Sunday, 24 July 2022
Saturday, 23 July 2022
Thursday, 21 July 2022
Narrating & Sore Throats
My preferred go-to is either honey tea or simple water. What advice would you give?
In this feisty-spicy hayfever season fuelled by the seventh level of Hades for heat, it seems to be a constant battle keeping the voice in good order, so what do you think?
Take it easy gorgeous beans, big love, Ink xx
Wednesday, 20 July 2022
Inspo Gifs and Plotting Plans
I know there are a ton out there already, but I really like to create little bits of motivation and inspo where I can. I already do audio, and video on the socials, so why not gifs?
Maybe next will be illustrations or another medium, who knows, I guess I will just bloom at my own pace ;)
Take it easy gorgeous beans, big love, Ink xx
Tuesday, 19 July 2022
No Post Today - Waaaaaaaaaaaay Too Hot!!
Stay safe gorgeous beans. Big Love, Ink xx
Monday, 18 July 2022
Ready for a New Week!
I saw this brilliant quote from the awesome Shifu Yan Lei so made this gif.
Have a beautiful week gorgeous beans! Big love, Ink xx
Sunday, 17 July 2022
Happy Weekending/ Narrating Ponderings
Note to self: I am hooman and my spoons are limited at times, especially in ridonkulous heatwaves! Remember to take a break and pace yourself in order to maintain your best performance quality and hydrate, hydrate, hydrate!
I have so many books that I have narrated, that I am narrating and that I will narrate in future that I want to write about
but I am going to try my best not to say anything until they are
published...but seeing as nobody sees my blog...it will be our secret
yes?
Anyway, it's Sunday, it's waaaaaaaaaaaay too fricken hot for my sensibilities...and I deserve a rest..... I got this!
Take it easy gorgeous beans.
Big Love, Ink xx
Saturday, 16 July 2022
Little Post Today
As a reader you kinda bask in satisfaction at the end of a story and as a narrator, I believe that you get double the joy!
Got some pretty amazing stories coming out over the next few months and it is so tempting just to write all about them right now!
However, I am going to exercise patience and enjoy the journey with these amazing authors
Big love! Ink xx
Friday, 15 July 2022
UK Heatwave - ARGHHHH!
Quick ponder... how do you, as a narrator, stay cool in the summer?
Fans and AC are noisy, and open windows have a whole plethora of noise pollution no matter if you live in the city or country?
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So how would you recommend to stay cool and prevent yourself melting in your
recording setup?
#1 for me is the frozen hot water bottle or water which is half ice, half water!
Either way, enjoy the Summer in whatever way suits you best and good luck with your recordings!
Take it easy and stay safe out there! Big Love, Ink xx
Thursday, 14 July 2022
Two New Narrations Out Now! "The Lollipop Man" and "Fee Fi Fo Fum"
I am not usually a fan of horror, not because it scares me, but due to it's believability. Not so in this case. Kevin Sweeney's storytelling prowess and power of the descriptive is so absolutely EPIC, that I could not pass up this opportunity. You are drawn in from the first page and stay there until the last.
I have been lucky enough to narrate two of his titles (as detailed below) and would certainly recommend them to anyone with a penchant for gore and slasher horror. Absolutely fantastically written!
(Proceed with caution and ensure you read the warnings and authors notes before you indulge as some sensitive content is contained within)
The Lollipop Man
YOU - HAVE - BEEN - WARNED
From the author of the notorious "banned" book THE LUSTY...
Ten years ago, Mr Bartleby, the nice lollipop man who helped children cross the road on their way to school, killed himself .And now he's back to murder the kids who goaded him into suicide.
A very British slasher with
a jet-black heart, THE LOLLIPOP MAN is a blood-soaked voyage into the
depths of depravity.
"I loved it! It’s gross, enthralling, depraved, funny and downright ferocious." Owen Morgan, The Abominable Book Club
Fee Fi Fo Fum
The lucky ones died before IT began to eat them...
IT had brooded beneath the ground for nearly a thousand years, buried alive, undying and filled with hate...
IT was a thing of pure hunger, a titanic monster with an insatiable appetite for the flesh of humans...
IT had been forgotten, an old nightmare, the stuff of fairy tales and legend...
But
now IT has been set free, and tonight the people of Southampton will
know screaming terror as IT rampages across the city in a gluttonous
orgy of slaughter...
Contact
If you are an audiobook reviewer and would like a promo code for either audiobook , please email me or DM me via Instagram
Links
Wednesday, 13 July 2022
Two New Narrations Out Now! "Flight of the Cuckoo" and "An Unlikely Funeral"
I absolutely adore reading K L Smith. The series is absolutely HILARIOUS and I have narrated two titles to date with another two on the way! Fast-paced, deliciously funny and relatable characters and situations.... but these characters get to say and do what we all wanted to! (After a fashion!) Smiths "Comedy Series" is defo a perfect read for your holidays!
An Unlikely Funeral:
The newsreader took a breath and began: –
“And here we have the remarkable tale of local man George Pimpton who sadly died last week at the grand old age of 96. It’s only since his passing that locals have realised they had a reclusive celebrity in their midst. His story has captured the attention of the nation, and people are fascinated that such a man had been quietly living down an unassuming terraced street, keeping himself to himself. All week people have been coming out in droves to lay flowers outside of his house, and to give donations to his favourite charity – Guide Dogs For The Blind.”
The only problem was, this was all an accidental lie. George Pimpton was no celebrity. He’d never done anything remotely interesting with his life and had spent the last thirty years of his unremarkable existence laid in bed watching daytime Tv and picking at his bellybutton fluff.
Upon his death, his well intentioned – though often misguided – neighbours simply wanted to jazz up his obituary to make his life sound a little more interesting, a well meant gesture that quickly got drastically out of hand due to the perils of social media. After Paul McCartney mistakes George for someone else and sends a farewell tweet to his “old friend” this celebrity endorsement sets off a chain reaction that cant be reigned back in. It also didn’t take long for other celebrities to start coming out of the woodwork with half-remembered stories about George. After all, anyone who was anyone, had a story to tell about old George… and now the world was watching, and waiting to hear just what would be in that eulogy…
Flight of the Cuckoo:
This is the dark but humorous tale of Sarah Pemberton, who is not a happy woman.
A down to earth, inventive soul who despises her stuck up pompous husband Neil, who believes he is much more intelligent and important than she is. When he refuses her a divorce and emotionally blackmails her into staying with him by threatening to take custody of their daughter, she's decides to make life a little more entertaining for herself - by subtly torturing him at every available opportunity.
Creative and adaptable by nature, with a wicked sense of humour, she comes up with more and more ways to ridicule him, without him ever knowing she has a hand in it.
...."During 1993-1994 amongst other things, I cooked him a meat pie with pedigree chum, stole his car more times than I can count, put chilli powder in his underpants, sent a stripagram to his work (a fat one), and subscribed him to a gay porn mag! (Our paperboy avoided him like the plague after that.)".....
Finding accomplices in the form of her aunt May, who lives in a crumbling old former hotel - which was damaged during WWII, and May's two lodgers, a shy young hippy named Darren, along with his brother Matthew a former life model, they try to get rid of her husband by either 'Plan A' - which consists of 'frame him for a crime so that he gets incarcerated', or 'Plan B '- drive him to a nervous breakdown. Both plans are designed to discredit Neil in case of a custody battle for their daughter.
There is only one little prerequisite for every little torturous idea though, and that is...IT HAS TO MAKE THEM LAUGH!
Unbeknown to Sarah at first, she isn't the only one with a vendetta
against her husband, his entire workforce hate his guts and exploit any
opportunity to make him look bad.
When plans A & B go disastrously wrong, Sarah and co set their sights on a new target, her in-laws.
Interwoven throughout the story is the tale of aunt May, the lynch pin
of her little make-shift family, who harbours secrets of her own that go
back to the night the bomb fell on the east wing of the hotel.
This is not a tale of a submissive woman suffering at the hands of
abuse; this is the tale of a strong courageous woman having one last
laugh at other people's expense.
Contains very occasional strong language, and scenes that should not be repeated at home.
