Love and tears under the sun

audiobook sneak peek - With summer's Songs by Janice cole Hopkins

How far would you go to protect your loved ones?
This is exactly what single-mom Tara Kildare has to ask herself when her parents in law try to claim full custody of her little boy, Ricky. Should she marry Sean, the handsome cruiseship officer she just met in order to strengthen her court case? But how can she take this leap of faith when she is still struggling with the trauma of her abusive ex-husband?

Fun facts 
1. With Summer’s Songs was my first ever solo audiobook project and is a sweet romance novel written by Janice Cole Hopkins.
2. I went on a sailing trip in the Caribbean around the time of the recording which also happened to be the setting for half the story. Did I hear "commitment"? Well, more lucky coincidence really  ;)
3.  We decided to mix in some music at the beginning of each chapter and for point of view changes to honor the musical thread of the story - each chapter is named after a famous song. 

Takeaways
This project took me a LOOONNNNGGGG time to complete. I probably spent 11-13 hours of work for each finished hour of audio. I was reading several books on voice acting at that time and the biggest takeaway was how the positioning of your body influences your voice and can help reinforce different emotions. For Sean, the eternal optimist, I would always keep an open body posture which gave him a brighter, warmer tone. For Tara, the sensitive young widow, I would adopt a closed posture. There were a lot of other female / male  characters and I had fun finding different voices for each of them, including the sleezy Lucien.  
Another takeaway is the crucial role of the author throughout the production process. I have to say that Janice was the most supportive and dedicated author I've ever worked with and I am very proud of the final result. With Summer's Songs is perfect for lazy day at the beach... or if you're dreaming of one 😉

About the author
Janice Cole Hopkins grew up in the Appalachian Mountains of North Carolina. She learned to love stories before she could read, started reading at age five, wrote her own stories in third grade, and had published poetry by eight grade. As a teacher, she mainly wrote for magazines, because they didn’t take as much time, but she always wanted to write a historical novel. After she retired from teaching and became her mother’s caregiver, she wrote her first novel, and she’s still writing. To date, she’s published ten inspirational novels with more on the way. She also loves to travel and has gone to all fifty states, on fourteen cruises, and to forty other countries. All her profits go to a scholarship fund for missionary children. 

Give your eyes a rest!
Here is the link to download the audiobook on Audible. Remember, your first book is free!
Would love to know your thoughts about it 😊