Preparing for the audiobook

Once word got out in the publishing industry that Audrey Hepburn was interested in lending her voice to an audiobook, Henry, the little assistant, didn't even need to check which publishers could do it; they came knocking on his door.

Even the agency that had always worked with Audrey Hepburn offered a wide selection for the woman to choose from. Henry didn't need to help her gather information on the pros and cons; the agencies had everything organized perfectly.

The reason for such enthusiasm is simple: among the many categories of audiobooks, children's books are the best-selling.

Then add in the Audrey Hepburn name. It's clear to anyone with eyes that this is a sure-fire way to make money.

However, most of Audrey Hepburn's longtime collaborators have either retired or moved to a secondary role. The data they handled were taken over by newcomers. The veterans were merely there to get started and didn't handle any specific tasks.

So the information presented to her was detailed enough, but it didn't emphasize the key points in a way that suited a lady's habits, which left Audrey Hepburn overwhelmed by the choices.

Taking off her reading glasses, Audrey Hepburn put down the publishing company brochures in her hand. The young man from her talent agency sitting in front of her hurriedly asked, "Ms. Hepburn, do you have a preferred publishing company in mind?"

"Sorry, I haven't decided yet." Audrey Hepburn smiled apologetically, then called to the man who was fiddling with other things beside her. "Henry, come and take a look, give me some advice."

The young man who had been introduced as an assistant came over. Although it made the young people at the agency a little competitive, he didn't want to stand out too much in front of the client.

After all, there was no conflict of interest between the two; they simply didn't believe the other had any right to interfere with their preparations.

Henry's intention was that since someone had prepared the work, they should be given a chance to demonstrate their abilities. But since the boss had called on him, he had no reason not to lend a hand.

Henry picked up the stack of publishing company documents and read through them quickly, though to others it looked like he'd just glanced at them.

Having formed an idea, Henry said, "Boss, these audiobook publishers are actually quite powerful; their capital, structure, and market performance are all similar. So I suggest we look at it from another angle."

Audrey asked curiously, "What angle?"

"It's about what stories you want to tell, what kind of stories you want to tell, and how these publishing companies can help."

Seeing the puzzled expressions on everyone's faces, Henry continued to explain, "Because I'm not familiar with how the publishing industry works, I'll just share my thoughts for your reference."

"Audiobooks are ultimately not like regular literary works; we are simply reading existing stories aloud. What If...? we just select some children's stories to read aloud, are there any copyright issues with these stories?"

It's important to know that the original Grimm's Fairy Tales or Hans Christian Andersen's Fairy Tales aren't actually that suitable as children's literature. Therefore, modern fairy tales are all adapted and polished. Will copyright issues related to these adaptations cause problems?

"So, boss, after you've selected a publisher, how many of their copyright portfolios are actually usable?"

Do we only have to choose from what the publishing company has, or can the publishing company resolve the copyright issues once we've identified a story we like?

"Of course, it would be best if the publishing company had a rich copyright library. Then, besides classic children's stories, should we consider some modern works?"

"However, these might be in the production stage, and editors at any publishing company can handle that, so just consider this me rambling. I'm not familiar with the publishing process."

Does the knowledge contained in a library encompass everything in the world?

Are you kidding me! It's not that serious, okay?

There are many things that people outside the industry simply cannot know. Even within the same industry, different companies may have their own corporate culture and ways of doing things.

Unless someone in the industry is a senior figure guiding you, who would deliberately write a book to announce these things to the world? Even if everyone who needs the books buys them, they might not be able to afford the printing costs, unless each book sells for an exorbitant price.

So even if Henry thoroughly searched the library, he would still be blind to such matters and could only spout off based on his own assumptions.

But before anyone else could comment, Henry continued, "And boss, don't forget, your greatest advantage isn't your voice. You're an actress, an Oscars- winning actress."

Audrey Hepburn seemed somewhat bewildered by these words. This made him laugh in exasperation.

He said, "So what if I'm an actor? Am I supposed to act in a radio drama?"

Even Ms. Hepburn herself sensed this. She thought for a moment and asked, "Is it possible to do that?"

?

Henry laughed and said, "Just because no one has done it before doesn't mean it can't be done. But I wouldn't recommend that you handle everything yourself, boss. It's like making a movie; your strength is being an actor."

"So we also need directors, cinematographers, composers, and other creative personnel, as well as a good script. The question then becomes, are there any publishing companies willing to propose a similar plan?"

"Some people might be interested, while others might not and withdraw. For publishing companies willing to cooperate, we just need to look at their production plans—it's the same as looking at scripts in the past. As for who to work with, boss, you should know better than anyone else."

"Can we do that?" This time, Audrey Hepburn asked the young man from the agency.

Noticing the gaze and the problem, the young man hurriedly said, "What If...? this is your request, Ms. Hepburn, I will convey it to the publishing company and have them select someone willing to cooperate."

Although Audrey Hepburn's box office appeal was far less than his at his peak, she was still entitled to make demands on producers given her status.

Therefore, the agent can only represent the artist in negotiations with the publishers, not the other way around, demanding cooperation from the artist just to complete a task so that the agent can receive a commission.

Without further hesitation, Hepburn said, "Well, then I'll trouble you to discuss this with the publishing company."

Audrey Hepburn was also familiar with this kind of protracted negotiation and certainly didn't want to reach a conclusion in one go.

So this matter was left to the agency to handle, since they get commissions and are responsible for dealing with these kinds of things.

The response came faster than expected. The next afternoon, representatives from her agency brought the two of them to meet Audrey Hepburn in the café of her hotel.

The other party seemed to have prepared a lot of information; they weren't just talking about ideals in a rambling way.