About This Site

Georgia-StoneGreetings! I’m Karen Commins. You may know me from my work as an audiobook narrator, producer, publisher, blogger, and leading curator of information about the audiobook industry.

I’ve written many articles on my blog to help narrators and many other sites, and I’m a frequent contributor to several Facebook narrator groups. As the Audiobook Share-rator™️, I wanted to expand my level of assistance to the narrator community by creating this site devoted to the needs of audiobook narrators at all levels.

Busy narrators have told me that they are relieved to have the comprehensive set of resources about becoming a narrator on the home page. Rather than spending their time to craft a helpful answer, they love the speed and ease of referring newcomers to this site.

You’ll find another long list of helpful links in the section below! 

I’m a firm believer in not re-inventing the wheel, yet so many of us were doing that very thing when it came to searching for training and networking events, finding reviewers for our latest release, and even learning software features.

NarratorsRoadmap.com is a site for all of us!

Click here to see the Roadmap of NarratorsRoadmap.

The following features will interest experienced narrators:

  • Audiobook Village contains directories of other people who can help with your audiobook production.
  • Casting Directory of 55 (and counting!) production companies and publishers who hire narrators to record for them. Each comprehensive listing includes:
    • Contact names, almost always with a link
    • Genres
    • Languages
    • Resource links including information about the company and its employees such as acquisition news and interviews with the people to help you learn about them and their preferences.
    • Social media channels
  • Events Calendar of 9 types of color-coded events, including audiobook training classes, author
    and audiobook conferences, author/reader signings, and book festivals
  • Knowledge Base with answers to frequent questions that occur during prep, narration and post
  • Video Courses Each exclusive video course has its own set of associated resource links!
    • Creating Your Own Path: 3 modules about Public Domain audiobooks, Prospecting, and Publishing
    • iAnnotate: 12 modules (click here to sample the first video)
    • Evernote: 10 modules
    • Antidotes for Comparison-itis and Bad Review Fever 1 module
    • Convos with Karen  These are stand-alone Q&A videos about royalty share work, mindset, and more.
  • Webinars I’ve started conducting free webinars for members! For each, I’ll post the recording, transcript, and resources on the site.
    • Public Domain Audiobooks & Self-Publishing

As you can see in the chart below, some avenues are free to everyone, while access to others requires a paid Members Express Pass.

We have 2 payment options:

  • $35 for 6 months
  • $70 per year

Click here if you want to register.

Non-Member Member Express Pass
Audiobook Village ✔ ✔
Knowledge Base ✔ ✔
Pit Stop Shows ✔ ✔
Videos (part of KB) ✔ ✔
Welcome Center ✔ ✔
Events Calendar ✔
Video Courses ✔
Webinars ✔
Casting Directory ✔ Restricted to 6-Month and Yearly plans only

Welcome Center

What would a Welcome Center be without an array of exciting offers from vendors who are eager to expand your view of the world?

Bro Shore
I trust the sites listed below because one or more of these conditions is true:

  • I know the owner.
  • I have used the service or product.
  • I have reviewed unsolicited testimonials from other narrators.

I would not refer you to a service or product created by someone who has narrated a few books and now considers themselves an expert! I also am not receiving compensation from any of these businesses with the exception of any affiliate links as noted in the Terms of Service.

If you contact one of the people below, please let them know you found them listed on NarratorsRoadmap.com!

Accents and Dialects

  • Accents & Dialects Masterclass — Voice actor and dialect coach Eliza Jane Schneider offers a video package with samples, a call with her, and membership in her Facebook group.
  • AccentHelp.com — Jim Johnson, professor of voice and dialects at the University of Houston, and his team of professional teachers have created a number of specialized dialect kits containing numerous recordings, written materials, and links to reference voices are available for purchase for a nominal charge.
  • Corona Productions — Narrator and coach Steve Corona offers paid personal coaching in accents and dialects.
  • DrDialect.com — Narrator and coach PJ Ochlan provides paid personal coaching in accents and dialects.
  • PatFraley.com — Narrator and coach Pat Fraley has a home-study course that you can get with or without his guidance.
  • The Talk Shop — Speech, dialect, and breath coach Amanda Quaid offers downloadable training kits, as well as personal coaching and group classes, including a specialized class called Gender + Speech for Narrators.

Author Resources

My Audiobook Resources for Authors is a categorized list of helpful articles from a variety of sites to help educate authors about all phases of the audiobook production process, from writing with audio in mind to marketing the finished audiobook. It includes the Getting Started list of resources compiled by the Audio Publishers Association. Listed at the bottom are some vendors who can help you create your audiobooks, including The Audio Flow for production and Illustration Audiobooks for accessibility.

