Lexi Evans
Audiobook Narrator
Favorite Genre: Romance (Everything from dark, to fairy tale, to BDSM, to paranormal shifters, I love it!)
Latest Books: (They are in processing with Audible right now)
Piper's Price by D.A. Maddox
Paranormal Dating Agency Series: Born with a Silver Moon by Milly Taiden (I narrate quite a few of her books)
Upcoming Project: A Beast So Cold: A Dark Revenge Mafia Captive Romance: A Modern Day Beauty & The Beast Billionaire Fairytale by Beena Khan
I love audiobooks. They have been my saving grace in long commutes, while exercising and sometimes just laying in bed. Last year I listened to 48 audiobooks. I mean I really love audiobooks.
I had the chance to interview Lexi Evans who is an audiobook narrator. She has a hauntingly beautiful voice and creates a wide range of characters. I had lots of questions about the process. Read more about it in the interview below.
Jennifer Franz Griffith: How did you get started narrating books?
Lexi: Ever since I was a little girl, I have loved to read. Being an only child, I would frequently read aloud to my stuffed animals and dolls. My mom always enjoyed listening to me as well. I was very involved in the arts throughout high school and college, specifically music and theater. Fast forward quite a few years, I started listening to audiobooks while recovering from surgery. My husband is also a voice actor and I told him how I was very interested in learning how to become an audiobook narrator. After much research and ongoing coaching from some of the very best acting and voice coaches in the business, I began auditioning and forming relationships with Indie authors. I have been narrating for over 2 years now and love it!
JFG: With multiple characters in a book, how do you keep track of the changes in voice inflection to make sure they always sound the same?
Lexi: To keep track of multiple voices/characters in a book, it all starts before I ever step foot in my recording studio. Prep is the main ingredient for success. I read the book from cover to cover and have an annotation software that I use on my iPad where I highlight every character that speaks. I assign a color to each character. I take notes on any clues the author gives as to what this person is like. Everything from their personality, to any way they speak, age, accent, you name it. If it's there in the book, it's part of my notes. When I start production, I have the book with all my highlighting and notes while I'm reading.
JFG: How long does it typically take to record an audiobook?
Lexi: Typically, it takes me double the time of the finished audio. For example, if the book is 12 hours finished, it has taken me at least 24 hours of work to complete the audio.
JFG: Would you turn down narrating a book if you didn't like it?
Lexi: There are certain topics that I won't narrate. Topics that I would be extremely uncomfortable to do, or that I feel would not be a positive decision for my career. Other than a few very specific topics, I will narrate. One of my coaches tells her students, that it’s not our job to like the book, the characters, the plot, etc. It's our job as a performer to bring forth the author's truth and let their story come to life through our voice. All personal opinions aside. :)
JFG: What is your process for working with an author? Do you send samples as you go?
Lexi: I love working with Indie authors! I have a welcome packet that I send to all of my authors that explains the whole process from start to finish. I also have a fun character sheet for them to fill out for me. Questions about the characters like if their book were made into a movie who would be their dream cast? I also LOVE LOVE LOVE it when an author has a playlist for their book! I will download all the songs and create my own playlist for the book to listen to in the morning when getting ready and in the car. I submerge myself in it before I record. It really helps me get into the mood of the book. Authors get a 15-minute sample of the book at the very beginning of production. After they approve that, I have the green light to move forward. I go into detail in my welcome packet about that. As a thank you to my authors, I create an audio back cover book teaser. I put together a graphic that has the cover of their book along with the 1-minute audio sample (what is written on the back of their book cover) and post it to Instagram and FB. They can share with their fans and it also gets the word out about the audiobook.
JFG: Anything else you would like to share?
Lexi: The last thing I would like to share is that if you love audiobooks, please leave a written review. I, along with many narrators and authors read each and every one of them. The ones that are positive and the listener has expressed just how much they loved the book, bring a HUGE smile to my face every time! Even a short sentence saying they loved it is awesome! To every listener, thank you!
You can check out her website with voice samples at www.lexievansvoice.com