Frequently Asked Questions

Who are you guys?

A couple of friends loved performing—in the studio, on stage, on television, film, and radio.  Between them, they had pretty much tried it all.  They also took similar paths to the same conclusion—that performing is fun, but that whole “starving artist” thing isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. That’s why both of them decided independently to get out of the performing scene, go back to school, sell out to “the man”, and get MBAs.

It was during this formative time that the idea struck one of the friends: why not find a way to combine a passion for good stories and his new found business acumen. So, he called up the other and pitched the idea. The other guy, who had been working in the corporate world for a very long time, loved it. (And, truth be told, was tired of working to benefit the aforementioned “man”.) Thus, Open Book Audio was born.

OBA’s founders have a whole lot of experience between them—both as performers and businessmen.  Combined, there are two MBAs, Bachelors degrees in Music, Theatre, Audio Engineering, Dance, Entertainment Marketing, and Computer Science.  They have worked with and for companies like Microsoft, The Walt Disney Company, Paramount, CBS, Target, Dell Computers, Apple Computers, Novell, The Wyndham Group, Eddie Bauer, Ann Taylor and many others. Between them, they have done film, television, movies, commercials, radio, podcasts, concerts, and produced/recorded several albums.  They play several instruments, sing (one of them even sings in the world-famous Mormon Tabernacle Choir), write, and arrange music.

But above all, these two guys love a great story. That love for a good story has permeated everything we do at Open Book Audio.  Whether you're a self-publishing author, or a bustling independent publishing company, the gang at OBA wants to make sure that your story comes to life.  We use exceptional readers, top-notch recording facilities, and pour a lot of heart in every audiobook we produce. It's your story, out loud.

What is that you guys do exactly?

Simply, we produce audiobooks. We specialize in audiobooks for smaller, independent publishing houses and self-publishing authors. We offer an inexpensive way for unknown authors to get their book into digital audio format and out to iPods and MP3 Players everywhere.

How expensive is it?

You’ll want to check our pricing sheet, but we aim to provide the best services at the lowest cost.  Depending on the production requirements of your audiobook, our prices can be up to 75% lower than standard audiobook production.  After all, we know that unknown authors are passionate about their story, but maybe they just haven’t hit the big time yet. With Open Book Audio, we aim to help new authors bring their story to a wider audience without forcing them to sell a kidney to do it.

How do you it so cheaply?  Will my audiobook sound like garbage?

Ha.  As if.  We love audiobooks and listen to them all the time.  Nothing’s worse than an audiobook with a bad performance, sloppy edits, and a sound quality that makes you wonder if it was recorded under a freeway onramp.  We produce the kind of audiobooks that we like to hear--our books are top notch.  We use amazing readers, and great studios.  We are able to do it so inexpensively because we have special revenue agreements with our staff readers, studios, and engineers.  We utilize the power of the internet to collaborate with readers around the world. We keep our overhead low.  And we're not greedy. It’s a pretty simple equation.

So what do I give up by doing my audiobook with OBA?

It’s true that OBA is not your traditional audiobook production, and in order to provide you lower costs, we do have a few limitations.  First, you don’t get to be there for the recording sessions.  We work quickly, and our excellent producers keep their keen ears on your work, but our engineers and readers work all over the United States.  (It’s one of the joys of the internet age.)  Secondly, we maintain a small stable of "preferred" staff readers. While you don't have to use one of our staff readers, we do provide a decent discount if you do. You can hear samples of the pros who read for us, and you can pick one from the list.  And lastly, you can sell your book through the OBA store, but at this time, Open Book Audio does not provide large-scale distribution services. We do the work and hand you back a finished product. Selling it is up to you. Other than that, it’s pretty much the same as paying a ton more to do it yourself.

Ok. But why do I even need an audiobook?

With the ubiquitous adoption of the iPod and other similar devices, audio books are becoming more and more common for consumers who love to read, but who don’t have the time to sit down and curl up with a good book. (Have you ever had to commute 2 or more hours a day? We have. And those NPR pledge drives can lead people to commit horrible, horrible crimes.)  Besides, an audio book adds credibility and another way to capture a larger audience with your book.  It allows you to reach the visually impared, or those with learning disabilities that make it difficult to read. And best of all, because it’s digital, you don’t have to pay for printing.

