Final Day of Amplirecathon: Self-Rec Post

[podmod]

And here is the second of today's two Official Mod Posts: self-recs.

If you are a podfic artist, then one of the bodies of work you know best of all is your own! In the comments below, rec one (or more) podfic(s) of yours that you think stands out, that you want to particularly direct listeners to. And explain why! Interpret the prompt in any way you want -- just name a work of yours that you love and talk about why.

Comments

[kalakirya]

well, if no one else is going to say something, I'm going to dive in.

I can't say anything without mentioning Do You Want to Date My Avatar, which isn't a podfic of mine per se - it's a group podfic that I directed as part of theatripod, and features a nine-person cast and custom art. The whole thing just makes me really happy, partly because I have a lot of great memories associated with making it, but also because it's a fun story that, imho, works even better as a multi-voiced podfic, and not only that, but everyone did a fantastic job and I was priviledged to be a part of it and I just have a lot of feeeeeeels for this thing and love it so :D

Once More With Feeling is a Good Omens/Harry Potter crossover, and while I think I did a good job overall, I'm kinda proud of Crowley and of the effect on the demon at the beginning :D

Texts from the Van (White Collar) I do love unusual formats! this one is told nearly entirely through texts, and though I'm still not sure if I like the sound effects or not, I think both versions work quite well. In the same post is Sacrifice (DS9) and evil characters are just sooo much fun to voice :D

The Shieldmaidens of Erebor (the Hobbit) while I do love Tolkien with the fiery passion of a thousand burning suns, his works are very light on the ladies, so I was incredibly excited to find a Dis-centric story written in a style not too far from Tolkien's own (which is to say, Very Grand And Portentous), and I think I did a decent attempt at conveying that style in my reading, so :D

the star trek XI, hobbit and Avengers kink memes in 30 lines - I just really like these :D

and since we did a thing for covers this year and I make some of my own covers, I'll gonna give a quick shout-out to my cover of Team Building Activities because it was the podfic that I had such a clear idea for a cover for that I HAD TO MAKE IT - and therefore had to teach myself how to do coverart for, because until I started recording this podfic, I didn't do coverart. I learned for the sole purpose of making this cover. And I think it turned out ok :D

[analise010]

SHEILDMAIDENS OF EREBOR!!!!! I plan on listening to that on the plane tomorrow. \O/

[jelazakazone]

I've got four that I'm particularly proud of:

Post Its of a Life Well Loved It's an epistolary story and goes from serious and even downright morose to crackerificly funny and I think I did a good job with the range. Plus, the story chokes me up at the end EVERY TIME. It's a great story and it converted to podfic format well. (Warehouse 13, Myka/HG told from Claudia's POV and probably R?)

Your Place This is a Kaylee/Inara fic and I nailed Kaylee's voice, if I do say so myself. (explicit)

Lights go out, here I go again Halffizzbin did a great job with this story and it was fun to record and even better to revisit when I edited. I mean, who likes editing podfic? I could not stop smiling when I was editing it, but managed NOT to crack up while reading. (Arthur/Merlin, explicit)

Watching, Waiting, Wet This is the only podfic I've used music in and I was particularly pleased with how I managed to use it and that I got the sound levels even. (Merlin/Arthur, NC17, watersports)

[teprometo]

First up, we have Though You Were Only Sparring (Merlin - Arthur/Merlin), which is the crowd favorite. It's gotten way more feedback than any of my other podfics (though admittedly still very little feedback, alas). It was the first time I podficced my OTP, it's porny, and the story is great.

But and like a dream (we vanish) (Merlin - Gwen/Morgana) is my personal favorite. I was working with a very lyrical fic to begin with, which made performing a lot of fun and resulted in the performance being my favorite so far.

[jelazakazone]

Though You Were Only Sparring is one of my all time favorite podfics. You did such an awesome job with it. I should listen to your Gwen/Morgana podfic:D

[teprometo]

Thank you!

[sylvaine]

Diamonds and Rust (lotrips, Orlando/Viggo, 20 min.) I like how I used music in this one, and that I didn't let my fluctuating accent stop me (I usually keep a tight leash on it, depending on the fandom - doesn't work so well with an international cast like here.), and in hindsight I think the back-and-forth of my accent works really well for the story. Also, I continue to be really proud of the cover art.

