Independent Authors
May works on a project-by-project basis as a producer and/or director in consultation with the author or their representative. Her goal is to produce an outstanding audio program that sounds like it was recorded flawlessly in a single take, thus ensuring that a perfectly clean, polished final product is delivered to the client, on budget and on time.
Below are samples of the diverse projects May has produced for independent authors and thought leaders, along with endorsements by the authors who hired her.
Ego Free Leadership: Ending the Unconscious Habits that Highjack Your Business
by Shayne Hughes and Brandon Black
The Project
Working with Shayne Hughes, President of Learning as Leadership (LAL), May produced and directed the audiobook edition of a book told from the dual perspectives of Brandon Black, then CEO of Encore Capital, and the LAL team headed by Shayne. A third perspective was that of Amy Anuk, a female employee confronting discrimination in the workplace. The book details how the LAL and Encore partnership helped the Encore executive team learn to root out the unproductive ego habits that undermine collaboration and performance—and, in the process, discover a time-tested roadmap for eliminating the destructive effects of the ego in teams and organizations. The book gives an indepth look at the transformation from dysfunction to successful leadership.
To produce the audiobook edition, May worked on all aspects of preparing and executing production, as well as advising them on distribution options. She recommended, booked, and scheduled studio space for three busy executives recording in three different locations, Then, over the course of a month, she directed each of them remotely during their individual recording sessions. Preparation included posing and answering questions about adapting the print format, which contained graphs, sidebars, and other visual elements, to listener-friendly content. Multiple performance coaching sessions were held in advance of recording. May brought on the postproduction team who edited the book and worked closely with them through the mastering and QC process.
The Endorsement
“May was highly effective in her role as director and producer. Assertive in coaching us while still being encouraging. I had great appreciation for her follow through and proactivity in managing all the moving parts of the process — guiding us to choose recording studios, coaching us in our reading of our individual parts, evaluating our final performance, and helping us think through distribution. And all this was done off site in a seamless and efficient manner." - Shayne Hughes, co-Author
"I truly appreciated how May helped me through the process. She's direct, but understanding; she allowed for our own creative process, while suggesting best practices. And, most importantly, I felt prepared."
- Brandon Black, co-Author
Finding Mrs. Ford by Deborah Goodrich Royce
The Project
Author and philanthropist Deborah Goodrich Royce is a force to be reckoned with. A former actress, story analyst and film executive, who also serves as President of the Board of the Stamford, CT Avon Theatre Film Center (the 1939 theatre that she and her husband restored), she knew what she wanted in an audiobook production. She retained the audio rights to this, her highly acclaimed first novel, whose print and ebook editions were published by Post Hill Press. Deborah hired May to produce and direct the audiobook, and they worked closely on all aspects of the production.
A character-driven story of psychological suspense that goes back and forth in time, the challenge here was identifying an actress who could play the recently widowed Mrs. Ford, leading a life of privilege in Manhattan in 2014, and the Susan Ford of her youth, a sheltered young college student who falls into a friendship that leads her to the violent world of suburban Detroit in 1979. May auditioned several multi-talented actresses and Deborah fell in love with award-winning narrator Saskia Maarleveld, who brought the character and book to life exactly as she had imagined. Finding Mrs. Ford was recorded at CDM Studios in New York City
and distributed by Blackstone Publishing,
The Endorsement
Every aspect of working with May Wuthrich on the audiobook of Finding Mrs. Ford was delightfully educational and confidence-inspiring! From casting to recording, to final placement with the distributor, May guided the process with wise counsel, strategic questions, wisdom, knowledge and professionalism. May knows what she’s doing and she does it well. I could not be happier with the final product and cannot wait to work with May again on my next book!” - Deborah Goodrich Royce
Critical Acclaim - AudioFile Magazine:
“Narrator Saskia Maarleveld is outstanding in this absorbing, multilayered listen. The audiobook begins as the FBI arrives at the Watch Hill home of Susan Ford, asking about a man named Sammy Fakhouri. Susan has a carefully curated life--everything is under control. What follows is an expertly written story unfolding in two parts--the current investigation and the summer of 1979 in Detroit, when Susan met the impulsive and captivating Annie. Together, they take summer jobs at a disco with Mob connections and encounter Fakhouri. Maarleveld seamlessly transitions between time periods and points of view, voicing the focused Susan and the reckless Annie with clear distinctions and nuances that perfectly match their personalities. The audiobook begins slowly but as the story unfolds, one can't stop listening.”
Into the Sky with Diamonds: The Beatles and the Race to the Moon in the Psychedelic ‘60s
by Ronald Grelsamer
The Project
Ronald Grelsamer’s historical fiction title was self-published by AuthorHouse in September 2010. With the ever-growing popularity of the audiobook format, Grelsamer decided that a decade later, producing an audio edition could bring fresh eyes and ears to his passion project. An expert on all things Sixties, Grelsamer’s intersecting stories of the Beatles rise to fame and NASA’s race to the moon, are based in historical detail, but written as a memoir by a fictional character - a NASA engineer, who has a chance meeting with the real-life Beatles Roadie, Mal Evans. It's through their friendship, and the letters exchanged between them, that we get a behind-the-scenes look at these two cultural phenomena.
Because production budgets are based on the length of the program, and Grelsamer’s book was estimated at fifteen hours long, there were budget considerations to address. One or two actors? Recording in a professional studio with all the associated costs, or with talent experienced at home recordings? A number of actors were auditioned and Graham Halstead, an American actor, and award-winning voice artist living and working in Paris, France with a state-of-the-art home studio, was chosen. Graham’s theater training included studying Shakespeare in London, so when it came to creating distinct voices for the two narrators, Graham nailed the young, enterprising NASA engineer as well as the working class bloke from Liverpool, thus allowing May to direct the performance remotely, streamline the production process and cut costs.
