I experiment with recording myself reading my own stories sometimes, (mostly for promotion of a new book) but I admit, I’ve never actually listened to a book. Seems kind of awkward for a book worm like me; I’d much rather read it. I have this image in my head that I may discover to be stereotypical in the future, but we’ll cross that bridge when we get there. You see in my mind, audio books (with the exception of poetry of course) are made up of mostly old people (no offense) who sit in rocking chairs narrating stories. But it’s not like the exciting person to person, face to face stories Grandma used to tell. Instead it’s long and drawn out. I don’t even know if there’s music involved, maybe. Makes me wonder: What components are necessary to make an audiobook something more desirable than reading the actual book? I do know that auditory learning, a learning style in which a person learns through listening, is one of the most effective teaching styles. Just look at music itself and how easily it is to learn something new just by adding a beat to it. From that end, I can see how audio books can help the auditory learner who depends on hearing and speaking as their main way of learning. I can also see how an audio book can come in handy for someone with an extremely busy schedule or for multitasking. I hear of some authors who offer an audio book version of their book in addition to the hard copies. With busy summers, I can see how this could be useful, even fun. But what if the story is super long and the reader’s voice is monotone! That’s scary. Listening to the book while reading it on the other hand, now that may prove an exciting experience I wouldn’t mind trying.
What are your thoughts? Would you offer an audio version of your book if given the chance? Are you for plugging in or turning pages? Yay or Nay?
The PBS Blog 
Hi EC, I have been a keen reader for over 40 years in both English and French, and would plead for audio-books which I listen to on my long commute, just over an hour a day, as you could deduce from my blog I feel I can more easily put a book down without feeling bad about the time investment at any point during the book and use this means for discovering new writers I’m not sure about or for less ‘Literary’ works requiring a lower attention level
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Hi Pat! Thanks for leaving a comment on the table. I appreciate the feedback :-).
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I’ve listened to audiobooks. I used to drive a lot and it helped my commutes to be more pleasant and inspiring.
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Ah, I see. Well I do love to travel. Thanks for the feedback. :-).
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I am not an author and my future does not include writing a book.. However, I listen to audio books and was drawn to them when I chose to listen to books rather than music while exercising. This form of accessing books expanded when, because of rheumatoid arthritis, it became more and more difficult to manage a print book or even an e-book. I hope this helps coming from a reader’s perspective.
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Yes indeed it does. Thanks for the feedback as always :-).
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I only discovered audiobooks last year when I needed something to listen to while I worked and music got old. If it wasn’t for audiobooks, I would have never found so many amazing stories. I would love to translate my novel into one just for people who don’t have the time to read but still want to. Anyone driving, coding, graphic design, stuff like that – it counts. The only downside is the expense. Even with Audible you’re paying around $14 for each one -with- a subscription, and they’re about $30 regular. The quality of the audiobook really depends on the reader, and some readers are fantastic while others fall short. I have never had a monotone reader. This is a huge market right now, so reading matters. They really do a great job at picking readers who match. For example, Terry Donnelly does an incredible job at reading in all kinds of Irish accents and names from the beautiful works of Juliet Marillier. Simon Vance cannot be beat reading the Temaraire series by Naomi Novik. Check em out – maybe you’ll begin to love audiobooks too!
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I will definitely look into them and your feedback is very helpful, thanks hun 🙂
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