So You Just Got Hired To Narrate Your Own Audiobook...

Rajneeshpuram: Inside the Cult of Bhagwan and Its Failed American Utopia, by Russell King. Available 3/8/22.

The publishing journey for my nonfiction history of the Rajneeshpuram commune in Oregon — Rajneeshpuram: Inside the Cult of Bhagwan and Its Failed American Utopia — has included many twists and turns. But something happened that I really never saw coming: an audiobook publisher decided to produce an audio version of my book and then hired ME to narrate it.

I’ve never narrated an audiobook, and I guess I assumed the job was exclusive to actors, professional narrators, or big name authors. But the publisher heard some of my voice work on my podcast about the Rajneesh cult, Building Utopia: Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, and they liked it enough to give me an offer to read my own book. It took a little psyching myself up to say yes.

And then I actually had to record the damn thing. Having now completed the book after spending nearly 30 hours in the studio, I’m here to share some tips and tricks I gleaned along the way. I certainly don’t profess to be an expert, but I know a lot more now than I did at the beginning of the process. Hopefully this will be helpful to other authors in a similar situation, or anybody who’s new to narrating audiobooks or wants to give it a try.

Be Prepared.

Sure, you wrote the book. Sure, you’ve read the text 10,000,000,000 times throughout the editorial process and feel like you could recite entire passages from memory. But now try reading a couple pages out loud. Or, even worse, record yourself reading it out loud. You may be surprised at how challenging it can be.

Before you show up at the recording studio, you will need to have gone through your entire manuscript with a pen (digital or ink) while thinking about how it sounds when you read it. Maybe that means you actually read the entire thing out loud. (But preserve your voice in the days before recording!) Maybe it means you just whisper or mumble the words as you read it.

Whatever your process, pre-reading the book will help you flag crucial elements that you might otherwise miss, like the following:

• Long sentences where you need to strategize about the best place to take a breath. I notated these with a slash in the sentence wherever I wanted to breathe.

• Places in the text (often the end of a page) where you want to pause for dramatic effect. I’d put two slashes at the bottom of the page if the next page were the beginning of a new section or chapter. I’d also put two slashes if I wanted to leave a lot of space to allow something complicated (or, more often, horrifying) sink in for the reader.

• Tricky passages where you’ll need to proceed slowly. I learned this one the hard way while recording. Some phrases look beautiful on paper but they read horribly out loud. Your tongue will get twisted by repetitive vowel sounds or syllables, or you will stumble over a phrase with lots of clauses. Save yourself some retakes by highlighting in advance any place where you know you’ll need to be deliberate in your reading. It’s just a warning flag for future you in the recording booth: proceed with caution!

• Pronunciation. Seriously, you have no idea how many words are in your book that you don’t know how to pronounce, or you think you know how to pronounce but don’t. I was lucky that my (amazing) audiobook publisher, Blackstone, sent me a massive spreadsheet ahead of my recording session with all of the words in my manuscript that are prone to mispronunciation, with specific diacritic guidance on how I should pronounce them and links to online dictionaries or other pronunciation sources. In my book, I have a lot of Sanskrit names, Indian words, German towns and places, and foreign last names. And there are also some words that I just pronounce in a nontraditional way (“syringe” haunts me). For all of these, I noted in the text the correct pronunciation to save myself from some headaches and retakes while recording.

The goal here is to show up to the studio as prepared as possible so that you minimize interruptions and retakes while recording.

Be Flexible.

I didn’t know how audiobooks are produced, so I had to go into the process with an open mind and a willingness to learn. I didn’t know who would be there, what the setup would look like, or even whether I had to bring my own copy of the book or not. As it turned out, I sat in a studio booth with the audio engineer on the other side of the glass window and the audiobook producer listening in from his home office in Hawaii. (He has the best gig...) I just ran with it when I got there.

