Should I narrate my own audiobook or hire a narrator through ACX?

"Decent voice and a quiet room" is the start of it, but narration is a performance skill, not just clear speech — pacing, character distinction, staying consistent for hours, and not letting your energy sag in chapter 30. Be honest about whether you can do that, because listeners are unforgiving about it and audiobooks live and die on the narration. A good middle path: record a sample chapter, including some dialogue, and listen back a day later (or have a couple of honest people listen). If it holds up, self-narrating saves real money and readers often like an author's own voice for memoir and nonfiction especially. If it doesn't, hire through ACX — you can audition narrators for free, and if cash is tight the royalty-share option lets you split royalties instead of paying upfront. Either way, budget for at least a light edit/proof-listen; raw narration almost always has small flubs you stop hearing.