The Lowdown on Creative Content

Audiobook Special: An interview with Clare Corbett, courtesy of Quercus Books

2012-01-27T00:16:00.002Z

CC director Ali Muirden has been producing the wonderful Ruth Galloway series of audio books for Quercus Books. Here are some highlights from their fantastic interview with the narrator, Clare Corbett. (You can see the whole interview here).

Clare Corbett is the reader for three Quercus Audiobooks in the Ruth Galloway series by Elly Griffiths. Rose Tomaszewska met her at Strathmore recording studios to find out more about an actor’s role in the creation of audiobooks.

Rose Tomaszewska: Not many people know what your job is like. Would you tell us how you came to be a reader?

Clare Corbett: I won the Carlton Hobbs audition in 2001 after studying at the Welsh College of Music and Drama, and was chosen to be on the BBC Radio Rep. At first, I was asked to do various smaller readings, and then I got my first chance to do ‘A Book at Bedtime’. That got me into the flow of reading and being a part of that world.

After I left I got a voiceover agent who introduced me to new companies like the BBC audio books, Chivers, who got me into reading children’s books, and now I’ve progressed to reading adult books.

*****

Rose Tomaszewska: We’ve just finished doing ‘A Room Full of Bones’, the fourth title in the Ruth Galloway series by Elly Griffiths. Have you enjoyed reading her books?

Clare Corbett: This is the third one I’ve done, and they’re really exciting books. It’s all about a forensic archaeologist, Ruth, she’s always digging up bones and of course her findings lead to further investigations.

Then there’s a guy called Harry Nelson, who’s the police detective inspector, with whom she’s having a kind of relationship, and it’s a really lovely relationship. It’s nice to do a series of books, because you get to explore those characters.

*****

Rose Tomaszewska: There are a lot of different characters, how do you bring across their personalities in their voices, where do you get your inspiration?

Clare Corbett: You find it from the text, which will explain what the characters are like, and then you’ve got license to go anywhere you want – the producer guides you in that. So Harry Nelson is quite a brusque guy, forthright and thinks that men should be in control, and because of those descriptions you know what to do, naturally. As anyone would, I imagine, when reading a book; because when you read a book in your head, you’re kind of playing the characters.

Rose Tomaszewska: There are a lot of accents in the series, from Norfolk to Australia to the Philippines! How do you get the hang of them?

Clare Corbett: Norfolk I had never done before I came to these books, which was a bit scary! I thought it was going to be in first person with a Norfolk accent. I’m from Bristol originally, and the accent is very similar to Norfolk, so I had to work on it quite a lot.

I go on a website which has people talking in different accents, and I listen and make notes phonetically on the page. In the book there are often Northern and Norfolk characters speaking to each other, and I find I have to switch accents quickly, which is quite difficult! But it’s just a matter of working hard, and listening, and having a good ear for accents, which I now have because of all the work I’ve done.

Rose Tomaszewska: Is that one of the hardest things about reading audio books?

Clare Corbett: No, the hardest thing is the long time spent in a studio. Normally with a voiceover, you only do an hour and sustain just one character. But with a book there are so many characters, and you’ve got to sustain the through-line of the story – you can make a book very bland if you just read it, deadpan – you’ve got to hook the reader in.

That’s where a producer and a sound engineer come in handy, they can say, “can you make this a little quicker,” or “bring up the intensity of the situation.” But you naturally have an instinct for that if you’re a good reader, and I hope I have.

It’s sustaining that concentration when you’re in the studio from 10am – 6pm with 3 breaks that can be hard. With a good producer, and with enough preparation- which is the key to doing audio books, you’re ok. And with enough cups of tea and coffee!

*****

Rose Tomaszewska: Would you ever want to do something really difficult like Virginia Woolf?

Clare Corbett: I’d love to! I’d love to give it a go. I did a book called Poppy Shakespeare, by Clare Allen, which is in the first person. There were so many different characters, and she was in a mental home, it was brilliant to play.

Because I’m an actor, the first person sits more happily with me than narration, because it allows you to be completely in the book: not flicking between characters. You’re in someone else’s head and their way of speaking, so you naturally start to physicalise it as well.

Rose Tomaszewska: Do you ever do that, gesticulate?

Clare Corbett: Yes. Too much! And get told by the engineer to stop moving, because as soon as you move, your face in moving towards or further away from the microphone, which is not conducive to a good reading, and you can bang the table as well, which is not good for a reader!

*****

Rose Tomaszewska: Do you have any tips for someone wanting to be a voice actor?

Clare Corbett: Everyone wants to be a voice actor! What I always say is practise reading out loud, even record yourself, because you may think you can read, but you have to have a lot of support and breath- and as an actor you have to train in that- and you need to sustain a lot of characters. So practise practise practise!

Find out more about Elly Griffith’s Ruth Galloway series at www.quercusbooks.com

2011 - that was the eYear that was!

2012-01-20T00:23:00.002Z

Ali Muirden gives us Creative Content's year in review:

I've just been looking back at our publishing programme for 2011 and it was certainly the year of the eBook. We decided to concentrate our energies and resources into publishing a brilliant collection of crime novels, previously published by Creme de la Crime in print editions. With the eBook sector continuing to grow exponentially, this certainly proved very timely and we're really proud to have added this wide and varied collection to our list.

We continued our collaboration with military publishing specialist Osprey with the addition of 'Henry V', another from their "Command" series, being added to our audio collection. It was beautifully read by Jamie Glover, who was the perfect reader, having appeared in many RSC productions.

Jamie is also the voice behind one of our best-selling backlist titles: Improve Your Speech - British English. He has many fans who have left comments on our YouTube page for this book including one who commented "I want HIS voice!"

