Bookwild - Narrating and Producing My First Audiobook!

Episode Date: September 19, 2025

This week, I dive into how I went from listening to audiobooks, to wanting to edit audiobooks, to co-narrating and editing my first audiobook over the course of like six months!Hear how narrating and producing The Underdog came together with Sagit Schwartz, what surprised me about narrating, and how sentimental I am that I recorded it in my neighborhood library. Get Bookwild MerchCheck Out My Stories Are My Religion SubstackCheck Out Author Social Media PackagesCheck out the Bookwild Community on PatreonCheck out the Imposter Hour Podcast with Liz and GregFollow @imbookwild on InstagramOther Co-hosts On Instagram:Gare Billings @gareindeedreadsSteph Lauer @books.in.badgerlandHalley Sutton @halleysutton25Brian Watson @readingwithbrian 

So this week, we're going to do something a little bit different. It is not a buddy episode. Unless you consider, I mean, if you're watching on YouTube, you can see Bruce's behind me. So there is Bruce and me. But otherwise, it's just me. It has been a wild month. For all kinds of reasons, work. Mostly work. I was going to say personal, but it's really not even personal. It's all work. So it's been a busy, busy, busy, busy month. And scheduling has not been easy to say the least. And so I had been debating, like, do I just tell everyone, like, the audiobook took up a lot of my time this week and I didn't get to schedule an episode? Or do I just record something by myself? And when I was mentioning it to Tyler, he was like, why don't you do an episode? episode about recording the audiobook. And I was like, you know what? That's a good idea. So that's what I'm going to talk about today. It was quite an experience, but I kind of wanted

to go all the way back to where my story began with Sagite Schwartz, who is the author of the underdog, also my co-narrator of the underdog, that is now it is with the Audible gods now getting reviewed, but we have technically officially pressed publish for the audiobook, which will come out October 14th. That's when the book is going to be published. So if you have been meeting a popcorn thriller that takes place in the reality TV realm, some wonderful thriller escapism, definitely want to pre-order this one. that you have it. No pressure, though. Seriously, though, no pressure. Like, if it's not your vibe, I understand that it's not your vibe. But I think it's going to be the vibe of a lot of people who listen.

I first heard about Sigeet on that galley, technically. So I was scrolling one day. I saw her cover for since she's been gone, which was her debut thriller. And I was like, this just sounds really good. I also really loved the cover. What's kind of funny is I also thought the cover was sci-fi. Like when I first saw it on NetGalley, I was like, ooh, this looks like a sci-fi. And then obviously I saw the synopsis. And I was like, oh, okay, not sci-fi, but this still sounds good. So I, it was fascinating. Sometimes I follow authors immediately. When I start reading something, sometimes I don't. There's no rhyme or reason to it. But when I started reading it, I, I, I started following her. And it was, I think, on the first day that I was reading it,

she posted in her stories that she was, I think, reading a book about how, as an author, to get on podcasts. And so I saw that while I was reading her book. And I was like, this is such a crazy coincidence. I've just got to message her. Like, normally I also try to wait until I finished a book before reaching out to an author. Because sometimes, there's all kinds of stuff. Sometimes I'm not going to love it. You don't love every book. You don't know.

And the other part is sometimes it feels like there is not a ton to talk about with a book. And so then I'm like, I don't really know what I would do with an interview in this situation. But I was like, I'm really enjoying this book. I think I was maybe 10 minutes or 10 minutes. like 10% into it. So I reached out and I was like, I'm loving your book. This is kind of funny that you were just posting about it. I have a podcast and I'd love to talk to you about this one. And she was all for it. So my first interview with Seguet came out February 6th, 2024. So it is September 2025 now. We're kind of looking at almost two years ago. And we had such a good conversation. Like, I think we laughed. I know we cried at one point. It was just a really, really, really good conversation. And I think even at that time, we learned that we watched a lot of the same TV shows and read a lot of the same types of books. And so we definitely talked after that

in the DMs about really anything mystery thriller, whether it was a movie or a book or a TV show. So yeah, basically we stayed connected even just through the fact that we have so many shared interests. And yeah, we've just, we've talked on and off since then. So also, fun little details. This is literally a thank you card if you're watching. that she sent me after the first interview. So again, some of our lore building here, she sent this to me, but what she also sent me is this adorable. Let's see if it can focus on it.

