Kay Harker and Cole Hawlings Picture accessed via BBC There are few things more Christmassy than the opening few bars of the theme tune to The Box of Delights . In fact, the tune is based on Victor Hely-Hutchinson's Carol Symphony and had been used in radio adaptations of the same novel years earlier than the 1984 television series. Clearly, everyone already knew that you just couldn't improve on that sound to evoke the magic of Christmas which - for me and for many - is so wonderfully explored in John Masefield's story. As a viewer, one of the things I enjoy most about the television series of The Box of Delights is the acting. Child actors are precarious things: too sweet and they're almost unbearable to watch, not sweet enough and they're unbelievable. They must walk that fine line between the two, and it is a perilous one! Most young actors fall into the first category, where their on-screen presence is almost dangerously saccharine. Not so the child actors ...
Monday 25th November - Reading Aloud - Audio Books?
Some books are better read aloud. I love reading books which are filled with sumptuous language, so that I can hear the narrator's voice and it just wraps me up in the language. And if you love hearing a book, you'd love talking about it too! And, let's face it, that's what every author dreams of achieving.
Audio books are on the rise. They're a fantastic addition to the an author's CV, but they can also cost an arm and a leg to secure. To a self-published author this expense is almost unobtainable. But here's a few ideas of how to make it happen:
- Make every word count - Your audio book need not feature every word you wrote in your print book. Most companies or individuals charge according to the word count, so make sure each word counts!
- Can you beat the author as the narrator? - Give some consideration to the thought your reader might like to hear your voice reading the book. It may not be the best recording quality, but if you can share your version with your readers via a blog or youtube channel, the voice of your characters is still getting out there.
- Book trailers - This allows your potential readers the opportunity to hear your character's voices. From here they can imagine the sound in the rest of the book. Here's an example!
Crowvus is still developing its projects ready for Audio Book recording. But it's something we feel strongly about. We want our books to be accessible to everyone, as all publishers and authors want. Who knows? Maybe 2020 could be the year we release our first Audio Book.
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