# ACX Narrator rates & other things I've learned



## Sophrosyne (Mar 27, 2011)

I know people frequently have questions about ACX and narrator royalty rates. Here's what I've learned (and been told):

$0-$50: Crickets. You will absolutely need to search through ACX's narrator archives. You most likely will wind up with someone who's newish to the audiobook world.

$50-$100: you may get some auditions, but you'll still have to be proactive trying to find the better narrators who work in this price range. But you totally can find narrators with some experience at this level, and if you're proactive enough, you can wind up with a really good audiobook.

$100-$200: you'll get a lot of auditions, pretty quickly, and they'll be from more experienced narrators. You will have to also look through the archives, if you want to find the best in this range. But there are a ton of talented narrators who work in this range, so you should wind up with a really great audiobook.

$200-$300: I believe Audible said that their top narrators are paid in this range. You'll get one of their best narrators, with lots of experience, and you'll have a totally kick-ass audiobook.

$300-900: you should get the most kick-ass professional narrator with of credits and awards from the traditional publishing world as well as TV & features. This audiobook should sound like it came from one of the big, traditional houses or better.

$1000: you can get a professional, award-winning TV/movie actor/actress for this rate. Maybe not an Oscar winner though. But if you wanted to pursue known names, this is what you should expect to pay. 

Royalty Share: If your books don't sell well, no one wants royalty share. If they do sell well, you'll run into narrators wanting only royalty share. However, if they do sell well, this will be the split, so make sure you can live with it: Audible 50%-60%, narrator 20-25%, writer 20-25%. Their page is confusing and doesn't quite match the statements, so I think it may have been changed recently. It used to be tiered, but I think they got away from that, unfortunately. 

Royalty Share plus $100 PFH: If you want to do royalty share, and attract a top-level narrator that you're not able to afford, this is the way to go.

Audiobooks are the fastest growing area right now for indies. You can easily match your e-book income with your audiobook sales.

If you do opt for Royalty Share, make sure you submit your title to ACX for consideration for a stipend. The stipend is a $100 per finished hour bonus that ACX will pay to your narrator. Your narrator must have the book completed within 60 days of the stipend offer, so make sure to give them 60 days when you fill out that form where you choose how long to give your narrator. If the narrator goes past your deadline, the stipend can be pulled. If they go past the 60 days, the stipend can be pulled.

Most narrators take about 2-4 hours in the studio to create 1 finished hour. Some will take longer. The longest I've heard of is 10-12 hours. The more inexperienced your narrator is, the longer it will take them. You don't want to pay for per hour in the studio. That's why the standard rate is per finished hour.

ACX QC actually exists. If your tracks have quality control issues, they will be kicked back.

Make sure the tracks your narrator submits to you are absolutely the way you want them before you approve. You'll only get a chance to approve the first track and then the whole of the tracks at the end.

If you need changes, create an editing log, where you mark down the change you need, the track you need it on, and the minute:second it's needed, so it's easier for the narrator to go back in the tracks and spot-change something.

You can have two narrators, a female and a male, to do the full range of voices, but Audible recommends limiting it to no more than two. And that's something that you'll need to arrange with your narrator. This is also something that you'll need to pay a PFH rate on, because royalty share is not splittable among more than 2 people.

ACX will give you promo codes, so you can promote your audiobook, by giving away free copies. Use the codes. If you run out of codes, you can request more. You need separate codes for the UK.

Okay, I think that's it. It's all I can think of right now, at any rate. YMMV.


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## Sophrosyne (Mar 27, 2011)

Found my notes. According to Audible, their top-of-the-line narrators average $260 per finished hour.


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## Mark E. Cooper (May 29, 2011)

Sophrosyne said:


> Found my notes. According to Audible, their top-of-the-line narrators average $260 per finished hour.


I'll have to ask mine for a discount! hahaha, kidding (in case he's watching)


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## 555aaa (Jan 28, 2014)

Two hours for one hour of text? Did they read the thing before jumping in? Did they actually listen to it before uploading? I find that hard to believe that you can get a decent product at that rate.

Mark / Jeff et. al. have posted extensively about narration rates as I have and yes those tend to agree with what you list.

Just as a FYI, the audio drama in my sig and which ran in the banner ad yesterday took more than a year to produce. It took about 18 hours of studio recording time to get down to under 3 hours of finished product, and hundreds of hours to edit. I pay a flat hourly rate for voice talent in studio, a lower rate when we meet for coodrination, and also an hourly rate for studio time and engineering time. And then I go off and lock myself in a room and edit. Actually, we had myself and another engineer both working on this project at the same time to get it done.

There's a video clip here (skip the first 30 seconds or so):
http://vimeo.com/83477051


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## Usedtoposthere (Nov 19, 2013)

Good list. Just a note: I pay 380. I found that the high-quality narrators were more around 300. I auditioned some of the best-known narrators but ended up going with mine for my whole catalog although she cost more. 

I don't make anything like the same in audio as I do in ebooks, and I sell very well for an indie in audio. All my books have been in the top 20 in contemp romance in audio, and one sat in the top 40 for a couple months. This may depend on genre. Doesn't mean it isn't worth doing--I've made enough with 3 books out, one only 2 months, to cover the cost of the first 5--but it's just a nice supplemental income so far. Again, genres vary. I think Erom and flat-out erotica do very well. 

