The New Bad Thing audiobook Interview
Author Michael Ebner interviews narrator Braden Wright (pictured above).
Michael Ebner (M.E.): Okay so we’re going talk about your work as an audiobook narrator and The New Bad Thing – since we have now collaborated together on that project.
Braden Wright (B.W.): Which is fantastic. The New Bad Thing is an awesome and intense thriller and it was a pleasure to delve into the characters’ lives and to work with such sharp writing, evocative images and snappy, realistic dialogue. It’s an honor to be asked to bring an author’s work into this vocal medium because it means it aligns somehow with their creative voice. And, thanks for asking about my narration work.
M.E. : Thanks so much for your kind words. It was amazing for me to hear your brilliant and detailed performance. I was honored to have you involved with the project. How do you connect with each book you narrate? What is your starting point and process?
B.W. : With audiobooks it’s all about the listener’s experience. As performers, we are to be the conduit for the author’s intent whether it’s fiction or non-fiction. The genre puts the piece into a general context and then you look for the spark that motivates the writer; how they perceive the world, the challenges that the protagonist faces and what the underlying dilemma is for them. That undertow that’s pulling them down provides a lot of insight, watching how they face it, or seek to avoid it. In my personal process, I find the author’s style becomes clear when you read enough to get at what drives the piece – the inciting incident and the initial problem presented — and how the author sets out answering the “Why” questions any reader has as the story moves along. The very first time I read is the only opportunity I have to share what a listener is going to experience on their first time going through… so I’m careful to observe the questions that come up: the constant “What happens next?” questions. Those provide clues for me in narrating to understand what’s important to highlight and where to build or deflect attention. Sometimes it’s clear to me what is happening, or there are understandable beats that build the story but sometimes it’s a non-traditional technique used by the writer. If I’m lost I let the text process internally and intellectually without attempting to define anything. Then I start to hear it in my head for a while and then slowly give breath to it and say it out loud until I’m testing it in performance narrative. Those stages may take a while and I think it’s important to let them process until something organic surfaces for me. But the focus always comes back to connecting the listener to the images the author has created. I perceive audiobook narration as a visual medium. My personal directive is that the action is always happening now. Whether it’s past, present or imagined future, it’s always happening now, and I go there so the listener can live it as they experience each moment.
M.E. : On a personal level, do you prefer reading books or listening to audiobooks? And if you enjoy both mediums do you have a preference based on the subject matter and genre?
B.W. : I was always a slow reader and despite my goals, I’d find that I’d still read at the speed someone would read out loud. I always perceived text as being spoken. I like language and I expect that a writer has constructed the words in an intentional way and I want to understand what that message is, fully. That likely helped me a lot as a narrator because we don’t read books, we perform them and, obviously, we work in spoken language and performance speeds. I’ve enjoyed writing all my life and so it’s also a relationship I have with wordsmithing; I appreciate the craft. All this to say that I am a picky/selective reader and I’ve come to depend much more on audiobooks and listening in my life, though even at that I read much more as a performer than I do for personal interest. “Hans Brinker or the Silver Skates” broke me as a young reader – I couldn’t get past the long opening travelogue about Holland – and after that I went through a couple of decades where I only read for educational purposes. I even selected my major in communications instead of getting a degree in English because I was scared of all the reading and how long that would have taken me given my spoken-language perceptions of text. Now, as a performer, I’m incredibly diverse in what I read. For me, personally, I’d enjoy a mystery or suspense thriller to really engage me and entertain me. I have an intensely curious mind and I’m still continuously asking “Why?”
M.E. : What’s your performer background? And how did you get into audiobook narration?
