Audiobook Editing and Mastering
Editing
For authors and narrators who've already recorded
Already recorded your audiobook? Whether you're an author who narrated your own book or a narrator recording from a home studio, our audiobook editing picks up where your sessions left off.
We listen through every file and clean up the mouth clicks, slips and stray noises that pull a listener out of the story. Breaths are handled the way you want them, and your performance and pacing stay yours.
Send your raw files as WAV through a shared Dropbox folder we set up for you. Want every word checked against the manuscript too? Add proofreading, and any misreads are flagged and sent to the narrator for re-reads.
Mastering
Even volume from the first chapter to the last
Once your audio is clean, audiobook mastering brings every chapter to the same full, even volume, so listeners never have to reach for the volume control between chapters. That consistency matters most when a book was recorded over many sessions or days. Here’s how compression evens out a performance.
Before anything goes back to you, we check it against retailer requirements. Your finished files come back as WAV through the same Dropbox folder. Turnaround depends on your project, but as a rough guide, a one-hour file is usually back with you within 24 hours.
Editing and mastering questions
Will my mastered audiobook meet Spotify and Audible requirements?
Yes. Every editing-and-mastering job includes a check against the technical requirements of Spotify, Audible and other retailers. Your audio comes back with an even, consistent volume from the first chapter to the last.
Does editing check my narration against the manuscript?
Editing focuses on how your audiobook sounds: it removes distracting noises, slips and stray sounds. Checking every word against the text is proofreading, which you can add to editing and mastering. Any misreads we find are flagged and sent to the narrator for re-reads.
Can you work with audio I recorded at home?
Yes, as long as it was recorded in a quiet room with some padding to cut wall reflections. Recordings with excessive background noise, like leaf blowers, traffic or construction, can't be cleaned up to a professional standard, so record when your space is quiet. Want company while you record? Dominic is set up for remote recording sessions over Sessionwire. Here’s some advice on recording at home on a USB mic.
How do you handle breaths?
However you prefer. Some clients want breaths left natural, others want them reduced or removed, and we edit to your preference. Either way, the goal is a smooth listen where nothing pulls the listener out of the story. Here’s more on how we edit breaths.
For turnaround times, payment, file formats and how proofreading works, see our full FAQ page.
Learn more from our blog
Enhancing Your Audiobook: The Benefits of Professional Mastering: what mastering adds to a finished book.
How Can Audiobook Mastering Improve My Audio Content?: a quick read on the same idea.
The Impact of Room Acoustics on Voice Recordings: why a quiet, padded room makes such a difference.
The Do's and Don'ts of Converting Audio Files: why we ask for WAV files.
Ready to polish your recordings?
Tell us about your project and we'll recommend the right mix of editing, mastering and proofreading. We reply within 24 hours.