Audiobooks make it easy for readers to devour their books even if their eyes are otherwise occupied; they can take their books with them while they’re driving, or at the gym, or going for a walk. Audiobooks help people with disabilities as well, making it possible for everyone to read books. But have you ever thought about what goes into making an audiobook? After the book itself, the most crucial element is the narrator. And narrating audiobooks, particularly ones with more explicit content, is an art form. We asked Anything He Wants audiobook narrator Clarissa Knightly to talk about some of the more…prickly parts of her job. Thanks, Clarissa!
I’ve been narrating racy romance novels for some years now, but in the beginning there were some very particular challenges for me. It was a revelation when I figured out how to tackle the challenge of reading those words, from books that I was now reading not only out loud, but to another person, the engineer, who was recording those words. Yes, those words. Imagine the following scenario:
Engineer – “Sorry, could you do that sentence again. The ‘p’ in penis popped.”
Or:
Engineer – “Take it from ‘His tongue caressed my weeping opening.’
