From podcath

[zvi]

I'd be interested in talking about podbook covers. I know I'd always expect the reader to be on there, but most podbook covers only have author and title. So now i'm feeling kinda egotistical to put my name on my podfics, but, in a way, the reader is the creator of that particular fanwork, right? So shouldn't her name be on there?

Comments

[anatsuno]

I totally agree. I don't tend to use the covers at all, since my iPod is an old black and white model that does not display images and I never use iTunes in 'cover flow' mode, so I had never really thought about it, I admit. But I agree with you on the reader's importance! Their name belongs there too.

[eruthros]

I also don't look at covers much -- I have an mp3 player that doesn't show them -- so I hadn't really thought about the reader's name. But it does belong there!

Also in the reading -- sometimes I listen to podfic that just goes "Story, by author. Once upon a time..." And if I downloaded without renaming the file, then I have to go back to the podbook page to figure out who read it!

[brimtoast]

I 100% agree that it would be helpful to have the reader's name on there as well. I can't see why not to. I mean, obviously I think the author should be acknowledged, too, but there doesn't seem to be any issue with authors getting the credit they deserve on podfics, whereas often the custom is for readers to not have their name appear on the cover art, to be listed second in the metadata, and sometimes to not even say their own name at the beginning of a story. It's relatively tiny in importance, as imbalances in this world go. Still, I wish readers gave themselves more credit in their own artform.

I also had another thought related to podfic covers recently. I was listening to Crown of the Summer Court (which was very good), and the cover art was a bit embarrassing to have flash up on my screen whenever I took out my iPhone on the subway while listening to it. It made me think about how when I am listening on headphones, nobody can hear the porn I'm listening to, but the cover art will be a lot less private, and that's something I should keep in mind when deciding whether to put the mp3 or m4b version onto my phone.

[majoline]

I don't actually say my name, but my information is in the tags on the recording when I podfic. So it doesn't matter about the cover, at least to me.

[zvi]

To be perfectly honest, podbook covers don't do much for me as a whole? It seems like, a lot of time, it's a pretty random image of the main character(s) looking hot with the title on in a nice font.

Also, the point of covers, generally speaking, is to create an image to help with browsing (for purchase/selection.) But the current podfic distro structure doesn't support that at all, so I fail to see the utility of covers.

It seems to me that a more useful cover (since the only place I think you'd really use it would be when you were flipping through on coverflow) would be, like, the icon of the reader and the icon of the author, splitting the screen. I feel like that would give me more real metadata than what we get from the covers we have now.

Admittedly, I am not a very visual person.

[luzula]

Hadn't thought about it before, but yes, I agree that it would be good if the reader's name was on the cover, as well.

[sothcweden]

I've never looked much at the covers, since my mp3 player doesn't display images. However, podcath has made me a cover I love for my current podfic project, and it has my name on it. I really appreciate that, since it's my first long podfic and it's sorta kicking my ass; it's nice to have my name up there acknowledging the work I'm putting in.

[jesse_the_k]

I *so* want the reader's name on the cover, in the metadata, in the audio. There are some readers who I've heard a number of times, and I love 'em. But I don't know who they are!