Where’s Tony? Jim’s Gig Makes A Difference Each And Every Day!

Where’s Tony? Jim’s Gig Makes A Difference Each And Every Day!

When I was a young adult, my “Grammie” in Mexico City suffered from an insidious eye problem called Age Related Macular Degeneration. Age Related Macular Degeneration (ARMD) is caused by damage to the macula of the retina and can result in blurred or no vision at all in a person’s visual center. Over the past 15 years, both my father and my aunt (his sister) have been suffering from its debilitating effects.

In my father’s case, it’s bad enough that ordinary day-to-day activities are now a major challenge for him. But, on top of this, he cannot watch his sports programs and worse, read his beloved books. Before ARMD, Dad was a voracious reader. However, those days are long gone. My dad is not alone either, by 2020, 196 million people around the world will be diagnosed with ARMD.

I would like to introduce my readers to Jim Seybert. For the past eight years, he has been creating and narrating audiobooks.

WT: Welcome Jim and thanks for taking the time with me today. Where were you born and raised?

JS: I am a native of San Francisco, born in the mid-1950s (before the Giants came to town). We lived in China Town and my dad gripped cable cars (that’s the guy who pulls the levers). I still love the city and would move there in a heartbeat, if I could afford it.

WT: Where did you do your schooling? What was your degree in?

JS: I don’t have a degree, opting instead for a trade school where I learned to write and report the news on radio. My first gig was at KIIS in Los Angeles. Back then it was not the powerhouse FM it became in later years (think Ryan Seacrest), but rather a low-power AM station located in the old Playboy Building on Sunset Blvd. That was quite an experience. The top two floors were the studios where they shot layouts for the magazine.

WT: Jim. where do you currently live and for how long?

JS: My wife and I share our house in Arroyo Grande CA with a 7 lb all-black Chihuahua (she tolerates us). We moved to the area in 1988 from Wyoming, where we met. The Central Coast is about halfway between LA and SF, 90-minutes north of Santa Barbara. Our principal industry here is Tourism, with top-notch wines, grapes and vineyards.

WT: Can you give us a glimpse into your family?

JS: My wife is the Director of Finance for a large school district; balancing an annual budget of more than $200 million. Our daughter is finishing up her doctorate in marketing with an emphasis on data analytics. I am the “black sheep” of the family.

WT: Jim, how long have you been creating audiobooks?

JS: My first book was released in January 2011. My second book in June 2016. The first was a book I’d written. The publisher (Tyndale House) sold audio rights to Oasis Audio and they asked me to record it. For some bizarre reason, I never even had a clue that I could record other books and get paid for it. So that explains the five-year gap between the first and second. By the end of 2018, I had finished 30 audiobooks.

WT: Jim, what made you decide to get into this type of business?

JS: I was working as a corporate trainer and my job involved driving 3-4 hours every night from one city to the next. To pass the time, I started listening to audiobooks. One day, while listening to R.C. Bray’s performance of “The Martian”, I remarked to myself, “Hey, I could do that.” Because I’d worked with a number of publishers in a previous job, I wrote a bunch of emails asking what a guy needed to do to get started in audiobook narration. One person wrote back with an introduction to a friend of his who was president of an audiobook publisher. After a couple of phone calls and an audition, he assigned me a handful of what are called “B-Level” books.

WT: Do you create these in your own home or in a studio?

JS: About 80% of all audiobooks you listen to are recorded in home studios. Even the top narrators work at home. One of my coaches has recorded nearly 1,000 books, almost all of them from a studio in his home. Audio quality is very important, so I have expensive equipment and a specially-built soundproof booth, but I still get to work at home.

WT: Jim, how do you decide which candidates to convert from the written word to audio?

JS: Narrators typically don’t drive the project. I am contacted by publishers or independent authors who’ve heard my work and want to either give me a direct assignment or ask me to audition for their book. That said, I also do a fair amount of prospecting, where I look for books that are selling well in certain genres but have no audio version. In these cases, I look for non-fiction books that are selling well, and where the author or publisher have done a decent amount of promotion, so I know they probably have money available to create the audio.

WT: Over the years, do you have a favorite among the projects that you’ve accomplished?

JS: That’s like asking a parent which child is their favorite. I had fun with “The Smallest Tadpole’s War in the Land of the Mysterious Waters” because I got to do the entire book with a Southern accent. A book titled “Atheism on Trial” was a challenge because there were 187 very difficult-to-pronounce words and I hired an assistant to research it for me. The audiobook subsequently earned a glowing review in Audiofile Magazine and I was gratified that my diligence paid off. I focus on non-fiction books, so I get to do a wide range of subjects: a couple of Vietnam memoirs, Christian theology, medical case studies, business and entrepreneurship, politics, history. It’s a great gig for someone who enjoys learning new things and sharing it with others.

WT: Jim, on average, how many books do you convert in one month?

JS: I work at a much slower pace than some of my colleagues. My output is about one book a month. One of my coaches can do one a week. Keep in mind that a 6-hour book represents 18-24 hours of prep, recording, and post-production. I typically only record in the morning.