B.W. : Very long and circuitous story but it makes sense, to me. My sisters were figure skaters and I was five years younger so I went with my Mom to the rink. That club in Unionville had one of the best amateur ice shows in Canada and it became my favourite time of year – April, when Ice Fantasia happened, right next to my birthday. I began doing the shows as well and it was an incredible training ground. Eventually I got into a professional show and toured for two years, doing 900 performances around the States and Mexico. Instead of going to school for acting, I opted for a safer choice (unfortunately but reasonably). That writing degree lead me into working in the film industry for a couple of decades but I returned to voice work and some on-camera work when I took a job at a Studio in LA. I studied audiobook work with Frank Muller in the late 90s and was cutting demos in the early 2000s. My wife – a contemporary celtic artist – loved audiobooks and listened for years before I thought it was cool and before I thought I could do them myself – the discipline to be consistent with characters and voices freaked me out. It’s so different from commercials or TV narration or even some animation work. It’s incredibly challenging but also massively rewarding. When recording at home you get to jump in the booth and engage in the creative process. No waiting for short moments on a set or stage. The audiobook industry took off with the digital revolution – the creation of MP3 files and eventually Audible’s app – and I won a contest through SAG-AFTRA and Audible in 2013 and have been recording ever since.
M.E. : Was studying audiobook work with Frank Muller a contributing factor to taking that career direction? At the time he was the go to name for audiobook narration for Stephen King, John Grisham and Elmore Leonard, among others. He narrated Silence of The Lambs by Thomas Harris, among so many more major titles. Was it inspiring and practical? Did it provide some of the groundwork you apply to your audiobook narration process?
B.W. : He was a great guy and had such a presence… even more so when he’d narrate for us as a demonstration. He had a relatively tiny booth for such a large man. He fully went there in performance and was a force. I can still picture it and remember how it felt, like getting a wake-up call that this was performance, not reading at all. And, “how much will it take for me to do that!” So I think he set the bar and standard for me, knowing and admiring that he was at the top of his game. There are different styles and now that you ask, I can see how I went down that road towards more involvement because I’d seen Frank working. A harder road, perhaps. There are as many styles as narrators, of course. But when you hear that in your head, then that’s what you bring forth.
M.E. : Were your parents in theater or the performing arts? When did you know you wanted to pursue a career as a performer?
B.W. : It sounds flippant but I feel like saying, Yes, because my father was a minister. He’d take me to work sometimes before I was old enough to go to school and I’d spend hours alone in the sanctuary while he was in the office. It seemed like a stage and auditorium to me, where the people came once a week for a kind of show. The stained glass windows were nice colours and people like my Dad even put on special clothing for the ceremonies… so, yeah. Also, from as early as I can remember, I loved puppets. Absolutely the best things, ever. Analysts would likely have fun with the notion, but I’d make up dialogue and discussions. Constantly. And that just continued… possibly because our household was such a quiet place and I had a lot going on in my head. When we’d go blueberry or cranberry picking I would amuse myself for hours. During chores, while exercising, on paper routes… there was always writing and discussions happening. Doing that on stage was a natural extension. But no, unfortunately, my parents did not open doors for me other than to encourage and make possible some of the things I enjoyed in performance, like ensuring that I had private coaches for skating and my Mom’s involvement, applying her Home Economic teaching skills by making costumes. My parent’s encouraging view did not extend to when I wanted to make it a career, so that part became a singular choice and, frankly, had to become an act of defiance and personal commitment as well as me being the one to give myself kudos for successes. When I hear that someone has enjoyed a performance I’ve done or gets a lot from a coaching session, it is truly something for which I have a lot of gratitude. It’s a nice bonus.
M.E. : They often say it’s all about timing in regards to one’s career. There are many traditional professions under attack, and I’m not just talking about the arts, I mean every industry. Whether its from AI, automation or national companies choosing to outsource their services abroad for cost savings. As a performer you have always been working in an extremely competitve industry. It has been a very successful period in your career since you won the award in the audiobook arena and at the same time the audiobook market began booming. Now you are one of the top audiobook performers. You have a great voice and technique while bringing so many other skills to the audiobook performance and production side, which you outlined earlier in this interview. That personal combination plus the fact audiobooks now have this growing audience – sounds like the stars have aligned for you in this era? It’s nice to hear your words of gratitude but your sucess as a performer is well deserved. And as somebody who listens to audiobooks, I can honestly say I am grateful. Listening to Code Over Country which you narrated may have been a less rewarding experience for me had I heard it by someone else. I might not have finished the audiobook. You took me on that journey and I felt compelled to keep listening. I have recommended that audiobook to many others. Kudos to author Matthew A. Cole too because it had to be on the page but you were my entry point as a listener, whether I continued with that audiobook was initially very much on the narrator.