This brings me neatly to our next publication which was the lyrical and moving memoir by Isla Blair (who just happens to be Jamie's mum!). In a 'Tiger's Wedding - my childhood in Exile' Isla writes beautifully and movingly about her extraordinary childhood. Born in Kerala in India, Isla was sent to boarding school in cold gloomy post-war Scotland in the 1950s when she was only five years old and spent the next 10 years or so living apart from her beloved parents at school in the UK. On release the book received fantastic reviews in the media, all of which were hugely deserved.

Isla also reads the audio edition which is available on download from all good retailers. She brings such warmth and charm to this version of her book and it is very emotional listening. Well worth a look and listen!

Next up was another biography but this was in a completely different sphere. Chris Nickson's detailed biography of John Martyn, 'Solid Air - the life of John Martyn', concentrates on John's music and is everything a fan of this highly respected musician could want. It was published simultaneously with the tribute album of John's best known tracks which featured artists such as Phil Collins, Paolo Nutini, David Gray and Judi Tzuke!

We continued our military theme in July with the publication of "The Lowdown - A short history of the origins of the Vietnam War" written by Dr David Anderson of the University of California at Monterey (surely he must win the "who has the best office location" competition hands down?).

David is an authority on this subject and his account of how the Vietnam War came about is a master-class for anyone who wants to understand more about world changing events in modern history. You can impress your friends next time you're out for dinner, with your concise and expert knowledge of this fascinating subject!

In November and December we moved into a totally new area with the addition of the audio versions from top CBeebies show "Grandpa in My Pocket" to our audio list. The show is the top children's programme on the BBC and was deservedly nominated for another BAFTA. We published two audio titles, "A Garden Full of Beasts" and "No Ordinary Pig", in conjunction with the programme makers Adastra at the end of 2011. Watch this space for news of other titles from this series in 2012.

The other development in 2011 was the publication of text and speech synchronised editions of a variety of our backlist titles including the best-selling "Improve Your Speech" series. We had long wanted to get eBook editions of these popular titles published and they are now available via iScroll who have launched an App which enables the speech to be synchronised to the text so that you can read and listen at the same time.

So all in all, 2011 was another very busy year and it's now onwards and upwards for the new publications forthcoming in 2012. Come back and visit our blog for more information on that soon! - Ali Muirden

Photo by Plushev

Viva Mexico!

2012-01-13T12:58:00.000Z

165 years ago today, the Treaty of Cahuenga ended the Mexican-American war in California. These days, Mexico is a great place to do business! Christopher west talks about the different types of business culture there:

There are at least three types of business culture in Mexico, and behavior differs in each.

Firstly, there are the subsidiaries of foreign multinationals. The United States and Spain perhaps have the largest number of subsidiaries in Mexico, but there are companies belonging to multinationals from all over the globe. Here, the culture of the HQ of the multinational usually prevails, so a subsidiary of a US company will tend to do its management accounts following US GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Practices), and follow US habits, perhaps starting and finishing relatively early in the day by Mexican standards and taking a buttoned-down no-nonsense approach to negotiations. A subsidiary of a Spanish company will do its management accounts following European IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standards) and may well work later and longer hours, with a longer break at lunch time. Senior staff will usually speak English fluently, as well as the language spoken in their corporate HQ, if it’s not English.

Secondly, there are the Mexican multinationals and larger Mexican national companies. Some of the largest cement and glass manufacturing groups in the world are headquartered in Mexico. These companies will typically lean toward a US way of doing business and it’s likely some of the senior executives will have postgraduate degrees from US universities. Most senior staff will speak English fluently.

Thirdly, there are the Mexican family companies. “Family” should not be taken to mean “small,” as there are some very large companies run by two or even three generations of the same family. Such companies vary widely in culture, with some having the characteristics of multinationals, while others exhibit the traditional traits of the Mexican family-held company, such as excessive deference to family members and all important decisions (and perhaps even some that aren’t very important) being passed up the line to the head of the family.

There are two other cultural differences the visitor should be aware of:

Firstly, salary spreads between the highest- and lowest-paid employees are much greater than is normally the case in the US or western Europe, and either because of this, or perhaps for unrelated reasons, there tends to be a greater sense of hierarchy in many Mexican companies. Senior executives will tend to have private offices and many will have several support staff. In the second and third business categories we talked about, don’t be surprised if the most senior people never take notes and correspond intermittently, if at all: they will want to understand the big picture and will ultimately take the decisions, but you may need to spend a considerable amount of time working on the detail with more junior people, either before gaining access to senior executives, or in parallel with your meetings with them.

Secondly, the culture varies to some degree with geographical location. The north of Mexico, bordering on the US, adopts US business practices more widely than the south, which borders on Guatemala. Not surprisingly, Mexico City, in the geographical center of the country, reflects a mid-way practice. Broadly speaking, the further north your business takes you, the more appointments you are likely to be able to fit into your working day, and the more likely you are to be negotiating with a fluent speaker of (American) English. Your visit may be squeezed in to the busy schedule of a senior executive in Monterrey, the industrial capital of Mexico, located just 100 miles from the US border, while it may be the highlight of the day of a senior executive in Mérida, in the southeast, and he may well take the trouble to show you something of the city and take you to a leisurely lunch. - Christopher West

Taken from "The Lowdown: Doing Business in Mexico", by Christopher West. Available in eBook and audio.

New year, new you!

2012-01-06T12:10:00.000Z

It’s that time of year! Everyone’s resolving to be ... well, better! Why not let your ears take the strain, and try some self-help audio? Here are a few suggestions from our list:

If you want to get ahead in business, now’s the time to brush up on your international business etiquette – China’s going to be big!

