"Mrs. Beeton's" is a guide to all aspects of running a household in Victorian Britain. Published in 1861, it was an immediate bestseller, running to millions of copies within just a few years. In the cookery sections, Mrs. Beeton follows the animal "from his birth to his appearance on the table.” Learn how to care for poultry during moulting season, how to wean calves, how to cure hams, salt cod, carve mutton, and much more.
How to claim a part, and 'how it all works' here
To find a section to record, simply look at point 5. below at the sections. All the ones without names beside them are “up for grabs.” Click "Post reply" at the top left of the screen and tell us which section you’d like to read (include the section number from the left-most column in the reader list, please). Read points 6. to 8. below for what to do before, during and after your recording.
Is there a deadline?
Target completion date of this project: Feb.20, 2009 – but try to send your recordings as soon as you can. If you cannot do your section, for whatever reason, just let me know and it’ll go back to the pool. There’s no shame in this; we’re all volunteers and things happen.
Chapters will go back to be reclaimed if there has been no contact made within a month of a reader claiming a section.
However, since many chapters need to be subdivided, I will post a link to the text for each section in the Magic Box. Click on the "Link to Text" for your section.
Please claim sections (the numbers in the first column below)!
Date of first publication: Published Originally By S. O. Beeton in 24 Monthly Parts 1859-1861. First Published in a Bound Edition 1861.
Year of author's death (note: in some countries copyright is death of author plus 50 or 70 years): 1865
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Set your recording software to:
Bit Rate: 128 kbps
Sample Rate: 44.1 kHz
DURING recording: Make sure you add this to the beginning and end of your recording: Start of recording (Intro)
"Section [number] of The Book of Household Management. - This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information, or to volunteer, please visit: librivox DOT org"
If you wish, say: "Recording by [your name]"
Say: "The Book of Household Management, by Isabella Beeton. [Section number. Section title.]"
End of recording
At the end of the section, say:
“End of Section [number]"
If you wish, say: "Recording by [your name], [city, your blog, podcast, web address]"
At the end of the book, say (in addition): "End of The Book of Household Management, by Isabella Beeton."
Please leave 5 seconds silence at the end of your recording, or 10 seconds for files longer than 30 minutes!
Also, please remember to check this thread frequently for updates!
Many of the recipes give costs; e.g., 2s. 6d.
In simple terms, the s means shillings and the d means pence. For this project, it's OK to just say this as "2 shillings and 6 pence."
If you understand pre-decimalisation British currency, please say whatever sounds natural to you; two and six, half-a-crown, etc.
If you want to learn more, check THIS Wikipedia page or THIS discussion thread.
AFTER recording: Need noise-cleaning?
Listen to your file through headphones. If you can hear some background noise, you may want to clean it up a bit. The new (free) version 1.3.3. of Audacity (Mac/Win) has much improved noise-cleaning. See this LibriVox wiki page for a complete guide.
Save files as
128 kbps MP3
bookofhouseholdmanagement_###_beeton.mp3 (all lower-case) where ### is your section number. (e.g. bookofhouseholdmanagement_001_beeton.mp3)
ID3 V2 tags
(To find out more about ID3 tags, go to our wiki: http://librivox.org/wiki/moin.cgi/WhatIsID3)
Add the following tags to your .mp3 file (how you do this depends on which software you use – if you are unsure about ID3 tags, send me a message). Please mind upper and lower case!
Title: ### - [Section title as given in the Magic Box] For example: 013 - Chapter 7. The Natural History of Fishes or 014 - Recipes. Chapter 8. Part 1.
Artist: Isabella Beeton
Album: The Book of Household Management
Please ignore tags for Genre and Track Number - these will be filled in automatically at the cataloguing stage.
Transfer of files (completed recordings) Please always post in this forum thread when you've sent a file.
Also, post the length of the recording (file duration: mm:ss) together with the link.
Upload your file with the LibriVox Uploader (when your upload is complete, you will receive a link - please post it in this thread): http://upload.librivox.org
(If you have trouble reading the image above, please message an admin) You'll need to select the MC, which for this project is: sj - smijen
Sarah you have set everything up well and I have done the MW for you and entered everthing into the database.
Is this the first project you have done BC'ing, if it is let me know as I will need to give you your own Personal Username and Password to get into the Magic Window so you will be able update as you travel along with your new project, and what a great one for readers.
I have got server space so that's not a problem. We can work that out later.
Lucy
[b]There are no strangers, only friends you haven't met yet.[/b]
Yes, it's my first-time BC'ing. Hopefully what I lack in wisdom I'll make up for in enthusiasm!
I wouldn't worry too much Sarah, I'm sure you will do a good job and have some fun in the process.....
What I will do is send you a PM with information in to getting in to the MW etc.
If you have any questions please don't hesitate to ask, I'm only too will to lend a hand.
Lucy
[b]There are no strangers, only friends you haven't met yet.[/b]
I'd like to claim a couple chapter.... BUT.... I need to wait. I don't like to have a bunch of stuff staring at me saying "DO ME, NOW!" so I will finish up some of the stuff yelling at me to do it, then I'll claim a chapter or two here.
Woohoo! May I have 096: Domestic Servants. Chapter 41. Part 4. ?
I'm still sick but will get to it when the cough goes away :)
Kara http://kayray.org/
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"Mary wished to say something very sensible into her Zoom H2 Handy Recorder, but knew not how." -- Jane Austen (& Kara)
Please, I would like to sign up for 006, 095, and 097. I'm new and hopeful, obviously, but gosh, y'all make it sound so simple! Thanks.
"To be happy at home is the ultimate result of all ambition, the end to which every enterprise and labor tends, and of which every desire prompts the prosecution." --Samuel Johnson
Welcome shurlygurl and Erin! I've signed you both up.
Shurlygurl: This is a big project, so help yourself to as many sections as you'd like! I see that you have a completed section already, so I think you're "catalogued" and good to go. Just post or PM me if you have any questions.
Erin: Please let me know how you'd like to appear in the catalogue. You can use real name or pseudonym - up to you - and we can include a link to your personal web site/blog if you'd like. If this is your first recording, you may want to send a sample recording of a minute or so, to make sure the sound quality etc is all right - often things can be improved at the outset that are difficult to fix later. Be sure to check out the Newbie Guide to Recording, if you haven't already. Have fun!
Er, I want to grab one more if I may: 007 Chapter 5. General Directions for Making Soups.
I love soup!
Kara http://kayray.org/
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"Mary wished to say something very sensible into her Zoom H2 Handy Recorder, but knew not how." -- Jane Austen (& Kara)
