Interviews

Narrator Interview: Moira Todd – Ember Burning , YA Fantasy

Julie Gilbert Audiobooks, Fantasy, Interviews, Paranormal , , ,

Introduction:

Hey all, thanks for joining us this week. I must be on a narrator kick.

Please welcome Moira Todd, the voice behind the new audiobook Ember Burning (Trinity Forest Book 1) (You can find the link below). The story follows a grieving teen as she ventures into a forest teeming with urban legends of witchcraft and disappearances and then once there, she finds she must face the truth behind her parent’s death or lose herself to the forest forever. The second book in the series, Oshun Rising, will be available on Audible in February.

Cool. Let’s meet the lady.

How did you get into audiobooks?

I auditioned for an audiobook production company and they pointed me toward ACX, where I can be my own producer, which is really great.

How many audiobooks have you produced?

I’ve produced 8 titles now, including Playing with Fire: A #Hacker Novel by Sherry Ficklin, and Why Can’t My Life Be a Romance Novel by Melinda R. Cordell. I also have three in various stages of production.

Why did you choose to work on Ember Burning?

I love working on books with female protagonists and I think Ember has a really fun voice.

What was your favorite part of the book?

My favorite is the end when everything really comes to a head and the suspense is at its highest.

What was the hardest part of working on the novel?

The hardest part is actually scheduling. I have to balance audiobooks with acting and teaching. So if I get a cold or something, and can’t record for a few days it can really mess up my production schedule.

What’s involved in the process?

Well, it starts with reading the book. I like to read it once just as an audience and write down my thought on the story as a whole so that I can remember that experience when I’m listening to myself read one sentence over and over. I then read it again an make notes of character descriptions, words I don’t know how to pronounce, and any major tone or pacing shifts in the story.

Me: That’s a lot of reading.

Then I’ll take a chapter or so at a time, and mark it up. This means writing in the best way to make the story clear, like which words to emphasize and when to breath. I take my marked up section into the studio and record it. Any time I mess up, I just go back and read it again. So what I’m left with is a big long recording with lost of repeated sections. I have to use editing software to delete the mess ups, and any big long breathes that sound weird, and make sure the pacing is effective. This then gets given to the author to approve, and eventually put on sale on audible.

How long does it take to create a chapter?

Typically it takes me 10 hours to produce one hour of finished narration.

Me: Oh my goodness.

What is your favorite part of being an audiobook narrator/producer?

My family is pretty spread out, so I love being able to share audiobooks with them, and it’s like were back at home and I’m reading a book to everyone in the living room around the fire.

What’s been the hardest part?

Keeping myself on track to meet deadlines is the hardest part. Because it’s just me, I have to hold myself accountable so that I don’t end up with a week left and half the book to finish.

What’s your favorite audiobook you’ve listen to? Why?
The Lord of the Rings Trilogy narrated by Rob Inglis. I listed to all three on a road trip across the country last year, so it just brings me back to those awesome memories.

What is ahead/next for you?

Are you working on any interesting projects? Do you have anything planned or in the works now? (Other books you might recommend?)

Yeah, I’ve got a few projects in the works. Right now I’m recording Killing Her Softly, a romantic suspense novel by Barb Warner Deane. And in the new year I’ll begin production on the next book in Jennifer Alsever’s Trinity Forrest series Book 2, Oshun Rising.

What do you do when you’re not working on audiobooks?

I’m in rehearsal for a show, or teaching theatre classes, or maybe going on a hike in the Potomac valley.

What do you expect to happen in the audiobook market?

I’m not sure. Podcasts have certainly exploded in recent years. Audiobooks seem like the prefect medium for commuting. People spend so much time in cars or trains or buses these days, why not be listening to a story at the same time.

Conclusion:

Thanks for joining us, Moira. We appreciate you taking the time to chat.

 

Associate links to follow…

Amazon Prime

Free Kindle Reading App

Audible – If you buy some of my audiobooks with your first credits, I’ll pay the first month’s bill (beyond the free ones). (Terms and conditions: must have proof of purchasing my books, like a screenshot. Will also have to have paypal.)

Meet Julie Hinton – the Voice Behind Malia’s Miracles

Julie Gilbert Interviews, Uncategorized, Writing , , , , , , ,

KEY:
Julie Hinton’s Comments

My Comments

About this Work:

What brought you to working on this project? I’m a YA fan, and I really liked the idea of these special teenagers making a difference.
(Cool. Hope you get a chance to check out the whole series. I’m eager to see what you can do with book 4.)

What was the hardest part of bringing this story to life?  Finding enough character voices that were distinct and identifiable.  A lot of people run through this story!

Do you have a favorite character voice from the project? Why/ why not?  Malia’s was my favorite voice to do.  It was easy to find and she sounded so different from the rest.  Having said that, her chapters were also the most frustrating to narrate because she speaks so slowly …

(She became one of my favorites to listen to.)