Before we started, we discussed how we’d proceed on those occasions when I’d make a mistake or need a sip of water. These were the options: They could either keep the “tape” rolling and have me just start over where I made the mistake (and then they would have to edit out all the bad takes in post-production), OR they could do a “cut and run” method where if i made a mistake, the engineer would quickly rewind to the end of the last good phrase I said and then I’d have to just jump in from there. This makes the post-production process more efficient, since the bad takes are all gone by the time we’re done with the book. I didn’t know ANYTHING about this going into the session, and “cut and run” made me nervous since it felt like I’d be leaping into a Quadruple Dutch jumprope every time. But since they preferred that method, I just ran with it. (And actually ended up loving it.)

The theme here is to be flexible. I didn’t walk into the studio like an AUTHOR there to give them the gift of my words. I walked in like a contractor who had been hired to do a specific job, working with people who know a hell of a lot more about it than me. I’d urge you to be humble and open to unexpected parts of the process and new ideas about how to make your text sound best.

Turn Off Your Author Brain.

It was only after a full day of recording that I realized I was thinking way too much about my book as I was reading. As an author, of course it’s hard to stop engaging with your own text, even when it’s set in stone. It’s hard to stop worrying that perhaps you never tied up a loose end that you’re just now noticing in the text, or beating yourself up over a clunky phrase or a weird transition. And there are problems that you will ONLY discover by going through the process of reading the entire thing out loud. (Guilty confession: we found three (minor) typos in my book while I was recording it.)

But you really can’t focus on that while recording. You’re there to give a performance of your work, and if you’re reading out loud but also critiquing your text at the same time — you’re not really doing your job. Take off your author hat, and put on your narrator beret. (I don’t know, it just seems like it’d be a beret.)

Take Care of Yourself.

Go into this knowing that it’s a MARATHON. If you aren’t braindead and numb by the end of each long session, you have been gifted with some incredible stamina. Most bodies aren’t physically prepared to read for that long. Your lungs will give out on you. Your tongue won’t cooperate. Your lips will stop forming the syllables you intend. For that reason, I think you should try to conserve your energy around your recording sessions and pay close attention to what you’re putting in your body.

There are lots of tips online about how to take care of yourself before, during, and after recording sessions. Here are some things that worked for me:

• Green apple slices!!!! This is my number one recommendation. They are lifesaver snacks throughout the day when your mouth and throat start to become dry and you start hearing the dreaded “mouth noises” in your headphones. Any apples I’m sure will help you salivate, but my producer told me green apples are the best and I will just go with that!

• Hot water with lemon and/or honey. Very calming on the throat.

• Water water water water water. But drink it the day before your session. Drink it overnight. Drink it that morning. Drink it on the train to the studio. If you haven’t hydrated before your session, you won’t be able to suddenly catch up while spewing out a hundred pages of text from your poor, parched mouth.

• Bland foods. Your stomach can become a character in your recording session, especially right before and after lunch. If you’re in a good studio with a great microphone, it will pick up tiny gurgles that you would barely notice in normal life. I found that a light breakfast and then something bready for lunch made me feel nourished but with minimal stomach sounds. Lunch for me was usually a croissant, a bottle of juice, and some green apple slices.

Have Fun!

Yes it can be stressful and taxing and perhaps beyond your comfort zone, but then your sessions will be coming to an end and you’ll realize you’ve made it through your entire book and that makes you a REAL AUDIOBOOK NARRATOR! So make sure you have some fun along the way. Try a wacky character voice. Chat with the engineer. Snoop around the studio to see if anybody cool is recording there. Take selfies during breaks. Enjoy your moment as a performing artist before disappearing back into your lonely writing cavern.

These tips may not work for everyone, but they worked for me. If you have any great narrating tips, share them in the comments! And good luck!

From Hook to Book, or How I Got a Nonfiction Book Deal

Rajneeshpuram: Inside the Cult of Bhagwan and Its Failed American Utopia, by Russell King (available 3/8/2022)

I’m devoting this space to explaining my process for getting an agent and a book deal for my nonfiction history of the Rajneeshpuram commune, Rajneeshpuram: Inside the Cult of Bhagwan and Its Failed American Utopia. When I started out on my publishing journey, I knew almost nothing about how a person goes from a guy on the street to a published nonfiction author. I spent dozens of hours reading books and online articles to learn how I might persuade the publishing world to allow me to write a nonfiction history of the Rajneeshpuram commune in Oregon. Since I benefitted so much from reading others’ experiences, I’m explaining my own process and offering some guidance below, in the hopes that it will help up-and-coming nonfiction authors.

