2. * Another pool of listeners. * Increasingly available. * Another stream of income as a companion to print or ebooks. * Make your work come alive. * It can be fun to do.

3. * Usually not the one built in your computer for best results. * Microphone * CAD * Behringer * Audio Technica * Blue Microphones * Samson * Computer = Anything with an audio input * Many people use Mac computers for media. * Headphones (Optional)

4. * Audacity (Free = audacity.sourceforge.net) * Wavepad (Free or $$$ = www.nch.com.au/wavepad/index.htlml)www.nch.com.au/wavepad/index.htlml * MAGIX Music Maker ($$$ at http://www.magix.com/us/music- maker/) * AVS Audio Editor ($$$ at http://www.avs4you.com/AVS-Audio- Editor.aspx) * Dexster Audio Editor (Free or $$$ at http://www.dexster.net/) * NGWave Audio Editor ($$$ at http://audio-editing-software- review.toptenreviews.com/ngwave-audio-editor-review.html) * Audio Editor Gold ($$$ at http://www.audio-editor.net/aeg/) * Blaze Media Pro ($$$ at http://www.blazemp.com/) * Diamond Cut 8 ($$$ at http://www.tracertek.com/)

5. * Do it yourself. * Fun * Do things your way/more creative control * Less expensive. * Hire someone. * Possibly more professional. * Less internal control. * More expensive. * Can find someone to do accents and characters you cannot do yourself.

6. * Do it yourself. * Hire someone. * Count on more than the time of the recording to listen to and edit is all. Always longer than you think. * This is something that is not too hard to learn for a reasonably tech-savvy person.

7. * Self publish and host. * Createspace, etc * Submit to other sites. * www.BigWorldNetwork.com www.BigWorldNetwork.com * www.infinitypublishing.com www.infinitypublishing.com * www.spokenbookspublishing.com www.spokenbookspublishing.com * www.acx.com www.acx.com

8. * Don’t speak too quickly and not too slowly. * Breathe in logical places. * Work out your accents/voices beforehand and be consistent. * Make sure you know how to pronounce names, etc. and be consistent. * Watch and make sure the sound waves don’t “spill over”. (Causes feedback) * Experiment with the position of the microphone to find best sound.

9. * Eliminate background noise. (Think time of day) * Clocks * Furnaces/air conditioning * Dryer/Washer/Washing Machine * Neighbors, environment, weather * 10 seconds of silence for additional background noise scrubbing. * Don’t stop. Go back to the beginning of the sentence or phrase for easier cutting. * Learn how to breathe quietly. * Know pronunciations and problem spots beforehand. * Try to record in the same conditions each time. * When in doubt, redo something.

10. * Speed up the recording if possible, but not too fast. Somewhere between x1.5 and x2 usually works best. * Zoom in enough so that you can make fine adjustments * Know recording shortcuts such as using the spacebar for play/stop. * Learn what a ‘breath’ or a ‘pop’ look like and anticipate them. * Pause long enough between sentences to allow for editing if necessary. * Use “Noise Removal” tool to make editing easier. * When removing an mistake, see if you can remove a breath or pop with it. Remove as much bad audio as you can without making it sound unnatural. * Allow a little space between sentences and do not cut too close.

11. * http://www.writermike.com – my site http://www.writermike.com * http://www.bigworldnetwork.com – the home of my audiobooks http://www.bigworldnetwork.com * http://audacity.sourceforge.net/ - free audio recording and editing software http://audacity.sourceforge.net/

12. My site: http://www.writermike.comhttp://www.writermike.com Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/authormichaelyou ng http://www.facebook.com/authormichaelyou ng Twitter: @mdybyu Other: thesongoftherighteous.wordpress.com adventanthology.wordpress.com www.bigworldnetwork.com