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Tuesday, July 29, 2014

Audiobook Reader/Performer Tavia Gilbert and Giveaway of The Actual and Truthful Adventures of Becky Thatcher



I'm thrilled to have audiobook reader Tavia Gilbert on the blog today! When I heard that The Actual & Truthful Adventures of Becky Thatcher would be made into an audiobook by Dreamscape, I was thrilled, and the moment I heard Tavia Gilbert's audio sample, I knew that she was the perfect choice to bring my story to life. She's a truly gifted performer and I'm so very grateful that she wanted to become the voice of my version of Becky Thatcher. Dreamscape has generously offered to provide a copy of the audiobook for a special giveaway; just leave a comment on this post and you'll be entered! UPDATE: Random.org has spoken and the winner is KENDA TURNER! And there's another chance to win over at Tavia's blog!

Tavia is an award-winning narrator with nearly 300 audiobooks under her belt. Contemporary and literary fiction, biography and memoir, fantasy, romance, children’s literature, science, religion, and more. Tavia’s range of genres is a direct result of her intuitive interpretation, clever diction and pacing, and sensitivity to each author’s or publisher’s needs.

Tell us briefly how you started narrating/performing audiobooks.

My lifelong dream has always been to be a professional actor, and I studied theater in college, earning a BFA in Acting from Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle. About a year after graduation I moved to Portland, Maine, for what I planned would be about six months, to attend the Salt Institute for Documentary Studies, immersing myself in learning the craft of documentary radio. Sound had always been a passion — I’d sung all my life in choirs and loved radio, was passionate about voice studies at Cornish, and had listened to a few magnificent audiobooks.

When the time drew near for me to return to Washington, I met someone and began an important, long-term relationship, and soon realized that Maine was going to be in my life much longer than I’d anticipated. I did commercial work and professional theater in Portland, but still had to rely on a day job, and that was not the dream. Voice acting was the only obvious path to being a self-supporting, full-time, professional actor even from a small market like New England. I set my sights on audiobooks, listened voraciously to the best narrators, took classes, got individual coaching, joined the professional trade organization that organizes the audiobook industry, worked toward breaking in for a couple years, and have now been a full-time narrator for seven years, with about 300 books recorded.

How do you find out about different book jobs that are available?

Most often publishers contact me and assign a book that they think is well suited to my particular voice and acting skills and experience. Or I’ll be given the opportunity to audition for a project, and sometimes I book the job, sometimes not. (Your book was one that I auditioned for, and I wanted it so much it almost hurt, actually! Usually I try to forget about the things I audition for, so if someone else is cast I’m not too disappointed, but I couldn’t manage to do that with Becky Thatcher.) Increasingly, writers contact me directly with projects that they’d like me to work on. Occasionally I’ll pursue a book or a writer’s work that I’m personally interested in. However they come, I’m very grateful!

Do you do different voices? What is your process for developing character voices?

I do do character voices, and I really love vocally creating distinct personalities. That’s one of my strengths, I think — managing the demands of differentiating great numbers of people of various ages, races, genders, attitudes, classes, and dialects. I’m not a master at precise dialect — some I do better than others — but I do create a cinematic landscape successfully, so that the listener always knows who is speaking and the characters remain specific and individual. I don’t actually have much of a process, to be honest with you! I should develop one, probably. I just read the book and take into consideration what the characters say about themselves and each other, and then I act in the present moment, tweak if I need to, take notes so that I can remain consistent throughout a book or a series, and always let the words on the page guide the performance.

Are narrations of books always done word-for-word as written, or are there adaptions needed in some cases to make the spoken version make more sense or flow more clearly?

Narrations are and should be word for word. Narrating an audiobook reveals writing weaknesses quickly. Many skilled writers read their work aloud as they draft and revise, because they know that the rhythm and sensibility, the poetry and lyricism of language can be highlighted when words are brought off the page. If the language is clunky or awkward aurally, it should be rewritten so that it flows, whether it’s going to be read or listened to. 

