How do people manage long readings?

SaraSVI · Post by **SaraSVI** » May 14th, 2015, 2:52 pm

I'm new to Librivox, and just finished up my fifth short (less than 600 word) reading. So fun!

Perhaps I'm grasping for too much perfection, but I found myself re-recording each short numerous times to get every single word right, or to try again if my "s" sounds were too shrill in the microphone.

Which leads me to wonder, how do people do longer readings? Do you take a few paragraphs at a time and then piece them together into one file? The thought of reading 3000 words, just to mess up on 3001, sounds exhausting.

I'd like to tackle some longer recordings but am curious if there are some tricks to the trade out there before I do.

Post by **philchenevert** » May 14th, 2015, 3:02 pm

Nah! Most of us just record a section in one long recording (stopping freqwuently to sip coffee, etc), repeating goofs until they sound right to us, then editing that one long track taking out the bad stuff. I usually need to delete about half of my tracks because I may repeat a phrase or word 5 or 6 times. Just wack out the bad ones and only the god are left. So yo don't need to start afresh every time you stumble. I have a video showing how I record but forgot where it is for the moment. Be patient!! relax, have fun, emote......just remember you can cut out as much as you want.

Post by **dlolso21** » May 14th, 2015, 3:10 pm

You can find Phil's videos here.

http://wiki.librivox.org/index.php/Instructional_Videos

There is also a wiki page on editing - http://wiki.librivox.org/index.php/Editing_Audio

David O

commonsparrow3 · Post by **commonsparrow3** » May 14th, 2015, 3:57 pm

When I was new at LibriVox, I was also uptight about mistakes. Then I discovered the Blooper Thread! I spent a few enjoyable evenings listening and giggling. I became a lot more relaxed in front of the mic after that, realizing that stumbles and tongue-tangles happen to everyone. We simply laugh at our mistakes, edit them out, and move on. Unless they're really good ones, in which case we post them to the Blooper Thread

SaraSVI · Post by **SaraSVI** » May 14th, 2015, 4:42 pm

Genius, thank you! I'll read (and watch) the article on editing. I knew I was missing something - I figured not many can read a whole chapter in one sitting!

kayray · Post by **kayray** » May 14th, 2015, 10:02 pm

And try not to be a perfectionist :) We all put the emphasis on the wrong word now and then. No big deal. And don't obsess over your S sounds! Edit out the big blunders and let your proof-listener tell you if there's anything else that needs to be fixed. Relax and have fun!

Cori · Post by **Cori** » May 15th, 2015, 10:44 am

Lots of editing practice is good.

That's the main secret. I also have a habit of recording record several pronunciations if I hit a word I find I don't know how to say. Sometimes I get lucky and one of them is right! (I really hate recording 'pick-ups', that is, second takes once I've done the first edit.) Of course, if I know in advance that I don't know a pronunciation, I can look it up, but sometimes I fool myself that because I know what the word means, that I know the pronunciation too.

To be honest, out of the likely many mispronunciations that I've put into the catalogue, I think only a tiny few have been mentioned to me. Mostly people either don't know the word themselves, or they can make out what I meant and just go on with listening.

The second secret, in my opinion, is around mindset. Like Kara said, don't try for perfection. I posted this recently, and think it applies here too:

One thing that helped me was to import professional audio recordings that I really enjoyed into my editing software and listening with my usual editing headphones and set-up. It was obvious that a lot of my edit-stage faffing simply wasn't adding anything useful to the recording. I was being far, far more picky and critical as an editor, than I was as a listener. *Seeing* the recordings of narrators I respected, from professional studios, having little imperfections visible in the recording, helped me recalibrate my personal threshold. And it was much clearer in that format than trying to do it while listening, since my ears aren't discriminating enough.

And then there's Ira Glass. https://vimeo.com/24715531 This helped me too, in terms of changing my focus from seeking imaginary perfection, which tended to lead to Reader's Block, to just recording and doing my best -- getting through a lot of practice in order to improve, rather than trying to be perfect in everything from the start.

gypsygirl · Post by **gypsygirl** » May 15th, 2015, 3:22 pm

Cori wrote:To be honest, out of the likely many mispronunciations that I've put into the catalogue, I think only a tiny few have been mentioned to me. Mostly people either don't know the word themselves, or they can make out what I meant and just go on with listening.

