BOOK TOUR
I'm so excited to be a stop on author
Barbara Venkataraman's
blog tour for the
Jamie Quinn Mystery series!
Books 1-3 of the Jamie Quinn Mystery Series! Including:
"Death by Didgeridoo" - Winner of the Indie Book of the Day award. Reluctant lawyer, Jamie Quinn, still reeling from the death of her mother, is pulled into a game of deception, jealousy, and vengeance when her cousin, Adam, is wrongfully accused of murder. It's up to Jamie to find the real murderer before it's too late. It doesn't help that the victim is a former rock star with more enemies than friends, or that Adam confessed to a murder he didn't commit.
"The Case of the Killer Divorce" - Reluctant lawyer, Jamie Quinn, has returned to her family law practice after a hiatus due to the death of her mother. It's business as usual until a bitter divorce case turns into a murder investigation, and Jamie's client becomes the prime suspect. When she can't untangle truth from lies, Jamie enlists the help of Duke Broussard, her favorite private investigator, to try to clear her client's name. And she’s hoping that, in his spare time, he can help her find her long-lost father.
"Peril in the Park" - There's big trouble in the park system. Someone is making life difficult for Jamie Quinn's boyfriend, Kip Simons, the new director of Broward County parks. Was it the angry supervisor passed over for promotion? The disgruntled employee Kip recently fired? Or someone with a bigger ax to grind? If Jamie can't figure it out soon, she may be looking for a new boyfriend because there’s a dead guy in the park and Kip has gone missing! With the help of her favorite P.I., Duke Broussard, Jamie must race the clock to find Kip before it’s too late.
A preview of the next Jamie Quinn Mystery, "Engaged in Danger," can be found at the end of the book.
"Death by Didgeridoo" - Winner of the Indie Book of the Day award. Reluctant lawyer, Jamie Quinn, still reeling from the death of her mother, is pulled into a game of deception, jealousy, and vengeance when her cousin, Adam, is wrongfully accused of murder. It's up to Jamie to find the real murderer before it's too late. It doesn't help that the victim is a former rock star with more enemies than friends, or that Adam confessed to a murder he didn't commit.
"The Case of the Killer Divorce" - Reluctant lawyer, Jamie Quinn, has returned to her family law practice after a hiatus due to the death of her mother. It's business as usual until a bitter divorce case turns into a murder investigation, and Jamie's client becomes the prime suspect. When she can't untangle truth from lies, Jamie enlists the help of Duke Broussard, her favorite private investigator, to try to clear her client's name. And she’s hoping that, in his spare time, he can help her find her long-lost father.
"Peril in the Park" - There's big trouble in the park system. Someone is making life difficult for Jamie Quinn's boyfriend, Kip Simons, the new director of Broward County parks. Was it the angry supervisor passed over for promotion? The disgruntled employee Kip recently fired? Or someone with a bigger ax to grind? If Jamie can't figure it out soon, she may be looking for a new boyfriend because there’s a dead guy in the park and Kip has gone missing! With the help of her favorite P.I., Duke Broussard, Jamie must race the clock to find Kip before it’s too late.
A preview of the next Jamie Quinn Mystery, "Engaged in Danger," can be found at the end of the book.
Barbara is giving away one three book set in
winner's choice of
e-Book or Audio
Use the Rafflecopter form at the end of
this post to enter.
WRITING & NARRATING
HUMOR--
HOW TO LEAVE THEM LAUGHING
An Interview with
author, Barbara Venkataraman
and narrator, Carrie Lee Martz
--You two have eight
audiobooks across three different genres, how did you find each other? Carrie,
what appealed to you about these stories?
"Barbara actually found me through ACX just 9 days after I created my profile, but I'll let her tell that part of our story. The first book we did was “A Trip to the Hardware Store;” it was just really relatable and quirky, so I knew it’d fun to narrate."
"Barbara actually found me through ACX just 9 days after I created my profile, but I'll let her tell that part of our story. The first book we did was “A Trip to the Hardware Store;” it was just really relatable and quirky, so I knew it’d fun to narrate."
--Barbara, how did you
know Carrie was the narrator who could pull off humor AND narrate your
mysteries?
I got very lucky! I wanted a narrator with a sense of humor and a
range of voices who was willing to work for free. I either had to convince a
total stranger to spend hundreds of hours recording my self-published books as
unpaid labor, OR, find a narrator through ACX willing to royalty-share (spend
hundreds of hours recording my self-published books as unpaid labor AND split
any profits, assuming there were any).