That’s nice, but I want people to buy my book, not my audiobook.

We say, "why can’t they buy both?"  A sale is a sale, regardless of the format of the book sold. There are plenty of people out there who don’t have time to sit down and read, but who listen to audiobooks while they cook, walk the dog, or drive to and from work.  They’re separate audiences.  And, when you’re out pitching your book, you’ll have a spiffy way to present it and bring it to life for those people who may want to buy your story.

(Not to mention the entire audience of the visually impared!) And since you will still own all the rights, the money you make selling the audiobook will all go to you as well.

This sounds cool.  How do I get started?

It’s pretty easy.  Fill out the no-obligation quote form.  We’ll gather some information about you (your name, contact info, specifics on your book, etc.)  We’ll review the form, ask you any questions we have, and put together a quote for you.  Then it’s in your court.  If you want to go ahead, send the deposit, and your book will be next in the queue.

Deposit? What Deposit?

OBA requires a deposit to be placed before we'll begin production on your audiobook. It's usually a percentage (50%) of the total cost of your audiobook production. We do this for a couple of reasons: One, it helps us defray the costs of studio rental and paying for the readers. Two, it lets us know that you're serious about getting an audiobook done with us. Here's how it works. We send you a quote, and on the quote will be the amount of the deposit required to begin production.

We take most major credit cards (Visa, MasterCard, Discover), Paypal payments, and, if you're into that old-style retro charm, checks and money orders. Please note that if payment is made by personal check, production or release of the final audiobook will be held for 10 days to guarantee that the funds clear.

Do I get to do any quality control?

We will record the first segment of your book (usually a chapter or two, depending on chapter length) and send it back to you for approval. You can listen to it, give us notes, and we'll finish the book. Along the way, we'll be in touch giving you status reports, and samples of the audiobook here and there to ensure that we're on the right track. When the book is finished, the remainder of the payment will be due, and we will release the full audiobook to you to do with it as you please.

Can you get my audiobook into iTunes, Audible, Overdrive?

Open Book Audio does have its own online store, and we will be more than happy to sell your audiobook through our store as a digital download or CD purchase. We also have our flagship Open Book Audio Podcast which we can use to advertise your book or provide long-form samples to our audience to whet their appetite. We don't currently have distribution deals with the large digital outlets, but as our catalog grows, we will begin offering this service as well. Until then, distribution is entirely up to you.  You can sell your audiobook through your own website, through the OBA website, offer it to other websites and services, give it away for free chapter by chapter as a podcast.  We make the audiobook and give the master files over to you.

What about copyright law and stuff?

You worked hard on your book, and we have no intention or desire of taking that copyright away from you.  You hold the copyright and distribution rights. When you agree to use our services, you’ll sign a simple agreement form giving us permission to record the book, but the text copyright and the production copyright will belong to you.  (It’s also your job to register said copyright.)  The rest, we leave up to the stinkin’ lawyers.

How long does it take to record an audio book?

Not to be overly vague, but it depends.  It depends on the length and complexity of your book, the number of readers, music requirements, mastering and encoding requirements, and if your selected reader is busy doing another book.  But generally speaking, from the moment we start recording until the moment we send you the discs or files, the process can take between four and eight weeks—sometimes less, sometimes more.  When we send you your quote, we’ll let you know when we think we can start, and when we estimate the project will finish.  If it’s a rush job, let us know, and we’ll see what we can do.

Are there any limitations on the kinds of books you’ll produce?

Why yes there are!  Thanks for asking.  Essentially, we reserve the right to refuse to produce the audio version of any book which we wouldn’t feel comfortable putting our name on. We won’t produce erotica, propaganda for racism, sexism, or any other discrimination, or material which promotes criminal activity.  We’re pretty open, but if we opt not to produce your material, any payments you’ve made will be refunded.

This sounds pretty cool. Can I invest in your business?

At this time, OBA is not looking for investors. Unless you'd like to invest by buying our products at the Open Book Audio Online Store. In which case, invest away!