Or you read it so confidently that people assume that, either they've been pronouncing it wrong, or it's your regional variant. Confidence is key!

Kangaroo692 · Post by **Kangaroo692** » May 15th, 2015, 4:02 pm

gypsygirl wrote:
Cori wrote:To be honest, out of the likely many mispronunciations that I've put into the catalogue, I think only a tiny few have been mentioned to me. Mostly people either don't know the word themselves, or they can make out what I meant and just go on with listening.
Or you read it so confidently that people assume that, either they've been pronouncing it wrong, or it's your regional variant. Confidence is key!

patrickjeaton · Post by **patrickjeaton** » May 16th, 2015, 12:49 pm

The book I am working on now has chapters containing 5000-8000 words. There is no way I could read that much in one sitting. I have been dividing each chapter into 4 parts, and read one part at a time, usually a week apart. I make sure each part is amplified to the same level (using Auphonic.com). So far I haven't noticed the joins when I put all the parts together.

Peter Why · Post by **Peter Why** » May 18th, 2015, 5:03 am

SaraSVI

Everyone edits their sound files differently, but, for me, I listen through each one, sometimes re-recording phrases, adjusting timing, and damping down whistling esses (I have a gap between my top front teeth which sometimes causes this).

I adjust my whistling esses (and over-hard K sounds as well) manually as I encounter them, though there are software shortcuts to do this over the whole file. If want to know how to edit these things one-by-one, PM me and I'll go through it with you.

Peter

kattekliek · Post by **kattekliek** » May 21st, 2015, 3:45 am

I blow into the microphone when I made a mistake. This produces a very clear signal in the sound wave. Then I just repeat that part of the phrase. Later on it will be easy to find the spots and cut out the mistakes. Just be careful when listening back (especially with head phones on this clipping sound can be quite startling - oh my poor prooflistener to whom I once uploaded an uneditted file!

)
And another thing I do: just stop recording when I'm making too many mistakes. Then apparently I'm tired and it's better to pick up where I left some other day. Any recordings can be combined later on, in the editting phase. This also works the other way around: when you start recording, try to be as well-rested and relaxed as possible, and - if you have the time - make sure you have at least browsed the text you are going to read. Do some deep breathing exercises and off you go! This will make the editting phase much, much quicker.
If you want to check your results (although of course the proof listener will also do this for you), you can play it back at 1.5x speed. You'll sound like Mickey Mouse

, but most mistakes can be heard just as well as when you listen at regular speed (especially when you keep the text at hand).

RuthieG · Post by **RuthieG** » May 21st, 2015, 4:02 am

I'd be a bit careful blowing sharply into a microphone. The diaphragm (which vibrates when it is struck by sound waves) is very thin, and I would be worried that a sharp breath could damage it. Likewise tapping the microphone - don't do it!

Ruth

kattekliek · Post by **kattekliek** » May 21st, 2015, 4:21 am

Mmm, good one, Ruth! I have a simple, 30 € USB mic, which does not seem to suffer from it (and it is by no means necessary to blow very hard or very nearby the mic, clipping even happens easily when speaking normally

). I dare to take the risk. But this one may not be for everyone, especially not if you have an expensive microphone.
Clicking with your tongue might do the trick as well, without risk of damaging the equipment.

gypsygirl · Post by **gypsygirl** » May 21st, 2015, 8:21 am

kattekliek wrote:Mmm, good one, Ruth! I have a simple, 30 € USB mic, which does not seem to suffer from it (and it is by no means necessary to blow very hard or very nearby the mic, clipping even happens easily when speaking normally ). I dare to take the risk. But this one may not be for everyone, especially not if you have an expensive microphone.
Clicking with your tongue might do the trick as well, without risk of damaging the equipment.

When I used this method, I used to snap my fingers in front of the mic. Worked nicely.