Lois & Clark Forums Forums General Discussion FoLC Productions AudioFic: Readers Wanted!

Still early in setting things up, but it looks like I may be playing some official part in the archive's new endevour.

There's a lot of stuff to sort out, but I'd like to get the ball rolling.

Soon, the archive will put up a form (or something of the sort) for authors to grant permission to have their works read. Or, depending on how you look at it, to submit their stories to the pool of fic to be read.

We're going to need readers to do the actual work.

It's pretty simple, really. Here's the checklist of what you need:

1. The ability to read. If you understand this message, you have that. Congratulations!

2. A voice. If you're mute or sick or something, that's not going to work. But, if you can speak and be understood, you're good to go. It doesn't have to be a great voice. Some are better than others, sure. And they improve with practice. But as long as you can speak clearly, you'll do fine.

3. Interest. In the story, the project, the archive... Contributing something to the fandom. If you're still reading, you've probably got that.

4. A computer, particularly one which is able to access the internet. Again, if you can see this, odds are you're set.

5. A microphone. A USB headset, like you'd use for Skype, is best, but there are plenty of options. And they're cheap enough to pick up at pretty much any electronics store.

6. An audio recording program. I like Audacity . It's free, has the features you need, works fairly well, and (if you install the "LAME encoder," can create MP3s.

That's it. Really.

For more advice on recording, check out the LibriVox Wiki . Among other things, they have a guide for new readers, a guide on how to use Audacity (and other similar programs), a page entitled "Help, what if I suck," and a bunch of helpful links.

There's also this thread on their forums.

If you want, I set up a quickie Guide to Recording AudioFic .

Otherwise, you can head on over to the coordination thread and/or the complete project list .

If you need anything else, contact me however you'd like - post in any of the audiofic threads, PM me, email me... whatever works.

Paul

Count me in.

I'm a sucker for #3 on the list.

So, against my better judgement (read: I get stage fright even in front of a keyboard ), count me in too!

Sara

PS: Should we sticky this topic? Looks like we have room for one more.

All right... count me in. <g>

*wonders what she's getting herself into* <g>

Julie

Hey Paul!

I'm just catching up with some of the posts. I think the audio files are an excellent idea. Do the readers have to have an American accent? I'm wondering what people would think of Lois with an Aussie accent? Or any other character?

Tricia

Well, if you guys want me and my Greek accent, I think I could find some time for it. I'd rather start by recording some of my shorter stories, though - and if they turn out okay... we'll see about other fics too

See ya,
AnnaBtG.

Wow, Paul, I'm glad that your pretty cool idea turned out this way.

It'll be some convenient distraction during my daily ride at work

I'd really love to contribute but my English seems to have a British accent (well, among the German one, I guess) so this might sound a little strange, especially when reading American.

But nevertheless, I'll have a check on Audacity and look what I can make out of my voice.

Bye,

Jana,
who is very happy about this new development

Wow. This is a better response than I'd dared hope for.

I can see we're going to have to get organized soon.

Of course, first we'll need some authors to submit their stories to the pool.

Regarding accents: I don't think that'll be a problem.

The way I see it: None of us is going to sound like Dean or Teri. We all have our own voices and accents. There are a large number of distinct accents just within the US. We've got FoLCs around the world. We've also (hopefully) got a lot of stories to cover.

In short: if we start turning away willing volunteers just because their voices don't "sound right," we'll be left with no one.

This isn't official, but I figure that we'll be best off following LibriVox's lead. As long as you're willing and able to read clearly, you'll be welcome. If we have a bunch of different accents, well, that just reflects the diversity of the fandom.

Remember, too, that the archive does have that "stories in other languages" section. If anyone fluent wants to take a crack at those (assuming, of course, that the author grants permission), that would be pretty cool, too.

Paul

Well, I suspect it'll be a long time before anyone is craz...er...dum...um...kind, yes, that's the word I'm lookng for, kind enough to do my stories, but I'll register that I don't mind them being done anyway.

LabRat

Just a quickie about accents since you guys are discussing it. It's just my opinion here, but this is coming from someone who's more than likely to download audiofic and listen to it:

I happen to enjoy accents. I love how melodic sounding Aussies (and Brits and Scotts and Irish!) are. And I've got a soft spot for that gorgeous Southern drawl.

It's different and that's what's great about it. It adds to the enjoyment. So, *please* don't shy away because you don't have a perfectly international English -- no one does.

That would be cool. I can read French, if there's any demand for that.

Some are pretty long (one, I remember took me over 5 hours to read) but they're so gooooood! Recording one of your stories would be quite an honor, I'm sure.

Well, count me in! It sounds like a lot of fun

Any by me alone you can read.

James aka Mr. D8a.

I'll do it. I need to get the headset, though. I can read in Spanish, also.

Hey, where are you guys?

We've got a rapidly growing list of stories , and only one reader so far.

I want you guys to be able to pick your projects, but I'd also like to see some more of you getting started on them...

Paul

This weekend I am planning to try recording my own little vignette Damn Good Thing and see how it goes. As Tank said it is probably harder than it seems! After that's done and if I am satisfied with it I will try another story.

It sounds like fun, and I've enjoyed doing dramatic readings before... I'd have to buy a microphone and download the software but I could probably manage that... and as many people know I have this problem with compulsively volunteering for fannish things... now if only I had a few more hours in the day... <sigh>

PJ

I'd be happy to help. I just have to buy a headset this week. Let me know what to do.

Cheryl, welcome to the boards!

Very cool that your first post is here. Thanks.

I've set up a little Guide to Recording . That should get you started.

If you have any more questions, let me know. The guide is just a start, and your questions will help me know what needs to be added.

Paul

I'm in! I'm probably going to start by recording my own fics first though. Once I've finished those, I'll start seeing about other people's.

Darcy

I have to help. I'm a hopeless addict to the fanfic archive, so if I can master the technology (I'm going to do a few test runs), this will be a good way to contribute. Does anyone out there recommend a particular brand of recording headset?