(I've heard 4-6 hours of work to get to 1 finished hour, by the way. My narrator also reads the book first and makes her own notes and gives it a lot of time and thought. She gives me a full performance. That's where the 380 pays off. Her rating for her part on the latest book is 4.7 on 67 reviews. Yes I wince paying the bill, but ACX put my first book up for Audie consideration. It won't get nominated, but that's what's made them promo me and such. I'm not saying pay more, just--getting the right person can really help. Downside, she ain't fast.)


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## Gertie Kindle (Nov 6, 2008)

ACX allows two rounds of corrections, not just one, unless that's changed recently.  You can't catch everything in one go-round.

I found $150 pfh to be the sweet spot for me. The narrator was happy, she was excellent to work with, and I ended up with a good product. When I offered $100 or royalty share (before they dropped the royalty to a flat 40%), I got nothing.


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## MissingAlaska (Apr 28, 2014)

Length of work affects price too.  I posted a short story as a test to see how ACX work with full payment at the lowest rate - and had eight narrators jump at it.  One ACX approved narrator sent an audition 20 minutes after I posted the work.  Whether short stories sell is a different thread altogether...


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## Sophrosyne (Mar 27, 2011)

When you pay a flat rate, can you pay your narrator via PayPal?


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## Usedtoposthere (Nov 19, 2013)

Sophrosyne said:


> When you pay a flat rate, can you pay your narrator via PayPal?


Thats what I do.


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## RM Prioleau (Mar 18, 2011)

Question about the 'per finished hour' thing:
Suppose a narrator costs $300 per finished hour. Does that mean if you have 2 chapter tracks that are 30 mins each, which equal 1 hour, you pay $300 in total for those? What if you need the narrator to fix those two tracks due to a mispronunciation? Do you have to pay ANOTHER $300 for those two tracks?


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## mrforbes (Feb 16, 2013)

When you hire through Audible, that narrator uploads their work there, and when it's finished Audible does the math.

PFH rate * length 

That is what you pay (at least, that's been my experience). The narrator will send you an invoice and you can discuss payment options with them up front. I paid mine through Paypal.

Keep in mind, if you like the narrator's work, but you are a bad client, they aren't going to want to work with you again


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## Mark E. Cooper (May 29, 2011)

Rosalind James said:


> Thats what I do.


Pay pal for me too. We split the paypal fee between us 50/50


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## Mark E. Cooper (May 29, 2011)

RM Prioleau said:


> Question about the 'per finished hour' thing:
> Suppose a narrator costs $300 per finished hour. Does that mean if you have 2 chapter tracks that are 30 mins each, which equal 1 hour, you pay $300 in total for those? What if you need the narrator to fix those two tracks due to a mispronunciation? Do you have to pay ANOTHER $300 for those two tracks?


Per finished hour is exactly what it sounds like. Finished means fixed and approved. So no, you don't pay until you're happy, and pay only once.

The narrator does the book and uploads each chapter as a file, plus opening credits, end credits, and retail sample. You listen to them, download them if you want, check them on itunes and on your ipod, while following along using your pdf script. You find an error, you tell the narrator what is is, where it can be found using time, page, line number and he fixes it. Uploads a new file, you listen again.

If all is fine this time, you click approve. ACX adds all the files up and come to 5:30mins let's say. That means you pay 5.5 X $300 =$1650 (you'll have to add paypal fee) Your narrator invoices you the amount you need to pay, you pay it and click a button to say you have. Your narrator clicks a button at his end to say he received it, and ACX swings into action with its QC and retail thing. 10 days or so later, your book explodes onto Audible and sells like gangbusters... PROFIT.

PS: This isn't my book, but I have to say LOVE THE COVER!! http://www.audible.com/pd/Fiction/The-Valkyrie-Chronicles-Folkvangr-Audiobook/B00NQATNNG


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## Small Town Writer (Jun 11, 2014)

What is the typical length (pfh) for, say, a 70,000 word MS? How long would the audiobook be?


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## Karen Commins (Oct 1, 2014)

Greetings, all! I'm a narrator who works a lot through ACX, and I'm glad to see this discussion.

*Sophrosyne's* assessment of the talent and finished production quality for each payment rate is, if you'll pardon the pun, right on the money.

To clarify a few points in this discussion:

A rule of thumb is that it takes at least 6 hours for experienced people to create 1 finished hour of audio. A book with a finished run-time of 10 hours might therefore require 60 hours or more in real time to create. The time breakdown is as follows:
-- 1 hour prep (pre-read, research pronunciations, develop character voices)
-- 2 hours recording (correcting mistakes and eliminating noises as you go)
-- 3 hours edit, proof, and master audio for retail distribution

The ACX contract does not specify what constitutes a correction. Many authors think that they should give acting and vocal direction on individual lines and character voices throughout the text. However, narration is a performance art, and the narrator's interpretation of the words will always have some variance from the way the author might have heard it in his/her head. Therefore, a narrator's view of corrections is usually limited to technical errors such as mispronunciations, missing or incorrect words, etc.

To answer *RM Prioleau's* question, you would pay $300 total for the production of the 2 30-minute chapters. The corrections are part of the per finished hour rate.

The current royalty share split is 20%-20% between narrator and author. ACX had a tiered structure prior to 12 March 2014. Your actual payment will be less than a straight 20% of the sales price due to fluctuations in Audible member credits, foreign currencies, reduced sales prices, etc.

Many narrators will not consider a royalty share book unless your other versions are selling 1000 copies a month. The risk for little or no financial compensation for the hours spent in production rests solely with the narrator. The author earns money from every copy of other versions sold, but the narrator only earns money when the audiobook sells.

