Dec. 3 Post-Show Webinar Continues Author Nation Momentum

Our Spoken team is rolling up the sleeves on our white Members Only jackets and putting to good use everything we learned at Author Nation. 

We were so blown away by the energy and response from Author Nation 2025 in Las Vegas that we can’t get enough of talking about it!

In fact, we’ve been invited to co-host a post-show webinar to discuss the synergy from the event and how Spoken is helping authors create audiobooks in new and exciting ways – yep, including duet narration!

Join us …. Wed., Dec. 3 @ 7 p.m. EST / 4 p.m. PST

Author Nation Post-Show Webinar with Joe Solari – “Digitally-Narrated Audiobooks with Spoken: Bring Your Backlist to Life in 2026” 

If you couldn't make it to Author Nation or Phil's drop-the-mic talk at the show, now's your chance to get the inside scoop on all things Spoken!  Join Phil, Joshua, Joe, and Stacy as we discuss strategies for giving voice to your backlist, creating lead magnets to grow your email list, duet narration and the exciting enhancements we’re planning for 2026.

Top 5 Things We Took Away from Author Nation

What happened in Vegas didn’t stay in Vegas. We took it with us – the excitement of forging partnerships and the joy of connecting with humans in a business fueled by technology. Here are a few takeaways ...

1. Authors are making 2026 the year for audiobooks, and they loved learning about multi-cast narration through Spoken. (Obviously, we’re more than a little overjoyed by this.) 

2. The answer is always "Do it!" If you’re nudged to start a conversation in line at registration or sitting next to someone at a session, just do it! You never know where those conversations can lead.

3. Pricing matters, but so does getting it right. Authors were blown away by our Pay When Perfect pricing philosophy. Several familiar Spoken users stopped by to say thanks including Julia, Jessica, Eunice, Cody, Matt, Jessie and Rachel.

4. Fake it when you need to … When your co-workers peer-pressure you into performing “Bohemian Rhapsody" karaoke-style for the grand finale, just lip-sync and have some fun!

5.  We always say, "there are humans behind all this tech," and that really hit home when we had the chance to connect with some of our favorite voice actors whose voices we regularly cast for projects, including Jessica Anne Bogart, Christopher, Amelia and Hey, It's Brad, all who have voice clones on Spoken.

---

Congrats to Our Raffle Winner!

Huge congratulations to Theresa Goodrich, who won a full year of free subscriber status. Theresa responded with the kind of enthusiasm we love ...

 “I have SO many ideas (and so many audiobooks to publish). I'm thrilled that I can do a voice clone. I've been planning to record my books, but time... always time. This means I can make it happen much faster and I can do my whole catalog!"

---

If you want to be a career author, this indie community has a wealth of knowledge waiting for you. Buy your ticket to Author Nation for next year. It’s worth every penny.

Spoken V1.05 Release Notes: Pay When Perfect and Chapter-by-Chapter Publishing are here!

This release marks a turning point for Spoken and for the audiobook creation landscape. Version 1.05 removes barriers, simplifies pricing, and gives authors complete freedom to experiment, perfect, and publish their work on their own terms.

Paywall Revolution — Create First, Pay Last

We’ve completely redesigned when payment occurs inside Spoken Studio.
Until now, authors had to pay before generating narration. That changes today with our Pay When Perfect Pricing.

You can now narrate, re-narrate, and listen to your full project before paying anything.
Payment only happens at the final publishing step—after you’re satisfied with your audiobook and ready to release it.

This is a fundamental shift for Spoken, and for the entire AI audio industry – and publishing industry at large. It restores creative freedom to where it belongs: in the hands of the author.

Farewell to Narration Credits — Welcome Prix Fixe Audiobooks

We surveyed our users, and the results were clear: Have a fixed price for the finished project, even if it costs more. As a result, the credit system is now gone. Pricing is now simple, fixed, and fully transparent.

Tier - Price per 5,000 words - Includes

Subscribers - $10 - Unlimited Narration and Re-Narration

Non-Subscribers - $20 - Unlimited Narration and Re-Narration

Every creative change—voice swaps, force re-narrations, speed adjustments, emotion refinements—is included
You only pay once, when you publish. The price you see when you start is the price you’ll pay when you finish.

