Audiobook version of "Big Book of the Gastric Bypass"

[pratthobbies 8]

Hello, y'all. I'm a big guy who has been struggling with weight loss all my life. I had been successful for a while with Adkins, but when the diabetes kicked in I hit 400 pounds. My internist (who I love...he's a little round fellow, so he doesn't get holier-than-thou about weight loss) recommended RYGB. In the process of researching it I bought a copy of "The Big Book of the Gastric Bypass," and it was the best thing I'd read. I got the procedure in September and everything has been working out great.

Now for the coincidence. One of the things I like to do is narrating audiobooks. I've done 18 titles now for Audible.com, recording and producing the files myself. I'm quite proud of some of them, and I love working with interesting authors. I've done biographies of Buster Keaton and Howard Hughes, and histories of the War of 1812 and the Titan II Missile program. I'm always on the lookout for interesting books that would be a good fit for my voice and style.

Imagine my delight when The Big Book came up for audition! I sent in a sample immediately, and darned if I didn't get the contract. I've got the recordings underway, and the finished producion is due January 15. The first two chapters are edited and mastered. It's going well. I enjoy the easy, conversational style...and of course, the material has a personal interest!

I wanted to plug into the online community because I bet that a lot of folks here already own a copy of the Big Book, and I would be glad to hear any advice or suggestions you might have for the audio version. It's a little tricky to make an interesting performance of a book that is primarily a reference or information source. I want to produce something that a person who is considering RYGB might listen to in their car during a commute or a long trip. That means doing a little judicious editing; I'm not going to read the reference footnotes or the blank worksheets at the end of each chapter. I would be glad to hear any thoughts from members of the community.

If you would like to listen to some of my work, I have some free coupon codes for three of my titles. Drop me an email at dad@pratt-hobbies.com if you would like one. I won't clutter up the board here with all the details or links, it's easier via email. There's no charge to use one of the codes, and no requirement to subscribe to Audible.com, but if you do decide to subscribe and you pick one of my titles as your free first audiobook, the author and I get a nice little bump in our royalties.

Best regards, Doug Pratt

[pratthobbies 8]

I've finished recording "The Big Book of the Gastric Bypass." I'm not done by any means; it generally takes three hours to edit and master an hour of finished audio. It's always a bittersweet experience to get this far. I don't narrate books I'm not emotionally involved with, in some sense. On this one the connection is obvious, and I'm pleased to be invoved with a work that I know is doing a lot of good.

Now I'm processing the files, running them on a split screen with the Kindle book on the top half of the screen and the sound editing software on the bottom. I'm trying to stick as close to the text as possible. The problem with reference books is that there is no way of reading tables of data and making them sound interesting...it's like trying to read a phone book, The purpose of the audiobook is to be engaging and entertaining not to be a detailed information source. I try to decide what's important and include it without breaking up the flow. Of course, if the author disagrees with any decisions I make, I re-do it his way. It's his book.

I'm catching edit points where I mispronounced something, mush-mouthed a phrase or fluffed a word. I usually know when I haven't done a sentence well, and I re-record it on the spot. If I catch something on the first edit pass I'll go back into the studio and re-record the whole paragraph so I can easily blend in the edit. I'm also working on pacing by tweaking the empty spaces between sentences and paragraphs. After 19 audiobooks I've gotten pretty good at the process, and I still enjoy the heck out of it. It feels like craftsmanship.

Once the file is edited there will be at least two more passes to catch missed edits or noise. Then I'll process the WAV files into MP3s and send them up the line to Audible. They do their own quality control, and I fix any problems they find. The author is also reviewing the final files, and I will fix anything that bothers him. Once we're all done, the title goes live on Audible, Amazon and iTunes.

One of the details I have to take care of is selecting the five-minute sample that is part of all Audible listings. You can listen to five minutes of any Audible title before deciding to buy it. I wait to pick the sample until the book is recorded; some segment will recommend itself for the job. With this one it was pretty easy. I don't think it will upset anyone if I give folks here on the board a sneak preview of the five-minute sample. I'll attach the file to this message. Please let me know what you think of it!

rygb_5min_sample.mp3

[Salonboi 353]

You sound great ???? I literally just read that part of the book last night... I'm a newbie and in the beginning stages of this journey.

[pratthobbies 8]

Thank you! It's a very good book. I got several when I was researching RYGB last year and it was the best.

[Salonboi 353]

Curiously, what other books would you recommend? I'm still at very beginning of process and can't get into surgeon until February 6th .. So I'm in phase of gathering all info I can get my hands on....

[Salonboi 353]

I do most reading on my kindle..

[pratthobbies 8]

Me too on the Kindle. I love the fact that I have the app on my smartphone so it's always with me. When I'm recording a book it's a huge help to have it on Kindle. I can highlight parts that need attention and the highlights show up on my laptop and tablet.

I boughd and read Gastric Bypass Surgery by Mary McGowan and thought it was very good. It's written by a doctor so it's from the doctor's viewpoint. One of the best things about the Big Book is that it's written by a patient with help from a nutritionist.

I also bought Weight Loss Surgery for Dummies, although I don't consider myself a dummy and I've always wondered about the wisdom of running down your readers' intelligence in the book title...sorry, pet peeve. It's really a very good book. Well organized.

[Salonboi 353]

I almost bought the Dummies book last night but chose the Big Book first... Sounds like I've got some good reading ahead of me.... I appreciate your advice... And good luck with all of your editing ????????

[pratthobbies 8]

Wise choice. The Big Book is the better of the two just in terms of raw information, as well as the fact that it presents it better. Thanks for the good wishes.

[Salonboi 353]

I'm definitely enjoying the info for sure ...