Most of this advice is specific to nonfiction and traditional publishing, although some of it may apply to fiction writers and those consider self-publishing.

The Book Idea

When I started working on my narrative nonfiction podcast series Building Utopia: Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, I had no intention of writing a book. I wrote the series based on material I gleaned from existing sources — memoirs, old secondary sources, online records — and I didn’t do much original research beyond that. But after making a number of episodes, I realized that I still had so many questions about events at Rajneeshpuram that had not yet been answered, and that the only way to find those answers would be through original research, like talking to sources and uncovering records that had not yet seen the light of day.

But I couldn’t just throw myself headfirst into such an enormous undertaking without a good reason — otherwise, to me, it would feel self-indulgent. I needed to have a purpose and some means to share what I learned with a broad audience. The only option that seemed within my means would be writing a nonfiction history of the Rajneeshpuram commune.

Now, I’m a grown person with a job and a husband and a kid and a mortgage. I wasn’t eager to throw myself into a very long project without some indication that this thing could actually get published. As luck would have it, I learned that with traditional nonfiction publishing you typically don’t write a book until you have a book deal (as opposed to fiction, where generally you write the entire book and then try to get a deal). I also learned that most traditional publishers only consider projects from authors who have a literary agent. And I learned that to entice an agent to represent your nonfiction project, you first need to write a book proposal.

So this gave me some very clear steps to follow in my mission to get published: (1) write a book proposal; (2) get a literary agent; (3) get a publisher. Only if those three things fell into place would I pursue writing my history of Rajneeshpuram. Otherwise, I planned to close out my podcast series, place my book idea on the metaphorical shelf, and leave all my questions about Rajneeshpuram unanswered!

Writing a Book Proposal

Unless you’re an established author, your first step in getting a nonfiction book deal is to write a book proposal. A proposal is a lengthy document (mine was about 75 pages) that is designed to convince the reader that you are uniquely qualified to write a book on the topic in question, that there is a market for your book, and that you have the chops to write it. Proposals typically include an introduction, a market analysis, an author biography, a chapter-by-chapter outline, and a writing sample (usually the first couple chapters of the proposed book).

I spent a lot of time at the Chicago Public Library researching how to write an effective proposal for a narrative nonfiction book. There are great resources out there to help you with this. In my proposal, I focused on persuading the reader that I could write a book that would go above and beyond what was covered in the docuseries “Wild Wild Country” on Netflix and that would appeal to multiple audiences (including people who read true crime, history, and are interested in cults). In revising my draft proposal, I spent a TON of time on the sample chapter, and I elicited feedback from friends and family. As a first-time author, I really wanted to prove that I could write a gripping, interesting chapter. Incidentally, I found that this exercise helped shape the style that I would go on to use when writing the actual book. So I would recommend investing a lot of time in your proposal before sending it out — and not only because it’s the tool you use to get your foot in the door. (Incidentally, the outline in my proposal ended up being very similar to the outline in my final book, but nearly all of the sample chapter got tossed in the garbage when I started writing.)

Finding an Agent

Most mainstream publishers won’t consider nonfiction book proposals unless they’re passed along by literary agents. There are tons of resources available online or at libraries to identify agents who represent authors doing the kind of work you intend to do. My list included only agents interested in representing nonfiction history writers, and I prioritized agents who expressed any sort of interest in true crime and cults.

