About Us...
It was 1997 and I'm on my umpteenth trip from Baltimore to Orlando to visit my daughter. I taught computer management in Maryland. I was used to long drives and a good audiobook really helps the miles pass quickly. I'm crossing the Georgia state border around midnight when I hit the Eject button on the cassette player, rolled down the window and fling into a dark, peach state night one of the worst audiobooks I had ever heard. Then the Ah Ha! moment struck. I had a little extra money and no idea of how I was going to make it happen, but I knew 'heck I can do better than that'. Flash forward a lot of humble pie and much $$ later (ok, about a year and several $$ grand later) I was in the studio about to record my first audio drama. I was scared spitless. A collection of short stories called "Kegs of Powder" would be the first of many audio productions from Mountain Whispers. Myself and three other talented folks were finally off and running.
Now being a small studio has its advantages like I could keep my day job and work on each project as I had time and resources. The downside is I had to learn every aspect of audiobook production from the creative side like recording, microphones, editing software, acoustics, etc., to the business side such as packaging and marketing. Most aren't aware of it, but the 'voicing' part of audiobooks is only 20% of the work to bring a story to life. Lots of decisions have to be made before the CD's hit the selves. So 14 years later and I can proudly say I know most of the milestones necessary to take a novel from paper to audiobook. My favorite part? The Creative side. I love creating new voices and playing 'Stephen Spielberg' when it comes to the 'mixdown' of combining voice, sound effects, and music. I've learned how to create just the right mood to transport my listeners from their car, treadmill, and home stereo to smack in the middle of a great story. Grab some popcorn. Hit the Play button. It's time...
MountainWhispers.com Audiobooks - 87 East Ryneal St., Martinsburg, WV - 304-267-4358 - rossb@rocketmail.com
