I’m probably overlooking something very basic here but the instructions on the ACX site about submitting an audition all seem to be concerned with doing so for an existing projected project written by someone else - Find projects that intrigue you, and audition!
How do I submit an audition piece for my own project? Is it a question of registering the intended book with ACX first?
an existing projected project written by someone else
I noticed that’s much more of a concern now. It wasn’t when I did it.
I think too many people were “volunteering” to read somebody else’s book without telling them and Audible/ACX got stuck with copyright issues—and attorneys.
Is it a question of registering the intended book with ACX first?
I don’t know, but I wouldn’t be shocked if they did that. Their introductory messages mention “rightsholders” multiple times.
This description suggests strongly that a publication has to be published first. “I wrote this play and then decided to read…” That may be the end of reading into an audiobook and then “forgetting” to publish the written word.
Please post back if you find out more before we do. You will then become the authority.
Koz, many thanks for the reply. As you know from my other thread I’ve been working with a friend on her own audiobook but I’m also considering one myself, so I’m doubly involved in this. I’ll see what I can discover and report back.
OK, I’ve now registered with ACX, completed all the banking and taxation details and am trying to submit my audiobook project. Despite the repeat assertion that I can do so in “three easy stages” it’s proving rather trickier than that so far: I’m stuck on stage one, which is presenting me with a list of existing books and audiobooks I’ve written and is apparently asking me to select one of them. I’ve no idea why, and there doesn’t seem to be any way of moving past this step. I’ll keep trying.
Almost by accident, I found this page: https://www.acx.com/audiolab/playground which allows you to upload a recording and checks it for their basic technical requirements - exactly comparable to Audacity’s ACX Check. It also provides a report as a downloadable XISX file, which requires Excel to open. I don’t have Excel or any equivalent so I can’t say exactly what the report provides.
But now, back to the submission process… And having had another go, it looks very much as if you’re right and they’re no longer accepting submissions (let alone auditions) for new, original audiobooks not based on existing print works. If that is the case, it’s a major change in policy.
Right. I’ve selected one of my existing print books and this has immediately moved me on to stage two. (I’m not intending to made an audiobook of this title, I’m just using it as a means of stepping through the process.)
This next stage involves describing the book, entering details of what territories I want to sell in, who the narrator is, what royalty scheme I want, and so on. And then I’m invited to enter chapter names.
And having done that, I’m straight through to a page for uploading the chapters. There’s a link back to that “Audiolab” page for checking the tech details but - crucially - no invitation to upload an audition for checking the sound quality. It seems very much as if it’s the whole book or nothing.
I’ll contact ACX and ask about this, and report back. But it does appear that their policy has changed.
checks it for their basic technical requirements - exactly comparable to Audacity’s ACX Check.
Good to know. There as a rumor they had a tool like that.
It wouldn’t do me any good at all. I passed technical specifications and failed because I can’t read out loud.
no invitation to upload an audition for checking the sound quality. It seems very much as if it’s the whole book or nothing.
That’s not good news. That’s an enormous time waster for new readers. Maybe that’s the point. The walls in the garden got higher.
I’ll contact ACX and ask about this
Maybe not. They traditionally will not dialog with you, even more so now that everybody on the planet is trying to read for audiobooks and they are running in overload. We’ll see.
Thanks for that. I viewed the ACX report and as I suspected it provides the basic technical analysis: run time, RMS, peak, bitrate, VBR, sampling rate.
On the subject of ACX accepting original audiobooks, I noticed today that their home page banner isn’t encouraging:
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That does seem to state their main purpose, doesn’t it? But as I said, I emailed them for clarification and will report back.
That’s from a parallel forum posting who is apparently having a very different experience than you are. I wonder if we’re experiencing a US/UK problem.
That’s from a parallel forum posting who is apparently having a very different experience than you are. I wonder if we’re experiencing a US/UK problem.
Thanks for that, Koz. I read the thread you linked to, and while yes, the poster is having a difference experience, there is an easily discernable reason: his audiobook is a reading of an already-published print book whereas the one I’m dealing with is not.
I noted that you asked if he’d been able to submit an Audition piece and he answered “several”. But he made it clear that these were auditions for read-my-book projects by the books’ owners, who had invited hopeful readers to try out for the job: this is a practice which ACX encourages and is not at all the same thing as sending an audition piece for one’s own original (ie not a reading of a published work) audiobook.
The full report is in Excel format which I can only read online (and thanks for the link). I’ll have to post two separate images since the display was too wide for my screen:
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The RMS and peak level readings are the same as those given by Audacity’s ACX Check. For some reason, ACX Audiolab doesn’t give a noise floor reading (-71.56dB Pass in Audacity’s report).
Koz, I just received a reply to my email to the ACX help service: a commendably speedy response.
This is the information they gave me:
It is not possible to start an ACX project until an ebook, paperback, or hardback exists on Amazon. This means it is not possible to start an audio only project. It must exist in print first.
Now that the AudioLab is available for checking technical details of a sample recording, we no longer offer the human-listening Audition service.
That last is an unfortunate change, isn’t it? It means it’s necessary to record and submit an entire book without the security of knowing that the sound quality is acceptable.
not at all the same thing as sending an audition piece for one’s own original (ie not a reading of a published work) audiobook.
I thought you got around that restriction by referencing an existing published (paper) work.
ACX Audiolab doesn’t give a noise floor reading (-71.56dB Pass in Audacity’s report).
Especially since that’s the quality most home readers fail.
I’ll have to post two separate images since the display was too wide for my screen:
That works.
That last is an unfortunate change, isn’t it?
Totally, and that takes care of the forum poster who was going to submit their meditation and yoga chants. Jury’s still out on the poster who wanted to submit their cookbook.
it’s necessary to record and submit an entire book without the security of knowing that the sound quality is acceptable.
Peeling off new presenters right and left.
You can still do a test reading here on the forum. We’re not perfect, but we do well.
All that is insanely good to know. Generations of potential audiobook readers will thank you.
That was just an experiment to see if it would get me to the the next stage for submitting a project; the piece I actually wanted to submit is audio only.
You can still do a test reading here on the forum. We’re not perfect, but we do well.
You, and others, certainly gave me an enormous amount of help. Thanks again.
All that is insanely good to know.
The dropping of the human-listening Audition service seems such an important piece of information that I wondered if I should have made it the subject of a separate post with a more informative heading.
Generations of potential audiobook readers will thank you.