Once you have your list of agents, you need to craft your pitch — the email that is designed to get the agent interested enough that they ask to see your full proposal. There are tons of resources available online that help writers craft their pitches, many of which I relied upon in crafting my own. Below is my pitch. It ain’t perfect — it’s probably too long, in retrospect — but it was good enough. This is the version I sent to the person who would become my agent, Jim McCarthy at Dystel, Goderich & Bourret, and you’ll see it’s customized to him. More on that later. First, here’s the pitch:

Dear Mr. McCarthy,

I am seeking representation related to my book proposal for Rajneeshpuram: The Secret History of Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh’s Failed American Utopia, a 100,000-word, narrative nonfiction account of the Indian guru Rajneesh’s disastrous efforts to build a spiritual utopia in eastern Oregon. I am writing to you because both you and Dystel Goderich & Bourret have such a terrific track record of working with nonfiction authors, and I'm particularly impressed with your enthusiasm about promoting underrepresented and LGBTQ authors, of which I am one.

Rajneeshpuram was intended to be a utopian experiment in communal living where the “Rolls Royce guru” Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh could transform his followers into the New Man—transcendent beings who balanced spirituality and joyfulness. But conflicts within and beyond the commune shaped it into an authoritarian state where paranoid leaders bugged bedrooms, poisoned suspected enemies, and plotted the assassination of government officials. Rajneeshpuram: The Secret History of Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh's Failed American Utopia will paint a rich portrait of life inside the commune using interviews with former disciples and an unprecedented review of commune records, legal documents, law enforcement investigative files, audio and video recordings, and archival materials. It will address the many mysteries about the Rajneeshees that remain even after the Emmy-winning Netflix docuseries Wild Wild Country, including how so many people got swept up in Rajneesh's spiritual movement and how things went so horribly wrong at Rajneeshpuram. Major outlets reviewing Wild Wild Country have noted a demand for information that the docuseries missed, including a deeper exploration of why regular people devoted their lives to Rajneesh (The New Yorker, The Atlantic, Rolling Stone), what Rajneesh believed and taught his followers (The Guardian, The A.V. Club), and how the guru rose to become such a powerful and controversial figure (The A.V. Club). Rajneeshpuram will address these questions and will also introduce readers to fascinating aspects of the Rajneeshee experiment that have never been fully reported, using an absorbing narrative-nonfiction format that will appeal to readers interested in modern history, cults, and true crime. Rajneeshpuram will sit comfortably alongside best-selling, thoroughly reported historical accounts of charismatic leaders and the victims they left along the path to enlightenment, such as The Road to Jonestown: Jim Jones and Peoples Temple by Jeff Guinn and Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief by Lawrence Wright. Notably, there is no comprehensive historical book about the Rajneeshees available on the market today.

I am perfectly situated and very eager to tell this story. I'm the creator of the podcast Building Utopia: Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, which uses the tools of narrative nonfiction to explore the history of Rajneesh and his disciples. To date I have written and produced meticulously-researched scripts totaling more than 75,000 words. Building Utopia has ranked among the Top 100 History Podcasts on Apple Podcasts, and reviewers have called it “captivating” and “addictive.” I have the skills to investigate and report on this story given my decade of experience as a partner at one of the world’s largest law firms, where I investigate claims against multinational corporations by assessing millions of pages of records, interviewing and deposing witnesses, and presenting complex factual narratives. I have won awards for my academic writing on history and on the law. My investigative and storytelling skills, combined with my enthusiasm for and knowledge of this topic, make me the ideal person to share the untold story of Rajneesh’s failed utopia.

I'd love to explore the opportunity to work together to find an appropriate publisher.

Warm regards,

Russell King

So a couple points about my pitch: First, note that it is tailored to the agent who received it. The general advice out there is to do your research and tailor your pitches, and I completely agree with that — especially to ensure your pitch is going to an agent who would conceivably represent your work. But I would not spend a ton of time Twitter-stalking, Googling, etc. agents. Others may disagree, but I believe an agent will ask for pages/proposals if they’re interested in your work, not if you can spout out a bunch of research you did about them. (And in fact it may be a little creepy… i.e., “I saw on your Twitter post from four years ago that you watched a documentary, and guess what my book is similar…”) Your time is best spent on honing you pages/proposal and perfecting your pitch.

