Working With A VO Has Never Been So Easy
Thank you so much for considering me to narrate your audiobook.
I know how much time, care, and emotional energy goes into writing a book — and being trusted with that work is something I never take lightly. Whether you’re a seasoned author or creating your very first audiobook, my aim is to make the entire process feel clear, collaborative, and supportive from start to finish.
An audiobook is not just a technical conversion of text to sound — it’s a performance, a shared creative process, and an opportunity to bring your story to life for listeners in a new way. This guide explains how we’ll work together and what you can expect at each stage.
What Happens Next?
To get started, I’ll need two things from you:
STEP 1
Your Manuscript
Please send me the full manuscript of your book in a single file. A PDF is ideal, as it allows me to read easily and make notes, but other clear, legible formats are fine.
Your manuscript does not need to be perfectly formatted – an edited manuscript or ARC is absolutely fine. What matters most is clarity.
STEP 2
Author Questionnaire
Once I’ve read through your manuscript, I’ll send you a questionnaire to complete. This helps me understand your characters, tone, pronunciations, and any specific intentions you have for the audiobook.
The more context I have at this stage, the more confidently and consistently I can prepare my performance – and it helps ensure we’re fully aligned before recording begins.
Preparation is where much of the creative work happens.
Once I receive your manuscript, I read it through in full before recording anything. This allows me to understand the story as a whole — character journeys, emotional arcs, tone, and pacing — and to respond to what the book itself is asking for.
My preparation is rooted in close reading, character analysis, and performance planning, drawing on my training as an actor and my experience narrating across genres. I make detailed private notes for myself as I work, including voice notes and character references, to explore how each character sounds, moves, and feels in the world of the story.
This often includes thinking in terms of casting — who a character might be played by if the book were adapted for screen, or who they most closely resemble in real life — as well as tracking how characters relate to one another vocally and emotionally. These notes aren’t part of a formal document, but a creative tool that allows the narration to feel consistent, grounded, and alive.
As part of this process, I will:
- Develop a clear internal picture of each main character, including personality, emotional range, and how they evolve over the course of the story
- Make considered choices about voice, pacing, tone, and intensity, guided by genre, audience, and narrative style
- Ensure characters remain distinct without becoming exaggerated or distracting for the listener
- Identify any pronunciation questions, invented terms, or non-standard names that need clarification
- Check in with you where something feels ambiguous, or where author input will help sharpen the performance
If your book is part of a series, or if there are future reveals that may influence how a character should sound later on, this is the stage where that information is particularly valuable. Knowing this in advance allows me to make performance choices that have depth and longevity.
This stage is about balance — honouring your intentions as the author, while bringing my own professional judgement, training, and creative instincts to the narration.
Vicki-Jo Eva
A Sultry & Intensely Evocative British Female Voiceover That Commands Attention!
The Voice Behind the voices
Meet Vicki-Jo (Me)
In my life before voiceover, I worked as an Exercise Specialist, rehabilitating people with long term health conditions, before becoming a Wellbeing Coach for the NHS, giving people back freedom in their lives by returning their health and mobility to them.
Building connections is as important to me as breathing, I have always had a keen interest in people and their life stories.
For years I studied acting at Cygnet Drama School and was even offered a John Guilgud Bursary for my final year. One of my highlights was performing on The Globe stage for the Sam Wannamaker Festival.
I started out in voiceover doing audiobooks and while many find them totally gruelling, I simply love the intensity of them. When you’re performing you have to be fearless and give your all to a character.Â
Whether it’s learning about them, supporting them, or pretending to be them…people are my passion. There’s more about my actual voiceover skills to read beyond this, but once you’ve seen that I can do the job, I genuinely look forward to hearing from you and how I can help you bring your ideas to life.
Initial Sample (Approval Stage)
Once all preparation is complete, I’ll record and send you an initial sample of fully finished, retail-standard audio.
This sample is your opportunity to review and approve:
- Overall tone and pacing
- Character voices
- Pronunciations
- Emotional delivery
The sample may include material from more than one part of the book so you can hear a range of narration styles, characters, and emotional intensity.
This stage is important, as approval here allows me to move forward with recording the full audiobook confidently and consistently. Any performance-related feedback or direction should be shared at this point.
Deposit & Payment Structure
Once the sample has been approved, I’ll invoice you for a deposit.
- For audiobooks under nine hours in estimated length, the deposit is the equivalent of one finished hour at our agreed rate.
- For audiobooks nine hours or longer, the deposit is typically equivalent to 2.5 finished hours.
The remaining balance is not due until the final files have been completed and approved.
Invoices include both UK and US bank details — you’re welcome to use whichever is most convenient.
Narration & Recording Timeline
I’ll then record your full audiobook, including opening and closing credits.
Recording time depends on the length and complexity of the book. As a general guide, a manuscript of around 80,000 words usually takes approximately ten days to complete.
Audiobook narration is a detailed process — producing one finished hour of audio typically requires two to three hours (or more) of recording time, depending on vocal and technical demands.
Throughout recording, I keep a log of completed chapters and finished runtimes so progress can be tracked clearly.
Proofing & Mastering
Once recording is complete, all audio is processed and mastered to ensure:
- Even, consistent levels
- Clean room tone
- A clear, natural vocal sound
- Compliance with Audible and platform audio specifications
The audiobook is then proofed in full against the manuscript by a professional proofer, who checks for:
- Misreads or stumbles
- Background noise or technical issues
- Consistency of pronunciation and accent
Any required pickups are recorded and integrated before final delivery.
Delivery & Uploading
If we’re working through platforms such as ACX or Findaway, I’ll upload the completed audiobook files (including the retail sample) to the project page for your final approval.
At this stage, files are returned only for correction of errors — for example, misreads or incorrect character attribution — rather than performance changes or textual rewrites. A small number of specific adjustments is included; more extensive changes may incur an additional cost.
If we’re working independently, I’ll send the completed audiobook files (excluding opening and closing credits) via secure file transfer. Once final payment is received and files are approved, the credits will be delivered.
Final Payment
Once the audiobook has been approved and is ready for release or distribution, I’ll send the final invoice for the remaining balance.
Projects under one hour in finished length are billed at a one-hour minimum. Longer projects are billed based on the actual final runtime.
Let's Build Something Together!
Whether you need a voiceover right now, or you want to ask what a voiceover is… then I’m happy to help out.
Please feel free to drop me a message over my form or get in touch with directly with all the details of your project and I’ll get back to you as soon as I can.
It was great working with Vicki-Jo! She delivered both in terms of our technical requirements and a great narration that the author loves. I highly recommend Vicki-Jo and look forward to working with her on future projects.