Pricing and Distribution

Transparent and fair pricing.

But our mission is to go beyond price and offer the best value...a combination of quality and pricing. Talk with us about your project...your needs, your concerns and your expectations. We will help you stay within budget. Contact us by phone or email.

No surprises. We work with our clients so they are aware of timelines and pricing at every step of the way. We are proud of the fact that we clearly identify in advance all costs associated with every production.

Distribution and royalties. We don't share in the royalties from your audiobooks. That means that we can give you unbiased advice and suggestions for the best distribution and royalty strategies for your individual project.

How to save money--the truth about audiobook production costs. The following information can help you predict and control the cost of your project.

The Voice Talent. Work with experienced narrators. Some narrators require more direction from the producer, more re-takes, more editing and additional studio time. This is frequently true of celebrity readers and authors who are recording for the first time.

Value pricing. The foundation of our pricing is the select group of audiobook narrators, producers and engineers we work with. These teams are skilled, efficient and accustomed to working together, which saves a significant amount of recording and editing studio time.

Music and Special Effects. As producers of audiobooks, we love these additions and enhancements--in some cases they make the difference between a production that's good and one that's very good.

If a client wants original music or special effects, we can draw on a large pool of skilled musicians and sound designers.

By all means, use music and special effects, but be aware that used excessively or without planning, they can ambush your budget.

Too many Directors. Let's see…the publisher, an editor, an agent, the author and somebody's best friend all decide they are needed at the recording session to help the producer direct the narrator. They all have somewhat different visions of the way the reading should be done. What could possibly go wrong?

Group production parties may burnish egos, but they rarely improve a narrative performance. The usual results are spiraling costs from re-recording and additional editing time. We resolve these and similar issues during our pre-production and planning sessions--not when creative passions are in conflict and the studio clock is running.

To control production costs, get a good estimate of the reading time.

Here are some easy ways to estimate reading time: Read an average page of the book aloud at a normal pace. Multiply that reading time by the number of pages. This is one way to estimate how long it will take to read the book. Remember, that individuals read at different rates. If your average page contains about 375 words, it will take about one hour to read 24 pages. Thus, a 240-page book would take about 10 hours to read. Page size and text layout vary…but as an estimate, , it gives you the information you need to make some decisions.

Here's another easy way to estimate reading time. If a book is on a word processing program, use the statistics function to find the number of words. In Microsoft Word, use the Tools pull-down menu and choose Word Count. The reading rate for professional narrators is about 160 words per minute. If you send us the word count and a description of the project, we will send you a quote.

And, of course, if you'd like us to do the word count or page estimate for you, we'll be glad to help. Simply contact us.

What happens during a pre-production meeting? In pre-production we identify the scope of the project, agree on the talent, the delivery style and the use of music or special effects. We address pronunciation and language use. We establish communication channels and resolve questions regarding direction and goals of the project.

You must own the audio rights to the material we record and produce for you. We will ask you to certify that you own the audio rights to any material that we produce for you.

Talent price and availability disclaimer: Individual narrators may have performance or personal schedules that conflict with the recording dates of a project. Also, the artists we work with may decline to work on any project for any reason, and in some cases may request a higher performance fee. Of course, talent fees are not subject to change once they have been agreed on.

Prices are not subject to change once a project has begun. We are committed to giving our best effort to every project, and to deliver full value and satisfaction to our customers.

We work hard to make it easy for you. We answer phones. We return messages. We keep our customers informed of the progress of their project. We take delight in our work, and want to work with you.