An audiobook is not a book read aloud. It is a performance with a consistent voice, deliberate pacing and technical standards strict enough that a good recording can still be rejected for a noise floor two decibels too high. The difference between amateur and retail is mostly discipline.
What you receive
- A single-narrator recording of the full manuscript, in the voice and pace agreed from a sample.
- Retail-standard mastering: 192 kbps or higher, −23 to −18 dB RMS, peaks below −3 dB, noise floor under −60 dB.
- One file per chapter, named to convention, with the opening and closing credits recorded separately.
- Proof-listened audio — a second pass against the text, because a dropped sentence is invisible until a listener reports it.
- A five-minute sample for your store listing and your site before the full production begins.
How production runs
- Sample first. Two minutes of your opening chapter, so voice and pace are settled before a full read.
- Record in chapters, with pronunciation notes for names and invented terms agreed in advance.
- Master and check each file against the platform’s technical specification, not by ear alone.
- Proof-listen and correct, then deliver with a QC report.
Why pacing is the whole job
Listeners can tolerate a voice they would not choose; they cannot tolerate a rhythm that fights the prose. Dialogue needs air around it. A comic beat needs a half-second before the punch. A tense passage needs a slightly faster read without raising volume. Those decisions are made per scene, not applied globally, and they are what makes an audiobook feel performed rather than transcribed.
Length, cost and the honest arithmetic
Narration is priced by finished hour, and a 70,000-word novel runs about eight hours. That makes audiobooks the most expensive production in a launch, and worth it only when the genre has listeners and the book has a series to carry them into. If the numbers do not support it, we will say so and suggest starting with a short story or a sample rather than committing to a full read.
What the platforms actually check
ACX and its equivalents reject files for measurable reasons: too much background noise, peaks above the ceiling, inconsistent loudness between chapters, or a sample rate outside spec. Those are automated checks, so a recording that sounds fine on speakers can still fail. We measure every file rather than trusting the ear, and we keep a margin inside each limit so a re-encode by the platform does not push a compliant file out of tolerance.
Pricing
| Tier | Scope | Price | Was | You save |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | 1 ebook – 18k words | $50 | $50 | |
| Professional | 3 ebooks | $130 | $140 | |
| Bulk / Authority | 5 ebooks | $200 | $200 |
Frequent questions
How long does a full audiobook take?
Roughly two to three weeks for an average novel, including mastering and proof-listening.
Do you handle ACX submission?
We deliver files that meet the specification and walk you through the upload, including the royalty-share decision.
Can you narrate in other languages?
Yes, for Spanish, French, German, Portuguese and Hindi, with native speakers rather than a second-language read.
Request a narration sample — send the first chapter and the genre.