You can find narrators in one of the Narrator Databases linked in that section below.

If you join this site, you’ll be able to view my comprehensive Audiobook Distributor Comparison Chart. I compared 6 popular distributors across 22 individual criteria to help you make better-informed decisions about your audiobook distributor(s).

The Marketing section below has resources specifically about marketing the audiobook edition.

Book Covers

  • If you publish your own audiobook, you’re responsible for supplying the book cover. I have been very pleased with Emma Lysy Design.

Books

Books specifically about becoming a narrator and improving your performance are shown on the Home page.

Business

Marketing

Performance

  • Actions: The Actors’ Thesaurus is a handy guide of active verbs that help the narrator define the tactics the character is using to get what s/he wants.
    • A related resource is the Wheel of Feel with emotional synonyms as shown in this post from from Grammy-winning director Paul Alan Ruben and shared by narrator Doug Ramsdell. I found several variations of the wheel with different synonyms: one in this psychology exercise from Dr. Gloria Wilcox, and the second is this image based on work by Geoffrey Roberts. You could print or save copies of all 3 versions.
  • The Actor’s Script: Script Analysis for Performers can help the narrator better analyze and interpret the script and apply acting skills in performance.

Pronunciation References

Studio

  • When we added a room on our previous house for my studio, Building A Recording Studio by Jeff Cooper was an invaluable resource because it included construction techniques. You may be able to find a much cheaper copy on eBay or a bookseller’s site.

Clubhouse

I created this Clubhouse Program Guide to help narrators find and participate in the many Clubhouse shows hosted by narrators for narrators.

Coaching

A vetted directory of audiobook coaches and consultants for both audiobook performance and business issues can be found in Audiobook Village.

Conference Recordings

  • You can watch the recording of Bookwork’s All About Audio France 2024 at this link. Speakers converse in French, but English subtitles are displayed on the video.
  • Thrillerfest XIX 2024 recordings may be purchased at this link. Thrillerfest Day 1 Session 50 is a panel of audiobook narrators and an audiobook reviewer.

Contract Templates

If you need a template contract between a narrator and rights holder or with engineering staff, you can use one of these templates. You may need to modify them for your situation.

Discord Servers

Some narrators record while live on camera on a Discord server. You can watch and listen to them work and possibly interact with them. Narrator Aven Shore wrote this illustrated guide which explains how to connect to and navigate in one of these systems. She also wrote this guide for using Open Broadcaster Software to narrate on Discord. If you decide to narrate on this service or any other medium, be aware that you must first obtain the RH’s permission to avoid copyright infringement.

Join a narrator’s Discord session using one of the following links:

Downloadable Training

Editors and Proofers

Need an editor or proofer for your project? Contact one of the people in Audiobook Village.

Marketing

  • My Audiobook Marketing Cheat Sheet — This free page offers a treasure trove of tips and tactics to market your audiobook. The RH should be doing the heavy lifting for audiobook marketing. Marketing yourself as a narrator, which is a better use of your time, requires different strategies.
  • These services and many more are listed in my Cheat Sheet above:
    • AudiobooksUnleashed.com — Developed by narrator Sarah Sampino, this site gives you several options for listings that automatically provide your audiobook promo codes to requesting listeners. A nice value-add is a field for your newsletter sign-up link.
    • AudioFreebies.com — Developed by narrator Amy Soakes, this site helps you give out codes either manually or automatically, plus it works for Audible and Author’s Direct codes.
    • FreeAudiobookCodes.com — Created by narrator Jeffrey Kafer, this site replaces his previous AudiobookBoom newsletter and allows you to post your Audible download codes from ACX.
    • Many people have asked how to create an audiogram, which is the short video where the WAV file is visible over the book cover similar to this example. I mentioned 2 sites on my Cheat Sheet above but am including them here for ease of reference: Headliner, a free site, and Wavve.co, a paid one.

Narrator Databases

If you need to find a narrator for your project, you can search these databases. Narrators, you can add your profile to sites that don’t indicate “Narrator Roster”. For those sites (Bee and Deyan), you’ll need to contact producers to be added to their roster. Details are in the Casting Directory.

Narrators Turned Authors

An increasing number of narrators are becoming authors. A longer list is coming soon!

News

Podcasts

You’ll find more shows in my Twitter list of Audiobook Podcasts. Skip down to the Twitter List section below for more info about my lists.

Professional Organizations

  • Audio Publishers Association  Trade association for audiobook publishers offers numerous benefits of membership to narrators including frequent webinars, news updates about the industry, opportunities to meet publishers and producers, and an annual conference.
  • Professional Audiobook Narrators Association A trade organization created and run by audiobook narrators to advocate for our business interests and connect narrators within and outside our community. Membership is open to both union and non-union narrators.

