Great experience creating audiobook with ACX and Becca Ballenger

I’ve just pushed the “Approve” button, completing my part of The Girl on the Mountain audiobook! This project was made possible by ACX, the Audiobook Creation Exchange. On the ACX website, authors and publishers can audition prospective narrator/producers for their books. I listened to a lot of great voices and was able to have those who auditioned read different passages.

The narrator I chose made the story come alive for me again, and she was a pleasure to work with. After we agreed on a deadline, she posted several recorded chapters nearly every day. I chose to download and listen to the chapters using iTunes, then I emailed notes and corrections, if any, and she resubmitted the chapters.

In a week or two, the audiobook version of The Girl on the Mountain will be available for purchase through Amazon, Audible, and iTunes. It will not be available on compact disk–I’m told those are less used these days. Listeners download audiobooks to their smartphones, tablets, Kindles, and computers. I found that listening with earbuds gave better sound quality than my laptop speakers.

Here’s Becca Ballenger, the narrator I chose. As crazy old Ruie Gowder says in The Girl on the Mountain, “Look how pretty!

Becca Ballenger is an actor based in New York City. She has voiced audiobooks for Lighthouse, Infinity, Cerulean, and more. Her recent stage work includes: Steel Magnolias (Idaho Shakespeare Festival), The Hero (Metropolitan Playhouse), American Stare (New Jersey Rep), Occupy Olympus and Richard 3 (FringeNYC), Hotel Project (The Internationalists), The Consequences (Williamstown Theatre Fest) along with workshops directed by Shirley Knight, Anthony Rapp, Pam MacKinnon, and others. TV/Film credits include Redrum on Investigation Discovery and James Franco’s upcoming Black Dog/Red Dog. Graduate of Interlochen Arts Academy and Fordham University. Proud members of Actors’ Equity. www.beccaballenger.com