Throwing caution to the wind, I posted two projects on ACX
simultaneously. After listening to and rejecting many demo recordings, I began
to question the whole project, but kept slogging through. Suddenly, the heavens
parted and I heard an angel sing, only she wasn't an angel, she was Carrie Lee
Martz. Her demo was a voiceover demo in which she showed off her range of
voices. She was perfect! I made her an offer for both books and she accepted.
We exchanged e-mails and confessed that we'd never done this before, but we
were both game and jumped right in.
--Carrie, as a
narrator, how do you approach a humorous work differently?
"I don’t really. Narrating comedy isn’t about telling jokes or trying to be funny. If it were, I’d be in trouble, because I think I’m the least funny person I know and I literally can’t tell a joke to save my life! LOL I think what’s most important is understanding the writer’s sense of humor and being able to fully commit to the characters and the story. If you focus on those things, the funny will automatically shine through."
"I don’t really. Narrating comedy isn’t about telling jokes or trying to be funny. If it were, I’d be in trouble, because I think I’m the least funny person I know and I literally can’t tell a joke to save my life! LOL I think what’s most important is understanding the writer’s sense of humor and being able to fully commit to the characters and the story. If you focus on those things, the funny will automatically shine through."
--Barbara, what advice do
you have for authors about writing humor?
Don't ask me, ask Ellen
Degeneres, lol! I think humorous writing is the unexpected combined with the
sublime and the ludicrous. It's based on common experiences we've all had (or
can easily imagine), and often focuses on the minutiae. Look at the comedian,
Jim Gaffigan and how much mileage he's gotten out of mocking Hot Pockets. My
advice is to read a lot of humor and try to analyze why it works. There's a lot
of timing involved and also a build-up of expectations.
--Carrie, do you have
any advice for narrators thinking about trying Audible? Has it met your
expectations?
"Go for it! Audible’s ACX program gives new narrators and indie authors a vehicle to break into the audiobook business without the usual constraints. I mean, what have you got to lose!?! I'd never narrated a book before, but my voiceover coach, Amy Hartman, suggested that I create an ACX profile to start practicing and auditioning. I was so excited to have a place to get "real world" experience auditioning for audiobooks, that I didn’t really have any expectations. Given that, the program far exceeded my expectations! With ACX, I get to audition and practice my narration skills on a regular basis and have launched the beginning of my audiobook career, with several books for sell on Audible, Amazon, and iTunes. AMAZING!!!"
"Go for it! Audible’s ACX program gives new narrators and indie authors a vehicle to break into the audiobook business without the usual constraints. I mean, what have you got to lose!?! I'd never narrated a book before, but my voiceover coach, Amy Hartman, suggested that I create an ACX profile to start practicing and auditioning. I was so excited to have a place to get "real world" experience auditioning for audiobooks, that I didn’t really have any expectations. Given that, the program far exceeded my expectations! With ACX, I get to audition and practice my narration skills on a regular basis and have launched the beginning of my audiobook career, with several books for sell on Audible, Amazon, and iTunes. AMAZING!!!"
--Barbara, do you also
recommend Audible?
Definitely! But be
prepared to do some serious marketing on your own. Once you and your narrator
have exhausted your personal connections, it's time to hit the virtual streets.
Get free download codes from ACX and give them away like crazy. When you run
out, ask for more. Sadly, we can't all be featured in the New York Times book
section.
-- Carrie, how has
your acting experience helped you as a narrator?
"Being an actress has taught me how to make strong choices and how to fully commit to those choices, the characters, and the story. This is a really critical skill for actors, but it’s even more important for audiobook narrators! All you’ve got to work with are the characters and the author’s words, so you’ve got to be really clear in your mind about who the characters are and what the words mean. If you stay focused on the characters and have clear intentions for the story when you read, it helps to paint a better picture for the listeners."
"Being an actress has taught me how to make strong choices and how to fully commit to those choices, the characters, and the story. This is a really critical skill for actors, but it’s even more important for audiobook narrators! All you’ve got to work with are the characters and the author’s words, so you’ve got to be really clear in your mind about who the characters are and what the words mean. If you stay focused on the characters and have clear intentions for the story when you read, it helps to paint a better picture for the listeners."