Pronunciation

This Knowledge Base article discusses a number of sites, tips, and tactics for pronunciation research. These sites may be particularly helpful in your research:

  • AudioEloquence.com — Created and maintained by narrators Judith West and Heather Anne Henderson, this free site contains the motherlode of vetted pronunciation sites to aid in research, many with sound clips.
  • Subject Matter Experts may be able to assist you.

Public Domain Audiobooks

Site members can watch my Create Your Own Path video course which includes a module and resources about creating public domain audiobooks not found anywhere else. For instance, I’ve curated thousands of public domain books on HathiTrust.org by year, genre, and author into at least 20 collections that are available to NarratorsRoadmap.com members.

In addition, site members can view replay of my webinar Public Domain Audiobooks and Self-Publishing, which expands on the video course, shows you how to claim a book on ACX as a rights holder, and has even more resources!

I have written a wealth of free articles on my site about creating public domain audiobooks at this link.

Speech Therapy

Studio Builds

Studio Treatment and DAW Training

  • This article lists 7 places to learn audio editing for audiobooks.
  • Don Baarns provides personal coaching on StudioOne and more. He also has started an audio review service that’s free at the moment.
  • Jennifer Blom teaches people to use Reaper.
  • Steven Jay Cohen wrote this article showing his Reaper setup.
  • Jack DeGolia trains people to use Twisted Wave.
  • Jim Edgar offers a free audio review, as well as classes and coaching on recording software.
  • Dan Lenard can help create or troubleshoot your studio and assist you with your demo.
  • Ryan Mey has 60-minute coaching sessions and courses about home studio production.
  • James Romick teaches people to use Reaper.
  • TyDef Studios does one-on-one consultations and studio evaluations.
  • George Whittam has a variety of studio services and tutorial videos.
  • Roy Yokelson offers studio treatment and coaching in software among many other services.

Substack

  • Tanya Eby Writes Tanya Eby is an award-winning narrator of over 1000 (!) audiobooks and a casting director with multiple production companies. A subscription may be required to read her Substack articles. She is generously offering a 50% discount to anyone coming from Narrators Roadmap. Follow this link to subscribe with the discount.

Taxes

  • My Google Sheets Finances Workbook can help you track and categorize your income and expenses throughout the year so that you are ready for tax prep the next year. The video and file are available at this link.
  • Obviously, each person’s tax situation is different, and you may need to consult with a tax professional. Drew and I use Turbo Tax software to prepare our taxes. Their articles below about business taxes and deductions contain good information:
  • Tanya Eby wrote an article outlining deductions that narrators may be able to take. A subscription may be required to read her Substack articles. She is generously offering a 50% discount to anyone coming from Narrators Roadmap. Follow this link to subscribe with the discount.

Time-saving Services

  • Audible Summary Report — Narrator Kirt Graves will send you a spreadsheet listing all the titles attributed to you on Audible.
  • AudiobookScout.com — Created by narrator/author Craig Tollifson, this paid site notifies you about ACX listings that fit your criteria and includes links to the ancillary research needed to evaluate them.
  • Beeline Reader — Allows you to change your PDF text into gradient color to reduce eye fatigue. Some narrators report that it helps them make fewer mistakes.
  • GetSleuthy.com — Created by narrator Hannibal Hills, this paid site aids your prospecting on Amazon by finding titles without audio editions.
  • Narratic.com — Another offering from CraigTollifson, this paid site tracks and emails you about your ratings and reviews for your audiobooks on Audible.
  • Pozotron.com — Co-founder Jake Poznanski loves audiobooks and has developed a paid tool that narrators can use to aid in their pronunciation prep and proofing. The tool is also useful for finding every occurrence of a word in a recording.

Twitter Lists

I maintain what are arguably the largest Twitter lists of audiobook publishers, narrators, bloggers, and podcasters. This article explains how to subscribe to and use them.

Utilities

  • 2nd Opinion — Steven Jay Cohen created another nifty utility that’s free to download and use. This one checks the technical aspects of your recorded files.
  • Audible Sample Finder — Enter your audiobook’s Audible page on narrator Steven Jay Cohen’s site, and his code will extract your sample for you at no charge.

Voiceover

Web Sites

  • I highly recommend the talented team at Voice Actor Websites. They created this site and KarenCommins.com and exceeded my vision for functionality and form in both cases.
  • Andrea Emmes can create web sites, graphics, business cards and other branding materials for audiobook narrators.

YouTube

Rather than adding each individual video to the Videos page, the creators of these playlists consistently produce excellent, useful material for narrators: