Announcing the Under Alien Skies audiobook!

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This is about Under Alien Skies, isn’t it? Yes. Yes it is.

I have some very cool news: I am pleased to let y’all know that not only is there an audiobook version of my upcoming book Under Alien Skies, but that the narrator is… me!

Yup, I recorded the audiobook. Yay!

Before I give you the behind-the-scenes story, here’s a sample from the book’s introduction, graciously provided to me by Orange Sky Audio and Spotify:

Like it? You can get the audiobook through Amazon, for example, or wherever you like to buy such things.

So, the story:

I didn’t do the narration for my first two official books (meaning ones published through a publishing house; the book Zach Weinersmith and I self-published didn’t have an audio version), though I toyed with the idea for Death from the Skies! Honestly, though I wasn’t really ready to do it back then.

But in the meantime — I like to wait a decade or so between books — I’ve done a ton of interviews, TV documentary talking head stuff, and some voiceover work for NRAO. So I asked my literary agent, the estimable Seth Fishman, to pitch me as the narrator for UAS to W. W. Norton, the publisher.

Honestly I was expecting them to say no — I figured they’d go with an established pro — but to my surprise, they asked for an audition reel. That’s when I realized I needed some professional help. I talked to my friend and author and award-winning VO artist Mary Robinette Kowal, who very graciously gave me an hour of her time to give me tips on how to talk. That was interesting; I tend to project a lot because I’m used to talking on camera or on stage, and there’s a timbre and volume that comes with that… which is entirely wrong for VO work. Mary Robinette patiently listened to me, poked and guided me, until I found the right voice [I did this one line over and over again, with her replying, “You’re projecting… nope… still projecting…” and then, after pulling back my voice and calming down my enunciating as I read it, there was a pause on the other end of the line, and she said, “That’s it. You got it.” and it felt like I had found a pot of gold at the base of a rainbow. That was a great feeling, so thanks, MRK!]

[Orange Sky Audio Instagram post featuring Under Alien skies. Click through and swipe left to see the individual page for it. The caption reads, “On this lively, immersive adventure through the cosmos, Plait draws ingeniously on both the latest scientific research and his prodigious imagination to transport you to ten of the most spectacular sights outer space has to offer.” Golly.]

So I made my reel and sent it in. And Norton accepted! The production was run by Orange Sky Audio (which was acquired by Spotify in 2022) and we recorded the book over the course of about four and a half days. That was a pretty cool experience. I’ve never done anything of this length before, so I was a bit nervous, but the folks at Cinder Sound Studio in nearby Longmont, Colorado (thanks Kyle and John!) were very helpful, as were producers Rufina DeAngelis and Rinn Krauss from Orange Sky.

It turns out I need not have worried. The experience I had from doing all that other stuff lent itself well here, as well as Mary Robinette’s forbearant tutelage.

Apparently my own perspective on my reading was different than Rufina and Rinn’s. I started reading, and got a couple of paragraphs in before stumbling on some word or another. I apologized, and heard laughter through my headphones. They told me that most readers don’t get more than a sentence or two before screwing up, so I was doing great! That surprised me, since it felt like I was messing up a lot, but they assured me over the course of the sessions that I was actually doing quite well.

Before that starts to sound like a brag, the point I want to make is that sometimes you do stuff and discover that you’re good at it, and sometimes you find out you’re terrible at it. But there are things out there you might be a natural for (or at least the sum of your experiences make it a lot easier for you) and you won’t know until you try.

I’m glad I tried. I had fun doing this. The book has a lot of personal experience in it, so it was gratifying to be able to let that come out in my reading. I hope to do more narration like this in the future, too.

So I’ll leave you with this: On the first day of recording, I used my phone to video myself saying the book’s dedication.

I hope that means you.

Under Alien Skies comes out on April 18. The publisher page has links to booksellers where you can order it.

Shameless Self-Promotion

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Speaking of the book…

I was a guest on the Rational Alchemist video show, hosted by Nigel Aves, talking about my book Under Alien Skies and other astronomical coolness. We talked about a few of the cosmic locales I wrote about in the book, including why Martian sunsets are blue and not red, how asteroids are fragile rubble piles, a huge hex at Saturn’s north pole, what it would be like to stand on a planet at night in a cluster of a million stars, and lots more.

To make it easy, here it is!

I have a lot more interviews coming up for the book, and I’ll link to ‘em as I do ‘em. And my thanks to Nigel for inviting me on his show!

Et alia

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