Volume One of 'The Cuckoo' series
Contact
If you are an audiobook reviewer and would like a promo code for either audiobook , please email me or DM me via Instagram
Links
Tuesday, 12 July 2022
New Narration Out Now!: Unsheathed - An Epic Fantasy Collection (...and it is imo!)
I absolutely LOVED reading this collection. It is a great introduction to the authors within and the different writing styles make it a joy to read!
Synopsis:
Draw your blade.
Fasten your armor.
Prepare for war.
The
Unsheathed Collection brings to life nine powerhouse tales of epic
fantasy filled with daring duels, gruesome slaughter, and the ringing
cacophony of battle.
These fantastic stories are written by; Stuart Thaman, Austin Worley, Chad Vincent, Charles Gramlich, Scott Simerlein, G. Dean Manuel, Jay Erickson, Liam Hogan
A great read to take on holiday!
Contact
If you are an audiobook reviewer and would like a promo code for either audiobook , please email me or DM me via Instagram
Links
Monday, 11 July 2022
New Narrations Out Now! The Tome of Law Series
My ACX journey has been an incredible one so far and I have already been lucky enough to have been given the opportunity to work on a number of titles. I will be featuring them as they become available
I already have 7 titles available on Audible so I am admittedly a bit behind on getting my blog together, but heyho, it's all a learning curve! (Note to all you budding narrators, get your marketing plan in place each time you start a new narration!)
The Tome of Law Series - By Matthew Harrill
Book 1: The Focus Stone
Synopsis:The life of a traveler was all Zya S'Vedai had ever known.
People often told Zya she was special, but she never knew why, suspecting only that the visions in her dreams would one day become clear. Her simple life changes when a series of events forces her to leave her family - and face her destiny head on.
Elsewhere, three guildsmen are dismissed from the coveted Order of Law. Thrown out into the world with nothing but their wits and the guidance of an elderly benefactor, they decide to find out what was really behind the notorious Night of Spears twenty years ago.
As Zya travels across The Nine Duchies, new friends and old enemies all seek to tip the balance of power in their favour. What connects Zya's destiny and the guildsmen, despite them being worlds apart?
And why are they all in the sights of the maniacal Garias Gibden - the Witch Finder - and his minions?
Book 2: The Path of Dreams
Sunday, 10 July 2022
Saturday, 25 June 2022
The Path of Dreams - Now Available on Audible!
The Path of Dreams Synopsis:
"As wizards unlock the secrets of the focus stones, Zya S'Vedai must confront three destinies: the fate of her foster family, the loyalty of a guild, and the future foretold by the dreams of a tribal wisewoman. With her foster brother Tuatin somehow linked to it all, she is taken from countryside to the city - to the presence of the very Gods themselves - and driven to follow the path of her dreams.
Praise for The Path of Dreams:
"Matt Harrill is a master not only in creating a vivid world that comes to life and that you want to visit, but in creating characters that you want to visit it with. This gives his work an earthy quality that I both admire and envy." - David Farland, New York Times Bestselling Fantasy Author"
Contact
If you are an audiobook reviewer and would like a promo code for either audiobook , please email me or DM me via IG
Links
The Focus Stone Audible
Friday, 3 June 2022
An Unlikely Funeral - Now Available on Audible!
I am absolutely thrilled to announce that my latest narration "An Unlikely Funeral" by KL Smith is now available on Audible, Amazon and iTunes!
It was a real joy to narrate this book and it is the first in a series of four comedies. Fast paced yet engaging and absolutely hilarious, it is a riot from start to finish!
"The newsreader took a breath and began: – “And here we have the remarkable tale of local man George Pimpton who sadly died last week at the grand old age of 96. It’s only since his passing that locals have realised they had a reclusive celebrity in their midst.
His
story has captured the attention of the nation, and people are
fascinated that such a man had been quietly living down an unassuming
terraced street, keeping himself to himself. All week people have been
coming out in droves to lay flowers outside of his house, and to give
donations to his favourite charity – Guide Dogs For The Blind.”
