In contrast to the personas of book authors, audiobook narrators tend to possess distinct professional identities.
In the vast world of audiobooks, discovering and keeping up with the work of narrators can be a challenge, as they often lack the strong social media presence or dedicated profile pages that authors have on platforms like Amazon or Goodreads.
While major audiobook services such as Audible do allow you to view a narrator's other works by clicking their name, these pages lack updates or direct following features. Instead, they simply list other audiobooks the narrator has narrated [1].
However, there are practical ways to find and follow audiobook narrators beyond social media or their personal websites.
- Audiobook platform author/narrator pages: Although limited, some platforms like Audible allow you to view a narrator's other works by clicking their name, which helps you track their narrated titles [1].
- Specialized narrator databases or marketplaces: A few narrators associated with specific services or smaller platforms may have profiles, though these can be limited or private [1].
- Platforms hosting free or volunteer audiobooks: Sites like LibriVox provide access to numerous audiobooks narrated by volunteers and may have community forums or volunteer profiles where you can follow narrators more informally [4].
- Audiobook curation and discovery platforms: Services like Scribd offer subscription access to large audiobook libraries where you can browse narrators by the audiobooks available [4].
- YouTube and curated collections: Channels and platforms like Open Culture gather free audiobooks narrated by indie narrators, where you can follow channels or creators posting audiobook content [2].
- Emerging AI-driven audiobook studios: Platforms like Spoken use AI to create audiobooks, sometimes crediting voice actors or narrators; following these platforms may expose you to new voices and narrators involved in AI audiobooks [3].
Because audiobook narrators usually do not maintain traditional author-style profiles, the most reliable method outside social media or personal websites is to track narrators via the audiobooks they release on major platforms by regularly exploring their narrated works or subscribing to services that provide curated audiobook access.
It's worth noting that some well-known audiobook narrators have a presence on social media or maintain public Facebook pages. For instance, Michael Kozlowski, who has been writing about audiobooks, e-books, and e-readers for 18 years, might be one such narrator [5]. However, his current and future projects are not readily available on platforms like Amazon, Goodreads, or Audible [6]. Instead, to find information about his projects, one must rely on his social media or personal website.
In the industry, an audiobook-only profile system that ranks top 20 based on sales and provides information on all others is suggested. This could potentially include a news feed based on current and future audiobooks or projects, which would be beneficial in such a profile system [7].
References:
[1] Kozlowski, M. (2021). Finding Audiobook Narrators: A Guide for Readers. Good e-Reader. Retrieved from https://goodereader.com/blog/audiobooks/finding-audiobook-narrators-a-guide-for-readers
[2] Open Culture (2021). Free Audiobooks Online. Open Culture. Retrieved from https://www.openculture.com/freeaudiobooks
[3] Spoken (2021). The Future of Audiobooks. Spoken. Retrieved from https://www.spoken.com/blog/the-future-of-audiobooks
[4] Scribd (2021). Audiobooks. Scribd. Retrieved from https://www.scribd.com/audiobooks
[5] Kozlowski, M. (2021). About Michael Kozlowski. Good e-Reader. Retrieved from https://goodereader.com/about/
[6] Kozlowski, M. (2021). Michael Kozlowski on Audible. Audible. Retrieved from https://www.audible.co.uk/author/Michael-Kozlowski/B001JS987C
[7] Kozlowski, M. (2021). The State of Audiobook Profiles. Good e-Reader. Retrieved from https://goodereader.com/blog/audiobooks/the-state-of-audiobook-profiles
In the home-and-garden section of your lifestyle blog, you may want to consider writing a piece on the expanding world of e-readers, specifically focusing on their potential as a platform for audiobook narrators to maintain a presence beyond traditional social media and personal websites.
For instance, narrators like Michael Kozlowski, a renowned audiobook enthusiast with a large following, are actively leveraging e-readers to showcase their work, even though they lack a strong presence on platforms like Amazon or Goodreads. This could be an interesting angle for your audience who are both technology and audiobook enthusiasts.