You might not be able to focus on this sticker. So she sent me a sticker, and it says, Open Book Policy. If the book is open, don't ask me anything. Don't talk to me. Don't make annoying sounds. Don't breathe on me. And I was like, this girl gets it.

This might be one of my favorite stickers. Like, open book policy, leave me alone. So that has been with me anytime I read on my iPad for almost two years now. And then she wrote broken threads, which is a really fun short story that is kind of a prequel to the underdog. and she came on and we talked about that and talked about she self-published it. So we talked about that process and just like the inspiration for the story. And then I knew she was working on this other book that she said was kind of like American Idol, but a thriller.

And I was like, you know I love a thriller with reality TV related to it. So I was super excited to eventually read the arc. If you're watching on YouTube, Harley is just staring at me like a cute little girl. So that's why I'm smiling at the ground and just scratching her little head. So I was super excited to eventually read the arc. And then one day she texted me and she was like, do you have time to talk? And so I called her that afternoon and she mentioned that she was going to be self-publishing the underdog and that she was also looking into like kind of self-producing the audio book as well.

And she said she had gotten an audition from someone, but it wasn't like exactly the vibe she was looking for. And she said that since she had listened to my voice for hours and hours on the podcast, she said she really felt like I could narrate. her protagonist, Liz. And I was just, like, sitting there like, wait, what? Because obviously it's not something I have been, like, promoting. Like, I haven't been like, hey, I want to edit audiobooks. However, I had just come back from Thriller Fest shortly before she called me.

And right before Thriller Fest, I finally had the transformation into a girly who can listen to fiction audiobooks. So I got super obsessed with audiobooks right before Thriller Fest. And I was like, oh my God, I can actually fit so many more books into my life, which was a relief because it was becoming harder and harder to find like dedicated time to just read, read. And so when I went to Thriller Fest, I went to all of the audiobook panels that they had. So there were three panels at Thriller Fest that were related to audiobooks. There were two that were with a bunch of different narrators. And there was one that was about the Twisted Sisters Book Club, which is a group of thriller authors who came together to write

kind of individual stories about characters who are all in the same book club. And it was very cool hearing about how that all came together. And during that one, there was an audio director there from, I think, Audible. Yeah, from Audible. And so she was talking about directing people. And I was like, oh, okay. And then there was someone who's talking about editing audiobooks. And so I came back from Thriller Fest and I do have it somewhere where I said, like, I want to, I want to figure out how to become an audiobook editor. Because if you don't know, that's what I do for work. I edit videos kind of all day long, sometimes photos as well and other podcasts. But I was like, this is a really good opportunity to like blend my work with something bookish.

So I got really interested in that. And so I was kind of paying attention to that, trying to learn a little bit about what it would take to edit audiobooks. And a few weeks later, I got that call from Sagheed. And I was like, okay, the timing of this all just seems so cool. However, I was also sitting there like, girl, I haven't ever narrated anything in my life. And so I just kept telling her, I was like, I mean, I've literally never done this. I was like, the editing doesn't intimidate me. Like, I know I can do that part.

I know I can handle all the, like, detail parts. but I was like, I have never narrated before. So I was just like, as long as you know that I have no clue how this will turn out, then yes, let's do it. And so that was like mid-August, mid-August, yeah. And I was like, okay, so I'm about to narrate an edit and produce an audiobook. And so I started researching like voice lessons, like anything I could learn about that. And we ended up getting masterclass because they have a class on voice acting. And so I watched that.