If ACX doesn't offer the $100 stipend on your book, here's a creative solution that may help you. Many narrators -- including me! -- would happily agree to a $100 stipend up front from the author and the royalty split paid from ACX/Audible. This arrangement allows authors on a budget to attract more experienced talent but is financially feasible for the narrator to offset the production expenses. The author works out the up-front payment with the narrator outside of the ACX structure.

I also encourage authors to contact the narrator BEFORE you make an offer. This way, you can work out payment and availability ahead of time. ACX doesn't have any functionality to revise the offer or for a narrator to explain why she can't accept it. Communication before the offer saves time and frustration for everyone.

*Rosalind James*, congrats on your success! You have attracted it by being willing to pay for a top-tier narrator. If I could offer you a bit of advice, don't put it out to the Universe that your audiobook won't be a finalist for an Audie! Instead, visualize the award and other recognition that you and your work deserve!

Finally, if you have selected a narrator but are waiting to start the project, please update your listing to indicate the narrator has been cast. Otherwise, narrators will spend their time creating a custom audition for you when they could be putting that time toward an open project.

Thanks for a great discussion!

Cordially,
Karen Commins
My ACX profile: https://www.acx.com/narrator?p=AIU2I7DKF1YUP
My audiobooks on Audible: http://goo.gl/WcqSk


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## Michael Parnell (Aug 25, 2014)

I feel like a thief just lurking and soaking up all this information. Thank you, Sophrosyne, for starting this thread, and thanks to everyone who added to it. I've bookmarked it for future reference.


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## Gertie Kindle (Nov 6, 2008)

Karen Commins said:


> The ACX contract does not specify what constitutes a correction. Many authors think that they should give acting and vocal direction on individual lines and character voices throughout the text. However, narration is a performance art, and the narrator's interpretation of the words will always have some variance from the way the author might have heard it in his/her head. Therefore, a narrator's view of corrections is usually limited to technical errors such as mispronunciations, missing or incorrect words, etc.


I have to say that my narrator suggested some accents that I would never have thought of but they turned out beautifully.

The best thing to do when you are asking for auditions is specify exactly what accents you want and also describe the main characters so the narrators auditioning know pretty much what you are looking for. I also used a scene that had as many of the characters in it as possible.


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## Usedtoposthere (Nov 19, 2013)

Just to add to Karen's excellent points: I wrote to each narrator who auditioned, thanking them and telling them I had cast the production. Just like you want to know if you got the job or not. Being left hanging always feels so rude. Plus, a couple of them were a good enough match that I'd want to go back to them if for some reason I needed to. Having that communication with them left the door open.


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## Jake Kerr (Aug 6, 2014)

> I wrote to each narrator who auditioned, thanking them and telling them I had cast the production. Just like you want to know if you got the job or not.


Wow. It didn't even cross my mind that people wouldn't do this. It just seems like basic manners.


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## Mark E. Cooper (May 29, 2011)

jakedfw said:


> Wow. It didn't even cross my mind that people wouldn't do this. It just seems like basic manners.


Me too! Get an audition, write a thank you and say you will review it and let him/her know asap. After reviewing, email to say they are on the short list or they are not, say why politely. Found your narrator? Email all others and say thanks. Tell them the auditions are closed, the book is cast/has a narrator etc.

It's common sense. Don't you hate it when people don't reply to your emails the next day at the latest? Ever tried to email certain aggregaters and never get a response? Think like that. A narrator is looking to you, the way you look to those aggregaters!

Tell the winner asap, work out a deal for money and start/finish times all via emails and texting. Exchange details to make comms easy. Don't resort to the ACX message system until you have things worked out before hand. It's much simpler to just put an offer forward that you KNOW will be accepted because you worked it out via email before hand.


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## Anne Frasier (Oct 22, 2009)

555aaa said:


> Two hours for one hour of text? Did they read the thing before jumping in? Did they actually listen to it before uploading? I find that hard to believe that you can get a decent product at that rate.
> 
> Mark / Jeff et. al. have posted extensively about narration rates as I have and yes those tend to agree with what you list.
> 
> ...


wow. love this.


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## Rich Amooi (Feb 14, 2014)

This thread is VERY helpful. Thank you!   

I have been considering doing an audiobook for my debut novel. I'm not going to start promoting the book until my second novel releases in December, but I have a few questions, if you don't mind.

1) Would anyone recommend waiting until the sales really start happening for the book before making it into an audiobook or waiting until I have a backlist? Or is it better to get it done and have it ready to go? I saw online that most books take 3-8 weeks to produce.

2) How come I've seen some authors selling those audiobooks for only $1.99? That is SO cheap! Is that because I already bought the Kindle version or are there many authors selling for that price normally, regardless of if I've already bought another version?

3) I also see some listings that show the audiobook available as MP3s on a CD, but that doesn't seem to be through Audible. Do people still buy them on CD? I wouldn't be surprised to see that go away completely.

Thanks again!


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## KBoards Admin (Nov 27, 2007)

555aaa said:


> Two hours for one hour of text? Did they read the thing before jumping in? Did they actually listen to it before uploading? I find that hard to believe that you can get a decent product at that rate.
> 
> Mark / Jeff et. al. have posted extensively about narration rates as I have and yes those tend to agree with what you list.
> 
> ...


Wow. Seconding what Anne said: this is a real eye-opener. Watch that video clip... it's an education.


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## 555aaa (Jan 28, 2014)

Rich Amooi said:


> This thread is VERY helpful. Thank you!
> 
> I have been considering doing an audiobook for my debut novel. I'm not going to start promoting the book until my second novel releases in December, but I have a few questions, if you don't mind.
> <snip>
> ...


