Hello !

U.S. audiobook sales reached $2.43 billion in 2025, with romance accounting for 13% of revenue, according to the Audio Publishers Association. And that's just the trad published audiobooks!

The number of audiobook listeners has grown every year since the data has been analysed. But turning your book into audio is more complicated than publishing an ebook. And a lot more spendy.

Amazon is pushing their AI voice option, but ... if you follow the money, it may not be in your best interest:

• The consumption and number of AI-narrated audiobooks published has increased in 2025, though willingness to try AI-narrated audiobooks dropped year-over-year, from 70% in 2025 to 61% in 2026.

• Only 16% of Audiobook Listeners have listened to an AI-voiced audiobook, and AI sales revenue amounted to just .03% in 2025.

There are so many questions to consider. That’s why I've invited Emily McCurry (aka Emily Wren) to come and gives us the goods about the whats and hows of audiobook production.

Audiobook 101 for Indie Authors is a practical, no-jargon introduction to getting your book from manuscript to finished audio. We’ll cover:

• Solo, dual, duet, and multicast narration: what’s the difference?

• Production costs, audiobook pricing, and what PFH actually means

• What happens after recording

• Exclusive versus wide distribution

The goal isn’t to convince you that you need an audiobook. It’s to help you understand your options and ask better questions before you hire a narrator, sign a contract, or spend money on production.

Thursday, Nov 12

7pm EST / 4pm PST

Register for free

Even if audio is a “someday” plan, you’re welcome to come get your questions answered.

xo,
Danika

Emily McCurry is the founder of Ember & Ink Creative, a boutique audiobook production company focused on helping indie authors bring their stories to audio with clarity, transparency, and a little less chaos. She also narrates as Emily Wren. A lifelong romance reader, actress, and business professional, Emily combines creative instincts with a love of logistics, budgeting, and making complicated processes feel manageable.

Learn more about Emily at https://www.thesmutoracle.com/narrate

Danika Bloom

Author Ever After 💖

Swoonworthy Services 😍

Where romance writers become romance authors. Write it, finish it, publish it—together.

With respect and gratitude, I operate on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) Nation.