Business Etiquette China

Mexico is ranked 13^th among the world’s economies – and its proximity to the United States makes it a key market. Is this the year you’ll do business there?

Doing Business in Mexico

Or why not learn to communicate like a great leader during difficult situations:

Risk Communication Skills

And speaking of communication, maybe this is the year you’ve decided to improve your speech:

Improve Your Speech

New addition to the family, but you still ‘want it all’? Sara Lloyd has some advice for baby juggling:

Baby Juggler

Richard Charkin, head of Bloomsbury, has some tips for climbing the corporate ladder:

Top Tips for Wannabe CEOs

Have you resolved to become more educated? Try something from our bite-sized Short Histories series:

Try a Short History...

Or maybe your resolution is to kick back a bit. Learn how to prioritise and get A Simpler Life:

Keep it simple...

Or simply treat yourself to some gorgeous guided imagery with something from the Dreamcatching series:

DreamCatching...

Whatever your resolutions and plans, we hope that 2012 brings you everything you desire!

Happy New Year!

2011-12-30T01:18:00.000Z

All the best for 2012 from all at Creative Content!

Something for everyone, whether they're naughty or nice....

2011-12-23T01:22:00.002Z

Remembered everyone on your Christmas list? eBooks make the perfect last-minute present. Here’s a few suggestions from our list:

For your favourite silver surfer: A Tiger’sWedding: my childhood in exile by Isla Blair. A beautifully written memoir, set in India and Scotland.

For a classical music nut: The Charles Patterson series by Roz Southey - Broken Harmony, Chords and Discords, Secret Lament and Sword and Song. Historical crime fiction set in 18th century Newcastle, following the fortunes of a harpsichordist/ composer

For the more modern music lover: Solid Air –The Life of John Martyn by Chris Nickson. A biography of the British singer-songwriter and guitarist.

For a theatre lover: Behind You, Passion Killers, and Dead Like Her by Linda Regan. Crime fiction set in a theatrical world that the actress-author knows well.

For a CSI/Prime Suspect fan: The Bev Morriss series by Maureen Carter: Working Girls, Baby Love, Dead Old, HardTime, Bad Press, Blood Money and Death Line. Gritty police procedurals set in Birmingham.

For someone who can’t wait for the next Janet Evanovich novel: Dead Woman’s Shoes and The Fall Girl by Kaye C Hill. Quirky crime fiction set on the Sussex coast.

For a history buff: The Lowdown series: A Short History of the Origins of WWI, A Short History of the Originsof the Vietnam War and A Short History of the First Gulf War. Concise accounts of important historical events.

For a sports fan: The Lowdown: A Short History of the World Cup by Mark Ryan. Bone up before 2014!

For an international traveler: The Lowdown business series: Business Etiquette Japan, Business Etiquette China, Business Etiquette India, Business Etiquette Russia and Doing Business in Mexico. ‘Top tips’ guides to doing business abroad.

Ali and Lorelei wish you everything wonderful for Christmas and the new year!

Dream Girl....

2011-12-16T00:30:00.001Z

There was an email from Ali waiting for me this morning – during the night, she’d dreamed up a design concept for a series of books we’re publishing. Here she talks about her unique way of problem-solving....

Have you ever wondered if insomnia can sometimes be useful?

I know this sounds really odd, but bear with me! I’m not sure if it is just me, but I seem to have my best ideas in that blurry moment between sleep and waking… that tough moment when you can literally feel yourself struggling to open up your eyes to face another day.

Sometimes I wake up around 3 or 4am - usually because my cat, Shortie (who is a little on the overweight side) sits on me - and an idea will suddenly pop into my head with such ease I can’t really believe it’s happened.

I know it’s really because our brains are so amazing: they work all night, filtering out the rubbish from the previous day and are busy filing away anything useful, so that when we wake up our minds are all fresh and shiny and raring to go - as long as we don’t have a hangover that is!

Just this morning it happened again. I woke up because the dawn chorus was blaring out in stereo through the open bedroom windows and I nailed down an idea that has been bubbling away for a special promotional offer we want to do around one of our books…more on that story later.

I really should keep a notebook and pen by my bed to jot these ideas down so I can go back to sleep without worrying I’ll have totally forgotten it by morning!

Lorelei is now so used to this odd quirk of mine that when she needs me to come up with a solution or an idea for a project we’re working on she orders me to go to sleep and is even threatening to get me a supply of sleeping tablets to boot!

Please tell me I’m not the only one this happens to or I‘ll start feeling a bit of a freak? –Ali Muirden

Cat photo by dominiqs

Body Language

2011-12-09T00:46:00.000Z

We’re watching events in Brussels with interest and wonder if some of the politicians could use a little help. From "The Lowdown: Dodging the Bullet - Effective Risk Communications Skills" by Andrew Roberts and Andrew Powell, here are a few tips on body language...

Non-verbal communications (NVC) or ‘body language’ These can either enhance the first impressions you give, or destroy them.

Not only are non-verbal communications more noticeable during controversy, they are picked up almost instantly — usually within that crucial first 30 seconds.

Research has identified over 50 non-verbal cues that people use to judge trust and credibility. NVCs can contribute massively to perceptions of openness and honesty — and with as much as 20% of trust being determined by openness and honesty, their power cannot be underestimated.

Let’s look at some common non-verbal communications and the messages they send:

· The eyes have it! Poor eye contact can suggest that you are dishonest, closed, unconcerned or nervous. Excellent eye contact, on the other hand, delivers the message that you are honest, open, competent, sincere, dedicated, confident, knowledgeable and interested. This, folks, is the whole package!!!