On (2), you can't set your own pricing on Audible / ACX or if you go to iTunes or the Amazon mp3 store via an aggregator. The pricing is set by Audible using their algorithms, and for some popular books that are in the public domain, there can be a lot of price variation.

On (3), you can't do CDs or MP3 CDs on ACX. You have to do that outside of ACX and that means you have to take the non-exclusive contract at ACX which is only a 25% royalty rate. I have CDs coming out for Dr. Moreau but I also have a stack of CDs in my basement for my last production. They don't sell very well, but the quality on a CD is FAR, FAR HIGHER than on Audible. And don't forget that there is still a very large chunk of the public which is on very slow internet or (gasp) dial-up. CDs also have a higher mark-up - meaning, I make more profit on CD sales than I do on ACX even at 40% royalty. CDs are still a large segment of the audiobook market; I think still about half in terms of cash value. Think about where you sell - when you sell online, people are already online. The market for CDs isn't so much online. And most people know how to pop a CD into the player in their car before a trip but they don't know how to get the audio off of their audible-enabled device into their car. This is a pretty complex topic so perhaps it deserves its own thread.


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## Mike Dennis (Apr 26, 2010)

Karen Commins said:


> G
> If ACX doesn't offer the $100 stipend on your book, here's a creative solution that may help you. Many narrators -- including me! -- would happily agree to a $100 stipend up front from the author and the royalty split paid from ACX/Audible. This arrangement allows authors on a budget to attract more experienced talent but is financially feasible for the narrator to offset the production expenses. The author works out the up-front payment with the narrator outside of the ACX structure.


Karen, I know you meant the stipend amounts to $100 per finished hour, not a flat $100.


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## Mark E. Cooper (May 29, 2011)

Chrissy said:


> I have a question.
> 
> Suppose I'm paying for the narration. When your narrator is done and s/he uploads the audio file to ACX, do I as the Rights Holder get a copy of the audio files too?


You download them to proof them, so yes. Before approving them, download the final versions to make sure you have the most up to date files. You don't get the audible version (compiled to one file with DRM) but its easy to buy it yourself with a free code or just buy it with money. Its worth having your own copy to listen too


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## DanaG (Feb 13, 2011)

Any estimates on how many hours of studio time a 40,000 word book would be? E-rom, if that matters.


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## Gertie Kindle (Nov 6, 2008)

DanaG said:


> Any estimates on how many hours of studio time a 40,000 word book would be? E-rom, if that matters.


When you "claim" your book on ACX, they will tell you the estimated time. I think you'll also find that in the FAQ section.


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## BlairErotica (Mar 1, 2014)

They say 9,000 words per hour for a ballpark.


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## DanaG (Feb 13, 2011)

Thank you guys! That is very helpful.


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## Smarte (Oct 1, 2014)

Great thread!  This is a subject I've been considering, but have not explored fully.  So thank you Sophrosyne for initiating this thread and to all those who have have added additional layers of information.

Some open questions to the group...

How would you recommend a noob get started?  First steps?

I have a novel and two short stories on Amazon.  Would it be a good idea to start with one of the short stories to learn the ropes?  Or would you dive right in with the novel?


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## Gertie Kindle (Nov 6, 2008)

I started out with a novella and a related short story because I could pay for those up front. I figure when (and if) I make enough money from those two, I'll go on to my best seller; a four part, novel length bundle.


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## Karen Commins (Oct 1, 2014)

Mike Dennis said:


> Karen, I know you meant the stipend amounts to $100 per finished hour, not a flat $100.


Right, Mike! I was at a conference and composing the message on my iPad. I'm glad you caught my omission. I meant to say:

If ACX doesn't offer the $100 per finished hour stipend on your book, here's a creative solution that may help you. Many narrators -- including me! -- would happily agree to a $100 *PFH* stipend up front from the author and the royalty split paid from ACX/Audible. This arrangement allows authors on a budget to attract more experienced talent but is financially feasible for the narrator to offset the production expenses. The author works out the up-front payment with the narrator outside of the ACX structure.


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## Mark E. Cooper (May 29, 2011)

Karen Commins said:


> Right, Mike! I was at a conference and composing the message on my iPad. I'm glad you caught my omission. I meant to say:
> 
> If ACX doesn't offer the $100 stipend on your book, here's a creative solution that may help you. Many narrators -- including me! -- would happily agree to a $100 *PFH* stipend up front from the author and the royalty split paid from ACX/Audible. This arrangement allows authors on a budget to attract more experienced talent but is financially feasible for the narrator to offset the production expenses. The author works out the up-front payment with the narrator outside of the ACX structure.


This reminds me of Joe Nobody and his hybrid audio deals. I don't think he called it a stipend but the result would be similar if not exactly the same. Its a great alternative


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## Philip Gibson (Nov 18, 2013)

Oh, I definitely should make audiobook versions of my graded readers for children. It would be so useful, especially for those learning English as a foreign/second language. Might even be essential for those readers.

Some questions:

1.  My Book 1 is very short and could be narrated in less than 5 minutes. Is that practical/doable?

2.  The book is in comic book format with speech and thought bubbles. Would there be any issues with that?

3.  I see above it is recommended to not have more than two narrators. My first book has 4 characters (including a dog who thinks but does not speak). Later books have up to 7 characters. Can I have that many narrators?

4.  The early books mostly have 9 or 10-year-old children speaking. Will I be able to find child narrators?

Any advice you could give me about any aspect of this would be most appreciated, even if it's: "Don't bother, Philip - too difficult."


