Audiobooks discussion

We'd like to welcome Xe Sands !

Xe will be giving away one copy of The Muralist (CD set). Random drawing, all commentors names will be entered, and one drawn at random

Here is Xe's Audible page

http://www.audible.com/search/ref=a_h...


Here is the piece Audiofile Magazine did on Xe's narration of The Muralist
http://www.audiofilemagazine.com/narr...

Xe's Going Public Poetry Page

https://soundcloud.com/xe_sands/sets/...


Xe is also the narrator of choice of author Juliet Blackwell who made this comment on her Facebook page the other day

"I'm driving around town, running errands, and listening to the amazing Xe Sands reading Keeper of the Castle. So strange --and wonderful -- to hear my writing read to me by such a talented woman!"



Xe has many audiobooks in many different genre's if you haven't had the pleasure check out her wonderful voice.

I will start out with a couple questions and everyone else can chime in.

How did you get started in the audiobook world?

What was your first audiobook?

Do you have a favorite genre to narrate?

Thanks again for joining us!

Hello Xe...I just wanted to take a minute to thank you for "sitting in the chair" before I head off to the airport for the week. I hope you enjoy it as much as the others have.

My question, is when did you first realize you had a "special" voice, one that would ultimately lead to a career? Is it something you always knew or sensed?

I also want to give a BIG thanks to MissSusie for helping out in leading the discussions with Xe.

Hi Xe :-)

How do you go about deciding which 'voice' to use for the different main characters of a novel?

Thanks for joining us Xe!

Did you have any type of schooling or private coaching to help you learn to narrate?

HI. Thanks for joining us. I have two questions. First, do you also read for pleasure, or is narrating enough reading for you? Second, do you ever find a book you are narrating terribly boring or just not to your taste. If so, how do you keep that feeling out of your voice? Thanks.

Morning All!

I am so honored and thrilled to be visiting y'all - thanks so much for asking!

Now to your questions...

MissSusie wrote: "We'd like to welcome Xe Sands !

Xe will be giving away one copy of The Muralist (CD set). Random drawing, all commentors names will be entered, and one drawn at random

Here is Xe..."

Thanks so much for inviting me- I am absolutely thrilled to be here!

So how did I get started...

Well many narrators come to audiobook narration through professional acting experience, but my path was a little bit different. Up until she was about 12, my daughter and I read together in the evenings and mornings, and as she grew older and we were reading more and more complex books, I realized that I loved it. It really lit me on fire to allow the authors intent to flow through me and provide that experience for her.

So I started to look for ways to break into audiobook narration, which at that time, was not particularly easy. Eventually, I started volunteering for Librivox.org. After several years, I caught wind of a workshop offered in my area by Pat Fraley, along with narrator and coach, Carrington McDuffie. I ended up working with Carrington for a number of months and eventually attended our industry conference, APAC, where I met various publishers, other narrators and other directors and coaches, and made the connections that put me on my current path.

What was my very first book? My very first professionally narrated audiobook was Thrill of the Chase. And oh, if I could only redo some of that early work! Oy!

A favorite genre, hmmm? Wellllll.... I hate to play favorites, but I really do enjoy narrating epistolary fiction and what I would call the "messy and difficult" first person fiction :)

Question right back atcha: for those who have listened to my narrations...what genre do YOU prefer me narrating?

Grumpus wrote: "Hello Xe...I just wanted to take a minute to thank you for "sitting in the chair" before I head off to the airport for the week. I hope you enjoy it as much as the others have.

My question, is when did you first realize you had a "special" voice, one that would ultimately lead to a career? Is it something you always knew or sensed?."

Hi Grumpus! Thanks so much for having me! Safe travels to you.

You know, I don't know that that really ever happened (knowing that I had a "special" voice). Like many people, I have never particuarly liked to sound of my voice, LOL. It was more that I had this sense that I might have something to offer in terms of my particular take on narration...a sense that if I got out of my own way, I might be able to offer a deeper level of connection to the listener.

Oh! And yes, a HUGE thank you to Miss Susie :))

Louise wrote: "Hi Xe :-)

How do you go about deciding which 'voice' to use for the different main characters of a novel?"

Good morning, Louise!

Excellent question. I think it's more that the voice chooses me. I hear them in my head as I read the book through before recording - they just organically form from their characterization. My job is to get them to come out of me in a way that best matches how I'm hearing them in my head, based on the author's intent. That's where it gets tricky :)

Welcome Xe!

