I’ve always loved the idea of audiobooks. Plug in a set of headphones, or play them over speakers and you can read anywhere, any time, no matter what you’re doing. No more putting off chores to read. (Wait, on second thoughts, maybe that’s not such a good thing!) I’m the sort of person who listens to music and YouTube videos 90% of my waking hours anyway, so reading via audiobooks seem like a perfect fit for me. I mean, who doesn’t want to be able to read books while driving to work?
Except that I’ve never quite managed to convert myself to audiobooks, no matter how hard I try. In theory, and in practice, audiobooks are awesome. They’re portable, the narrators are amazing, the books themselves are gripping, and there’s such a variety to choose from. If you’re interested in reading on the go, then I would highly recommend that you give them a go. But something I have learned about myself as a reader, much to my disappointment, is that audio books and I are not compatible, for several reasons.
When I read, I sink into the book. If it’s really good, I lose track of time. I’m very much a ‘one more chapter’ type of personality. If I like a book, I am glued to the page, hardly able to rip myself away long enough to do things like sleep (which is probably why I end up reading until 2 in the morning way more often than I should). Listen to a book, or anything really, and I am easily distracted. It’s fine if it’s a YouTube video, which is light entertainment for me, and usually quite short, and less fine if it’s a long book and I’ve missed some important information because I got distracted by a dog.
I don’t like missing things in books. It’s bad enough when I read too quickly, miss something important, and have to flip back a couple of pages to bring myself back up to speed with what’s going on. It’s worse when you’re listening to it and have to scrub back to through audio to try and find the right place. Or if you fall asleep and wake up with no idea where you are, or what the last thing you remember hearing is. My dad does that constantly and has to go back hours to find out where he was. I really don’t have the patience to be doing that all the time.
The other thing I struggle with is just how long audiobooks are. It’s almost scary to look at a book and realise it’s going to take a full 24 hours to listen to all of it. Even 16 hours is daunting. Plenty of books seem to be that long, or even longer. It’s difficult to convince myself that it’s worth listening to a book for that many hours when I know for a fact that I could read it much faster if it was in print. Time is precious, and I am not patient.
I really wish audiobooks worked for me. I would love to be able to pour those stories right in into my brain and take these amazing adventures with me in the car, while I’m cleaning the house, or just out on a walk with my dogs. I live in hope of one day convincing my brain to sink into these audiobooks the way it’s supposed to, and pay proper attention for once in my life. Who knows? Maybe in the future I’ll finally get the hang of it. For now though, I guess I’m sticking to print and ebooks, which is no terrible thing, I suppose.
Hi Imogen!
I found you through your mom’s blog and I am excitedly looking forward to reading your first book!
I am a late adopter when it comes to technology as well, and I enjoyed my first audiobook finally this summer on a long road trip when I needed entertainment.
I listened to “Emma: The Audioplay by Audible” and it was so fantastic! I deeply love all the Pride and Prejudice movies, “Becoming Jane” is one my top all time favorite movies, and I really loved watching Downton Abbey and I look forward to seeing the movie.
When I would try to read Jane Austen, in high school ages as well as an adult, the characters would not come alive for me. My goodness, I felt incredibly interested and entertained in the story and the characters as I listened to the Audioplay. I eagerly looked forward to hearing more as excitedly as I do with a new tv series that has caught my attention. After 12 hours of listening, I came away with an appreciation and understanding of Jane Austen and her story in a way that I could never gave accessed as a reader. I felt the experience was outstanding, and I hope someday you find a audiobook or audiolay that speaks to your heart. I hear the Sherlock Holmes books read by Stephen Fey are outstanding, and admittedly I would love to hear Jurassic Park as written.
Currently my next fiction audiobook will be Pride and Prejudice done by Audible as a play, and for non fiction, I am listening to You Need a Budget by Jesse Meckham, and I have a free version of Blinkist app installed which allows me to listen to 15 minute audio summaries of great non fiction books, which provides me the chance to learn something new every day in 15 minutes time. It feels a bit like a condensed college course for adults, and I love to learn on a daily basis. I also listen to the Prosperous Heart by Julia Cameron to help strengthen my creativity and learn more about aligning my money with my values. I hope these resources might spark joy for you!
Hope you are enjoying making your YouTube vlogs and maybe consider putting together a Audioplay scene to promote your books. I know you’ve got bright sisters and probably some theatrical friends, and perhaps it might be fun to act out scenes from your book. Eventually, a movie to the big screen might be possible, as many of the best movies are based on written books. Something tells me you have the heart of a storyteller, which means your stories might inspire others to create a video.
I’ve enjoyed your mom’s site, I find her and you and your sisters so inspiring!
~Mica