WT: Have you taken any classes in broadcasting or do you have any experience in it?

JS: I was a news announcer for nearly 20 years, which actually created some problems initially as a narrator. News readers typically have a “big voice.” You are broadcasting to an audience. Narration is much more intimate. You are whispering into someone’s ear. I still have to remind myself to “bring it down.” The years in radio taught me to be comfortable around microphones and also gave me a good foundation for keeping my throat healthy. But narration is SO much more than just a voice. My job is to understand the author’s intent and translate that to someone who can’t see the page.

WT: Jim, have you seen a lot of changes over the years?

JS: When I started in radio (1974), everything was recorded on ¼” tape. We edited with a wax pencil and a splicing block. One of the steepest learning curves for me when I started narrating was the advances in technology. I’ve hired some excellent coaches to help me and am now marginally competent. Another huge change is the availability of audiobooks as downloads to cell phones. I remember listening to “Don Quixote” performed by Michael York back in the 1980s. It came on about 10 audio tapes.

WT: Where do you see audiobooks headed in the future?

JS: Audio is the fastest growing segment of publishing. Some reports say it’s the only segment that’s actually growing. I see it continuing for quite some time. As people get busier, they will increasingly look for ways to consume entertainment and education while they drive or do other things. “Listening in the car” is the second-most chosen location (after “at home”) for audiobooks.

WT: Jim, what advice would you give to a young person wanting to do this for a career?

JS: When asked this question (which happens about once a month), I direct people to the Audible Creative Exchange – www.acx.com. This is a backend portal built by Audible to help connect authors (called Rights Holders) and narrators (called Producers). There are links on ACX for beginners. Interestingly, of the dozen or so I’ve sent to that site, only one has ever taken me up on the offer to answer their questions. So, either the site does a good job of explaining, or they’re scared away by the reality. It takes a tremendous amount of dedication to succeed in the business.

The cool thing is the number of seasoned pros who are eager to help new people. It’s a small community – everyone knows everyone. The industry is expanding like a water balloon, with no end in sight. If a beginner is willing to take the necessary steps to learn, there are people ready to lend a helping hand.

WT: How did you end up being interviewed on NPR?

JS: I am a relentless self-promoter. I wrote a letter to the station suggesting that they’d probably never interviewed an audiobook narrator. I was correct. It helped that the person who books guests for the show “had always wanted to narrate books” and I offered to answer her questions. She hasn’t yet taken me up on the offer.

WT: Jim, I do special projects from time to time for Sabot Foundation. “The Sabot Foundation assists veterans, especially combat veterans to help them redefine their transition back into civilian life and improve their quality of life in a variety of areas related to alternative holistic programs to reduce the effects of PTSD/TBI/CTE, as well as guidance to education and training leading to rewarding careers.” (To learn more, please visit http://sabotgroup.com/sabot-foundation/)

I am intrigued by the potential applications with audiobooks for veterans. Are you a veteran of the U.S. Armed Forces, Jim? And, among the 30 audiobooks that you’ve created so far, are any of them about veterans issues or written by a veteran? (I think that you briefly alluded to this if I understood you correctly.)

JS: While I’ve never served in the military, I’ve had the privilege of narrating a number of books written by veterans. Doing these has given me a unique insight into the heart and mind of the soldier.

The first was a book of historical fiction about a young boy in Florida during the US Civil War. The book’s title is “The Smallest Tadpole’s War in the Land of the Mysterious Waters”.

The second military memoir I narrated was “Vietnam Saga”, the personal story of Captain Stan Corvin. He flew LOH (Light Observation Helicopter) helicopters in Vietnam. Corvin was shot down twice and saw some of the toughest fighting anywhere in the war.

I’ve also recorded the memoir of Lt. Gen. Carl Schneider, one of the USA’s first combat jet pilots. His book is called “Jet Pioneer”. “Vietnam Abyss” is the deeply personal story of Michael Snook, a Vietnam Vet who suffered severe PTSD and survived multiple admissions to a VA psych ward.

Just this week, I got word that I’ll be narrating an as-yet-untitled book about one of the soldiers who was seriously wounded during the terrorist shooting at Fort Hood, Texas.

WT: These are some great titles, Jim! By the way, congratulations on being nominated for the 2018 SOVAS Award in the Best Narration category. Also, kudos on winning Audiofile’s Earphones Award for 2018.

Jim, I want to thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to answer my questions, old friend. For my readers that would like to contact Jim directly, you can do so through his Jim Seybert – Narrator Fan Page on Facebook and @jimseybertnarrator on Instagram. I will also be browsing the audiobooks that you’ve already created to pass a few along to my father. While people listen to audiobooks as they are traveling, Dad and many others will benefit from your efforts in ways that those of us who of us who take our eyesight for granted will never begin to understand.

Thank you Jim for the way that you touch the lives of many through your wonderful efforts!

Until next time!
Tony

#sabotfoundation