Your writing was lovely to read. Truly — it is a great pleasure to narrate beautifully- written work. It’s not only a great pleasure — it’s almost always easy and even relaxing to read well-crafted literature. There are exceptions — Annie Dillard is brilliant, but really challenging to voice — but most often, the better the writing, the easier my job. When it’s great, the story almost reads itself.

What are the special considerations an audiobook narrator has when taking care of his/her voice?

I stay very hydrated, drinking water and a combination of Throat Coat and Breathe Right tea throughout the day. I don’t smoke or spend time in smoky environments, only drink with moderation, and would be reluctant to go to an event or a gathering where I had to yell or raise my voice to be heard for a long period of time. I exercise and stay fit and strong so that I’m supporting my voice with as healthy a back, neck, and shoulders, and core as I can. I try to get a lot of sleep. It’s everything, my voice. So I try to take good care of it.

What do you like to read/listen to in your free time?

I have far too little time to read for pleasure, which is a shame, because I’ve been an avid reader all my life. But when I do have time, I read literary fiction, memoir, theology and spiritual contemplation, and narrative non-fiction. I listen to audio a lot, when I’m commuting on the subway, exercising, or doing housework, and I listen to the same things I read for pleasure. I also occasionally listen to purely entertaining things like thrillers and mysteries if the narrator is one of my favorites. If I love a particular narrator’s work I’ll listen to anything they perform, because they can make everything they do fantastic! My favorite narrators are Barbara Rosenblat, Davina Porter, Katherine Kellgren, Bernadette Dunne, Carol Monda, Suzanne Toren, Simon Vance, Richard Ferrone, Johnny Heller, George Guidall, Norman Dietz. They’re also some of my favorite people!

What projects do you have coming up next?

Oh, I have such interesting things! I’m doing a biography of Coco Chanel right now, wonderfully researched and written by Rhonda Garelick, the autobiography of Eleanor Roosevelt, which is remarkable and inspiring and humbling, and the memoir Not Fade Away by Rebecca Alexander, about the way Rebecca chooses to live with joy and ambition even with the diminishing of her sight and hearing. Narrating the stories of four notable women in a row is just wonderful. Who’s the fourth? Becky Thatcher, of course!

Thank you so much, Tavia, for taking the time to answer my questions. Again, I'm so grateful that you chose to voice Becky T!

LINKS~ Find out more about Tavia here!

taviagilbert.com

twitter.com/taviagilbert

facebook.com/taviagilbertswords


Just leave a comment to be entered to win a copy of Dreamscape's audiobook of The Actual & Truthful Adventures of Becky Thatcher! A winner will be chosen via Random.org next Wednesday, August 6. UPDATE: Per Random.org, the winner is Kenda Turner!

Friday, July 18, 2014

Hungry For A New Middle Grade Book? ALL FOUR STARS Giveaway!!

Published by G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Penguin
Boy, do I have a tasty treat for you. Gladys Gatsby has arrived!

Meet Gladys Gatsby: New York’s toughest restaurant critic. (Just don’t tell anyone that she’s in sixth grade.)

Gladys Gatsby has been cooking gourmet dishes since the age of seven, only her fast-food-loving parents have no idea! Now she’s eleven, and after a crème brûlée accident (just a small fire), Gladys is cut off from the kitchen (and her allowance). She’s devastated, but soon finds just the right opportunity to pay her parents back when she’s mistakenly contacted to write a restaurant review for one of the largest newspapers in the world. But to meet her deadline and keep her dream job, Gladys must cook her way into the heart of her sixth-grade archenemy and sneak into New York City—all while keeping her identity a secret. Easy as pie, right?

I first met author Tara Dairman's wonderful character Gladys Gatsby when 250 words of Gladdy's bold culinary antics were featured in a contest entry on Miss Snark's First Victim. I fell deeply in love with that single page, so you can imagine my feelings about an entire book full of this charming heroine. I wasn't a bit surprised when I learned that the manuscript had been snatched up by a fabulous agent and, shortly after, a very large publisher.