Second, you’ll see that I spent a lot of words making a case for why my book should exist and why I should be the one to write it. For a nonfiction proposal from an unknown writer, these are essential points. For fiction, I’d imagine the pitch would focus on drawing the agent into the story so they want to read your pages. For nonfiction, it’s about establishing your credentials and the business case for the book — while also indicating that your book would be good read. The same is true for the proposal itself.

Third, you’ll also notice that the title of my book changed from then to now. This is normal. Lots will change. Your agent will have ideas. If you find a publisher, your editor will have ideas. The marketing people will chime in. The pitch (and the proposal) is just the beginning of the conversation.

Getting Rejected (and Maybe Accepted)

Your next step in the publishing process is to get rejected. Most agents won’t be interested in seeing your work at all. Maybe they don’t like your topic. Maybe they represent an author who is too similar or they have too many clients in your genre. Maybe they don’t like your style. Maybe they’re having a bad day. Some agents might ask to see your proposal/pages and will sit on them for a long time without any response. Some might ask to see them and then still reject you. A stunning number of agents will not give you the courtesy of a response at all. You just have to keep at it. Embrace rejection as a normal part of the process. If you’re not getting rejected, that only means you’re not putting your work out there.

I maintained a spreadsheet of potential agents, in order of my preference, and I generally had about 4-5 pitches outstanding at any one time. You dribble them out so that you can modify your pitch over time, as you start to get some feedback from agents who reject you. As soon as a new rejection came in, I immediately — I mean IMMEDIATELY — sent my pitch to the next agent on my list. Having this automatic process in place helped me feel like I had some sort of control over the querying process, which is otherwise maddening, frustrating, and anxiety-inducing.

To paint a clear depiction of all the rejection, I just dug up my agents spreadsheet to provide some data. I included 52 potential agents on my list, based on all my research. I sent my pitch to 38 agents. I received rejections from 24. Most were form rejections based on my query email, without ever seeing my full proposal. Seven agents requested my full proposal. One agent liked my proposal but asked to see more of my writing, so I sent all my podcast episode scripts. Some agents rejected me after reading the proposal, and they generally offered some explanation of why they were passing. Some were very kind and complimentary in their rejections.

Of the seven who requested my proposal, I had the luxury of deciding between two excellent agents who offered to represent me. Both agents were high on my list, had requested to see my full proposal early on, and had just taken some time to look at it and make an offer. To decide between them, I asked lots of questions. The most illuminating topic for me was their vision for my book. How would they pitch it to publishers? What types of publishers did they have in mind? Where would they imagine my book sitting in the bookstore? What comparable titles would they use to try to sell my book? Answers to these questions — along with just a general sense of personality fit — helped me make my choice.

Finding a Publisher

Once you have an agent, they really take the wheel, although they may ask you to make some revisions to your proposal before they start sending it out. It’s their job to identify which publishers are the best fit for your book and which acquiring editors they should target. Your agent should consult with you about what they’re doing and who they’re pitching to, but your primary function at this stage is to sit back and wait for an offer to (hopefully) come in. Warning: this can be a LONG process, and it often requires multiple rounds before your book lands at a publisher that’s interested. Even if an editor is interested in your book (after they finally get around to reading your proposal among everything else in their queue), they typically need to take the decision to a committee for approval before making an offer.

The Contract

The last step in the process before you begin writing your nonfiction book is to negotiate and sign the publishing contract. For me, this was actually the most stressful step in this whole publishing journey. (Maybe it’s because I’m a lawyer in real life…) You can and should read the publishing contract carefully — and you shouldn’t assume that your agent will do it for you. You should feel free to engage an attorney to review it, but also know that there’s lots of free resources online that help writers understand publishing contracts and what terms should always be included. You can and should make revisions based on what you think is right and fair. I requested a number of changes in my contract. My publisher didn’t agree to all of them, but it agreed to most — and that made me feel much more satisfied going into the relationship.

Once the ink has dried on a nonfiction deal, the fun part begins — researching and writing! That’s a story for another time. Hopefully sharing my experience here is helpful to other new nonfiction writers who are ready to get their work out there. Good luck!