· Sitting back in your chair will make you appear uninterested, unenthusiastic, unconcerned and uncooperative. But sitting forward in your chair will show you to be interested, enthusiastic, concerned and cooperative.

· If you keep your hands hidden, this will suggest that you may be deceptive, guilty, or insincere. Open hands, however, will convey that you are open and sincere.

· The tone of your voice is in itself a message. Raising your voice may make you appear nervous and deceitful. Lowering your tone, however, will help show that you are honest, caring and self-assured.

Some more NVC or body language things to look out for:

· Folding your arms across your chest shows you to be defiant, arrogant, impatient, defensive and stubborn — and suggests that you aren’t listening.

· Infrequent hand gestures or body movements indicate that you are likely to be dishonest and deceitful.

· Rocking movements indicate that you are nervous and lacking self-confidence.

· Touching your face a lot indicates that you are likely to be dishonest, deceitful and nervous.

· Holding your head in your hand will show that you are bored or uninterested

· Clenched hands will likely indicate that you are angry, hostile, determined to get your way and uncooperative.

When people are upset, their awareness of these non-verbal clues is enhanced, so negative body language like this will be especially noticeable. It is very important that these non-verbal messages are consistent with what you are actually saying. If there is a ‘disconnect’ between the two, the non-verbal messages will take precedence and no amount of talking will get the message across. - Andrew Roberts and Andrew Powell

Photo by Ganessas

The best part of a narrator's day...

2011-12-02T00:17:00.000Z

I’m thrilled to have been named narrator of the year on Audible. I’m so lucky to record such fantastic series and am so grateful: to the authors, for the wonderful material, and to the publishers, for letting me narrate it! To celebrate, I thought I’d revisit a blog I wrote about a small part of a narrator’s day...

When it comes to audiobooks, I’m lucky enough to be tri-coastal (if the Thames can be considered a coast!). I record in London, New York and Los Angeles.

There are some differences in the way they work, sure... but the thing that really sets them apart – is lunch.

This is how it goes in the UK:

UK: What would you like for lunch?

ME: What have you got?

UK: Anything you like. Anything at all.

ME: Oh. Okay. How about a Cobb salad.

UK: Don’t think they’ll have that.

ME: Oh. Um... Caesar salad.

UK: Don’t think they do salads, actually.

ME: Oh.

UK: Sandwich?

ME: Okay. Um... turkey club on-

UK: Turkey’s unlikely

ME: Pastram-

UK: Don’t think they know what it is.

ME: You go first. Why don’t you tell me what they have?

UK: Ham or cheese.

ME: Ham and cheese?

UK: Ham or cheese.

ME: Okay. Um. Cheese. Could I have Swiss or maybe Gruy-

UK: Cheddar.

ME: Or cheddar. Maybe on pumper-

UK: White bread.

ME: Or?

UK: White bread.

ME: Okay.

UK: Lovely! Cheese sandwich on white bread. That wasn’t so hard, was it?

And then it arrives.

UK: There you are, darling.

ME: This is it?

UK: Yes. It’s what you wanted. A cheese sandwich.

Let me give you the heads up about something: when you order a cheese sandwich in the UK, the clue is all in the name. You get two pieces of bread. And a piece of cheese. That’ s it. Oh, and the bread will be ‘sealed’ with margarine. The cheese will probably be a little dried up around the edges – you could make stained glass windows with the stuff...

ME: I mean – this is it? Two pieces of bread and a piece of cheese?

UK: What did you expect?

ME: I don’t know. Maybe some tomato... or sprouts... or some lettuce or cucumber or something. I mean it’s just cheese. There’s nothing green.

UK: Oh darling that’s a bit unfair. I mean – look.

ME: Oh. Yeah. Sorry. I didn’t see the mould.

Then there’s New York – my favourite city. Unfortunately, I’m kind of used to the London way of doing things by now, so lunch in New York can mean a bit of culture shock...

NY: Sorry to stop you, but it’s important. Where are we gonna order lunch from? I want Thai, but Tony had Thai yesterday, so we’re thinkin’ Italian, but we might go Italian for dinner, so maybe we should stick to Chinese, Japanese or Korean. Ooh, or Cajun and Kosher sound good. Oooh. Or maybe Caribbean, Mexican, Cuban or Brazilian? Or Vietnamese, Mongolian, Ethiopian, Armenian, Polish, Greek, Turkish, Hungarian, German, Belgian, French, Spanish or Swedish?

ME: (overwhelmed by choice) Um - could I maybe have ... (tiny voice) a cheese sandwich?

NY: A cheese sandwich? Sure. Swiss, American, Brie, Gorgonzola, Monterey Jack, Gruyere, Camembert, Limburger, Roquefort, cheddar...

ME: (grabbing onto a familiar word) Um... cheddar?

NY: Sure. Mild, medium, matured, vintage, sharp, extra sharp, smoked, Canadian, English...

ME: (increasingly desperate) English!

NY: What kinda bread? Wholewheat, pumpernickel, rye, multi-grain...

ME: White bread?

NY: White bread? Sure. Sourdough, ciabatta, Wonder Bread if you’re feeling retro, focaccia, bagel, chollah ...?’

ME: AAARRGGH!

Of course it’s quite simple in LA.

They don’t eat.

Thanksgiving

2011-11-25T00:12:00.000Z

We wish you all a happy Thanksgiving – and we’d like to take this opportunity to list the things we’re grateful for here at Creative Content:

Lorelei is thankful for business partner Ali’s vision, tenacity, generosity and sense of fun!

Ali is thankful for Lorelei's work ethic (no slacking!), her wit - and her knowledge of the correct use of grammar and punctuation!

We’re thankful to designer Dan for his creativity, patience and seemingly endless supply of fresh ideas (he’s in the middle of re-designing our website – watch this space!).

We’re thankful to our sound editor Al for his sterling work on our audio titles, his fantastic blog support, and his role as number one CC cheerleader!

We’re thankful to our crime writers for their talent – it’s a privilege to publish such terrific crime fiction.

We’re thankful to our business and lifestyle writers for sharing their expertise.

We’re thankful for our voice artists – they bring our titles to life!

And we’re thankful for you – we’ve loved interacting with you on Twitter, Facebook and our blog!

We’d love to know - what are you thankful for? – Lorelei and Ali

photo by WishUponaCupcake

The voice of reason...

2011-11-18T00:14:00.001Z

Narrating isn’t as easy as it seems and in studio, time is money – quite a lot of money - so it’s important to get it right. This week we ‘auditioned’ an author with a view to him narrating his own book. Happily, he was absolutely fantastic - fluent, warm, with loads of stamina - and we’re looking forward to being in studio with him.

It got us talking about what makes a good narrator – and we thought it would be a good time to revisit audio producer and director Ali Muirden’s thoughts on the subject!

When people hear that I work in the audio book industry, they often want to know what the actors that I’ve worked with are like.

Personally, I feel privileged to have worked with some of the best talent in the country over the last few years. And no! I am not going to name names as that could get me into a whole heap of trouble! But I must confess I do have my favourites…

But what do audio producers look for when casting a reader and how do we go about it?

The first step is to read the script for the book you are producing and more often than not, before you know it, a “voice type” will spring to mind. Some books require a flowing, mellifluous voice, some require a quality which conveys excitement and drama, some require someone with a catalogue of character voices at his or her disposal.

Sometimes you require someone with a particular accent skill, or the ability to switch from accent to accent at the drop of a hat. (These people are also probably brilliant at rubbing their tummies and patting their heads at the same time as spinning plates on poles!)

As you read the script, it becomes apparent what kind of voice quality is required and it makes the casting process much simpler.

Sometimes you have a tricky project where you just can’t seem to find the right voice for the job. Then it’s time to get on the phone to your fellow producers to request some help.

Other producers are always hugely generous with their time and help on this subject and can be a great source of inspiration and advice. When we find a new talent, we always tell each other. Likewise, if we work with someone who has not bothered to prepare for the job properly, we also spill the beans! Wannabe audio readers beware: Don’t rock up and think you can just ‘wing it’ on the day…. Your future could be on the line!

Reading an audio book requires great stamina, energy and preparation in advance, if you are going to do justice to the book. Most of the really good readers say it can be one of the most demanding areas they work in, as you need to sustain the level of performance throughout a long recording day (anywhere up to 8 hours in one session) and any loss of energy or signs of tiredness are immediately obvious in your voice.

But they also say it is one of the things they enjoy doing the most and it must give them a great sense of satisfaction when they meet someone who has heard them read an audio book who then says “all my kids love your reading of that story… they make me play it for them over and over and over again!”. - Ali Muirden

Which audiobook narrators do you love to listen to?

5 more questions to test your knowledge of foreign business etiquette!

2011-11-11T00:40:00.000Z

Week 2 of our International Business Etiquette quiz! Answers on our website.

1. In Japan, what is nemawashi?

a) a very hot condiment

b) unlimited liability

c) consensus-based decision-making

d) financial clique

2. At a business meeting in India, you may be formally welcomed with a garland. When can you take it off?

a) straight away

b) when you get back to your hotel

c) when you’ve finished formal introductions

d) at the end of the meeting

3. In China, what is guanxi?

a) networking

b) body language

c) customer

d) discount

4. How much should you tip in a restaurant in Russia?

a) 10%

b) 15%

c) 20%

d) nothing - service is normally included

5. In Mexico, what is an abrazo?

a) an SME

b) a contract lawyer

c) a limited partnership

d) a kind of handshake

How did you do?

5 questions to test your knowledge of foreign business etiquette!

2011-11-04T00:21:00.000Z

Test your knowledge of business etiquette in Mexico, Russian, Japan, India and China!

1. In Mexico, how much should I tip?

a) You don’t have to. Service is usually included.

b) 10%

c) 15%

d) 20%

2. What is the best day of the week to come to Russia on business?

a) Monday

b) Wednesday

c) Friday

d) Saturday

3. In Japan, how should I hand someone my business card?

a) with both hands

b) with your left hand

c) with your right hand

d) place it on the table in front of them

4. In Indian currency, how many rupees are in a lakh?

a) 100

b) 1,000

c) 10,000

d) 100,000

5. What should a businessman not wear in China?

a) a pink shirt

b) a green hat

c) a red tie

d) brown shoes

Answers on our website! How did you do?

Climbing the corporate ladder...

2011-10-28T00:15:00.000+01:00

In an excerpt from his book "The Lowdown: Top Tips for Wannbe CEOs", Richard Charkin of Bloomsbury (publishers of the phenomenal Harry Potter series) talks about climbing the ladder in publishing...

Q: Let’s talk about education. Does a CEO, in your view, need a university degree?

A: No. But it’s pretty hard in the 21st century western world not to have had a university degree and get on the ladder - at least the corporate ladder. I think it’s completely feasible to do start-up businesses without a university degree, and you could end up as a great industrialist, and there are a few around the world. So I don’t think a university degree is essential, no. But it’s likely.

Q: What are the best three degrees (in your opinion) for someone with his or her eye on becoming a publishing CEO?

A: The three degrees by subject? Reading, Writing and Arithmetic! That’s a serious response. Governments try to get involved in the creative economy and they say, “What do you want us to teach at universities that would improve the quality of the graduates?” Well frankly, if they could come out reading, writing, and being able to add up, we’d be ever so grateful. And I imagine this to be true in many industries.

Q: So you think these basic skills are crucial for a wannabe CEO?

A: Absolutely. And there are other useful skills apart from reading, writing and arithmetic. To get a little bit more specific: it’s the ability to paraphrase, to assemble thoughts into a coherent précis - because business isn’t that complicated.

I rather like what the medieval priest cum philosopher, William of Occam, had to say: One version of the Latin is: Pluralitas non est ponenda sine necessitate - which I believe translates as "plurality should not be posited without necessity." In other words, it is an abomination to make more complex that which can be simpler. And of course most business-speak is making more complex that which could be simpler. So the ability to make the complex simple seems to me very important. In other words, “keep it simple, stupid.”

And another skill – which is really a subset of the previous skill – is to be able to round up or down when it comes to figures. If I asked you what your sales were last year, and you said “15,469 - and we’re hoping for 16,937 next year,” I’ve already gone blank. If you say ‘it’s 15 this year and 17 next year’, then I get it. The ability to round up and down and to do simple arithmetic in your head is a great advantage in business. I think spreadsheets have become an excuse for sloppy arithmetical thinking.

Q: What about graduate training schemes? Do you think they are worthwhile?

A: They used to be called apprenticeships, and people would pay to be on them. Regrettably, now the employers have to pay for them! But yes, I do think internal management training schemes are really important. It does allow a company to get the best people.

Q: And does it give you a head start in the company if you’re on one of these graduate training schemes?

A: You have to be careful. Partly it gives you a leg up because you are probably in contact with more senior people than you would be otherwise. On the other hand, it can have a negative effect because of jealousy, and the “blue-eyed girl or boy” syndrome. The company has to be very, very careful to take all of its people seriously and not to put graduate recruits on a pedestal, which they don’t really want or deserve. And it’s up to the “apprentices” to make sure they don’t try to lord it over people - especially when they are still learning the ropes from them! If they do, they should be kicked very hard.

Q: How do you go about making the most of the opportunities that come from getting started early on these schemes?

A: I think it goes beyond the scheme. I think it actually is about business as a whole. By and large, businesses are structured by function or by geography or by product. So – for example - if you work for the UK toothpaste department of Unilever and you’re on the marketing side, that’s fine. But if you really want to get on, you’d better learn about soap, soap flakes, America, manufacturing as well as marketing. What I mean is, don’t just be interested in what you do - because when it comes to business, it’s about seeing the whole picture.

I think I’ve been very lucky because I’ve been allowed to be interested beyond my job description. Which is maybe why I no longer have a job description.

Q: So from what you’re saying, a graduate training scheme is great as a leg-up, but within that people still have to be self motivated?

A: Yes. And it separates the wheat from the chaff. In Macmillan, approximately half the people dropped out of the scheme after a year. And I think this is true in other companies as well. For instance, the British National Health Service scheme is reputed to have a 75% dropout rate. Not everyone is suited to every job, and not every company suits every person. Some end up doing the same job for thirty years because they never did get out and move up the ladder into a new job where they could learn new skills. In itself that’s okay – it just means they’re not going up the greasy pole.

Q: Should wannabe CEOs do other kinds of training? Ongoing training, continue studying in their chosen field?

A: If you’re interested in your business, I think you do anyway. I think it’s a natural progression. For instance, I have no accounting training in any formal sort of way. However, if you’re really interested in the business, you’d better find out what accountants do. And the best way to do that, frankly, is to spend time with them. Or if you want to know about brand management, spend time with brand managers. I’m not sure how formal that would have to be. I did do a fair amount of external management training, but I think I probably learned more from just doing everything rather than going on courses.

Additionally, these days there are vast resources available: you can buy loads of books, magazines, downloads, and so on, to learn new skills. Keeping up to date in this way is incredibly important.

Q: What’s the best way to go about finding out about how sales, marketing, finance and HR all work?

A: Go to the canteen, if there is a canteen. If there isn’t a canteen, go to the coffee machine. If there isn’t a coffee machine, go to the photocopier, or wherever it is that people congregate, and just talk to them. Just ask.

Early on, before computers gave us accurate statistics on sales, an editor’s job included finding out what a competing book had sold. Now it’s easy to look at a screen to find out what the last book by a particular author sold, but in those days there was no such thing. And if you asked the competing publisher, they would either not tell you – confidential you know – or they’d lie. So how did you find out? You rang up the author. They would probably show off about how well their book had sold, or else they would moan about their publisher and blame her or him for the lousy sales. Either way, they’d tell you a version of the truth.

So remember that most people want to talk. If you want to learn about accounting or marketing or personnel, the best way to learn is to ask the people who work in those departments. They’ll tell you. People like to talk about their jobs, so asking people is the fastest way to learn. – Richard Charkin,

“The Lowdown: Top Tips for Wannabe CEOs” is available in both eBook and audio formats.

Let's hear it for audio!

2011-10-21T00:10:00.002+01:00

Sound editor Al Muirden is a fan - of audio books!

This week, I want to talk about something very close to our hearts here at CC - the often misunderstood audio book.

These days, we regularly read in the press how the eBook is challenging the traditional printed word when it comes to sales of published works and indeed, how successful the eBook has become - this is great news for Creative Content of course. Most purchasers get what the printed and eBook formats are about - unfortunately, this confidence isn’t always matched where audio books are concerned.

