Fantasy author seeks narrator for audiobooks

Fantasy author Danica Fontaine, who plans to shoot five movies in Maui County based on her young-adult book series "The Order of Ethyrea," is about to audition narrators for the audiobook version of her series.

Fontaine’s family-friendly books, which are being released this month in a revised, second edition from Old Line Publishing, feature a wildly imaginative world. There are griffins, gargoyles, dragons, a skeleton army and apelike creatures that disappear in shadows.

Many of the characters and places in "Ethyrea" have names that are difficult to pronounce, but Fontaine plans to provide a pronunciation guide for hopeful narrators, she said.

The author is looking for a narrator whose voice is "sultry" and "musical," she said.

"I want someone who has a voice that is intriguing and has lots of depth and character," Fontaine said. "I want someone who knows what they are talking about and says it compellingly and keeps you hanging on to the last word."

The auditions will be handled through online submissions that can be made from Dec. 16 to Jan. 31, Fontaine said. She hopes to announce the winner by Feb. 26.

Detailed rules and how contestants can upload an audition will be released on Fontaine’s website —www.ethyrea.com — on Dec. 1. The site will also have a standard, one-minute-long section of the book that all contestants will read, Fontaine said.

The winning narrator will also have an appearance in the first film, "Ethyrea: Code of the Brethren," as well as win $1,000 and a trip for two to the Los Angeles premiere of the film, said Fontaine, who also serves as producer of the film project.

"Ethyrea" could be a boon to Maui County. Fontaine said it will take five years to complete all the films she has planned. The first film, which has a $105 million budget, will spend about $60 million in Hawaii, Fontaine said.

Although the books were released in 2010 as part of a small test run, the audiobook narrator will have to be familiar with the new edition, Fontaine said. It’s available on amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com.

Maui will also be featured on the cover of a special, limited-run edition of the book, Fontaine said. Old Line Publishing will offer a paperback edition of the book with a photo of Iao Needle on the cover.