New York Times bestselling and Library Reads Hall of Fame author Abby Jimenez shares her thoughts on audiobooks, narrators, and good food.
AudioFile: Can you tell us a little about your newest title, SAY YOU’LL REMEMBER ME?
Abby Jimenez: It’s a book about making and losing memories. It’s the story of Samantha and Xavier, who have a whirlwind, amazing first date right before Samantha leaves to care for her mother, who has early onset dementia in California. I want to say it’s my most heartbreaking book yet with a happily-ever-after at the end.
AF: And what can you tell us about the audiobook version?
AJ: I love my audiobooks so much. I’m extremely involved in all my audiobooks’ production because audiobooks are 95% of how I read, and obviously a narrator can make or break an audiobook. Hachette Audio allows me to be super involved. I handpick my narrators; I do extensive auditions. Xavier is a very dry, very reserved hero . . . I really wanted someone to embody his personality and the tone. So I looked outside of my normal bucket of narrators, and when I heard Matt Lanter’s audition, I said, “That’s my Xavier.” He absolutely nailed it. And then there’s also Christine Lakin, who is a perennial favorite of mine; this is the third book she’s done for me. This is my first duet narration on a full-length book. And I love it. I’m obsessed with it. I’m probably going to do it every time. I just absolutely love what they’ve done with the audiobook.
AF: Do you think about the audiobook at any stage in the writing process?
AJ: Part of my writing process is to read my book out loud. It’s the final stage of my edit process. The last thing I do is I call my sister-in-law, and I read the book out loud to her because I catch so many things when I read it out loud. When I’m writing the book, I’m thinking about the audiobook, and when I read it out loud, it’s almost like I’m hearing my audiobook before it’s been recorded. Everything I do is to deliver a good audiobook over the printed book, if I’m being honest. That’s how I like to read books, so the audiobook is always at the forefront of my mind.
AF: What role do audiobooks play in your life?
AJ: I listen to probably 20 or so audiobooks a year, which is a lot for me, considering all the other things I’m doing. Audiobooks are what I listen to when I make “The Sauce.” I’m Sicilian. Three to four times a year I’ll make a huge, giant batch of fresh pasta sauce that we freeze and use throughout the year. So, audiobooks are like my respite. That’s what I do when I want to relax. I listen to an audiobook.
AF: What does your fan base say about your audiobooks?
AJ: They love them. I’m known for having very good audiobooks. So they’re always very excited to see who I pick. I feel like my readers trust me a lot. I tell them—“You gotta pick up the audiobook”—even if that’s not the way they normally consume reading. I think it’s converted a lot of people, actually. I always pick my narrators. I always let my publisher know the audiobook is very important to me. The way that other authors feel when they open up their box of finished copies and they see their finished book for the first time, that’s how I feel when they send me the first draft of my audiobook recording. I’ve always been very involved.
AF: Any upcoming projects you want to mention?
AJ: SAY YOU’LL REMEMBER ME just came out, of course. We just announced the title of my next book. It’s called THE NIGHT WE MET.
AF: Narrators?
AJ: Not yet. I’m still thinking about it, but I’m probably going to choose one very, very early because I would personally like to shoot for celebrity narrators for this book—just to keep it fun and exciting for my readers and for me.
AF: Speaking of fun, want to share your favorite cake flavor with our listeners?
AJ: Coconut lime verbena cupcake from my bakery, Nadia Cakes.