B.W. : Wow! Well, thank you. It’s a collaboration with the author and the listener and it’s truly gratifying and honestly humbling to hear someone say they love your work. Each time, it means a lot. It’s also fascinating to hear what aspects clicked with the listener. Because it is a collaboration and the listener brings their own aspect into the mix. I value and respect that. Art within commerce is a tumultuous playground, for sure. When I finally started in audiobooks, I had been pushing some other doors pretty hard and they didn’t open and then this opened up and manifested into great connections… utilizing a lot of my past work and skills. It seemed so obviously to be a format where I could play. Whatever I’m doing, I want to engage in the act of creation. That’s my constant.
M.E. : You may know from Pen and Picture, I always wanted you to be the narrator for this book after I heard your magnificent performance for Code Over County by Matthew A. Cole. I thought you would be a good fit for the material. You have a fantastic voice for storytelling. In Code Over Country I was immediately pulled into the story by your narration. You really find the right balance for the dramatic moments, ambiguous moments, the exposition and the emotional journey. Can you describe your work on the Code Over Country project and any preparation you needed to do for that book?
B.W. : On a couple of film sets, I had worked with a former Navy SEAL who had become a stunt double to a major star. Over time I got a small glimpse into the world, but mostly from my observation of how he reacted to life and situations. That affected my understanding of the stakes involved and how extremely real it all is. I had often mused what it would take to commit to that life. My approach in narration is to let the listener live the moment and to follow where the author places that point-of-view from which they tell the story. Is it observing people or action? Experiencing it? Is the observation from a thought or a feeling? Matthew Cole’s work takes the listener into the situations when they’re happening and then steps back sometimes to observe from a mountaintop view. I seek to allow the listener to make the judgements themselves and to present the experience in that range, always shifting, sometimes within the same line, from distant to intimate POVs. Code Over Country darkened my world during narration. As much as it’s for the listener, there’s also the time I live there with those experiences as a performer. It can be haunting in that way, and that book took a while to shake. For prep, I did the usual research of words, foreign pronunciations, military pronunciations and then verification with the producing team… but the rest was what I knew, how I stepped into the author’s view and the choice to “go there.”
M.E.: That’s really interesting. Because that book covers a range of heavy topics with a much deeper dive than some of the headlines people are familar with. There are multiple layers to that story, including a few upbeat parts and moving stories. Hearing you say “that book took a while to shake” was that purely because of the subject matter or because your performance at times had to almost be like you were the reporter retelling us the accounts first-hand? If so did you feel that forced you as the performer to go to even darker places than the listener? Or are you saying it “darkened your world” in a similar context to the listener/reader after digesting the disturbing facts.
B.W. : Yes and Yes: subject matter and my choice to have the approach I do, sensing I’m there, the place from which the author tells the story. These special forces operators face brutal circumstances and literal life-and-death choices in extreme environments. They’re operating against the tidal forces, if you will, in the situations they’re sent into: they’re often asked to stop or reverse that force, even for a moment. That’s the impossible and improbable that they take on. Contemplating that presents moral dilemmas and the greater human condition. Why? Why do we humans treat each other in these ways—how does it factor into our survival? I have a lot of empathy and strive to have compassion for self and others. These places and people and stories really affect me because you have the opportunity to join them and have a window to what they went through and how they persevered or cracked. Heavy stuff to reconcile even when you’re walking with them in witness to it all.
M.E. : Did you need to do any preparation for The New Bad Thing that differed from other audiobooks?
B.W. : Hearing that Code Over Country was a tone that triggered my selection for The New Bad Thing, I had an insight into the author’s intent and therefore the intended tone you, the writer, had when you were inspired to tell the story. That was a huge clue for me as a performer, to begin to perceive the story with that lens and to hear it with a combination of true-crime and investigative journalism mixed with an intensely personal story where action and sometimes brutal action became that much more shocking by contrast. For the personal and at the center of every human story we seek those universal elements that are at the heart of every story. I had also done a series for Russell Blake with a female protagonist and those eight books had been a good ‘meditation,’ if you will, on what it would take to transform someone in life-and-death situations, similar to what Teagan faces. I also engaged a tutor from Northern Italy to teach me the Italian words and phrases as I have only had a few phrases of Italian for some Joseph Campbell books. I’m more familiar with a smattering of Latin, and I speak French from having studied in Strasbourg. I had just done a project with Brazilian Portuguese and Italian was easier and fun. I think I have more of an interest in going to Italy now because of this exploration.
M.E.: Your Italian pronunciation was excellent. I think your conversing will be well received there. I encourage you to visit Italy.
B.W. : Thanks. I’d love to go. Countless experiences in such a rich culture.
M.E. : In movie making the rule is “Show, don’t tell”. What are a few movies you liked that use narration well and can you explain why?
B.W. : Brad Pitt’s narration at the beginning of the flashback that kicks off Interview with a Vampire was completely transportative to me; I think it was my favourite moment in the whole film. So intimate and forlorn, it was a perfect transitional moment where the inner voice of the character became part of the film experience. David Ogden Stiers narrates the opening of the animated film, “Beauty and the Beast” set to a storybook illustrated with stained glass windows. The use of the literal “Once Upon a Time” device frames the experience that is to follow in a perfect way – putting us all into the frame of mind from when we were kids and setting us up to be open to what follows as a fable and a tale… I think we’re subconciously more open to the power of the archetypes when we’re informed specifically that we’re about to get that type of a story because of the hook. During a couple of screenwriting courses I took at school and since then, I’ve been disappointed when instructors advised that voice over generally weakens the narrative because I frequently love knowing what the character is thinking and my opinion is it can, when done well, add elements and context to increase the poignancy. Certainly, many actors captivate us with their eyes where everything is evident and of course those are some of the most powerful moments. But I enjoy the inner dialogue because I usually have one going on in my head, so, obviously, I like it when others share too. Ha!
M.E. : I agree. When done well in film the narration adds other dimensions. It is always special for a writer to see performers take their written material to the next level. I have had my scripts read before and produced into films. When an author’s novel is turned into an audiobook it can be amazing to hear the story come alive through the performance. I feel like audiobook narration in general is somewhere between a final script reading and go-live all at once with this one-person-cast to portray the story’s ensemble of characters. That’s much more than typical film narration territory. How would you describe your role as an audiobook narrator and the challenges and expecations that come with the territory?
B.W. : I am a conduit for the author’s intent. The goal is for the listener to have a direct experience with the images and actions and characters the author creates – some people in the narrator community refer to that idea-listener relationship as the “construct.” The narrator as a performer should disappear, ideally. I know I’ve done well with my narration when I’m reviewing files and I forget that it’s me reading; my mind is living in the world or experience the writer has made. It does happen and it’s satisfying when it does.
“Meet the listener halfway,” is a saying narrators share (and I believe it’s credited to Scott Brick) when it comes to dialogue treatment for accents. I think it extends in a broader sense to the relationship of trust a narrator strives to establish with a listener. You indicate your storytelling narrative voice and then how you’re choosing to indicate different characters speaking. In the opening minutes, the listener becomes accustomed to it and the trust begins. Those characters change given their emotional states and the arc of their journeys as well. My style is to seek to live the moments so the listener has an easier time in doing the same. The way people listen now with so much else going on, I personally think it can provide a more accessible story. Yet I’m aware that there’s only so much I can do – and only so much I need to do because the story is the driver. The author is leading the way. The listener accepts that it’s one voice reading male and female dialogue and hopefully early on they enter into that agreement so their experience can go beyond the performer and step directly into the world of the story, or, for non-fiction, into a kind of dialogue with the writer who is continually engaged with them in discussion. I do everything that I am able to serve that passion and spark of the author, sometimes being very involved with the emotion and sometimes stepping out of the way.
M.E. : That’s a fascinating description. I wonder how many listeners of audiobooks appreciate how much experienced narrators bring to their craft for the right delivery. The unspoken appreciation may be in the listener’s enjoyment of a seamless storytelling experience.
B.W. : Definitely. I think that’s exactly it. We all want to connect and it’s magic when everything clicks.
M.E. : I enjoy both mediums of films and books, however, from a working perspective the filmmaking process is usually more synergized in the moment through the interaction of other people in different stages of production. Whereas writing a novel is a solitary experience for the most part. You have to be disciplined and shut yourself away from the world around you to be faithful to the world of the story and the characters that you’re creating. Braden you have worked in front of the camera for film and television as well as in recording studios for audio productions. How do you find the audiobook experience where it is just you and the manuscript in the sound booth for pretty much the entire production? How do you maintain high performance levels and good energy because the entire performance rests on your shoulders?
B.W. : In film, you put your attention on the other performers. You seek to immerse yourself in the reality of the moment. With audiobooks, I have the sense that what is around me is actually there. You understand the distance you are from other people in the scene, what you’re spying in the distance, what the stakes are. I have the sense that the ideal listener – someone who wants to hear the story and experience the action, is with me in the same place. So I don’t perceive it as a vacant booth or actually a solitary experience. That can happen a bit more with non-fiction or with super long recording days. One does become aware of one’s own voice from time to time, wondering if people are getting tired of it. Actually, that happens to me less as I’ve gone through time, because that’s a self-conscious act and I have reasoned and realized that I either need to focus more on the moment or remind myself that it’s not me people are hearing but rather the story. When I started recording I would gear myself up and regard the phrase, “It’s always an adventure” as I started back into the booth. The most helpful thing is to listen to a couple of minutes from where I left off. I still do the latter, but I tend to carry the story with me between the time I’m in the booth – another reason I like to get in and move through the whole manuscript as reasonably quickly as possible; meaning days-to-weeks. It truly is a tiring experience, by the way, narrating. From day to day it can build until you ask yourself “what’s wrong with me? I’ve only been sitting in a booth, narrating!” But it’s more like virtual reality and transportive travel. The body is feeling what is happening and the energy to maintain the scene dynamics between all of the characters takes attention and awareness and openness. I focus. The text is there. That’s what I need to step in to. And there are times when I feel my inner engine just stop and say, “nope. That’s it! I’m done.” And I know I can’t access any more. So I stop and return the next day, if I have the option. Or, I regroup and come back to it. Putting my attention on the characters in the text. For them, it’s happening! They’re there in peril on the page. You just have to join them.
M.E.: Great to hear your take on it. For instance when you say “it’s more like virtual reality and transportive travel. The body is feeling what is happening”. Similar for the writer, you have to be in the moment too with your characters and places. That’s how you get to the best parts and catch the surprises. Because these characters take on lives of their own and they write the story. It’s all in my head but it also reaches a mental point where things just stop and you have to call it a day. Then when you return, you have to get right back to where you left off. Like you said “You have to join them”. It’s mainly mental for the writer, whereas for you as the narrator it would be both mentally and physically draining. I like your “transportive travel” description too. I’ve had times when my wife or child have knocked on my office door and it has literally taken me a moment to return to reality because I might have just been hanging out in Italy, in my head, with my main character and some not-very-nice people.
B.W. : I’m nodding and smiling. It can be a rush. Strange but true. Also kind of mystical, the subconscious and the creative process. And the act of faith that putting our attention on something and engaging can open us to that experience.
M.E. : When writing a book or a screenplay, I’m constantly reading out aloud to myself the dialogue between the characters. Whether its for pacing or discovery, or to maintain the unique voice for each character or to get to the right emotional place. It’s always been that process for me. I feel there would be some similarites with the audiobook narration process in an advanced read to find the tone and the emotional thread. Even though the writing is on the page, and you will likely speak different for each character, how do you get to know the main characters before performing them for an audiobook to make them distinctive and memorable? Is it mostly experience and your instincts? Are you discovering the story at the same time the listener does to keep it fresh or aiming to convey that sense of discovery? And how much of the roadmap for your performance is on the page?
B.W. : For me, the character is there for me to discover. They are detailed and demonstrative or they’re withdrawn. Dialogue is a huge clue, how they use language to probe or evade or interrogate or seduce or hide. I just have to make the dialogue as conversational as possible and I hear them speaking so they’re giving me clues who they are. Character is revealed through actions and decisions. What they think about and what they share. I absorb that and “hear” them in their dialogue. I’ll admit there is a bit of structure that has to happen in contrasting characters who speak to each other frequently, and using some techniques to make those differentiations work for a listener. I’m referring to pitch, depth, nasality, breathiness, rasp… those qualities of vocal speech that can be woven into a character’s dialogue to help define something identifiable. Dialect, age and education are other factors that often do the work. For instance, a middle aged detective from the TriState area will have definable factors for speed of speech and accent, and then character traits fill in the rest. It’s easy enough to contrast that with a younger female because the listener can hear the differences in the first “notes” of their lines – but how young, educated, innocent or experienced, jaded or optimistic is that character? These are all factors to consider. From there, it’s a matter of knowing the character so well that you can establish a consistent way to access them. That is an actor’s discussion for sure. Is it a physical way you hold the character in the body or a line that triggers you – each performer has an approach. I will always read the book in prep, pulling out terms to be researched. I’ll possibly skim some parts of paragraphs but I’ll definitely read it again before getting into the booth. Then I seek to live the moments and stay in them so that the discovery is honest for the listener. “It’s always happening now” is my top piece of advise when I coach other narrators in workshops or sessions and it’s certainly my biggest directive and part of my style.
M.E. : When performing audiobooks do you have to be somewhere between reliable narrator and unreliable narrator depending on the genre and material?
B.W. : In performance of an audiobook, I am to be as authentic as possible from the point of view the author creates so the question of reliable or unreliable narrator is resolved and defined by that author. The art of narration is identifying from the text whether the author is using a distant omniscient narrator or a close personal perspective and using that as a guide as to how much emotion comes through the experience. If the view is distant, then the narration is from a removed or detached space. If it is a thought or, even more so, a feeling then the narration can be aligned with that thought or particular emotion. The extent to which we delve into an aligned emotional experience is the key. Too much interference by a narrator can break the fourth wall which, in narration, is the listener’s awareness of the person reading; in that case, the narrator would draw attention to themselves rather than the action and it’s a kind of intrusion into the dynamic of the listener living in the author’s story. Like a film actor talking with their hands and inadvertently upstaging themself. The narrator community is one of the most welcoming group of artists and I, and others, think that’s because we know that there are lots of books and a realization that not all books are an ideal fit for the narrator, in the author’s idea of that vision and creative voice. I also think there is a humility because we’re all dealing with something bigger than any one of us… the book.
M.E. : When you are doing unique voices in the dialogue scenes, do you ever need to record all the lines for one character separately or can you switch between the unique voices without restricting the flow?
B.W. : In studio – working with an engineer and being booked for a session — you have to record in a linear way so you wouldn’t have that luxury. At home there have been a couple (meaning two or three) times when I’ve recorded the chapters with a character who only appears briefly, just because I have that accent or inflection in mind and in my body and voice. But, no, there is too much material with a full manuscript for a book to record the dialogue and then work to edit it together. And it would be a disservice to the listening-and-responding that characters do when in conversation. That authentic dynamic is far more vital, I think, to the listener experience than trying to perfectly match a character style. The challenge is to learn the character and have some trick for evoking it within our performance. For sure, I snag pieces of the dialogue and keep them in a track in the recording software so I can review the pitch, pace, inflections and feeling of the character when I haven’t done that voice for a few chapters and therefore, possibly, for a few days. Even, and perhaps especially with minor characters who repeat – I haven’t had to develop them as much and I’ll “refresh” my ear at the start of a chapter to stay consistent. It’s like a yeast starter for bread … a little bit of the same and you’re on to making a new batch.
M.E.: That’s impressive. You consistently delivered a lot of differentiation in The New Bad Thing for its characters to remain unique in the retelling. Just when I thought you would have probably, and understandably, exhausted your range, you continued to surprise. There was this teen-ager bellboy toward the last third of the book. He has a couple of small scenes and when I first heard the voice you did, I smiled with admiration because you were still able to give that minor character something distinctive and the right fit too.
B.W. : Fortunately there’s so much that comes from the writing, tuning in to that person and how this situation would affect their everyday lives. When in doubt, I ask myself more questions and the answers are there. The emotional authenticity creates a lot for the listener – and implies how I can augment that. When I have doubts I remind myself it’s not about me – it’s a collaboration.
M.E. : Have you ever been asked to read an audiobook where you felt you weren’t the right voice or fit due to the genre or other reasons?
B.W. : I’ve discovered my schedule “fully booked” when asked to do a couple of projects that I didn’t feel I could do service to – some extremely specific erotica or a personal biography that didn’t have relevance to a wide audience. I’ve suggested other narrators for a couple of projects where the representation was clearly not for me – first person of a late teenage woman of a visible minority who was pregnant… clearly I am not a vehicle for that character’s experience when it’s the whole book. Same deal if the accent has to be carried throughout the entirety of the narrative, like a first-person South African accent. That would be torture for me to attempt to carry for ten hours and not a good experience for the listener. We’d both lose. That just isn’t “my” book and that’s fantastic… I’d prefer to hear it from someone who is a perfect fit. I am incredibly diverse in my work and I love the exploration in genres of fiction and non-fiction. But for some reason I’m not the dude for business books where I have to sound like a cheerleader – to me, I think I sound like I’m doing veiled parody. Yet I did five of Jim Rohn’s books and enjoyed learning the cadence and passion for that… so it’s a matter of how much I can set aside of my own conceptions and delve into the author’s intent.
M.E. : There are various chapters in The New Bad Thing set in Italy. Now that I know you haven’t been, is there anywhere in Italy you would like to see if you were to ever go?
B.W. : I studied in Strasbourg, France as part of my degree and I’ve visited Nice three separate times, twice with school groups and once on a five-week film assignment. So I was as close as Monaco but never stepped foot in Italy… yet. In all sincerity, studying Italian with a tutor for The New Bad Thing piqued my interest in going sometime. There’s so much rich culture and now almost too many places I’d like to visit, it feels like it would warrant a good long visit. I think I’d stick mostly to Rome and points north but I love travel so much, I’m certain I’d expand that out of curiosity… my ever-present drive to satisfy that curiosity. Art and food, those would be constants while soaking in history.
M.E. : Rome is mindblowing in person for the historical experience. It makes London’s history seem brand new in comparison. For somebody like yourself with an amazing ear, make sure you go inside The Pantheon. I would love to hear what you think of its acoustics. It’s a magnificent building.
B.W. : Okay. I’ve now highlighted The Pantheon on my list of must-see/must-hear places. Thank you!
M.E. : Teagan braves the cold in The New Bad Thing when she is in wintry Canada hunting Roman. Describe the coldest conditions and environment you have ever been in?
B.W. : Paper routes at 6:30am, sticking my hands between the papers for some redeeming warmth. Studying in stone classrooms in France in the middle of winter and never feeling warm from the waist down, for months. Waiting in Boston for the trolley car and feeling the humidity from the Atlantic bleaching your bones to ice. The coldest experience technically was on a film set in Alberta, working with director John Frankenheimer. It was a stunning night with ice crystals falling like frozen mist through the -40 degree temperature while the set lighting illuminated it all – and -40 is the same in either celsius or fahrenheit. The plastic film was snapping in the movie camera. You quickly learn to keep your mouth closed even though your nostrils freeze with your own breath. Fashion flies away in pursuit of survival. We had each purchased our own arctic military surplus gear (boots, leggings, woolen pants, parkas, etc…) so we could survive because there’s lots of waiting around on any set. “Iron Will” for Disney in Duluth was another frigid experience at -30 but it wasn’t as prolonged. If you’re dressed for it then it’s beautiful. If you get damp or you’re not insulated then it becomes hellish shockingly fast. But I’d still take cold over extreme heat and humidity any day. I’m the guy who walks into the Costco produce or dairy freezer and feels gratitude.
