Note: this service will be unavailable after April 2025. Contact us for more info.
BkListen is built for authors - and used by readers. Authors get an easy way to share their content, and readers get a glimpse into the author's work - which may entice them to purchase the book. All without the expense and hassle of creating an audio file - authors just upload a text file.
We pronounce BkListen as "Book Listen" - we let you try out a book by reading an excerpt provided by the author. Besides being a short name, the name is similar to our other author-centered sites: BkTry (for PDF excerpts), BkLnk (for category research), BkSubscribe (for mailing subscription lists), and BkLanding (for simple author landing pages).
When readers use the link to the author's text file, BkListen will show the text file content in the center of the page. The area to the left will contain your book title, author, and links to more information about the book. And audio control buttons will allow your computer to read the excerpt by selecting the browser's available 'voices'.
To see (and listen to) an example of author content hosted by BkListen.com, try this link. Try out the different 'voices' available in your browser.
After authors register their free account, they create an Audio Campaign and add their content as a plain text file. When the Audio Campaign is active, authors can provide the audio file link to others - your potential readers. The link is shown on the Audio Campaign page, as well as on the list of Audio Campaigns.
The Free plan allows for up to 5 Audio Campaigns. Authors can upgrade to our Paid plan and get up to 100 Audio Campaigns. All plans - including the free plan - have all the site features.
Readers clicking on the Audio Campaign link will see the excerpt's text file, and can listen using the easy audio controls. They can hear the content in the selectable voices available in their browser. The controls let them pause and resume the content. Here's an example. The available voices depend on the browser used.
If the Audio Campaign is not yet active or has expired, the visitor will see a notice to that effect. A randomly selected audio file from all Audio Campaigns on the site is available on that page.
Behind the scenes, BkListen keeps track of each time the content is viewed and listened to by your readers, and displays that count in your Campaign information screen and lists. BkListen doesn't keep track of any other user information, other than basic visitor analytics. No user personal information or location is stored; just the number of times the content was accessed.
If you are an author, and you want an easy way to share your book excerpts as audio in your newsletters, just register for your free account. Once confirmed, you can easily create Audio Campaigns and share your content.
Registration and adding your Audio Campaigns will only take a few minutes - because we figure you'd rather be writing than marketing. And BkListen is free - free accounts are limited to 5 Audio Campaigns. The reasonably priced annual Paid account allows for up to 100 Audio Campaigns. All accounts - even the free ones - have all site features.
We're happy to answer any questions, or listen to your concerns. We even like suggestions for new features.
Just use our Contact page - we'll try to respond within 48 hours (it's often sooner).
Richard Hellewell
Somewhere opposite Mutiny Bay WA