Spirit, humor, heart, and mouthwatering dishes make All Four Stars a must-read for any lover of middle grade literature, particularly young chefs-in-the-making and young foodies. And all of the delicious food items mentioned in the book have been personally savored by the author, who sampled some of the world's most scrumptious meals and nibbles during her 2-year, 74-country honeymoon...yes, it's true, go read about it here). Here's a sample of the fantastic industry praise All Four Stars has gotten:

 Gladys is a lovable character with plenty of spunk and desireand readers will happily cheer her on, while the fresh plot adds a delicious dimension to the host of stories set in sixth grade.

The [restaurant-reviewing] plan goes disastrously and hilariously awry, but Gladys and fine food ultimately triumph. The characters are well drawn…Give this one to your young foodies.-SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL

Younger readers (especially those who know their way around a kitchen) will be amused by Gladys’s reviews of her parents’ horrible cooking (“The peas… arrived at the table in a soggy, mushy state fit for a baby”) and her plot to get to New York City without alerting any adults. The triumphant conclusion makes this a tasty read.
-PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

Gladys turns out to be surprisingly canny and resourceful…and Gladys’s psychological journey and personal transformation are solid and credible. [An] entertaining story about the joys of following one’s bliss.
-KIRKUS

All Four Stars has been named an Amazon Best Book of the Month for July

The book was released on July 10 and I've already bought 3 copies for myself and family members. I love it so much that I'm giving away a copy to my blog readers as well. *Just leave a comment on this post and you'll be entered. The winner will be chosen via Random.org on July 25th.*

UPDATE: Random.org has spoken and the winner of Tara's book is michelleimason!! Congrats, Michelle!


Tara's Website: http://taradairman.com/


Follow Tara on Twitter (@TaraDairman)

Tuesday, July 8, 2014

The Power of Books: Our Very Own Squash



Sophie's Squash, by Pat Zietlow Miller & Anne Wilsdorf, has been a very popular book at our house since it came out last year. It's been SO popular that it should have come as no surprise several months ago when my five-year-old wouldn't let me cook a spaghetti squash I bought, instead insisting that it was her new friend. She named her squash Lucy. A little background on the book, for those of you who aren't familiar:

On a trip to the farmers' market with her parents, Sophie chooses a squash, but instead of letting her mom cook it, she names it Bernice. From then on, Sophie brings Bernice everywhere, despite her parents' gentle warnings that Bernice will begin to rot. As winter nears, Sophie does start to notice changes.... What's a girl to do when the squash she loves is in trouble?

The recipient of four starred reviews, an Ezra Jack Keats New Writer Honor, and a Charlotte Zolotow Honor, Sophie's Squash will be a fresh addition to any collection of seasonal books.

What's a mom to do? I let her draw a face on it and "Lucy" was carried around, brought on wagon walks, and tucked in at night for...well, for a long time. As gardening season approached (it's late in Colorado due to occasional snowstorms in April/May), I gently suggested that we make Lucy a bed in the backyard. The squash fell and broke open on the way to the garden, so I let my daughter sprinkle some of Lucy's seeds in a few different spots before we buried the halves of her. And so this:


Has turned into this:

There are three little sections of green in this photo (except for behind her~ those are weeds)~ all from Lucy

Now we're just waiting for the final step~ finding a baby squash.
Illustration from Sophie's Squash
This book is a joy all on its own, but the fact that it prompted such a great activity with me and my little one makes it extra special. If you have any wee kids/grandkids/neighborhood kids who have birthdays coming up, I highly suggest getting a copy of Sophie's Squash along with your choice of grocery store squash. It's a fun gift pairing. And a sequel to the book, Sophie's Seeds, is coming soon.

Hope you're enjoying some fun activities this summer!