What a treat to be able to "get to know" another narrator here in the group. As a newbie at listening to audio books, I am quickly finding out how important the right fit a narrator is to a book and it's been a pleasure to be able to see the person behind the voice in these Narrator Corner discussions.

I have not had the chance to listen to a book narrated by you yet, Xe, but looking at your list I am excited see that you narrated Jeff VanderMeer's Area X: The Southern Reach Trilogy. I have read the first book, but haven't had time for the second two, so I think I would like to switch and listen to the audio. It would give me a chance to listen to your work!

It looks like you collaborated with two other narrators on the Southern Reach Trilogy. My question is, how different is narrating a book along with other narrators compared to narrating a book all yourself? Do you need to meet with the other narrators and decide on how certain aspects of the book will be done? Or do you simply get different sections of the book and you are all on your own, so to speak?

Susan wrote: "Thanks for joining us Xe!

Did you have any type of schooling or private coaching to help you learn to narrate?"

Hi Susan!

Yes, I've had both private coaching and group training sessions to work on honing whatever raw talent Ive got going, into engaging and authentic performance.

Faith wrote: "HI. Thanks for joining us. I have two questions. First, do you also read for pleasure, or is narrating enough reading for you? Second, do you ever find a book you are narrating terribly boring or j..."

Hi Faith!

Yes, I do read for pleasure...but all in audio these days :) print reading time fgoes almost exclusively to prepreading for "work" books.

And yep, it does happen. There are occasionally books that, were I reading for pleasure, just wouldn't be my thing. But I find that when narrating, if I'm doing it right, if I'm truly there, present with the text and the author's intent, it doesn't matter what I personally like/don't like, because the author loves the subject or the characters, and the characters sure don't know they are in a "boring" book...so by opening myself to the author's intent and the characters' experience, boredom doesn't come into it.

Hi Xe! I'm here as a fan today. I've mentioned elsewhere that I've found your voice addictive... so I guess my answer to your question is that I love listening to you narrate two of the series you do, Witchcraft Mysteries and Haunted Home Renovations. I'm caught up on Witchcraft and had figured I'd whittle the TBR down a bit before bying more Home Renovation, but I'm weak, very weak. I'm sure I'll be buying the next one soon--gotta get my fix!

What book to date have you been the most satisfied with when you finished?

Linda wrote: "Welcome Xe!

What a treat to be able to "get to know" another narrator here in the group. As a newbie at listening to audio books, I am quickly finding out how important the right fit a narrator is..."

Hello Linda!
Ooooo...Acceptance! Voicing The Director was one of the most challenging points of my career.

Multi-voiced narrations do benefit fro narrator collaboration. Narrators often try to swap notes on characterization so that characters voiced by several people can potentially carry similar markers for listeners bewteen performances.

For example, with ACCEPTANCE, Bronson Pinchot and I collaborated on characterization of the characters we both needed to voice, as did Simon Vance and I when working on Euphoria.

Ok folks...have to check my kiddo into a college visit (eeeep!) Back in about 2 hours!

Xe wrote: "Narrators often try to swap notes on characterization so that characters voiced by several people can potentially carry similar markers for listeners bewteen performances. "

Thank you, Xe! I realize that I've listened to just one audio book done by two narrators and that they did do voices for several of the same characters, so it makes sense that they would need some sort of collaboration. Well, I will be putting the remaining AreaX trilogy on my audio pile!

Also, thank you for pointing out that you narrated Euphoria. That is another book on my list that I should swap for the audio version.

Thank you Ms. Sands for participating in this open question session. Since you narrate a good chunk of the year, do you enjoy your quiet time? If so, what do you do with it?

Thanks!

Susan

OMG! I nearly forgot about this.... duh! Old age strikes again.

You would think that with all the audiobooks I listen to, I would have listened to more of your books, but... well, you read a lot of romance, and cozy mysteries and I don't listen to those... however, I have listened to you on a couple the most recent of which was The Muralist which I loved! Have another by the same author, The Art Forger, but I'm saving it for a bit, cause... well, no reason, it's just the way I do things. There are several in my tbr that you read, too, and I'm looking forward to those too.

