Love the idea of listening to audiobooks? If you’ve never listened to a novel before, perhaps you find yourself wondering, hmmm… What device do I need? As it turns out, you already have it:
- You can listen to audiobooks on any device that is compatible with the mp3 audio format, including: Sony Walkman, Apple iPad, iPhone, iPod; mp3 players by Sony, Archos, Coby, Creative, SanDisk and many more; Android, BlackBerry, and Windows Phone 7 smartphones and tablets. Here’s a good article about the use of your Smartphone for listening: How to Listen to Audio Books on Your Smartphone with Audible
- You can listen to audiobooks on your computer, using iTunes, Windows Media Player, or any other program that plays mp3 files.
- You can listen to audiobooks on your e-reader. Both the Amazon Kindle and the Barnes & Noble Nook can play mp3 files. Here are two good articles about the use of e-readers for listening: How to Listen to Audiobooks on an Amazon Kindle or a Barnes and Noble Nook, and Listening to Audio Books on Kindle 1st Generation.
Why Listen to Audiobooks?
If you spend a lot of time driving on long trips, or even sitting around the fireplace, you can imagine what a great companion audiobooks can be to spin away the hours. Great narrators make books come alive. Being so close to you, breathing words into your ear, they make the experience both intimate and heightened, with every nuance in the story becoming fully expressed.
I recently released two audiobooks from my most popular Undercover FBI series and am thrilled at the way they turned out. The narrators are both NY stage actors and take a great pride in their work … it shows.
Special Agent Francesca – A woman who isn’t afraid of anything. She flies her own plane, drives like a maniac, and is working undercover to take down the Vegas mob. Only one thing scares her silly – Dr. Sean Collins. (Narrated by Meg Persichetti – with a voice like warm molasses)
Audio sample – https://soundcloud.com/user-767730127/chapter-1
Special Agent Finnegan – Going undercover to find New York’s suicide killers ensures constant conflicts. Humor, romance, and an emotional tie between Finnegan and his old dad makes this an adventure you don’t want to miss. (Narrated by Tom Taverna – with a voice that draws you into his magic)
Audio sample – https://www.dropbox.com/s/bt3z3rbs0mpszpf/FinneganCHAPT1.mp3?dl=0
*** I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the treasure of audio books available from many of our authors. Just scroll up for the link… 😊
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NYT & USA Today, best-selling, award-winning author, MIMI BARBOUR, has seven romance series to her credit. She also has many single titles and a huge number of box sets – her own and multi-author collections.
Mimi lives on the East coast of Vancouver Island with her husband and writes her various romances with tongue in cheek and a mad glint in her eye. She’s been known to say: “If I can steal a booklover’s attention away from their everyday grind, absorb them into a fantasy love story, and make them care about the ending, then I’ve done my job.”
**Visit her blogs at http://mimibarbour.com / http://Authorsbillboard.com
**Sign up for her monthly newsletter at http://mimibarbour.com
Her reviews are numerous and incredibly positive:
“Love Mimi Barbour, love her books. When you can read a book that within just a few words, you are brought right into the book. You feel, taste, see everything going on. Great story lines. Fantastic characters, fantastic plots, story lines like real life both honest folk and of crooks. Humor that will have you giggling then full on belly laugh. You may even shed a tear or two. All in all, Mimi never disappoints.” ~ Reviewed by Shirleen Miller
I’ve never listened to audiobooks because they are way to expensive. Where can I audio books to listen to for free and I don’t mean a free trial?
Hi, Crystal! And, Mimi, I hope you’re okay with me offering Crystal feedback on her comment.
I understand. I felt that way at first as well. I get most of my audiobooks when eBooks are on sale — even free — Audible often offers the companion audiobook as low as $1.99.
Also, if you are one of those great readers who also loves to write reviews, many authors offer review copies, and there are Facebook groups, too. My suggestion, message your favorite author and ask if they have any review copies.
And…if you have a library card, many authors like myself offer our audiobooks to libraries, and you don’t even have to visit the library, just sign in online.
Hope you love audiobooks as much as I do. I just re-listened to one of my favorite series this week while I was having to do mindless spring cleaning. I love accomplishing two things at once!!! 🙂
Mimi, I LOVE audiobooks!!! To me, they are worth every penny. I almost always grab the audiobook if it’s available via Whispersync because I love flipping back and forth between the eBook and audiobook.
Just today, I finished a bunch of mindless tasks — and I was happy to do them because I had an audiobook to listen to. I also listen to them when I shop at Walmart. So much nicer than all the other noises. LOL!
I will have to check out yours!!!