No tokens. No hidden costs. No games.

Chapter-by-Chapter Publishing

Authors can now publish individual chapters directly from Studio.

This new flexibility is ideal for:

• Serialized and episodic storytelling

• Updating or exporting select chapters

• Staying focused on one section at a time

You only pay for the word count of the chapters you choose to publish. The result is a workflow that supports precision, iteration, and momentum.

Chapter-by-Chapter Narration

Spoken Studio now operates at the chapter level — authors narrate and refine one chapter at a time, rather than generating narration for the entire project at once.

This shift is designed to empower authors and elevate quality. By focusing on a single chapter per session, you can thoroughly proof your work, ensuring every scene, every line, and every delivery feels perfect before moving forward.

If you’re not satisfied with elements such as voice casting or pacing, you can make those changes early on — before they carry across the rest of your audiobook. This fine-tuned control gives serious self-publishing authors the creative precision and strategic flexibility they need to reach a pitch-perfect final result.

In short: chapter-by-chapter narration keeps you in flow, in control, and fully equipped to craft a truly professional audiobook experience.

Expanded Voice Library

We’ve added a diverse and powerful new collection of professional voice actors to the Spoken Library. Each voice is carefully curated, and each actor is paid every time their voice is used.

Our expanding catalog continues to set the standard for quality, representation, and fairness in AI-assisted narration.

Performance Improvements and Bug Fixes

• Fixed MP3 upload errors—large audio files now upload reliably.

• Enhanced performance for padding, volume, and timing adjustments.

• General stability improvements across Studio playback and editing.

Summary

Spoken v1.05 delivers one clear message:
Create freely. Edit endlessly. Pay only when it’s perfect.

Spoken V1.04 Release Notes: API Power, Future-Ready Infrastructure and Full Freedom with Distribution

We’re excited to announce the release of Spoken V1.04 — a major step forward in making scalable audiobook production faster, simpler, and more powerful. Whether you’re a publisher, a distributor, or a platform expanding your creative ecosystem, this update opens new possibilities for integrating Spoken into your workflow.

Spoken Studio API — Powering the Next Generation of Audiobook Workflows

With V1.04, Spoken’s Studio API is now available to all partners — transforming audiobook creation into a fully programmable, scalable service. Built for developers, publishers, and distribution platforms, the API gives you complete control over project creation, narration, and delivery, directly from your own applications and workflows.

Full Programmatic Control

• Authenticate instantly with a clientId and secretKey, and start building projects within seconds.

• Pass in your own externalProjectId to link Spoken projects to your existing systems and pipelines.

• Automate audiobook creation from manuscript submission and voice casting to narration and audio retrieval.

Easy Integration into Existing Platforms

• Seamlessly embed Spoken into your publishing tools, author platforms, or distribution services using our "Easy Peasy" Parameterized URL approach, allowing your authors to maintain their control of the quality of their work.

• Create, manage, and deliver projects dynamically through simple, secure endpoints.

• Eliminate manual steps, reduce time-to-market, and scale output with far less engineering overhead.

Scalable by Design

• Power workflows ranging from quick demos to full enterprise-grade audiobook pipelines.

• Produce titles programmatically with the same speed and simplicity as a single project.

• Integrate narration, installment delivery, and audio export directly into your own applications.

Spoken’s Studio API is now the strongest tool in your publishing toolkit — built to turn audio production into a fast, flexible, and deeply integrated part of your ecosystem.

Explore the documentation and get started: API.Spoken.press

CI/CD Deployment and Infrastructure Upgrade

We’ve completely overhauled our backend deployment system to make Spoken faster, more reliable, and future-ready.

• New Production Environment: A robust new setup designed for growth.

• Improved Scalability: Optimized resource handling for large-scale workloads.

• Faster Releases: Updates now ship more smoothly and reach users quicker.

• Better Reliability: Reduced downtime and more consistent performance.

If terms like "CI/CD," "Kubernetes," "Pods," and "Replicas" mean something to you, you’ll appreciate the depth of these changes. If not, simply know that everything under the hood is now more efficient, stable, and built for success. 

Updated Terms of Service

Please see our updated Terms of Service. We’ve removed all constraints on distribution. Spoken is built to empower authors with both creative and publishing control.