Hearing Aid, or
Listening Can Help Your Writing
by Karen L. Oberst

  One of the pieces of advice most often given to authors is to read, read, read other people's writing. If you are like many authors, you have little time to work this into your busy schedule. A way to read without reading is to listen to other people's work on audiotape or compact disc.

There are several benefits to audiobooks. You can listen at times when you can't read, such as when driving. You may get even more content out of listening to a book. It can help you remember to listen to your own writing. And there is nothing quite like being read to!

Listening Instead of Reading

  Listen while you... Listen while you...
One of the biggest benefits of audiobooks is that you can listen at times you can't read. You can take one driving or walking, listen to it while you are falling asleep, or exercising, etc. If you are lucky enough to work at something that doesn't require your whole attention, you can even listen at work. Audiobooks are a good way to make use of time--multitasking, as it is called in the computer world.

  Getting it all
If you are like many people, you automatically skim when you reach a part of a book you are not interested in. One of the benefits of audiobooks is that you hear all the words. I have worn out two paperback sets of Lord of the Rings, yet when I listened to the unabridged audio recording, I "heard" much I never had before, particularly the beauty of Tolkien's writing about nature. It can be like discovering a well loved story all over again. You get a new appreciation of language when you hear it rather than read it.
Getting it All

  Listening to Your Own Work Listening to your own work
Hearing other people's work read can help you remember that your own writing needs to be readable. Can what you are writing now pass the read aloud test?

  One of the interesting things about audiobooks is that a well-known story may be recorded by different people, which can make each narrative distinctive. For instance, Lord of the Rings has been recorded by a BBC cast; Recorded Books has put out an unabridged edition read by Robert Ingles; and Tolkien himself has been recorded reading parts of the trilogy. The unique interpretations make certain parts dramatic, or touching. Ian Holmes' (BBC) suffering and exhausted Frodo is very different from the stoic, quietly heroic Frodo of Robert Ingles.

The same is true of Dorothy L. Sayers. Audio Partners recorded her first story Whose Body with David Case. Ian Carmichael, who played Lord Peter in the early BBC series on television (for instance, The Nine Tailors) reads many of the other unabridged stores. Edward Petherbridge, who most lately played Lord Peter on television, has narrated several abridged stories, such as Gaudy Night. The three men see the character from unique points of view, and the stories feel different because of this.

It can help you in writing if you can hear in your mind's ear a specific person reading your work. How might you change the wording or the pacing if, for instance, Mel Gibson were reading it, or Julie Roberts?

One thing you quickly realize as you listen is that a narrator can make or break a story. I listened to a version of Journey to the Center of the Earth, with a narrator that totally removed both the dramatic tension and interest from the story. On the other hand, David Case does such an amazing reading of The Count of Monte Cristo, that after borrowing it twice from the library, I bought my own copy of a story I had never paid much attention to before. It's a good reminder that an author is only part of a book. The rest belongs to the reader and/or listener.

The Importance of the Narrator

  Being Read To Being read to
The last, and perhaps the best, reason for audiobooks is the delightful feeling of being read to. From wise men telling stories around ancient campfires to parents reading fairy tales to their children, human beings have always loved listening to stories.

So go to your library. Pick up a couple of unabridged audiobooks. Listen, enjoy, and learn. If you have never done this before, I urge you to try it. It will add a whole new dimension to your enjoyment of books, whether fiction or nonfiction, and may make you think differently about your writing.

Happy listening!


Copyright © 2000 by Karen L. Oberst

Back to: Quote of the Day Home Page