Just want to make sure that I say, you are one of my favorite narrators, and finding out that you narrate a book, will sometimes make me try an author I'm not familiar with, which actually says a lot. These foolish audio companies that think its all the author, really are not listening to their customers, but a lousy narrator can ruin a great book, and a great narrator can make a not-so-wonderful-book bearable. Keep up the great work... and would you please start reading more history, or thriller type books.... pleeeassseeee.... <><

Well, this foolish old broad put her comments in the wrong thread! DUH! Copying them over here, so don't read them in the other place... <><

and this is the second one...

And I have been wanting to ask a narrator this, but the ones we have had so far, were closer to my age, so they were too old for me to ask it.

My older son got his first "audiobook" when at Christmas just before his third birthday. He got a kids' cassette player with some first reader books that had a tape with them, so he could play the tape himself, and "read along" in the book. Did you have audio books like that when you were growing up, or did you come to audiobooks later in life? I just kinda wonder how many "kids" who had access to those kinds of things when they were very young, listen to audiobooks today.

Did start listening to audiobooks before you started narrating? Of course, I suppose I should ask, if you do listen to audiobooks, first here shouldn't I? When you listen to other narrators, do you compare your narrations with theirs, to get "tips" or find things you "want to stay away from"?

Shutting up now, to give others a chance. But I'll be back... ha! this is the advantage to living on the east coast, I get to get in here and ask questions, before you even have your breakfast! <><

Hello Xe, I am a fan since I heard your narration of The Art Forger, You definitely added a lot to the experience. I was wondering how two things -

1. how do you prep for characters with a regional or national accent?

and 2. How do you handle narrating unlikeable characters? Do you try to give them all a "chance" and not influence the reader that they will do something evil or underhanded later? Or do you try to expose their character traits through the narration somehow?

Hi Xe and welcome!

Wanted to stop by as a fan and tell you that I find your voice among the most soothing to listen to of any in the VO world. :)

All the best!
Lee Ann

Xe wrote: "Ok folks...have to check my kiddo into a college visit (eeeep!) Back in about 2 hours!"

Wait! What??? You aren't old enough to have a kid in college!.... nope, no way! <><

Jeanie wrote: "Hi Xe! I'm here as a fan today. I've mentioned elsewhere that I've found your voice addictive... so I guess my answer to your question is that I love listening to you narrate two of the series you ..."


Aw, thanks, Jeanie!

And I adore voicing those series too - feel very lucky to have been given the opportunity, and through working on them, to have connected with Juliet Blackwell, who is simply lovely.

What book have I been most satisfied with after finishing? Oooo, that's a toughy. Well, if you had asked me to pick a favorite project, I really couldn't....but this is a bit of a different question. You know, I think I have to go with Wonderland. Don't want to give away any plot points, but a significant event in the book mirrored a family tragedy I was dealing with at the time I worked on the book, and subsequently, that narration was perhaps one of the more challenging to get through, and took on personal significance for me. It felt cathartic to finish it. Just wish more folks had heard of it, LOL

Xe wrote: "So I started to look for ways to break into audiobook narration, which at that time, was not particularly easy. Eventually, I started volunteering for Librivox.org. ..."

Have to admit that you went up about 5 points in my star file with this. Do you remember any of the books you narrated for librivox? Do you still read for them, or have you given it up? Librivox is doing a lot for the audiobook community? Ha! if only in the way they make us appreciate really good narrators more. <><

Julie wrote: "Hi Xe
I'd like to ask one quick question.
Is there a particular book that you'd love to get the opportunity to narrate , whether it has been done previously or has yet to be done ?"

Hi Julie!

Absolutely...toss-up between The Captain's Verses (Los versos del Capitan). Translated by Donald D. Walsh and Carnival Evening: New and Selected Poems, 1968-1998.

Yep, poetry...my true love. Ok, at the risk of violating rules of protocol and, well, just being tacky, I'm going to throw this out there, because I just adore poetry. From my side project, Going Public, I've created a playlist of the poetry I've narrated over the past five years or so :)

https://m.soundcloud.com/xe_sands/set...

It's not quite up to date...I need to move up some of the more recent offerings, but, well...that's what I would narrate just about all the time, if I could do so and still eat :)

Linda wrote: "
Thank you, Xe! I realize that I've listened to just one audio book done by two narrators and that they did do voices for several of the same characters, so it makes sense that they would need some sort of collaboration. Well, I will be putting the remaining AreaX trilogy on my audio pile!