About your other works:

How many other works have you narrated?  This is my seventh audiobook.

What was the most challenging other work you’ve voiced? Easiest? Most fun? What made it hard, easy, fun??  The easiest was my first production, Me Before You: A Summary and Analysis.  It was basically a Cliffsnotes of JoJo Moyes; best-selling book.  I didn’t have to do character voices and it was quite short.  It is also the most popular of my narrations, so the best of all worlds!  

My favorite moment was probably in More Fables & Fantasies.  One of the stories there is a fractured fairy tale, and I got to voice a lot of fun fairy tale voices.  I think that section is in the Amazon audio sample if you’d like to take a listen.  As far as the most challenging, in most novels (like this one) I get the same feeling of panic towards the end when I worry that I’ve run out of distinct voices, and then I see another character pop up.  The solution to each situation is slightly different, but it’s a great opportunity to stretch just a little more each time.

Can you recommend any of your other titles for us? What about the work is appealing?  I don’t know that I can recommend just one as they’re all so different.  The Me Before You summary is great for cheating in a book club and still hearing a fantastic love story.  Heartless and Prestigium are both paranormal novels about women discovering new worlds they can make a difference in.  More Fables & Fantasies is a fun collection of 5 very different short stories – a perfect length for many commuters.  Glistens is a fairy story ideal for pre-teens, and The Dripping Wet Yellow Rubber Gloves (on iTunes) is a children’s story written by a good friend of mine perfect for the whole family.  My favorite part of narration is bringing these characters to life.  

About you/random ques:

What drew you to voice acting?  I got a degree in acting.  I love it, but not too many of us have the ability to do it full-time.  I started doing voice acting on the side and now do it more regularly than “regular” acting.  In audiobook narration, I get to play all the parts, not just one! 

Is this the only acting you do? If you do other forms of acting, which is your favorite and why?  Most of my early experience was on stage.  I found myself starring in musicals and Shakespeare productions.  Both of these genres prepared me for voice acting since the voice (both singing and speaking) is a tool needing to be worked out and shaped.  In recent years, I’ve been doing more short films, and I anticipate feature films to be my next step down this road.  You can see my resumes, production photos and some of the short films on my website, www.juliehinton.net.

Do you have a process when you approach a work? Please describe it for us.  I start by reading the manuscript cover to cover just for the reading pleasure.  I try to store my reactions and responses away so I can reclaim the fascination, joy, sorrow, and other emotional reactions to use in my performance.  Then I decide on voices for the main characters and work with the author until they get just right.  Finally, I get started in the narration process.  I try to stay in contact with the author as I go so we can make any decisions together that arise, such as pacing changes, new voices, etc.  I usually produce my own recordings at my home studio which has its pros and cons.  It’s nice to be able to work at my own pace and schedule.  It’s also nice to have a director to collaborate with as I make moment-to-moment decisions.  Once I come to the end of a recording, I forward it to the author who makes any final decisions, and then send it to the publisher for production.

What’s one random thing people don’t really know about you?  I don’t have a middle name.

If you could only leave 1 lasting impression on the world, what would it be?  I think entertainment is so important.  We all have crazy lives, and often it is best to be able to leave them aside for a few moments to refuel our reservoirs.  I consider myself fortunate to contribute to some good entertainment that brightens people’s days and gives them those moments of escape.

Do you get to read for fun? Do you have a favorite genre to read for fun?  I read all the time in a bunch of genres – thrillers, YAs, mysteries, fantasy, science fiction, and more.  As long as it’s fiction and not too serious, I’m usually game.

Do you have other hobbies? What do you do to relax?  Read!  I watch a lot of TV and try to do various projects with my hands while I’m doing it so I feel productive. I’m also a screenwriter and musician.

What kind of movies do you enjoy?  Those with happy endings 🙂

If you could meet one person from history or present time, who would it be and why.  I don’t really have an answer for this one.  I prefer to watch from afar, and worry that anytime I might actually meet someone I idolize I’ll just make a huge fool out of myself and never be able to look at them again …

Thanks for stopping by to answer some burning questions.

Malia’s Miracles is currently being offered for FREE on Audiobook Boom! Comment here or drop me a line at Devyaschildren @ gmail.com (you’ll need to remove the spaced to prove you’re human and let me know you’re interested in listening to the story. We’re looking for people willing to review but in line with amazon’s new TOS we’re not demanding feedback. A review is simply you telling the world what you think of a story. Of course, we’d love for you to enjoy the story, so if you enjoy it, please share your thoughts on Goodreads/amazon/your blog, etc

Links:
Julie’s facebook page.

Julie’s audiobook page from her website.

Link to Malia’s Miracles on Amazon.com.

***If you’re willing to review if you like the story, email with a link to your audible or amazon reviewing platforms. We have a limited number of free codes for this endeavor.

julie-hinton-119c