This is my stop during the book blitz for the audiobook for Amanda Lester and the Pink Sugar Conspiracy by Paula Berinstein. The audiobook is narrated by Allan Corduner. Allan Corduner has narrated multiple books, one of them being The Book Thief and he does the voice of Severus Snape in the Harry Potter videogames.

This book blitz is organized by Lola’s Blog Tours. The book blitz runs from 24 till 30 October. Every day there will be a different guest post in which Paula talks about the process of making the audiobook. You can view the blitz schedule here.

Amanda Lester and the Pink Sugar Conspiracy (Amanda Lester, Detective #1)
Written by Paula Berinstein
Narrated by Allan Corduner
Length: 10 hrs and 47 mins
Genre: Mystery/ Detective
Age category: Middle Grade
Release Date Audiobook: September 27, 2016

Blurb:
A reluctant detective, a criminal mastermind, and sugar?

Amanda Lester wouldn’t be caught dead going into the family business. Her ancestor, Sherlock Holmes’s colleague Inspector G. Lestrade, is a twit. Nevertheless her parents refuse to see his flaws, and she’s going to a secret English school for the descendants of famous detectives whether she likes it or not.

When Amanda arrives at the dreaded school, she considers running away – until she and her new friends discover blood and weird pink substances in odd places. At first they’re not sure whether these oddities mean anything, but when Amanda’s father disappears and the cook is found dead with her head in a bag of sugar, they’re certain that crimes are taking place.

Now Amanda must embrace her destiny and uncover the truth. The only snag is that arch-villain Blixus Moriarty, a descendant of Holmes’s nemesis Professor James Moriarty, might be involved, and he doesn’t like nosy little girls interfering in his business.

You can find Amanda Lester and the Pink Sugar Conspiracy on Goodreads

You can buy the audiobook of Amanda Lester and the Pink Sugar Conspiracy here:
– Audible
– Amazon
– iTunes

Listen to a sample of the audiobook here on Soundcloud

Get the e-copy for free!
The e-copy of Amanda Lester and the Pink Sugar Conspiracy is free now on all vendor sites! Grab your free copy here:
– Amazon
– Barnes & Noble
– Kobo
– Smashwords

So You Want to Make an Audiobook, Post 7: The Audiobook as Art The Amanda Lester, Detective Odyssey with Paula Berinstein

As a result of my project, I have discovered that listening rather than reading allows you to experience a book in an entirely different way. How something is said is so important. A line you might interpret as angry or whiny when you read can come across as mellow, tongue in cheek, or dry when said aloud. A crisis can be magnified or played down. You might hear things you never realized were there. It’s amazing.

But from an author’s standpoint there’s more. When I heard Allan read my book something happened that changed the way I write. I realized I had inadvertently written the book in a way that sounded good when read aloud. I hadn’t meant to but somehow it turned out that way. Perhaps it’s because I hear my text in my head and automatically adjust the words so they flow well—I don’t know. But that got me thinking: what if my other books weren’t so audio friendly.

As we were winding up the audiobook I just happened to be making a final pass through Amanda Lester and The Red Spider Rumpus, the fifth title in the Amanda Lester, Detective series, and with Allan’s voice fresh in my mind I looked at that text in a whole new way. I imagined Allan reading the words and realized that some passages didn’t work. They were rhythmically wrong.

There was no way I was going to let them stand so I sharpened my pencil (I was editing a physical proof at that point) and nudged that puppy into shape. Sometimes I had to read the words aloud to make sure they worked. That isn’t something I would have done before, but I will now.

When you think about it, creating an audio version of a book is a lot like producing a play. Different directors interpret a text in their own ways. One director’s interpretation of Richard III (which was set in Nazi Germany when I saw it with Ian McKellen in the lead) will differ from another’s. One version of a movie is different from another. It’s up to the actors and the director to bring their vision to life. And that’s just what happened with my audiobook.

The way Allan reads the story is different from what’s in my head. I don’t just mean that my Editta is English rather than Scottish. It’s that he sees story and character in a whole other light—a light that illuminates the text in ways I never could imagine. And that’s the real beauty of an audiobook: you get to experience your creation as someone else does. What could be better than that?

About the Author:
Paula Berinstein is nothing like Amanda. For one thing, she’s crazy about Sherlock Holmes. For another, she’s never wanted to be a filmmaker. In addition, compared to Amanda she’s a big chicken! And she wouldn’t mind going to a secret school at all. In fact, she’s hoping that some day she’ll get to build one.

You can find and contact Paula here:
– Website
– Facebook
– Twitter
– Goodreads
– Paula’s blog on Goodreads
– The Writing Show podcasts
– Newsletter

Giveaway
There is a tour wide giveaway for the book blitz for Amanda Lester and the Pink Sugar Conspiracy. These are the prizes you can win:
– 2 audiobook copies of Amanda Lester and the Pink Sugar Conspiracy
– 2 amazon gift cards of 15$

For a chance to win, enter the rafflecopter below:
a Rafflecopter giveaway