Philip


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## suliabryon (May 18, 2009)

What a fantastic thread. Thanks everyone who has chimed in. Many of my questions around this topic are now answered, and I'm debating the possible benefit as a newly launching author of doing my first book (a novella) in ACX right out of the gate. I'm wondering if having an audio version available will boost visibility as a new name, drawing potentially more readers/listeners/reviewers/sales. Question: it sounds like I couldn't start the process until I published, is that right? So, there is no way to get a jump on this and have an audiobook ready or close to ready by the time of my launch date in March.


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## Joe_Nobody (Oct 23, 2012)

Mark E. Cooper said:


> This reminds me of Joe Nobody and his hybrid audio deals. I don't think he called it a stipend but the result would be similar if not exactly the same. Its a great alternative


We don't do that anymore. Not that there was a problem, it just became unnecessary. We had dozens of great auditions willing to work for $125-$150 pfh. Why bother with writing out a bunch of checks every month?

Soph - great post with excellent information.

If I might chime in with another little jewel concerning narrators:

As a tiebreaker between two similar quality/priced auditions, take a moment to see which narrator has the most promotional presence.
We have found, over the course of 15 audio books, that some actors have impressive followings on social media, and commonly post/tweet about their latest project.
On one of our audio books, the narrator had 1200+ followers on Facebook, and when he posted about our project, we saw a considerable spike in sales for the next few days.
I wouldn't expect marketing-miracles, but every sale helps recover the cost of audio book creation. Every penny counts.

Another observation:

As a general rule, multiple voice narrations are far, far more expensive. If you want an actor for each major character in your tome, be prepared to pay for that.
We learned a long time ago to put up a sample that included male and female dialog. Some narrators do an excellent job changing their voice just enough so that the listener can discern who is speaking. This can be a critical item for a dialog-heavy title.

And now some math:

You don't set the price of your audio book. ACX does that, and it's typically based on length. In addition, not all ACX sales are equal. There are three categories, each paying a different royalty percentage.

On average, with well over 15,000 audio books sold, a 100K novel nets us $6.10 royalty per copy. Again, this is a long-term average across multiple books, and includes the little bonus perks that Audible throws in under certain circumstances. That 100K novel ends up being about 11 finished hours. So....

11 finished hours at $150 per hour is $1650 cost of narration. That means we have to sell 270 copies before we break even.
Run the numbers at $125 per hour, and you need 226 copies sold before making a profit.

Do the math. Make it a business decision. Here is the formula I use:

Our audiobook sales, per title, run at 18% of ebook copies sold. That means, annualized, that for every 1,000 ebooks sold, we can expect to peddle 180 audio books.
I've had exceptions, both above and below that percentage, but the average holds over long periods of time across the catalog. Right now, I have an audio book that is outselling the ebook by 3:1 for the month-to-date. That's rare however, at least in my experience.

So, if your ebook isn't selling at a high enough rate to justify the investment in a narrator, don't do it. I don't convert all of my titles to audio. Most, but not all.

I post these numbers not to discourage or encourage, but only to help authors make logical business decisions.

One other factor to consider. In my case, audio cuts into paperback sales. I can't give specifics, but I'm reasonably confident of that statement. As a pure guess, I'd say I lose one paperback sale for every four audio books we sell. This is just my gut feel, not scientifically backed.

Audio can be a huge moneymaker, and anyone who has even a modestly successful ebook title should seriously consider taking the plunge. 
On the other hand, it's not a panacea. Be smart before you invest.


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## Usedtoposthere (Nov 19, 2013)

Good advice as always from Mr. Nobody!

I'd add, as a contemporary romance/romantic suspense author who does reasonably well in audio: My own audio sales are more like 5% of my ebook sales (in units sold). Max. Romance isn't the biggest seller in audio. Check your genre. 
(Erotic romance does better, however.)


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## Joe_Nobody (Oct 23, 2012)

Rosalind James said:


> Good advice as always from Mr. Nobody!
> 
> I'd add, as a contemporary romance/romantic suspense author who does reasonably well in audio: My own audio sales are more like 5% of my ebook sales (in units sold). Max. Romance isn't the biggest seller in audio. Check your genre.
> (Erotic romance does better, however.)


Excellent points. My titles are mostly action/adventure. I can't speak for other genres.


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## SA_Soule (Sep 8, 2011)

I have had bad experiences so far with narrators on ACX. To be honest, I have had so many difficulties with narrators that I feel frustrated at this point and disappointed. 

Now I am reluctant to hire anyone from that site.


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## 555aaa (Jan 28, 2014)

Wow, this thread came back from the dead!

1) I've never hired anyone direct via the ACX contract, but I've hired several ACX narrators. I've hired about 16 narrators over the past few years and I've only had two misunderstandings on the contract terms. There's some very talented folks there and also some people who are just starting their careers.  I have has technical shortcomings on a surprising amount of audio I receive, even from well known (for voiceover) professional studios, but the best audio I've received also came from studios also (studios where the narrator works with an audio engineer).

2) my audio far outsells its print or e-book compatriots, but it is quite niche. 

3) Phil, I don't think your books are right for ACX. What they are spot on for is iBooks or one of the enhanced ebook formats (enhanced ePub). You can't sell those via KDP but the company that used to be Vook (now Pronoun) used to do this - I'd contact them. The KDP manual documents how to do this but the KDP uploader strips out the files, AFAIK. You might also look at one of the app building tools and instead of selling a book as a book, sell it as an app in the app store for Android, since there is a larger installed Andriod base in your target market. 

