Audiobooks ascending

[fjtorres]

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/01/bu...ook-.html?_r=1

Print has been good to Jeffery Deaver. Over the last 26 years, Mr. Deaver, a lawyer-turned-thriller writer, has published 35 novels and sold 40 million copies of them globally.

But his latest work, “The Starling Project,” a globe-spanning mystery about a grizzled war crimes investigator, isn’t available in bookstores. It won’t be printed at all. The story was conceived, written and produced as an original audio drama for Audible, the audiobook producer and retailer. If Mr. Deaver’s readers want the story, they’ll have to listen to it.

“My fans are quite loyal,” Mr. Deaver said. “If they hear I’ve done this and that it’s a thriller, I think they’ll come to it.”

“The Starling Project,” which came out in mid-November, will test the appetite for an emerging art form that blends the immersive charm of old-time radio drama with digital technology. It’s also the latest sign that audiobooks, which have long been regarded as a quaint backwater of the publishing industry and an appendage to print, are coming into their own as a creative medium.

More importantly, the money is becoming increasingly significant.

At a time when hardcover sales are flat in dollar terms and MMPB has declined enough reporting now combines those sales with trade paperbacks, Audiobook sales are growing quite nicely.

Art form, shmart form, its all about the money.

It’s no surprise that authors are eager to make their mark in the medium. As the print business stagnates, digital audiobooks are booming. In the first eight months of this year, sales were up 28 percent over the same period last year, far outstripping the growth of e-books, which rose 6 percent, according to theAssociation of American Publishers. Meanwhile, hardcover print sales for adult fiction and nonfiction fell by nearly 2 percent.

Of course, who is leading the way in digital audiobooks?
Yup. Amazon's Audible. And they are doing what all Amazon units do, pushing boundaries:

So far, Audible has commissioned and produced around 30 original works, as varied as a serialized thriller about a conspiracy that drives India and Pakistan to the brink of nuclear war, and original short stories set in the world of Charlaine Harris’s vampire novels.

“You have this massive opportunity when you don’t have to fight for people’s eyes,” said Donald Katz, chief executive of Audible. “It’s time for us to move from sourcing content that can produce fantastic audio, on to imagining what the aesthetic of this new medium should be from the ground up.”

More at the source.

There is hope for the Anything-but-Amazon crowd, though: B&N and possibly Kobo are finally trying to get serious about digital audiobooks. As well as a couple of the subscription services.

http://the-digital-reader.com/2014/1...id/#more-76043

http://the-digital-reader.com/2014/1...ks/#more-76724

[pwalker8]

Audible, which Amazon purchased a while back, totally dominates the audio book market.

What many businesses (and authors) are discovering is that you need multiple revenue streams if you want to stay in business. When you add in print books, graphic books, ebooks, audio books and tv/movie rights, an author can pull in significant money if he or she can gather an audience.

You know, everything doesn't have to be "my guys rock, everyone else stinks". Everything is not binary.

[fjtorres]

Amazon bought audible in 2008 and promptly integrated it with Kindle.
Nobody made a serious effort to compete until now.

6 (mostly) unimpeded years is a long head start.
Better late than never, though.

[leebase]

I think it's a fantastic idea to conceive of books AS Audiobooks. I like Deaver, I think I'll go use one of my Audible credits for this book

I've worked from home the last few years which has really put a crimp in my audibook "reading".

[leebase]

Just looked. It's a 4 hour book. Choices choices. I actually aim for picking very long books for my Audible credits. More entertainment for the value.

[Phogg]

Originally Posted by leebase

I think it's a fantastic idea to conceive of books AS Audiobooks. I like Deaver, I think I'll go use one of my Audible credits for this book

I've worked from home the last few years which has really put a crimp in my audibook "reading".

Gee.

If only Street and Smith had thought of that dual approach back in the thirties when they had Walter Gibson writing all that stuff about The Shadow... imagine the impact.

[rcentros]

But his latest work, “The Starling Project,” a globe-spanning mystery about a grizzled war crimes investigator, isn’t available in bookstores. It won’t be printed at all. The story was conceived, written and produced as an original audio drama for Audible, the audiobook producer and retailer. If Mr. Deaver’s readers want the story, they’ll have to listen to it.

I don't quite understand the point of limiting your readers' choice. Personally I've never listened to an audio book -- I like to read when I read. If I was one of this writer's regular readers I wouldn't be happy about this.

[leebase]

Originally Posted by rcentros

I don't quite understand the point of limiting your readers' choice. Personally I've never listened to an audio book -- I like to read when I read. If I was one of this writer's regular readers I wouldn't be happy this.

I think it's about promoting the medium. Not every book becomes a movie, and not every movie starts out as a book. I think there is a place for audio books that are designed to make the most of the medium. The rebirth of radio drama.

[pidgeon92]

It's not a regular audiobook, either. It's got a full cast. More like an old-fashioned radio show.

A few years ago, I went to a play that was a rendering of a radio version of A Christmas Carol. That was an interesting experience as well.

[DuckieTigger]

One mistake would be to exclusively concentrate on audiobooks. Written books can at least be enjoyed by the blind. There is no way a deaf person can access an audiobook only book.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by leebase

I think it's about promoting the medium. Not every book becomes a movie, and not every movie starts out as a book. I think there is a place for audio books that are designed to make the most of the medium. The rebirth of radio drama.

Okay. That makes sense.

(Uh ... never mind my earlier comments.)

[JSWolf]

Speaking of books as an audio drama, I recently listened to Ender's Game. I found it to be very enjoyable. I liked the choices for the voices.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by leebase

I think it's a fantastic idea to conceive of books AS Audiobooks. I like Deaver, I think I'll go use one of my Audible credits for this book

There are a fair number of companies producing audio dramas; a notable one is Big Finish.

Then of course you have radio drama, which is very much alive and well on BBC Radio in the UK, and which can be downloaded from anywhere in the world.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by rcentros

I don't quite understand the point of limiting your readers' choice. Personally I've never listened to an audio book -- I like to read when I read. If I was one of this writer's regular readers I wouldn't be happy about this.

This is audio drama, not an audio book - it's a different medium; more akin to theatre than a book. I'd see it as expanded choice, not restricting it.

[Fbone]

$18 for a 4 hour and 10 minute drama.