First of all, you need to do your research to make sure that the audiobook you are going to create will have customers who want it and will buy it.

Decide the type of topic your audiobook will be about and whether you have enough knowledge to be able to create it. If you don’t then you need to go away and do some learning.

Now create an outline so that as you talk your way through you are able to speak fluently and know what order you will talk through the various topics or subheadings.

Here’s a broad outline of the entire process – Once you have your outline then you can record your product. Make sure that you have some recording software that produces a good quality recording. Familiar yourself with your recording software or check out audiobook production services from Timbre Media and ensure that you have a good microphone. Go into a room where you know you will not be disturbed and there are no external noises. Now record yourself going through the outline that you have prepared. Try to speak naturally and fluently. When you have finished then you can stop the recording and export the file as an audio file such as an MP3 file. You can then upload this audio file to the website that you are going to sell your audiobook on. The more you record yourself speaking the easier it will become.

Now, let’s get into some detail –

So, step 1 – Create an account with ACX. ACX is part of Audible.com, an Amazon.com subsidiary. They help build and manage audio content that gets sold on Audible, Amazon, and iTunes. When you start your account, all you’ll need is your bank information (for royalties), and to find your title in the Amazon database.

Here are the generic tools you need to professionally record your own audiobook:

1) A computer with a USB port – could be a Mac from Apple, or a Windows PC, desktop or laptop.
2) An XLR microphone with a pop filter and stand
3) A way to connect the mic to the computer (either directly via USB or through a mixing board), such as a USB2 multimixer.
4) A recording environment with very little to no background noise and no echo
5) Recording software
6) Editing software such as Audacity, which is an easy to use software
7) Audiobook creation software

Opening and closing credits audio files

Two separate files are required to begin and end your audiobook.

Opening Credits:
[title of audiobook]
Written by [name of author]
Narrated by [name of narrator]

Closing Credits:
This has been [title of audiobook]
Written by [name of author]
Narrated by [name of narrator]
Copyright [year and name of copyright holder]
Production copyright [year it was recorded] by [company name]

1) All recordings must be human-voice — no computer-read books accepted.
2) File type accepted: MP3 (192 kbps or higher)
3) Files must be CBR (constant bit rate)
4) Submitted audiobooks may not contain both mono and stereo files. Stereo files must not be joint-stereo. Mono files are strongly recommended.
5) Each file must be comprised of a single chapter, episode, or story. Note that each file will typically become a “track” that a customer may use for navigation.
6) If the audio has no chapters, please split the audio into segments that are no longer than 2 hours each, but no shorter than 30 minutes each (when possible).
7) The files should be consolidated into individual Chapters.
8) Each file should be preceded by a three-digit number that denotes the order in which the files should appear.
9) The file names should appear as: 001_title.mp3, 002_title.mp3, 003_title.mp3.
10) Be free of extraneous sounds (mouse clicks, mic pops, mouth noises, etc.)
11) Measure between -23dB and -18dB RMS and have -3dB peak values and a maximum -60dB noise floor
12) Each uploaded file must have between 0.5 and 1 second of room tone at the head, and between 1 and 5 seconds of room tone at the tail.

Image or Thumbnail Requirements

1) Images must be no smaller than 2400 X 2400 pixels in size.
2) The resolution of these images can be no smaller than 72 dpi.
3) Images must be squared. The squared cover must be a true squared cover and cannot be rectangular with colored borders on the side. (ex. CD case cover/jacket)
4) Images should be at least 24-bit.
5) Image types allowed: JPEG, TIFF, PNG
6) Images must contain both the name of the title and author(s)

Once all these boxes are checked, you should upload your file to ACX. ACX takes over and packages up your files, and — assuming you don’t have any problems they come back to you with — they distribute it for you through Amazon, Audible, and Apple iBooks. And you earn a percentage of each sale, so sit back and wait for the money to either pour in, or trickle in, depending on how popular or not your audiobook becomes!