And then one day I was like, all right, I'm going to have to just start and see how this goes. And so it was significantly easier than I thought it would be only in the sense that like I didn't know if I was going to be able to like switch into narrator voice and like would I turn cringe toward myself. Would I be super critical of myself? Would I feel like I was even capable of it? And that part is what surprised me the most about the experience. probably was that I booked a room, a private room at our library, because if you've been listening for a while or if you're watching now, you can see them. I do have two dogs who like to interrupt. And trying to record an audiobook and getting interrupted, I was like, this is not going to work. So I booked a private room at the library that's coincidentally in our neighborhood,

which is really cool. And I just... I just went for it. I went for what I thought a narrator would sound like, and it seemed to work. And I was like, hmm, well, this is interesting. And so it made me think of a couple different things. Like, one, I used to be very nervous about, like, high school, like public speaking or even socially. I get, I still get super nervous socially. Um, especially, like, even when it's like a video podcast, if it's someone I haven't talked to yet, I still get very nervous. And it happened growing up a lot too. And so I, I, the experience was reminding me of how when I was in high school and how it would be in moments like that, I would think about the kids who seemed really confident and who seemed like social stuff was

really easy for them. And I would just try to, channel their energy and like how they did things. And I was like, oh, I just kind of have to just be like, how would this person act? How would they speak? And it would make things a lot easier for me, which later in life, I learned that that was most likely related to being on the autistic spectrum and masking. It was probably probably just a version of it. I used to have the words for it back then. Um, and not to get on a huge tangent, but, uh, autism often goes undagnosed in females because gender-wise, you're already expected to kind of be nice and act like everyone else. There's just a little bit more

involved for a girl than a boy. But anyway, once I started, narrating, I was like, oh, and so thankfully, thankfully I'd had like months at that point, maybe four or five months of like listening to so many audiobooks day in and day out. Like I went from, which is crazy when I think back about it. And I'm so happy that it happened. But I went from listening to eight or nine podcasts a week to like, I listen to one podcast a week now. And it was just all switched over to audiobooks and just, I've enjoyed it so much more. There's still podcasts where sometimes I'm like, oh, I wonder what these people are up to or I'll see a clip.

And I'm like, hmm, that's interesting. But being able to just like read more and more and more books was just amazing, like, made me so happy. And so when I sat down to narrate, I had had hours upon hours upon hours upon hours. of listening to audiobooks. And I think that was some of what I did, which I guess is also similar to acting in general. But it was like I kind of sat down and I was like, if I were going to act like an audiobook narrator,

how would I say this? And the knowledge was there, just lurking in the back of my mind. And so it was significantly easier to do the speaking part than I thought it would be. It was a huge time commitment. And especially near the end, there were a bunch of chapters I had to do retakes of because my voice was so gravelly, really. And I just, I didn't catch it when I was there recording it.

And then once I was listening to my voice, I was like, oh, this sounds so different. So there were some retakes that I had to do. there was all kinds of stuff that I learned in general from the experience, but also it was just like, oh, I can't do this. And like, it was fun thinking of like, how would this person say this and like, what do I need to bring to this chapter? And the other thing that I thought was so cool to, you guys have heard me rant about the internet before where I'm like, just like anything, the internet can be good and the internet can be bad. It can go both ways. This is one of those moments where I'm like, this is what's so cool about the internet was

Saghi is narrating Norma. There really are two main characters, Norma and Liz. And so she is, she's narrating Norma. And so basically she was recording like almost the whole on the other side of the country. And I was recording. and we were checking in with each other and like figuring out our way through it. And I was like, this is just such a cool experience being able to produce an audiobook with someone who I technically haven't even met in person. That's something that like blows my mind frequently. Kind of with all of the book wild stuff is like there's so many people that I feel close to or that I've talked to enough times that like we're not acquaintances. We're friends.

and a huge amount of them I still haven't even met in person. And so, like, narrating this book for someone who, like, I haven't even met in person. I was just like, I'm so grateful for the internet. And it was a really fun process, just, like, doing it together, like, me learning that it was fun to, like, bring a book to life out loud. And just, yeah, just doing it together. other. So we kind of navigated retakes. One of the thing that is fascinating to me is how like, what is happening in your brain when you're reading, reading something like with your eyeballs,

but reading it out loud as well. Because there would be times where like I would just completely skip a word, like just one word in a sentence. And my brain wouldn't catch it while I was recording. So also, if anyone knows anything about, like, the science of what happens in our brains and we're narrating, it's like this abstract thing that's very fascinating to me lately is like, how do we know how to say sentences and where to use inflection and how to convey all this stuff? Because, again, I'm going to say abstract. But, like, as I was recording, that's what I was thinking about, too, where, like, there have been some books about language and linguistics and social and cultural impact on language that have been very fascinating to me this year. But this was making me think, too, about how it's not even a dialect, because dialect is so word-related. but there's cadence. There are cadences that we use that indicate like, oh, I'm listening to an audiobook narrator.