You can hire child narrators via a talent agency but expect to pay a premium because you're paying the agency's overhead. The multi-narrator thing is complex because it becomes more of a group performance.


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## RobertLSlater (Jan 27, 2015)

Sophrosyne said:


> Audiobooks are the fastest growing area right now for indies. You can easily match your e-book income with your audiobook sales.


Okay, I've heard this, but everyone I've talked to who has actually done this (Mostly SciFi/Fant, but some Hist and Rom) have said that it was "worth it, because it didn't cost them anything, but they're not making much in number of dollars of sales.

Does anyone know of any numbers like the eBook data from Hugh Howey and the number guy? Especially with small press/indie/self-pub?

Thanks,
Rob


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## Usedtoposthere (Nov 19, 2013)

^^ That observation is more than a year old. FWIW, I do NOT see this as true at all. At least not for most. For me, as I've said, I sell about 5% the # of audio that I do of ebooks--and I sell well in audio. A HUGE day in audio is 100 copies sold (in my genre--romance). That will put you up on the bestseller list. An equivalent day in ebook would be more like 2500 copies sold. There just isn't the size of market. Audio is still small, and KU has had a big, big impact on indies' audio sales. (Because non-indie books in KU can be borrowed for no additional charge.) 

Audio's also very new-release-dependent, in my experience, unless you're a big, big seller. So you get your first couple books out and you're doing great, and you think, "Wow!" Let four months go by without a new release? Yeah. You're invisible. Even more than ebook. So you have to keep pumping out those $4-5K audiobooks (in my case) in order to keep making some money. Investment-wise? Yeah, it's still a good deal, but, whoosh. It's nothing like the ROI of ebooks. A good source of extra money, but no gold rush. As somebody said--don't invest in it unless you have the extra money.


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## Usedtoposthere (Nov 19, 2013)

I'm not saying, "Don't do it." I'm saying, read Joe's excellent post, crunch your own numbers, and decide based on your own sales data, and how well your genre does in audio.


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## C. Gockel (Jan 28, 2014)

I saw Harvey's avatar up the thread and felt really sad. 

I know people who are still deep, deep, deep in the hole from audio. (They are talented, smart, hardworking successful authors, I know they'll get it back, but still ... )

Tantor approached me about putting my books into audio. They offered me a small advance and royalties (I hear Audible is now only buying rights flat out--I would not have gone for that.) Even though the royalties aren't as generous as they would be if I produced it myself, I decided to take the offer because I don't know when I would have the time.

I know Mark Cooper and others are making wonderful incomes in audible, but I would advise caution and not spending money you don't have. By the time a gold rush has been declared its late in the game.


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## RobertLSlater (Jan 27, 2015)

C. Gockel said:


> I saw Harvey's avatar up the thread and felt really sad.


Yeah... sigh. I live in Bellingham and didn't meet him until last year. :-( What a wonderful legacy he left.

On the time and money investment on audio. I guess I'm going to have to wait. The 'royalties' are so much less, and the author can't choose the price? Yeah. Too many downsides, I think.

Thanks for the advice.



Rosalind James said:


> I'm not saying, "Don't do it." I'm saying, read Joe's excellent post, crunch your own numbers, and decide based on your own sales data, and how well your genre does in audio.


 Not there yet. Maybe when I've finished the first series, then it might make sense.

Thanks,
Rob


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## vlmain (Aug 10, 2011)

KBoards Admin said:


> Wow. Seconding what Anne said: this is a real eye-opener. Watch that video clip... it's an education.


It certainly is. I had no idea what went into the narration process. It makes that $300 pfh seem like a bargain.


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## Mark E. Cooper (May 29, 2011)

When I saw Roz selling boxed sets I decided to make boxed sets. 

After KU 1.0 my audio empire was severely wounded, and KU 2.0 came around and put a bullet in its head. Sales of all my series except Merki Wars went to zero when I lost ranks and visibility at Amazon. Having nothing to lose (sales in my sci-fi were in the handful range at Audible) I copied Roz unmercifully and brought out 3 boxed sets. Only one of them took off, and with the aid of Mark D's FB ads course.

I now sell between 30-67 a day of that box at audible. A recent BB promo sold 2436 kindle and 191 audiobooks on promo day.


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## Marilyn Peake (Aug 8, 2011)

Thanks for all the information and for such an informative thread. Seeing Harvey here brought sadness and good memories - such a wonderful person!


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## Jim Johnson (Jan 4, 2011)

C. Gockel said:


> I know Mark Cooper and others are making wonderful incomes in audible, but I would advise caution and not spending money you don't have. By the time a gold rush has been declared its late in the game.


Other than the narrator cost and any advertising you do (and the cover) what other costs are involved with audiobook generation for an author?


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## Mark E. Cooper (May 29, 2011)

Jim Johnson said:


> Other than the narrator cost and any advertising you do (and the cover) what other costs are involved with audiobook generation for an author?


Those are the only three I can think of.


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## blancheking (Oct 15, 2015)

The entire process seemed very confusing, but I guess if you're new, maybe offer the 50/50? 

I put mine up a week ago for 50/50 and got an audition the next day from a girl who charges $100-200 normally. She's doing a good job, and I have no complaints to date. Is there anything I should look for?


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## Mark E. Cooper (May 29, 2011)

blancheking said:


> The entire process seemed very confusing, but I guess if you're new, maybe offer the 50/50?
> 
> I put mine up a week ago for 50/50 and got an audition the next day from a girl who charges $100-200 normally. She's doing a good job, and I have no complaints to date. Is there anything I should look for?


