Research has shown that there’s a positive connection between audio books and literacy development in children, specifically vocabulary and reading comprehension. In fact, the research went so far as to say “the impact of purely listening to books is striking.”

Striking.

But the question I want to know is: are audio books good for authors?

Audio books may seem like new technology, but realistically, they are simply someone reading you a story out loud, right? And that is a tradition that’s been happening since the first word was uttered. Don’t get me wrong, I listen to audio books, and listen to them a lot. I even have my favorite narrators (VO actors? Whichever they prefer is fine with me) – Carolyn Morris and Eric Michael Summerer, ya’ll are fantastic – but admittedly, I’m listening to audio books while I’m DOING something…usually on my relentless endeavor to lose 10, er 5 pounds, through the rigorous physical exertion of walking really fast; and sometimes I listen while I’m cooking dinner and desperately trying to tune out the kids telling me they’re hungry. So, I am a lover of the audio book – as a listener.

Now over-and-beyond the benefits of the storytelling aspect of an audio book, are they good for the writer in me? I’m not so sure.

Reading the written word provides a number of benefits that are not as easily achievable as listening to it – such as absorbing the different writing styles of various authors, the critical thinking development that’s necessary to enrich your own craft of writing and the visual reminder of the organization or the pattern of writing. And my favorites: grammar and spelling. So if you’re listening to an audio book, you don’t get those fundamental technical reaffirmations necessary to be a good writer.

Two other components that I think also get lost while listening to a book are focus and concentration. If I’m lounging on a tropical beach with a Tequila Sunrise, I’m not listening to an audio book! No I’m reading that book because I have the time and am able to concentrate on one simple task. It’s the same at night in the bed: I’m reading – not listening (but really, I’m probably sleeping). As I mentioned before, I use audio books when I have to multi-task, but actual books (or e-books) are an endeavor that I undertake when I can delve deep.

In “On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft,” Stephen King said: “If you don’t have time to read, you don’t have the time (or the tools) to write.” If he’s strictly talking about physical books, which I think he is, then I could be in trouble!

What about you? What do you think?

#WriteOn