Or, oh, that sentence really landed for me. Like, ends of chapters. Not every chapter in every book I read ends with like a cliffhanger or anything. But there's like so much importance on how you deliver that last line of a chapter. And so I'm just, I'm fascinated by how we learn how to say words. Does that make sense? I don't know. Every time I try to talk about it, abstract is what keeps coming to mind because, like,

I don't have a direct word for what it's making me think about. So if anyone does, let me know. But I thought it was just a fascinating experience. Like how, how do you choose how to say things to bring the most emotional impact to what was written? It was like very fascinating and fun for me to think about. The other thing that made me very happy and that I think is so cool and I will probably be sentimental about it for forever was would I have loved to sit here in my comfortable chair and record it? Yes. were my dogs going to make that possible? No. So it's kind of cool for me that I recorded my part

at the library in my neighborhood. So since I'm a digital reader, this library opened up, I think, like a year and a half ago in our neighborhood. Our town didn't have one, like there was one I could go to in the next town, but our town didn't have a library itself until recently, and it just went in. And, like, I knew about Libby, but I hadn't, like, thought about, like, oh, yeah, I really could be requesting books. And then once I got into audiobooks, which, like, I can burn through a lot faster at this point in my life than reading or digital books. Once I was burning through them so much, I was like, I need to figure out how to use Livy and audio book holds and all of that. And so now, um, I use that all the time.

But also, it was so cool just going there and like being with all the books and seeing all the books and being book wild studios essentially in a library. Um, I love, I just, I will always always love that that was how I pulled it together for my first one, even though one day I do plan to have, like, a studio of my own. I think it's just a cool part of the story that it came together in a library. Especially as we're facing, like, library cuts and all of that, I'm like, this is just, it's so vital. Like, there were so many people who had rent the rooms, even just for, like, working or homework. Like, you can just rent a private room and you don't have to pay for it. It's kind of amazing. And just like seeing like all the other, like there are some really cool

places to like sit and read. I'm basically just explaining libraries to you now at this point, but basically there is more to our library than I realized. And I'm psyched that I was able to record Liz at the Whitesown Library. So yeah, there's not too much more that I could get into without getting into spoilers. And eventually I am going to have an episode with Segui as well, closer to the publication date. But I did just want to give you guys a little update on what it was like to co-narrate and produce my first audiobook. And then I also, I did want to read the synopsis for you guys. So this one's coming out, October 14th. It is about a month away from the time that this is going to air. It's called the underdog by Sadie Schwarz. But here's the synopsis. When Liz, a down-on-her-luck director, stuck working as a chaperone for a reality TV show, picks up a new contestant from a psychiatric hospital, dubs the seeming patient,

By fans online, things take an unexpected turn. The contestant disappears at the airport, and Liz finds herself under police suspicion, accused of helping the woman flee in exchange for money. Across the country, Norma, an obsessive viewer of the underdog, is captivated by one contestant's story. Feeling an intense connection, she travels to Los Angeles to watch the show filmed live and meet her. As the mystery deepens and the investigation into the missing, contestant intensifies. The shocking murder of the seeing-patient's husband leads Liz and Norma into a

deadly game of cat and mouse. With each twist and turn, Liz discovers that Norma is not your average fan, but someone far more dangerous. It is twisty, wonderful thriller escapism. So if that is what you are looking for, especially this fall, I would highly recommend going ahead and pre-ordering it. But again, no pressure. You do you. And yeah, I just wanted to give you guys a little bit of an update about those things that have been going on. So yeah, if that is what you have been looking for, especially this fall, you're definitely going to want to read this in October.