Also, thank you for pointing out that you narrated Euphoria. That is another book on my list that I should swap for the audio version...."

Well if you listen to either/both, I hope you enjoy them, Linda!

Susan wrote: "Thank you Ms. Sands for participating in this open question session. Since you narrate a good chunk of the year, do you enjoy your quiet time? If so, what do you do with it?

Thanks!

Susan"

Ha! Quiet time...what is this "quiet time" you speak of, Susan?

Seriously though, it is rare that I have free time these days. When recording at full capacity, it's basically all recording and prepping. Some of my non-recording time goes into networking and researching upcoming books.

Most of my non-work time currently goes toward the ridiculously stressful college admissions process (eep)...and whatever is left over, I...well I'll just sheepishly admit that I crochet and watch a variety of offbeat and guilty pleasure television with my husband, to destress :) Occasional trips out in my '63 Falcon...

Although, I'm trying to start work on some new visual art...been a while since I've allowed myself time to do that. Years back, that was how I spent most of my free time.

Thanks for posting Xe's home page, Julie!

Xe, looking at your website I immediately noticed the photos of Dick's Drive-In and the infamous Hat and Boots (which I drive by on my way home from work each night!). So, do you currently call the Pacific Northwest your home?

Msjodi777 wrote: "Just want to make sure that I say, you are one of my favorite narrators, and finding out that you narrate a book, will sometimes make me try an author I'm not familiar with, which actually says a lot. These foolish audio companies that think its all the author, really are not listening to their customers, but a lousy narrator can ruin a great book, and a great narrator can make a not-so-wonderful-book bearable. Keep up the great work... and would you please start reading more history, or thriller type books.... pleeeassseeee.... <>< .."

Oh msjodi - that means the world to me. Thank you!!

The reality is that we have fairly little say over how we're perceived in terms of casting. But I have started doing more suspense and thriller genre work. Let's see...if you're wanting recs along those lines, I'd point you toward The Ex, Truth Be ToldDescent, and maybe even Flood Rising (although it is a SciFi thriller with a teen protagonist...reads like a SciFi 24 :) )

Msjodi777 wrote: "and this is the second one...

And I have been wanting to ask a narrator this, but the ones we have had so far, were closer to my age, so they were too old for me to ask it.

My older son got his ..."

Hello again :)

Oh i just love this story about your son! And yes! Around age 3-4, I was given a children's record player and a 45 (that's a small bit o'vinyl for you young whippersnappers) that came with my print copy of The Very Hungry Caterpillar and listened to the heck out of it. Came with a caterpillar puppet too :)

And gracious yes! My daughter and I had a moderately long car commute for years, so we listened to many audiobooks. And eventually, we started making our choices, in part, based on the narration.

Holly wrote: "Hello Xe, I am a fan since I heard your narration of The Art Forger, You definitely added a lot to the experience. I was wondering how two things -

1. how do you prep for characters with a region..."

Hi Holly! Im so glad ypu enjoyed The Art Forger :)

Accents are tricky things...if I will actually be using accents in a performance (often, we are instructed not to by the publisher) and it's not one that I already feel comfortable practicing, I will work with a dialect coach to come up with something subtle and workable for the project. And if I know about the accent before the book is cast, and I feel I won't be able to do it justice, I will decline the book.

Ohhhh...unlikable characters! Heres what I would ask though...do unlikable characters *know* they are unlikable?

My point is that the characterization comes via the author's intent and structure, not through my conscious thoughts and choices (at least, it does when I'm doing it right)...and it's the rare unlikable character that has absolutely no redeeming or accessible moments in a story.

Msjodi777 wrote: "Xe wrote: "Ok folks...have to check my kiddo into a college visit (eeeep!) Back in about 2 hours!"

Wait! What??? You aren't old enough to have a kid in college!.... nope, no way! <"

Haha! Oh you're hilarious you are :-)

Lee wrote: "Hi Xe and welcome!

Wanted to stop by as a fan and tell you that I find your voice among the most soothing to listen to of any in the VO world. :)

All the best!
Lee Ann"

Aww, thank you so much, Lee Ann. I have to admit that I never thought of myself as having a soothing voice...but I'll take it if other people feel I do! Evidently my daughter find my reading voice soothing as well... I say "reading voice," because of course she doesn't find my nagging voice particularly soothing...

