They say books have a life of their own once they’re written. This never made sense to me until I published my very first book. Yes, a lot of planning goes into writing and publishing a book. I had grand ideas about how I would go about launching it and promoting it. None of that actually happened. The launch happened in the most unexpected fashion and I also ended up at my alma mater on Meet the Author day and addressed a student audience. Both of which I hadn’t planned.
The chief guest for my book launch at Madras Literary Society in April 2022 happened to be an artist and writer. Mr. Manohar Devadoss was an accomplished octogenerian who had lost his eye sight in his old age. But his love for books was undeniable. He told me that he invited someone to come home and read to him every week. Another guest speaker, Lavanya, who happened to overhear this, urged me to release an audiobook version of my book. It seemed like a good idea but I had no clue how to create an audiobook.
I looked into many details including getting a narrator, finding a studio, and audiobook publishing platforms. When I told friends that I was looking for a narrator, they told me to use my own voice. Since the book is a first-person account, you should narrate it. It should be your voice, they said.
One problem solved, I thought. I didn’t need to go hunting for a narrator. Also, I wasn’t sure if I hired someone in the US if they would be able to pronounce some of the Indian words that had made their way into my book.
Next came the question of recording the narration of the book. I considered buying a microphone and some basic recording equipment but quickly scrapped the idea since I knew I’d never use them again. Recording studios in the US charge a bomb for renting for a couple of hours. My brother, who used to work in advertising, told me that I should do the recording in India because it would work out cheaper. He knew someone and promised to introduce me next time I was in India. But that was the catch. I went to India once a year and the last time I was there it was such a fleeting visit. Two weeks! Which was hardly enough time to get anything done. Let alone record a 88-page book.
More than a year had passed since my book launch and the idea to create an audiobook seemed like a distant dream. My daughter who was completing her English major announced that she was enrolled in a song writing class. At the end of the semester, her professor wanted them to perform some of the songs they had written and composed. I found myself in a dive bar not too far from her campus, surrounded by 20 somethings. I think I was the only parent who showed up!
Next time I talked to my daughter, she tells me that she and all the kids from that class are off to a recording studio to record all of their songs. Their professor wanted to create an album. All I heard was “recording studio.” When she spoke to me again I begged her to ask the owner of the studio if he could help me record my audiobook. Unfortunately, she had no way of contacting him. But she told me that her college library had a podcast room that was open to students. She said she would book the room and would accompany me there. But there was another snag. Anyone who used to podcast room had to have a student ID. I couldn’t simply tag along with my daughter even though she had an ID.
At this point I was ready to give up but my daughter said she would reach out to a friend who was a musician and recorded his own music. He wrote back saying he’d never produced an audiobook but would love to help out. One conversation with him proved to me that this kid was a professional. He had done his research and showed so much integrity that I hired him on the spot. Over a few weekends we recorded the audiobook. And despite getting admission into med school, this kid delivered the finished audio files on time. If I had approached him a week later, he may not have worked with me and I’m so thankful that he didn’t cancel the project after he got admitted to med school.
Next obstacle was to find a platform to publish the book. Audible was the obvious choice given that my book is available on Amazon but the whole process was so convoluted that I decided against it. After much research and checking out different audiobook platforms I decided to go with Google Books since the whole process didn’t get my brain twisted in knots.
And here we are in September 2024 nearly two and a half years after I first thought of publishing my audio book. Unfortunately, Mr. Devadoss passed away in December 2022. A dear colleague of mine, Jared, who was very excited about the audiobook and kept asking me for updates also left us in May 2024. He would have been one of the first ones to download my book and listen to it. Sometimes I wonder why I do what I do or for whom I’m doing this. And then I realize my book has a life of its own and it will reach the people it has to and touch someone I may or may not have met in this lifetime. This always leaves me with a sense of wonder and humility. I’m but just an instrument of the Divine.
Hope you will enjoy listening to my book!
Punctuate Life 