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Hachette and New Writing North open audiobook recording studio
Hachette UK and New Writing North have opened a dedicated new audiobook recording studio in North East England. Sounds Good Audiobooks is based within Northumbria University’s city centre campus in Newcastle.
Northumbria University and New Writing North have worked in partnership since 2012, delivering teaching, community engagement and research activity. The two organisations are into the second year of running the MA Publishing course, which is co-delivered by New Writing North and global publishers, Hachette.
The audiobook studio will open up opportunities for staff and students, with plans to incorporate writing for audio across a number of programmes in humanities.
The studio has announced commercial production with its first frontlist audiobook, Barrowbeck by Lancashire author Andrew Michael Hurley.
The synopsis for Barrowbeck reads: "Barrowbeck is a dark, suspenseful folk-horror story about the inhabitants of a remote valley on the Yorkshire-Lancashire border. It is read by actors Gabriella Pond and Matt Jamie, and produced by Lucie McNeil, who pitched the original concept of a collaborative audiobook studio to Northumbria University, New Writing North and Hachette UK."
McNeil, audio development producer for New Writing North and studio lead for Sounds Good, said: “The North East has an incredible array of talent and graduates primed to work in audiobooks, and now we have a central hub where they can be created locally. The studio is right in the heart of Newcastle and all its transport links, so it’s easy to get to.”
She added: “We are excited to continue working with our long-term partners Hachette to build publishing infrastructure and opportunity in the north, and New Writing North’s partnership with Northumbria University has always had a creative, collaborative approach. We want to build our audio work into Northumbria University’s MA in publishing and other courses and provide industry experience for students and creatives.”
Neil Percival, acting director of cultural partnerships at Northumbria University, said: “One of the reasons we have established strong cultural partnerships with local organisations such as New Writing North is to sustain and build the creative ecology of the region.
“We’re looking forward to providing new opportunities to our students through this collaboration, including co-designing and delivering a new undergraduate module alongside New Writing North across courses such as English Literature and Creative Writing.”
Barrowbeck is published by John Murray, an imprint of John Murray Press (a division of Hachette UK) and is out on 24th October in its print hardback edition.
Dominic Gribben, co-audio content director at Hachette, said: “Barrowbeck was at the top of my list when Lucie and I originally discussed books that could be recorded as part of the partnership. I’m delighted that we’re kicking things off with this production, and I’m looking forward to many more audiobooks coming out of Newcastle later this year and through 2025.”
Hurley said: “It’s such an honour to know that Barrowbeck will be recorded and produced by Sounds Good Audiobooks. It’s a wonderful, collaborative venture that will give writers, publishers, actors and sound technicians across the North so many opportunities.”
