Audiobook Production: Script, Narration and Delivery

Prepare a script that makes sense to listeners

Choose the manuscript version before recording begins. Confirm chapter order, contributor information, opening and closing material, names and specialist pronunciations. A changing draft can create inconsistent recordings and repeated correction work.

Mark visual material that needs a decision. A table may need a concise spoken explanation; an instruction to “see the diagram below” may need adaptation. Decide whether a companion resource is appropriate and allowed by the destination. Record the approved audio wording rather than asking a narrator to invent it during recording.

Evaluate narration with the book's real challenges

An author may bring personal familiarity with the material; another narrator may offer a performance suited to the book. Assess the actual sample instead of treating either choice as automatically better. Include dialogue, a reflective scene, an explanation or difficult names where relevant.

Listen for clarity, pacing, pronunciation and consistent characterization. Note specific changes and hear the revision before confirming direction. Agree who approves the sample and how that direction applies to later chapters.

Separate recording, correction, editing and mastering

Recording captures the performance. Editing addresses agreed recording issues. Corrections replace passages that need another take. Mastering prepares the files for the selected technical requirements. A proposal should identify these stages and who performs and approves each one.

Keep a correction log with chapter, location, requested change and resolution. A production error and a new author rewrite can require different work. Check a corrected passage in context so its tone and pacing fit the surrounding recording.

Listen through the completed edition while checking it against the approved text. Confirm chapter sequence, missing or repeated passages, pronunciation decisions and opening or closing material. A technical check alone does not establish that the performance follows the manuscript.

Choose the distribution path before final delivery

Identify the channels, account operator, rights arrangements and final files before selecting the production workflow. Check current destination rules. ACX's submission guidance is the primary reference for that destination; other platforms need their own checks.

For ACX, verify separate chapter or section files, consistent sound, credits matching the book details and the required audio quality. Its current rules require human narration unless otherwise authorized. A production checklist should point to the destination's live requirements rather than copy specifications indefinitely without review.

Discuss narrator permissions, audio rights, music or other assets and whether any synthetic narration is contemplated. Confirm the selected destination's eligibility and disclosure rules instead of assuming every generated voice is accepted. Keep recording and distribution agreements with the approved files.

Prepare a brief for an audiobook proposal

• Approved manuscript word count, genre and chapter structure.
• Narration preference and a representative passage.
• Pronunciation notes and any visual material needing adaptation.
• Recording, correction, editing and mastering responsibilities.
• Destination channels, account ownership and final deliverables.

Ask which narrator or studio tasks are included, what counts as a correction and how revised text affects the scope. No standard length or universal schedule describes every production. The written proposal should confirm the assumptions, author review points and delivery plan.

Request an audiobook project proposal through Greenfield's audiobook production service. Contact for pricing with the manuscript stage and planned channels. Audio production should be explicitly included rather than assumed to follow automatically from a print publishing package.