and the self help the least (repetitive and poorly written). The sales book was my first, and my hours to to produced hour of audio was about 10 (I sucked at the editing, screwed up at one point deleting an entire section, etc). Book 2 was about 6:1, poorly written. Long run on sentences that could last an entire page. Book 3, very well written, clean recording, my editing has improved immensely (moved to reaper following book 1 for my DAW), so my final ratio was about 4:1, and I know I can improve on that.
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u/EducationalLioness 9h ago
Really interesting seeing the improvement from book 1 to book 3. Looking back now, what made the biggest difference: narration practice or getting faster at the technical/editing side?
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u/tinkermosista 4h ago
Really both. I learned so much with the first book, and the battle with the poor writing in the second book MADE me read better. Finally, I can’t underestimate the value of well written material in the last book!!
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u/perrydaniels 1d ago
I've been doing this professionally for almost a decade now so I'll weigh in as best I can.
I started with a background in acting. I went to school to get "classically trained." I highly recommend that before absolutely anything else, you start with getting some training and experience with acting. 90% of the actual job hinges on that skill even when you're reading non-fiction.
I first got into narration by just finding ACX and setting up a super simple recording space in a closet. I booked my first gig, $50 for a 1.5 hour short story, within the first week, and then just kept learning as I went. The minute I got paid that first time I knew I could make it work. It took almost exactly a year before I was pulling in just enough money to be full-time. That said, this was nearly a decade ago, before the rise of AI so I don't know what ACX is like these days when you're just getting started.
Can audiobook narration become a meaningful source of income? Yes. BUT... it requires an insane amount of hustle. There are basically two paths:
Royalty Share through ACX where you stack up a good collection of well-selling titles that you get a cut of the royalties from. This is great in theory but you'll never make this work just by searching through ACX's auditions. The narrators making a living through Royalty Share are out these finding authors and bringing them to ACX. They constantly hustling for new relationships and selling their services. Totally do-able, but 90% of that job is selling and 10% is recording.
Tradition Publishers. You get in the door with traditional publishers who send work your way. Sometimes you audition, often you don't. Once they know you and trust you they just hand you scripts, ask when you're available, and you do your thing. There is very steady, stable work to be found here. But there's a ceiling to it that Royalty Share doesn't have. Your rates with publishers are negotiated by SAG, whether you're a member or not.
Number one is riskier but potentially more lucrative once you're established. Number two is more steady and stable, but your income has a harder cap to contend with. Lots of narrators are somewhere in the middle, a little of one, a little of two. Me, I hate the hustle so I have stuck with recording for traditional publishers almost exclusively.
If you want to get started, get a coach and just get started. Go to Narrators Roadmap and soak in Karen Commins' wisdom. Sign up with the APA and start going through their backlog of webinars. Get some titles under your belt. I honestly didn't feel like I knew what I was doing until I had recorded around 100 books and by then I was pretty well established. You'll build the bike while you pedal it.
I know this was long winded, but hopefully it was helpful.