EPISODE 1: Chapter One / Part One

Welcome to **Episode 1** of the audio drama, ***“Control; Alt; Delete: Dr. Stundel’s Program To Reboot Your Dangerous Teen.”*** Adapted from my novel, it’s the story of sixteen-year-old Eddie Crowe. He’s a seemingly average teen who discovers he’s the antithesis of that. He takes a test that can foresee the future, and it doesn’t look good for him. With 99% accuracy, he’s predicted to become a homicidal sociopath. Episode 1 sets up Eddie and his high school life. Of course, he’s not perfect, nor is his high school experience. As you’ll hear, there are those he’d rather not interact with, but as circumstances have it, some encounters are unavoidable. Just as a caution, some of the language and situations presented may be offensive to some, perhaps even triggering. Discretion is advised. If you’re interested in the novel, the paperback and digital versions are available on all major bookseller platforms (Goodreads, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Google Books, Apple Books, World of Books). For those new to my Monkie Business Substack, welcome! I encourage you to check out my articles, which highlight my writing and illustration work. Here I share insights, experiences, and my creative process in the hope of passing along what I’ve learned over the years. Paid subscribers: scroll down for more content. If you’re reading this, then thank you for taking this first step on this journey with me on something I’ve been putting together for almost a year. When I started it, I only had a vague idea of my end goal: to create an audiobook version of my novel ***Control; Alt; Delete: Dr. Stundel’s Program To Reboot Your Dangerous Teen***. I’ve heard that a large portion of book readers opt for audio versions–an entire segment of book consumers I felt necessary to reach out to. Why, you may ask? My novel to date has not found its proper audience. If I doubted its merits, I would have chalked up the minuscule readership to a lack of narrative quality. I fundamentally believe it’s a story many will connect to. It touches on universal themes of identity, morality, authority, and forgiveness within a coming-of-age framework. The challenge has always been, as many authors will attest, to rise above the deafening din of the silent unknown. Therefore, the audiobook. The question was, how to create one. My initial consideration was to narrate it myself. Not that I imagine my voice is expressively compelling. Rather, as the author, to form a personal connection with the listener. I soon discovered what makes professional VO artists stand apart from me–they know what they’re doing. After mumbling and “umming” my way through multiple attempts, I realized I lacked the skills and experience to pull this off in a reasonable way. My thinking was, if not me, how about a professional?  And yes, I discovered there are many talented voice actors who, for a fee, can deliver a wonderfully interpretive performance! But I stopped searching for one before long. And it wasn’t for monetary reasons, as some might imagine. What gave me pause was the idea of a single voice narrating my story.  I imagined each character with a unique voice, distinct from the narrator. Perhaps a single voice artist could deliver such a request, but the subtle nuances of how I envisioned it seemed almost impossible to convey. That’s when I learned about ElevenLabs, the AI-generated online software. What instantly grabbed my attention was ElevenLabs’ ability to clone my voice (or multiple versions of my voice) to deliver a clear, nuanced read that, more importantly, I can direct. Learning the software and navigating it took time, but I eventually learned how to use it for my needs (I look forward to sharing more with you, along with future episode drops). Of course, using AI gave me hesitation at first. I’m well aware of its deleterious impact on the arts, including my own career in it. But I also see it as a powerful tool that can be wielded to create that which otherwise would be unrealized. If you recall at the beginning of this writing, I mentioned that I intended to create an audiobook. You may be wondering why I’m providing 15 free episodes instead. I suppose the idea of CAD existing as a pay-to-read audiobook that may or may not get noticed seems antithetical to my objective. What excites me is an audio drama being experienced by as many people as possible- available free to all, in podcast form. Something to capture your imagination while driving, exercising, or working at your desk. So, with great enthusiasm, I look forward to sharing this story with you and providing some insights on how it was created–behind the scenes, so to speak. Below are some rough book cover concepts I came up with before I seriously considered publishing it as a book. This was me stumbling around trying to figure out how to sell the idea with one image. That’s it for now. Stay tuned for the upcoming Episode 2. Monkie Business is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Monkie Business at monkiebusiness.substack.com/subscribe