I have a lot of ACX bookmarks. This one should help: http://www.kboards.com/index.php/topic,196018.0.html


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## Adair Hart (Jun 12, 2015)

Awesome thread. I didn't realize it was necroed until halfway through it   I appreciate all the advice given. 

I recently went through the process of creating my first audiobook as a complete newbie to audiobooks, and I am glad I did. I know the conventional wisdom is to wait to see if your series takes off before investing, but for me, my dad and lil sis wanting an audiobook version was the deal sealer. I was going to wait until the third book was out next year, but decided to dive in. 

I originally did the royalty share option, but after two weeks and no auditions, I upped it to 50-100 pfh. I got a few auditions, but none stuck with me. I then upped it to 100-200 pfh, and found one that fit. I let some others listen to it, and they liked it, so I went with him and negotiated a decent rate. I initially wanted to do royalty share because I didn't think any narrator would touch a new author with one book out. Instead,  I went with pfh with the thought that once you earn back your money, everything thereafter is gravy, assuming it sells. My narrator stepped me through the whole process, and the experience as a whole was very enjoyable. He is helping me promote it and I have an audiobook blast going out next week right before Christmas. 

Listening to my characters was an awesome feeling. Reading along as I did my edit of it was a lot of fun for me. It launched last week on the 7th, and so far I have sold 10. Prawny numbers, I know, but I wasn't expecting even that, so was pleasantly surprised. One day I hope to have Mark or Rosalind numbers. Looking forward to doing the second book!


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## charlottehughes (Dec 18, 2014)

Rosalind James said:


> Audio's also very new-release-dependent, in my experience, unless you're a big, big seller. So you get your first couple books out and you're doing great, and you think, "Wow!" Let four months go by without a new release? Yeah. You're invisible. Even more than eBook.


Roz, can you say more about the new release dependent issue you raise? I understand the 30 day and 90 day cliffs with eBooks. but how does Amazon (or whoever) market an audio book, is there an equivalent of the HOT NEW RELEASES? If I bring out any of my current standalones (more than 3 month old) as audiobooks, will they get any special treatment in the first month (or three?) or will they do only as well as the ebooks/books they are made from?

I also mostly write romance, so I will go with your 5% expectation- is that any lower with standalones?


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## Usedtoposthere (Nov 19, 2013)

charlottehughes said:


> Roz, can you say more about the new release dependent issue you raise? I understand the 30 day and 90 day cliffs with eBooks. but how does Amazon (or whoever) market an audio book, is there an equivalent of the HOT NEW RELEASES? If I bring out any of my current standalones (more than 3 month old) as audiobooks, will they get any special treatment in the first month (or three?) or will they do only as well as the ebooks/books they are made from?
> 
> I also mostly write romance, so I will go with your 5% expectation- is that any lower with standalones?


My books are standalones within series. I do think that true series (same couple/story) can do better.

Seems like your books would do well. Big audience for sweet/funny romance in audio.

The audiobook is really separate as far as new releases. Doesn't matter how old the ebook is. You've got a whole separate "New Releases" category on Audible (take a look at your category there, and you'll see). That includes 90 days, but people can also sort by 30 days.

Sometimes Audible will merchandise (promote) a book--put a new one in their "Hear and Now" newsletter, on a "Buy One, Get One" promo, feature it on the homepage for your category (they had my first one up there for months in Contemp Romance. Man, was that great. Not anymore alas, but it was a good start!) That's the golden ticket. What you can do to make it more likely:

(1) get written reviews using your codes (I have about 40 audiobook ARC folks).

(2) Put an "Audiobooks" page on your website with Soundcloud samples of your books. You can see mine at http://www.rosalindjames.com/audiobooks/.

(3) Pray, perhaps, or do a special dance, or whatever. I dunno. Magic.

Oh, and lots of folks do Facebook ads and report success with those, but since I'm FB-ad-clueless, i wouldn't know.


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## jamesnarrates (Mar 13, 2015)

Hey folks - what a great thread, I'm glad it came back from the dead!

I'm an audiobook narrator who also takes work via ACX, and might be able to offer some insight on a few things.

I noticed someone mentioned audible's general studio rate - yeah, it's lower than what you're typically going to spend PFH via ACX for a top-notch production, but that's because audible has their own studios with their own engineers. When I record for Audible or Brilliance, or another publishing house, I just narrate - end of story. They get the files and their sound engineers go to work. When I'm working via ACX, *I'm* expected to manage all the proofing, editing, and audio mastering. A lot of ACX narrators will do that on their own... and that's a bit of a gamble for you, as the Right's Holder, and where you end up hearing a LOT of variation in sound quality... because let's face it, with very few exceptions these folks are narrators, and NOT professional audio engineers. CAN they do the editing and mastering? Well, they're supposed to be able to... but can they do it AS WELL as a professional? Probably not. So what you see from the professional narrators on ACX (as opposed to the folks trying it out as a sideline or hobby) is a higher requested PFH rate, because they're going to use that to pay for a professional audio engineer to handle your audio files (the folks I work with also work at Audible, etc.) so your book ends up sounding like it was professionally done.

Also, Roz is right on regarding release dependency - you have a narrow window after your book goes on sale to really grab an audience, unless the book is part of an ongoing series. Even with an ongoing series, I've noticed that if there's too much time between releases, your next audiobook release can go from a "Oh man, I *need* to get the next one!" to "Oh yeah, I remember that series... I might have to get back to that eventually" FAR too fast. Some things that I've seen work for series sales - wait until you're writing book three to get the audio for book 1 going. This gives the books time to build a fan base and get sales, and gives you a bit of control over the timing of the audio release for books 1 and 2. Ideally you'll be set to move book 3 into audio production so that it's release matches the schedule you've set with 1 and 2, and so on.

