Consistency is King
In Formula 1 race driving it’s one thing to be quick and quite another to be consistently quick. The theory goes that a good driver will be able to deliver a very fast lap, but a great driver will be able to deliver that fast lap over and over again. This skill goes beyond a simple virtuosity for rapid driving. It points to well-developed mental discipline. The great driver can purge their mind of unnecessary distraction and focus on finding that flow that leads to momentum and eventually, if the car is up to it, to victory.
It may be that the only thing an audiobook narrator shares with an F1 driver is the ability to sit energetically on their bottom (unless you’re one of those crazy people who stands throughout a 15-hour production!) However, I believe there is a kinship between the driver and the narrator on the matter of consistency. Consistency after all, is the engine of flow. If a narrator wants to find the sweet spot, they need to find the flow.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi describes the state of being in flow as the moment when the challenge of your task perfectly matches the level of skill you have for performing it. Work too far within your limits and you’ll be stunted by apathy. Exceed your limits and arousal quickly gives way to anxiety. You want a bit of sensory arousal when you need to learn something new. But if you want to achieve consistently high quality in your narration (or consistently quick lap times) you need to find the balance between skill and challenge that creates flow.
For, dear reader, consistency is king. When a narration lacks consistency, the listener can quickly become confused or distracted. Confused because your characters sound different from chapter to chapter. Distracted because your mic position varies too much from day to day. An inconsistent read will bring your listener little more than disappointment. A consistent read, however, is a magic carpet that will take your listener into another world....
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