--Barbara, What type of
feedback have you gotten?
Carrie and I have gotten
some wonderful feedback on our audiobooks and Carrie really brings my
characters to life. Here are some examples of feedback we've received: you made
me laugh, thanks for the chuckles, you almost made me spit my coffee out
through my nose! My absolute favorite, though, was the woman who said Carrie
did an excellent drunk voice. Carrie and I agreed that when we finally meet,
we'll drink some wine and practice our drunk voices together.
"I've gotten quite a lot of feedback actually, which is pretty cool. I’ve
had bad and good surprises. The bad – people can be incredibly critical and
even a little mean in their reviews – it’s really taught me to “let go” of the
negative comments (you just can't please everyone) and to pay special attention
to the "constructive criticism" (if you learn to identify it, you can
use it to improve and hone your skills). The good – I've had a lot of people
say that listening to my narration is like sitting with a good friend while she
shares the humorous stories of her life. WOW – what a great compliment!
Since I’m always striving for that kind of intimate experience when I narrate,
it's so freaking cool to hear that it comes across that way to listeners!
=D"
How fun to get to know more about
Barbara and Carrie!
Award-winning author, Barbara Venkataraman is an attorney and mediator specializing in family law and debt collection.
She is the author of "Teatime with Mrs. Grammar Person"; "The Fight for Magicallus," a children's fantasy; a humorous short story entitled, "If You'd Just Listened to Me in the First Place"; and two books of humorous essays: "I'm Not Talking about You, Of Course" and "A Trip to the Hardware Store & Other Calamities," which are part of the "Quirky Essays for Quirky People" series. Both books of humorous essays won the "Indie Book of the Day" award.
Her latest works are "Death by Didgeridoo," first in the Jamie Quinn series, "The Case of the Killer Divorce," the second Jamie Quinn mystery, and, just out, "Peril in the Park," the latest in the popular Jamie Quinn series. Coming soon, "Engaged in Danger"--the next Jamie Quinn mystery!
She is the author of "Teatime with Mrs. Grammar Person"; "The Fight for Magicallus," a children's fantasy; a humorous short story entitled, "If You'd Just Listened to Me in the First Place"; and two books of humorous essays: "I'm Not Talking about You, Of Course" and "A Trip to the Hardware Store & Other Calamities," which are part of the "Quirky Essays for Quirky People" series. Both books of humorous essays won the "Indie Book of the Day" award.
Her latest works are "Death by Didgeridoo," first in the Jamie Quinn series, "The Case of the Killer Divorce," the second Jamie Quinn mystery, and, just out, "Peril in the Park," the latest in the popular Jamie Quinn series. Coming soon, "Engaged in Danger"--the next Jamie Quinn mystery!
GOOD LUCK!
Interesting! Thanks, Lisa, Barbara and Jamie. I've never listened to an audiobook but am finding more and more people talking about them.
ReplyDeleteLove all the little bits & bobs about ya'll! Audio books are great because I can do my housework & still READ A BOOK, lol!!
ReplyDeleteThese books look great. Thanks for the chance to win. :)
ReplyDeleteThank you Barbara & Carrie- loved all the nifty bits & bobs about your experiences! Audiobooks are great because I can still get my housework done while finishing a book!!
ReplyDeleteThis giveaway is perfect for the summer. What a delightful feature and audio books which I would enjoy greatly. Thanks. saubleb(at)gmail(dot)com
ReplyDeleteGood interview. I usually find that when someone leaves a bad review that if you look at their other reviews they are usually all bad so just take them with a pinch of salt. Some people are just not happy with anything.
ReplyDeleteAnn
That was a fascinating post about audiobooks and narration. I have just recently started listening to audiobooks and had some mixed results due to the narrators. Audiobooks encourage me to do my weekly walks because I only allow myself to listen to the books when I am walking so to find out what happens next, I have to go walk. I also use them to encourage me to clean house. LOL!
ReplyDeleteGreat post and great books. I love audiobooks. (Don't enter me - I have the set :-) ).
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like a good series. I have listened to quite a few audiobooks in the past. The narrator can make or break it for me. Great blog
ReplyDeleteI JUST discovered how much I enjoy audio books. Thank you for the interview and giveaway.
ReplyDeleteThese sound great!
ReplyDeleteEnjoyed the interview! Thank you for this great opportunity.
ReplyDeletepeggyhyndman(at)att(dot)net