The
only problem was, this was all an accidental lie. George Pimpton was no
celebrity. He’d never done anything remotely interesting with his life
and had spent the last thirty years of his unremarkable existence laid
in bed watching daytime Tv and picking at his bellybutton fluff.
Upon
his death, his well intentioned – though often misguided – neighbours
simply wanted to jazz up his obituary to make his life sound a little
more interesting, a well meant gesture that quickly got drastically out
of hand due to the perils of social media.
After Paul McCartney mistakes George for someone else and sends a farewell tweet to his “old friend” this celebrity endorsement sets off a chain reaction that cant be reigned back in. It also didn’t take long for other celebrities to start coming out of the woodwork with half-remembered stories about George. After all, anyone who was anyone, had a story to tell about old George… and now the world was watching, and waiting to hear just what would be in that eulogy..."
From a narrator's perspective, this book was an absolute treat to read! The narrative flows beautifully, the characters are engaging and it is a real page-turner!
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The next title in this series that I am working on is "Flight of the Cuckoo - Revenge is Sweet...and Incredibly Addictive" and updates will be posted as soon as it is complete!
Thursday, 2 June 2022
Narration Journey Update - Spring/ Summer 2022
The main focus of this blog is my journey into professional narration and I have to say, so far it is an absolute joy!
Now don't get me wrong, it is not at all easy, but I have been blessed to work with some amazing people so far and not only have I been honoured to read some absolutely fantastic books so far, but there are more lined up and I cannot wait!
So far, I have narrated one book independentlyvia Findaway Voices with my darling friend Maggie Archer (The Scarecrow and the Princess ) It is an absolutely delightful and fun story whether reading on Kindle, paperback or audio!
I have two books published via ACX (The Lollipop Man by Kevin Sweeney and The Focus Stone by Matthew W Harrill) so far. Both are very different but beautifully written! I aim to post seperately about the books I read but for now, I can say, I have another book from each writer in production! Shhhhh :)
I also have one book pending publishing from QA from the incredible KL Smith. This writer is an absolute scream, her books are fast paced, engaging and absolutely HILARIOUS! More to come when the first book is published!
I also have one book about to go into QA, 2 in production (due to complete on 16 June) and 4 more lined up!
This sounds a lot, true, but I am a voracious reader in my spare time anyway and not the biggest fan of TV so it is easy to read these amazing books aloud as they are devoured!
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Wednesday, 30 March 2022
First adventure into ACX recording
Wowser, what an evening! Tonight I took the first step into uploading an audiobook on to ACX
Aside from this exciting project with Maggie, I set up a profile on ACX which is the platform for recording audiobooks for Audible, Amazon, iTunes and their global stores. It's a place where independant authors, narrators and studio professionals come together to create audiobooks
There are a ton of resources available on the platform from audio production skills to marketing yourself and when you have explored the site and familiarised yourself with the legalities/ requirements, you are ready to go!
Note: As a narrator, you are required to submit auditions. Don't feel despondent or down if you are not accepted to read an audiobook for an author, it is nothing personal, it's just that you are not quite right for their vision. Remember, these books are their babies, their creation and they have a vision of who their characters are, the environment, atmosphere and so on. If they give feedback, take it gracefully and hear what they say, a lot can be learned from them
(Second note, I was not intending for this post to be so long! See, ACX is just such a great adventure!)
Back to the point at hand. Be prepared to go on a reeeeeeeeeeally steep learning curve in respect of your audio techiness (not quiet the proper term, but I like it) If you have been creating audiobooks as an amateur, you will have likely used something like audacity and recorded mp3's which is fab, but on the professional level, you need to ensure consistency and continuity. In short, your recording needs to be the right volume range for ACX without background noise and within peak/floor parameters...
"Oho" you might say..that's too much jargonese and faaar too complicated and yes, I thought so too (I had been accustomed to recording in long sessions and minor tech adjustment where needed) But fear not because ACX show you exactly how to meet their audio requirements. Advice I can give? Set aside a couple hours to work through the key production points and you cannot go far wrong
Did you like this little insight into my narrating journey?
Would you be interested to know more about my journey and projects or have any questions? Let me know, I would love to hear from you
Ink x
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