For authors and publishers
Narration only. Your audiobook, your files.
A real narrator records your book. You approve it, download every file, and publish it wherever you like.
- Real narrators audition. You choose the voice.
- You keep every file and every right.
- We never publish it unless you ask us to.
- $350one-time production fee
- $50+an hour to your narrator, set by you
- 882audiobooks since 2023
- 100%read by real people
Meet the voices
Choose the voice. Keep the recording.
Every narrator is a real, vetted person. Tap a face to hear them. When you post your book, narrators like these audition for it, and you choose who records it.
How it works
From your book to your files in four steps
- 1
Post your book free
Choose pay per finished hour, set the narrator's rate, and untick Publish this audiobook through Academy Voices.
- 2
Hear auditions
Real narrators record a sample from your book. You pick the voice you want.
- 3
Approve as it's made
You approve a short sample first, then the finished audiobook. Every file is checked against the rules the big audiobook stores use.
- 4
Download your files
Pay your narrator and every finished file unlocks on your book's page. Publish them anywhere.
Who it's for
Anyone who already has a way to sell it.
Authors with a publisher
Your publisher keeps distribution
Your publisher holds the audio rights and wants to sell the audiobook through its own channels. We make it, and you or your publisher put it out.
Small presses
Your distributor sells it
You already send ebooks and audio to stores through your distributor. Upload our finished files there, the same way you do now.
Independent authors
You publish it yourself
You'd rather run your own audiobook account or sell it from your own site. The files are yours to take anywhere.
Listen
Hear what our narrators make.
Real books by our authors and publishers, read by our narrators. Press play on any of these.
18+
“Academy Voices made creating the audiobook easy. The website was easy to understand. Anthony Pica was available to answer questions. He clearly told potential narrators what we were looking for, and we had several candidates to listen to and choose from. The narrator we chose was Judd Bonham, and he was entirely professional and the right fit for this project. I highly recommend Academy Voices!”
What it costs
One fee to us. The narrator's pay goes to the narrator.
Narration only
Pay per finished hour
$350 + from $50/hourOne-time production fee, plus the narrator's rate, which you set.
Example: a 60,000-word book is about 6.5 finished hours. At $100 an hour, that's about $650 to your narrator, plus $350.
No royalties to anyone. You keep everything the audiobook earns.
Post your book free
When you pay
Nothing up front
- Posting your book and hearing auditions are free.
- The $350 is due once your narrator signs.
- The narrator's pay is due after you approve the finished audiobook. Your files unlock as soon as it's paid.
- You can pay it over time with Klarna or Affirm, or in 2 to 5 parts.
- Recording a series? Later books with the same narrator: $250.
Want us to publish it for you instead? See the publishing options. We send it to nearly 50 stores, libraries and apps.
Real people only
Every word read by a real person.
- Every narrator is a vetted, real person. We never use a computer-generated voice.
- You hear your narrator before you commit, and approve the full book before the narrator is paid.
Every audiobook we make carries the Certified Human Voice™ badge.
Questions
Before you post
A press with several books?
Email me and we'll plan them together.
apica@academyvoices.com
Anthony Pica, founder
You do. The narrator is paid for the recording and earns no royalties, so everything the audiobook earns is yours.
Every finished file of the audiobook, ready to download from your book's page. They're checked against the loudness, noise and format rules the big audiobook stores use.
Only if you ask. With publishing unticked we don't distribute it. You can choose to list it in our own store too, and that's off unless you turn it on.
Not with narration only. Royalty share and Royalty Share Plus pay the narrator out of sales we distribute, so they need us to publish the audiobook. See that option.
You approve a short sample before the full book is recorded. If it isn't right, you can switch narrators at no cost before you approve.
About 4 to 6 weeks after you approve the sample, for books under 50,000 words. Longer books get a timeline agreed up front.
Narration only. Keep your files.
Post your book free