Msjodi777 wrote: "Xe wrote: "So I started to look for ways to break into audiobook narration, which at that time, was not particularly easy. Eventually, I started volunteering for Librivox.org. ..."

Have to admit t..."

Yay! Someone who has heard of Librivox.org! That warms my heart and msjodi :-)

For the most part, I narrated chapters of books more than whole projects for the most part, because that's how LibriVox prefers to work a lot of the time... As much as it sounds a little strange, people narrate chapters or sections of books. It does make for a very unique listening experience.

Unfortunately it's harder for me to marry her LibriVox now because, due to their wonderful open policy of making everything available with no restrictions (which I support), unscrupulous folks have occasionally taken LibriVox recordings and posted them on Amazon for sale. And I am philosophically opposed to taking another person's work and selling it without the their permission and withput compensating them, especially if they have volunteered that work for free listening. To my mind, that was never the intent behind LibriVox's efforts to get public domain work into audio.

Julie wrote: "Xe
Thank you for that link , I'll take a look at it .

While we are mentioning links, I wanted to post your home page link. I think it is the most beautiful home page I've ever seen.

http://www.xesands.com..."

Thanks so much for posting it, Julie. It used to be a more extensive "journey," but it was too cumbersome to navigate, so I just recently overhauled it. So glad you like it! And yes, thats me...and my purty car :)

Linda wrote: "Thanks for posting Xe's home page, Julie!

Xe, looking at your website I immediately noticed the photos of Dick's Drive-In and the infamous Hat and Boots (which I drive by on my way home from work ..."

Oh! Woohoo! Another PNW'er!

Yes, I currently live in the PNW, although San Francisco will always have my heart.

All this love is just wonderful and I'm so thankful for all the listener support...y'all are seriously awesome!

But I also want to throw out there that if you're reading all this and are perhaps not a particular fan of my work, or if you've got some tough questions or feedback and are feeling reticent about posting, please do feel free to share. Dialog is a good thing, even when folks might not agree (as long as we all keep it constructive and civil, which we totally will, I have no doubt) :)

Hi Xe,

I've been impressed with how much work goes into audios by the narrator. It sounds like they do so much on their own, especially when they have their own studio. So, what exactly happens after you're done with your recording? Where does it go and how long before publication?

Donna wrote: "Hi Xe,

I've been impressed with how much work goes into audios by the narrator. It sounds like they do so much on their own, especially when they have their own studio. So, what exactly happens af..."

Hi Donna!

Yes, there is quite a bit of work that goes in well beyond tge 10 or so hours you get to gear in tge end :)

As for post-recording...well for us home-based narrators, once we are done with the initial recording, we send the audio files to the publisher, who then checks the recording against the text for any misreads, etc. Then then send us back a list of requested pickups. Once those are done we are done with our portion of the project.

Julie wrote: "I know you have done some dual-narration work ,and from what most other narrators have said, it is usually done separately, then put together to form the completed book.
Do you know of any dual na..."

Hi Julie!

Hmm...well I believe that Full Cast Audio actual records their projects with all narrators in the studio tigether. I've also heard of a few husband/wife teams narrating in the booth at the same time.

So here's a question for all y'all: what is most imoortant to you in a listen? What really makes the perfect listening experience for you?

I'm known to be exceptionally picky as a listener, and am constantly striving to up my game to the level *I* demand as a listener....so I'm always curious to hear from other listeners on what makes a truly transcendant listen.

Julie wrote: "Xe wrote: "Julie wrote: "I know you have done some dual-narration work ,and from what most other narrators have said, it is usually done separately, then put together to form the completed book.
D..."

Hmmmm....you know, I actually love working solo. I talk to myself a LOT. I work through things as I go, aloud, most of the time....all of which would likely annoy other people, LOL.

Xe, how many books do you narrate per year on average? How much time per day do you average in the studio? Oh, and do you have a home studio and have to do the editing yourself?
And before I forget, are any of your books thrugh ACX so that you get a share from the sales? I want to support narrators in both word and deed... my life would be so much less fulfilling without narrators like you filling my ears with those lovely spoken words and I'd prefer at least a part of my audiobook expenditures benefit those I hold so dear! I'm still willing to sign a petition or go on an oatmeal eating strike for the cause! (see Simon's thread for that reference ;))

Jeanie wrote: "Xe, how many books do you narrate per year on average? How much time per day do you average in the studio? Oh, and do you have a home studio and have to do the editing yourself?
And before I forget..."