Don’t get me wrong - audio book sales are strong, especially in the US, but things could be a lot better if people just understood a little more about the product and what goes into making it special.

Whenever I mention in conversation that I edit audio books, you can most often see people eyes glaze over - I’m sure when I explain what I do to the uninitiated, people think that any old someone just goes in and reads the book out loud in some sort of dull monotone with no characterisation - oh dear, how wrong they are! I don’t think that booksellers quite get it either sometimes when their audio sections are labelled as Spoken Word - this immediately conjures up the old monotone/boring/send you to sleep idea for many - not good and also not accurate!

The bar is definitely set high when it comes to the skills needed by a great audio narrator. Most are actors and so already have the attributes needed to assume a character’s persona - in works of audio fiction, where there can be many such personalities, this is imperative. Lorelei, as an award winning audio narrator is at the top of the tree* - she and other quality narrators out there don’t just read the books when they record - they perform them, bringing life to the characters with accents and individuality - and in doing so make the words become cinematic and most importantly - bring the book to life!

Creative Content publish a lot of business and self-help titles and whilst in most cases there are no characters as such, a skilled narrator can make non-fiction titles a very interesting listen - believe me, I’ve heard a wide range of readers and subject matter and with a great narrator/producer/editor team, they are truly a million miles away from monotone! I even heard a Social Work title recently that included quotes from real trainees and the various people were all given the appropriate (different) accents by the narrator - this was then further enhanced in the edit and the end product was a fascinating listen.

So in summary, I’m saying that there are THREE formats out there, not just hardcover and eBook - audio is more than a match for its two more popular and well known brothers. Give your ears an airing and see how books come alive in audio! - AM

*Aw, thanks Al! Cheque's in the post.... :o) LK

Interview with Roz Southey

2011-10-14T00:05:00.000+01:00

Today we’re talking to Roz Southey, author of the Charles Patterson musical mystery series. The fourth book in the series, “Sword and Song”, has just published in eBook format.

We asked her to tell us a bit about how she writes.

Did you set out to create a series-based character, or was that accidental?

Yes, for two reasons. One is mercenary: a writer’s books are more likely to remain in print if they are in a series - people finding later books always want to go back and read the first ones - and secondly (and chiefly), it allows the writer to develop the main character (or in my case, four main characters) over a period of time, showing them growing and changing which makes them much more real.

How do you structure the layout and plot lines of your books? Do you have a clear plot line, or do things twist, turn and develop as you go along?

I start writing with a clear idea of roughly what’s going to happen…but I have thought about the basic idea for some months beforehand and at some point I start seeing scenes in my mind: the opening scene, a couple if climactic scenes in the middle - usually the last scene too. When those characters in those scenes start talking to me, I know it‘s time to start writing. The first draft is always in long hand and then I transfer it to my computer for editing and tidying. I always build the books around a true event, person or trend from the 18^th century. I liken this first draft to the sort of research I do as an academic: I’m not making any of it up; I’m finding out what happened. My subconscious mind is free to offer me all sorts of characters and plot twists that my conscious mind just wouldn’t come up with. Then I have to plan the novel in detail from the first draft, cutting or enlarging and making sure the plot hangs together an makes sense. This becomes the second draft, then finally when I’m convinced the structure is right I move on to tidying the language etc.

What is a typical writing day for you?

I like to start my writing day around 7:45am and I’ll do an hour or so, then have a walk and then another couple of hours. This is the really serious stuff and I’m at my best in the morning…and then I ease back a little over lunchtime and then get back into it mid-afternoon until around 5pm…and I LOVE Mondays as I always feel fresh, but it’s important to write regularly and treat it in a business-like way. I tend not to set myself a daily word limit.

How do you go about your research?

I was lucky in that almost all of my research was done before I started writing novels. I did a PhD on music-making in the northeast of England during the 18^th century. As part of that, I read my way through four centuries worth of newspapers form that period and took out all the references to music. There were also a lot of gossipy stories there, which I couldn’t use in my academic work, and it’s these I’ve used as the basis for the novel. I absorbed the 18^th century by osmosis, so to speak, so the research was done painlessly. So many important events occurred during this period; I’m always amazed when people say it’s not very interesting as “nothing much happened”. This period has always interested me and I’ve learned so much more through doing my PhD. One of my editor’s comments relating to Broken Harmony was that it seemed that all that people seemed to eat was ale and game pie and nothing else, so I had to separately research that aspect - what people would have eaten! The other thing in trying to view a period in the past, is to set yourself IN that period and realize that the WAY people thought at that time is simply not the way we think now - and this can only come through reading things like 18^th century newspapers -and by doing that you start to think as they would have thought on a daily basis. And having worked around this period for 5 years, I was just immersed in the whole period and the way people thought at the time.

Is there any one thing that your readers would be surprised to know about you?

I’m very much into local history and particularly the valley where I was brought up. We lived in a house which dates back to around the 1520s and on the window; various people from over the years had carved their names and dates. There were two I remember from 1804 and 1836, I think… so this to me was like history made real, when you live there every day. I have a very fluid feeling about time sometimes merging into one, past present and future, and I think my upbringing was what sparked my interest in history - the house is still standing and I am actually writing about the history of that house…oh and I’m a very keen gardener!

Roz Southey has a passion for the often contentious world of 18^th century music-making in the north east of England; in fact, she has a PhD in it! Roz lives in the northeast herself and lectures at the International Centre for Music Studies in Newcastle Upon Tyne. Check out her website: www.rozsouthey.co.uk

Feeling Festive

2011-10-07T00:54:00.000+01:00

Is it October already?!