Additionally, May helped create marketing materials, including a video recorded by the narrator and an “Author’s Note” written for the audio edition (which Grelsamer recorded at the sound studio where his show Beatles & Friends Radio, is produced.)
The Endorsement
“When I first hired May to produce my book, I had no real concept of the scope of work involved in producing and directing audiobooks. Although our conversation began with whether I should read part of the book myself and how the book might be adapted for audio, it evolved into an unexpected partnership.
As May diplomatically pointed out, an audiobook is not always a direct translation (or recitation) of the printed text. In the case of my book, the print edition included sidenotes, as well as visual effects that did not translate, and lists that can be quickly scanned with the eye but, as May put it, slow down the pace of the storytelling. So, May made good use of her editing expertise and, always in consultation with me, massaged the book from beginning to end, coming up with a final script that also took into account some dated content and errors missed in copy editing.
May also explained that because my book was based in history, specific research would be done in preparation for recording. She made contact with an engineer at NASA who graciously provided guidance about technical and scientific terms. She and Graham reviewed YouTube clips of the historical figures quoted in the book, thus creating accurately represented characters who would be recognizable to listeners. May's sometimes dizzying attention to detail was impressive and she moved the project along efficiently, even arranging distribution through Blackstone Publishing. The whole process was creative, fun and accomplished on schedule, and, maybe most of all, allowed me to revisit my book in a whole new way!" - Ronald Grelsamer
Critical Acclaim - AudioFile Magazine Earphones Award-Winner
AudioFile Magazine:
“In this audiobook, a novel that weaves the compelling 1960s stories of the race to space and the emergence of the Beatles, the real star is narrator Graham Halstead. He adds drama to the space flights--successes and failures--and his exceptional delivery of the Liverpool accents of the Fab Four and their real-life aide-de-camp, Mal Evans, enliven the listening experience. Mal's stories of "the boys'" lives--featuring drugs, sex, and the making of rock-and-roll masterpieces--encourage listeners to re-hear the music as the songs' backstories are revealed. As the intermingling narratives move the story along, Halstead takes a modest work of historical fiction and makes it better through adept mimicry, fine pacing, and personal style.
Critical Acclaim for Other Projects Produced for Independent Authors
AudioFile Magazine - Earphones Award-Winner
Hear Now Festival Gold Award-Winner
Society of Voice Arts & Sciences (SOVAS) Award finalist in the History/Biography category
Audie Award Finalist in the History/Biography category
An AudioFile Magazine Best Audiobook of 2021
Somersett: Benjamin Franklin and the Masterminding of American Independence by Phillip Goodrich
An Audiobook Original of a Full Cast Recoding
Performed by Robert Petkoff, Joe Morton, Simon Jones, Euan Morton, Nicola Barber
playing over 30 historical characters with Phillip Goodrich reading the Author’s Note and Afterword
Blackstone Publishing
“With a sense of unbound curiosity, narrator Robert Petkoff narrates this fascinating account of the background and backroom dealings that crafted and sustained the American Revolution--from its financing to its persuasive pamphlets and battle plans. The story centers on Benjamin Franklin, who dedicated the second half of his life to wresting the Colonies from England. Along the way, a 1772 judgment by the Earl of Mansfield, voiced with perfect British authority by Simon Jones, gave a single enslaved man, James Somersett, his freedom, creating a devastating dichotomy between abolitionist New England's creed and what the South viewed as "property rights." Franklin hoped that the fledgling U.S. Constitution would resolve the issue of slavery. In his afterword the author provides more details on why it did not. Essential listening.” — AudioFile Magazine
AudioFile Magazine - Earphones Award-Winner
On the Road Less Travelled: An Unlikely Journey from the Orphanage to the Boardroom
by Ed Hajim with Glenn Plaskin
Read by Rob Shapiro with Jill Larson, Marc Feuerstein, Izzy Berman, and Ed Hajim
Skyhorse Publishing
“Listeners hear author Ed Hajim's actual voice as he narrates the introduction to his memoir. Regardless, when narrator Rob Shapiro takes over for the body of the work, listeners will completely buy into his performance. He inhabits the work and perfectly paces the financier/philanthropist's rags-to-riches story. Shapiro's tone is always on target, especially when Hajim discusses his strained relationship with his father. During Hajim's self-effacing, humorous references, one can hear the smile in Shapiro's voice. Additional narrators read excerpts of letters, which give a documentary feel to the production. Listeners will come away impressed with how the author overcame numerous obstacles to find professional and personal success. “ AudioFile Magazine
Little Sister: A Memoir by Patricia Chadwick
Read by Rebecca Soler with the Author
Post Hill Press
“In this audiobook memoir, Chadwick describes her childhood growing up in the cultlike ultrareligious Catholic community in Massachusetts that called itself the Slaves of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Narrator Rebecca Soler shares her vocal skills as she voices Father Feeney and Sister Catherine, the charismatic duo who talked Harvard and Radcliffe graduates and their families into leaving the world and living in this community of half-truths, and brutality. In classic abusive maneuvers, rewards and punishments were designed to break their spirits and make them submit to Sister Catherine's road to salvation. Soler is especially skilled as she immerses herself in Patricia's emotions. Listeners will hear her confusion as a child, her angst as a teenager, and her dawning realization of where true evil lived.” AudioFile Magazine