Be sure to ask any narrator you select via ACX about their promotion/marketing plan (if you're offering a royalty share - if it's PFH, the narrator won't be doing any marketing for the book), and be sure to share your own marketing plan with them as well. If it's a royalty share" book, you two are entering into a partnership, and it's in everyone's best interest if the book does well. As an example, typically I'll schedule multiple tweets, and post to my FB narrator page, as well as pay for an expedited review and feature listing via audiobookreviewer.com, and then also list the book on audiobookblast.com to start the reviews rolling in and building buzz. Audiobookreviewer.com also does multiple tweets and FB posts for the books, and I make sure to keep tabs on that so I can like/share/retweet as applicable.

Okay, this is already far longer than I anticipated - I really just wanted to jump in and say "great thread" 

I'm looking forward to participating in the conversations!

James

James Foster | [email protected]
http://jamesnarrates.com


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## SunshineOnMe (Jan 11, 2014)

Just commenting to say this is an awesome thread! Trying to navigate ACX now....


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## baronfrosti (Jan 29, 2017)

I paid $100 for a narrator using voice123.com and am very pleased with the results. I paid $50 up front and $50 when the files arrived. It was a short ~8,000 word piece. The narrator sent me the raw audio. I edited, put in chapter breaks, and added intro music myself. At voice123, you submit a proposal and narrators audition. You review the auditions and pick the one you like. Once you find someone you like, you work with them directly and pay via paypal. Also, he had one day turnaround which was great.


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## Usedtoposthere (Nov 19, 2013)

Sophrosyne said:


> Found my notes. According to Audible, their top-of-the-line narrators average $260 per finished hour.


That is only for narration. Not for production (which is half the time required.)

In my experience, you have to pay 300 to start getting a high quality narrator. I'm sure there are exceptions. But that's for narration AND production, and as noted, the best narrators are getting almost that much from the audio publishers just for narration.

I realize this is an old thread, but I wanted to correct that. (All of my 22 books are in audio--20 released, one on preorder, one in production.) I have two series with different publishers and three done through ACX. I've had six different narrators.)


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## anotherpage (Apr 4, 2012)

Sophrosyne said:


> I know people frequently have questions about ACX and narrator royalty rates. Here's what I've learned (and been told):
> 
> $0-$50: Crickets. You will absolutely need to search through ACX's narrator archives. You most likely will wind up with someone who's newish to the audiobook world.
> 
> ...


I heard Russel Blake say on his blog or facebook that royalty ACX isn't worth it anymore. I wouldn't go with it. I would prefer to pay upfront.


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## anotherpage (Apr 4, 2012)

Rosalind J said:


> Good list. Just a note: I pay 380. I found that the high-quality narrators were more around 300. I auditioned some of the best-known narrators but ended up going with mine for my whole catalog although she cost more.
> 
> I don't make anything like the same in audio as I do in ebooks, and I sell very well for an indie in audio. All my books have been in the top 20 in contemp romance in audio, and one sat in the top 40 for a couple months. This may depend on genre. Doesn't mean it isn't worth doing--I've made enough with 3 books out, one only 2 months, to cover the cost of the first 5--but it's just a nice supplemental income so far. Again, genres vary. I think Erom and flat-out erotica do very well.
> 
> (I've heard 4-6 hours of work to get to 1 finished hour, by the way. My narrator also reads the book first and makes her own notes and gives it a lot of time and thought. She gives me a full performance. That's where the 380 pays off. Her rating for her part on the latest book is 4.7 on 67 reviews. Yes I wince paying the bill, but ACX put my first book up for Audie consideration. It won't get nominated, but that's what's made them promo me and such. I'm not saying pay more, just--getting the right person can really help. Downside, she ain't fast.)


Rosalind are you in the USA?


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## Usedtoposthere (Nov 19, 2013)

lostones said:


> Rosalind are you in the USA?


Yes.


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## 555aaa (Jan 28, 2014)

I've also used Voice123. No complaints, but you'll need to write your own contract with your voice talent.


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## baronfrosti (Jan 29, 2017)

Potentially dumb question: Why would I need a contract if I am paying for narration and not doing a royalty split? If I pay for narration up front, all rights remain with me.


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## Mark E. Cooper (May 29, 2011)

lostones said:


> I heard Russel Blake say on his blog or facebook that royalty ACX isn't worth it anymore. I wouldn't go with it. I would prefer to pay upfront.


Not sure what you mean here. I add books through ACX but always pay my narrator upfront. Did you mean royalty share isn't worth it? I have always believed royalty share is a bad deal (because 50-50 forever for ANYthing is)


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## QuickiePress (Jun 2, 2019)

suliabryon said:


> What a fantastic thread. Thanks everyone who has chimed in. Many of my questions around this topic are now answered, and I'm debating the possible benefit as a newly launching author of doing my first book (a novella) in ACX right out of the gate. I'm wondering if having an audio version available will boost visibility as a new name, drawing potentially more readers/listeners/reviewers/sales. Question: it sounds like I couldn't start the process until I published, is that right? So, there is no way to get a jump on this and have an audiobook ready or close to ready by the time of my launch date in March.


Hopefully you have successfully published your debut and others by now, but for the benefit of searchers, you can put a book in pre-order status an it will show up in ACX. Tricky part is that you have to specifically request pre-order for the completed audiobook if you want them both to become available at the same time.


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