We can’t believe it’s almost a year since we were at the Poole Litfest! We had a great time – I chaired a panel of fantastic crime writers (Minette Walters, medieval murder mystery writer Michael Jecks and BBC TV Crime Correspondent Simon Hall) discussing the influence of true crime stories on their work. We were thrilled to have participated.

It’s amazing how many literary festivals there are in the UK: Lennoxlove, Chiswick, Lancaster, Bromley, Worcester and Crimefest, to name but a few.

One of the largest of them, the Cheltenham LiteratureFestival, starts this week. There’s a fantastic lineup of events (including the lovely actress and writer Isla Blair, who will be ‘in conversation’ with her actor husband, Julian Glover).

We’d love to know what you think: If you’re an author, do you find festivals a useful way to connect with readers and promote your work? If you’re a reader, what’s the thing you enjoy most about litfests?- LK

Pet Peeves

2011-09-30T00:10:00.001+01:00

I’ve got loads of audio book recording on at the moment – ‘Love in a Nutshell’ (by Janet Evanovich and Dorien Kelly), ‘Explosive Eighteen’ (also by Janet Evanovich) and ‘Red Mist’ (by Patricia Cornwell) - so thought this might be a good time to revisit my top peeves when narrating. Today I’m concentrating on producer/directors!

Before I start, I have to say that most audio producer/directors (like my CC partner Ali Muirden) are fantastic – prepared, helpful, encouraging, supportive and constructive. But just occasionally you get one who lets the side down a little...

My top 10:

1. Producers who don’t prepare because they say they like to come to it ‘fresh.’ This is laziness wearing spontaneity’s hat and hoping to get away with it!

2. Producers who over-prepare and have fixed ideas about how, for example, a character should sound.

3. Producers who are tense hear noises that aren’t there.

4. Producers who stop me a lot and break my flow.

5. Producers who give me line readings (when I produce, I’m guilty of this! *hangs head in shame*).

6. Producers who want me to read hour after hour without stopping. Narrators aren’t machines!

7. Producers who don’t give positive feedback occasionally.

And city by city:

8. London producers who insist I'm wrong when I pronounce 'shone' as 'shown' or 'suggest' as 'suggjest' (even when I prove my point by showing them the relevant entry in the Merriam Webster dictionary).

9. Los Angeles producers whose idea of direction is not 'a bit slower' or 'I think we had a bit of a tummy rumble there, darling' but rather 'I'm sorry, Lorelei... but like... I just don't feel like... you know ... that it's like... resonating from the core....' (Huh?)

10. New York producers who insist on ordering lunch from a vegan sushi bar instead of Cajun extra-hot burgers medium rare with blue cheese from Island Burger. (Okay, we're not exactly working on the oil rigs, but narrators need sustenance!) - LK

We'd love to know: If you’re a narrator, what are your pet peeves about producers? Or (fair’s fair) if you’re a producer, what are your pet peeves about narrators?

photo by TheStaceys1

The Chis-wick Capers

2011-09-23T00:33:00.000+01:00

Sound editor Al reports on Isla Blair’s recent promotional appearance at the Chiswick Book Festival …

We were thrilled to be at the annual Chiswick Book Festival (CBF) in London at the weekend to see Isla Blair discussing her memoir, “A Tiger’s Wedding”, where Isla discussed the book with her son, actor Jamie Glover.

The CBF gets better every year, with established authors conducting seminars alongside budding authors who may be promoting their debut titles. It is a three day event and attracts large audiences for the many workshops and events it holds.

A packed Tabard Theatre witnessed an enthralling hour with Isla and Jamie and it was very interesting to hear Isla being quizzed about the book, research, family history and much more - as always, Isla answered honestly, passionately and captivatingly - it reminded me of the strength of the audio version of “A Tiger’s Wedding” where Isla’s narration really brings the book to life.

If you get the chance, do go along to see/meet/hear Isla at these future events - “A Tiger’s Wedding” is going from strength to strength in all formats, and Isla gives so much when she speaks – it’s something not to be missed! – Al Muirden

Off with the old - on with the new!

2011-09-16T00:28:00.000+01:00

Lorelei is very excited! This week she met with our fabulous designer Dan to discuss the idea of our new-look website (coming soon, so watch this space!).

We’ve been discussing the idea of a re-vamp for a while now. I sometimes think that websites are a little bit like kids. Just when you’ve got them kitted out and spent a small fortune on them, getting them all the right gear in the correct size, they have a growth spurt and need a complete new look and off you go again.

Lorelei and I have both given the idea a lot of thought and discussed the kind of design we do and don’t like.

Personally, I’m a very central kind of girl. I like things to be equal and orderly.

No messy “flags” waving around at funny angles, no odd “kooky” pop ups bobbing up and down and flailing around, distracting you from the job at hand.

I wonder what that says about me as a person?

In the interests of research, I took a good look at some of my favourite websites. One of the things that most stood out about the best retail websites out there is simplicity. Build a “no brainer” and they will come!

Writing the copy for a website is very tricky though. You’ve got a lot to say and trying to cut it back to the bare bones is very hard, especially when you want to really convey lots of information and your enthusiasm for what you’re publishing. It’s been an interesting exercise in self control and discipline.

But as an exercise in self discipline I’m letting Lorelei and Dan get on with the job of the re-design as this is what they both love and do best. Lorelei is, after all, the woman who made her husband paint their living room walls 6 times* until they were just the right shade. The right shade of white, that is! Anyone that picky must be trustworthy.

It’s probably going to give me hives not being in control, but hey, what doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger. Or so they say!

We’d love some feedback from you, so do feel free to tell us what your favourite websites are and why. - Ali Muirden

*actually, it was 8 times - LK

Photo by kthypryn.