Hi Jeanie!

Books per year...it's settled into about 4 per month, I think.

I do record in my home studio, and average 4-6 hours of recirding per day. The vocal cords start to get a bit tired after 6, so I try not to go over that.

Editing is a different beast from narrating. While I do some "editing," in that I record using a punch-and-roll method and then prep the resulting files for transmission to the publisher, I leave the main proofing and editing to the publisher.

And what a kind idea - to seek out those royalty share projects! Thats just awesome if you, Jeanie. I generally don't accept royalty share rojects, however....so much time and effort goes into what I do, that I can rarely justify the outlay with no guarantee of food money :)

Hi, Xe! I was tickled to hear you were coming, since I just "discovered" you! Audible had If Walls Could Talk as a Daily Deal, and what might have been just a fun book was a joy because of your reading. I can't wait to listen to the rest of the series, and to find more of your books. You're one of my new favorite voices.

it doesn't matter what I personally like/don't like, because the author loves the subject or the characters, and the characters sure don't know they are in a "boring" book...so by opening myself to the author's intent and the characters' experience, boredom doesn't come into it.

That's fantastic - I hope your authors appreciate the respect you give their work! Can you talk a little about the research you do before recording a new book?

Xe wrote: "So here's a question for all y'all: what is most impoortant to you in a listen? What really makes the perfect listening experience for you?

I'm known to be exceptionally picky as a listener, and am..."

I've given this a lot of thought over the years. So what is it about narrators like you that can make the audiobook experience transcendant? Obviously, it's Magic.

What? You wanted something more realistic? Sorry, magic is the only thing that fully explains it. Okay, maybe alchemy too...

The magical or alchemical formula goes like this: Start with a good book, make sure the narrator can pronounce every word correctly and there are no mouth noises, let them do character voices that are distinct but not caricatures, the narrator can do both genders without making the listener cringe, accents are accurate and understandable, the pace is just right...
Then you add the magic and, presto, a great audiobook that is more than just the book in auditory form. Not every narrator can do this... congratulations to you for finding your own magic wand!

Tracey wrote: "Hi, Xe! I was tickled to hear you were coming, since I just "discovered" you! Audible had If Walls Could Talk as a Daily Deal, and what might have been just a fun book was a joy beca..."

Hi Tracey!

How wonderful! That series is such fun, and set in my favorite place on Earth :) Thanks so much for your kind words.

So the research...

It all depends on the book, really. For the Blackwell series, I'm fortunate in that I've lived in SF, and have friends in communities and industries similar to those represented in the books, so I get most of what the author talks about. That's not true with every project of course...for Euphoria, for example, where understanding the setting and history felt paramount to authentically delivering the story, I did quite a bit of research into Maragret Mead's time in PNG, and the regions King mentions in the book. I acrually created a Pinterest board for it, which gives a feel for the kind of research I do in such cases:

https://www.pinterest.com/xesands/rec...

LOL, and when prepping The Art Forger, it took me hours of fruitless googling to figure out that the Degas painting mentioned in the book was actually a fabrication of the author :)

Jeanie wrote: "Xe wrote: "So here's a question for all y'all: what is most impoortant to you in a listen? What really makes the perfect listening experience for you?

I'm known to be exceptionally picky as a list..."

*grin* thanks, Jeanie.

I think for me, as a listener, it is a natural, casual and authentic delivery. My favorites are those that sound like the narrator is sitting right there, glass in hand, telling me this crazy (or touching or funny or scary...etc) story they heard...delivering dialog the way people acrually speak to each other, etc. I'll gladly sacrifice perfect enunciation/diction for natural flow and pacing...I'll gladly fiddle with the volume knob to accommodate a narrator who's really "in it." But I will stop listening to a narration that brings the narrator constantly to mind, or sounds like they aren't fully engaged, or that has perfect diction but no soul. My dad was an amazing storyteller, and I think he spoiled me.

All that said, that certainly isn't the profile of every listener!

Hi, Xe!
Just stopping in to say how much I've enjoyed listening to some of your narrations - the Juliet Blackwell books, in particular.

Others have pretty much asked all the questions, but, I do wonder... When you're reading a book with funny lines in it, do you ever have difficulty not laughing while reading?

Thanks again for taking time to visit with us.