M.E.: The Costco freezer sounds like a vacation compared to your insanely cold list of experiences. Walking around Quebec City in minus 20 was my coldest. My water bottle froze in ten minutes. And Duluth in Minnesota for you also which is in the same line as Fargo. Mention the name Fargo to fans of the film and the series and they will feel the cold instantly. Cold is a big theme of that one. Was there any particular scene in The New Bad Thing which you enjoyed narrating more than other scenes?
B.W. : I still visualize so many of the scenes – it’s true that the mind doesn’t differentiate dreams from reality. I often have a fleeting thought that I visited some place and then realize it was in a book I narrated. That happened with The New Bad Thing because the experiences were vivid and transportive. I appreciated the authenticity of the dialogue – that not only makes it easier to get into but it can be fun. I love interrogations because of the way the characters seek to learn about each other – I also like an interrogation where seduction is a device, or a seduction where interrogation is a device. The dialogue and dynamic between Agent Lexington and Teagen when they first meet, that scene had layers and layers to play… what they reveal to each other, how they evade and delve and provoke. There are scenes that are painful as well, when the characters are in distress and those are difficult because you’re there with them but that discomfort informs how they confront their challenges. I take it all as part of the journey. When tragedy happens I believe I have the same sense that the listener/reader experiences; where the mind replays and wonders if there was a way to avoid it. I think it makes the good moments and the triumphs shine that much brighter for everyone.
M.E. : How would you describe The New Bad Thing?
B.W. : A gritty and taut suspense-thriller. I find this hard to define and I think it shows how I’m still in the performance mode – perceiving it from the characters’ points-of-view because the story “is.” It just “is” and that means that I haven’t fully stepped away to get the perspective to tell others about it, as one needs to do for publicity and promotion. So I leave it to the many other readers who wrote fantastic observations about the print version and will hope that the audiobook brings them into the experience.
ME: I like that: “It just is.” And another story is happening elsewhere for someone else and another and another…How do you reset as a performer between each audiobook?
B.W. : I review all the things that I’ve set aside for the usual all-emcompassing push to complete production. Long-form creative works, whether they’re plays or manuscripts or audiobook productions, mean that you have to spend days of intense work to get through. So I make lists and pick up activities I’ve let drop, like chores or personal projects of writing. If I need a mind wipe then I usually indulge in short-form video of singers or dancers I like, or some mindless TV movie, or I daydream travel on tourism websites. I also use short bursts of those as brief rewards for myself after challenging or repetitive tasks. My tastes are eclectic. If any book really hangs on – and it happened with Code over Country and also with Great Lion of God – then I will turn to nature and water and do some personal writing to sort it through. I think it’s important to ask what meaning I’ve given something and why I, personally, need to reconcile with or release it. You can’t carry that stuff but you can be informed and enriched by it.
M.E. : Do you have any tips for authors for when their books are turned into audiobooks? What factors should they be mindful of?
B.W. : I have spoken on panels and in workshops and I coach, as well as having lived and worked in this space for a long time so I don’t think I could even begin to speak about this without it becoming another article in and of itself. I already feel more self-conscious about sharing my insights because I like people to enjoy the audiobook listening experience, first and foremost.
M.E. : What is the next project for you?
B.W. : The next recording I did was an historical romance from a series I began doing years ago. It was great to be doing fiction but also to have it be something completely different because The New Bad Thing was pretty intense in its pace and plot. The most recent books I narrated that debuted are Ward Larsen’s “Deep Fake,” which is another suspense-thriller with international settings, and then I contributed a chapter as part of a multicast production of Erica Bauermeister’s No Two Persons, which is literary fiction. Some more non-fiction – biography – is soon to follow. Happy to explore that curiosity.
M.E.: Thanks Braden for your kind words and sharing your experiences and performer insights. That was fantastic. I’m keen to listen to Deep Fake. I’ve been hearing good things about Ward Larsen’s book. We all look forward to collaborating again with you in the future and listening to your other audiobook titles.
B.W. : Thank you for this, and for the opportunity to be amongst the first to experience The New Bad Thing. Excited others can now as well. Cheers.
The New Bad Thing audiobook is now available. Libraries can order via Overdrive/Libby.
