Contact email: mesreads AT gmail.com
###Winner Announcement Posts are linked here.###

GIVEAWAYS ARE NOW LOCATED ON THEIR OWN PAGE - CLICK ON TAB ABOVE; Giveaways also linked on right sidebar.

Tuesday, May 23, 2017

Interview with narrator James C. Lewis

Interview with narrator James C. Lewis

Tell us a little about yourself.
I've worked in some form of media all my life, starting out at age 15. First radio, then I hosted a local television show, "Sock Hop". It was a local knockoff of "American Bandstand". Later I transitioned into newspaper reporting and photography. Then TV news. And, finally, television weather. Even now, I'm recognized in Nashville as "the weather guy" and it's been over 10 years since I was there.

How do you prepare for accents and different characters?
Once I was narrating a book of 19th century preachers in Wales. One of them was from Cynghordy, a village in the rural community of Llanfair-ar-y-bryn in Carmarhenshire. Oh my! I went to my usual sources: You Tube and several web sites. Finally I called Spire Hospital in Cardiff, the capital. (I have a phone plan that costs only one cent per minute for international calls.) But they were too busy saving lives and hung up on me. Then I phoned up the newspaper, the South Wales Argus in Cardiff. The young reporter thought I was joking. But I convinced him I was on the level. And he helped me right away! I think that my decidedly American accent may have helped.

Are there any genres you prefer narrating?
I have a fondness for crime fiction and spy dramas. I come from a journalism background. At one time, I was a police reporter in Seattle and I came to deeply respect cops and their emotionally taxing jobs. And I enjoy being the voice of the tall tough-talking private detective with the snazzy girlfriend. (I’m not very tall. But please keep that information just between us.)

Will you narrate any book if the conditions are right?
I have narrated a wide range of books but not erotica. But I’ve narrated some horror fiction with really creepy monsters. (They’re actually the best!)

What is the hardest part of narrating a book?
The hardest part is finding the voice of the character. Is the character old, young, angry, happy, educated, ignorant? And of course where are they from. I find that evil characters from Eastern Europe are the easiest to do. And it’s hard being confined to a small studio by myself (other than the character’s voices). 

How is it working with the author?
I really like Lauren Carr’s work. Being the voice of Mac Faraday is great fun. Lauren writes for the ear as well as the eye. She would be a great screen writer. (And she’s wonderful to work with!)


2 comments:

  1. Narrators are such heroes and put so much work into what they do. I really enjoyed this interview -- thank you for sharing!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi Martha,

    I'm not a huge fan of audio books, as I simply don't enjoy being read to and haven't since I was old enough to pick up a book for myself, open the pages and read it!

    Having said that, I quite like the idea of narrating an audio book, although Im not surprised that James ha yet to narrate any erotica, that must be such a difficult genre compared to any of the others.

    A nicely presented post, thanks to both of you :)

    Yvonne

    ReplyDelete

Your comments are always appreciated!

LinkWithin

Related Posts with Thumbnails