Blurring Lines/Negative Space (Bandom, Waybro-focussed gen, 7 min.) I spliced two fics together! And one of them was a poem! And I used effects! And it worked out really well! \o/

In My Blood Like Holy Wine (Bandom, Gerard/Mikey/Frank, 1.5h) The answer to the question "Sylvie, will you ever stop feeling smug about your sex voices" is a smug, emphatic nope. And this fic, I think, showcases my sex noises the best. :D (and, surprising no-one, is also my most popular podfic to date! For those not familiar with the fandom, though, the main pairing is incestuous.)

THEME: Wait...I made that?

[analise010]

+ J-A-Y: This podfic is about how rapper Kanye West challenges singer, Beyonce to a Connect 4 Battle for rapper Jay-Z's love. Not only is the probably the best podfic I've ever made, it also helped me work through my own issues with race and characterization.

+ Grimper L'echelle: A Hannibal fic with not cannibalism? WHAT? There is a cannibalism metaphor, but nothing that would sound out of place in any other context. (Will says, "It shouldn't feel like he’s being eaten alive, not even when Hannibal’s teeth slip back along his throat. No touch this small should feel so all-consuming.") I LOVE THE PREMISE HERE. Will giving himself up to Hannibal, even though it will be his destruction. LOVE IT!

+ How Much For the Fedora?: Jason Mraz exhibitionist porn. That's it. Really.

+ Touch Me: Anyone who knows me KNOWS that Logan/Rogue from X-Men is my OTP. This story is of how Rogue has Logan's memories in her head and how she really wants to...know him. ;) AWESOMELY HOT PWP, not even gonna lie.

+ Axes and Conkers: The point of this fic is that Biblo tries really REALLY hard not to fall for Thorin. Except. He's already fallen. HARD.

+ All This Mess: I must warn you that this is a gen podfic...about a mathematician. There are math terms in it, but mostly it's about a boy who grows up and wants to become something great. Also about the love/hate relationship that we all have with the things that inspire us.

+ Make It Work: Last, but CERTAINLY not least, my first big collab. vassalady and I had so much fun recording this podfic and it really shows. Our voices play well off of each other and our characterization fits perfectly with the story. The premise is that Erik Lehnsherr gets a makeover. By Project Runway. Antics ensue.

[mothlights]

Menthol Cherry Red - Homestuck Karkat/John. Karkat keeling over with the flu, John ridiculously upbeat, and Sollux with his fast talking lisp, made for great voices to work with. My favorite to record.

A Simple Life - Teen Wolf Derek/Stiles. Because it moves between grief and joy, back and forth. Plus the cover art by newgrange.

[klb]

Ooh, I followed this link to Menthol Cherry Red and listened long enough to get to your sick Karkat voice, and then I was all in. Downloading to put on my to-listen playlist now :D

[mothlights]

Thanks. It's even better when someone listens to the ones I feel best about. Similar to what you were saying re You Make My Heart Beat (Faster) -- which I've neither heard nor read, but will be remedying. TW Double Genderswap, Hi! How did I miss you?! -- in which you tweaked and edited to just how you wanted it.

[klb]

You Make My Heart Beat (Faster) — I fully indulged my perfectionist tendencies on this, tweaking every choice to have exactly the nuances I wanted, and I listened back recently and was like WOW. There's so much in there. I know novembersmith so well that I feel like I can pull a *lot* out of her words anyway, especially since I beta'd this and so had just spent a whole afternoon digging into every little detail of it with her. And then I took all the thoughts and feelings that had been stirred up through that and poured them into this. And here they forever are. So cool.

The Shame Was On the Other Side — This is one of three Glee stories I co-recorded with reena_jenkins. It was such an incredible experience sharing this story I loved and deeply connected to (about non-sexual kink) with her, and when I need comforting I will sometimes turn to this file and what was captured there, because of the extremely comforting story but also because of the acting chemistry that was created by us sitting on my couch together performing it. I think something really beautiful happened during that recording session, and I hear it in the performance still. (And ditto all that with another of our co-recorded podfics, Step by Step), which we went so deep into together that we had to eat chocolate and read Brave fic in terrible accents to recover :D)

[on_verra]

Hee! Well I'm an awful perfectionist when it comes to my recordings, which is ultimately why I haven't released more of them. I do like all the podfics I've posted, really, from the funny to the dark. But I'm insane and always go back and listen again later and I'm like "Gah! It's good but the mix is too low!" Or, "There's not enough dead air!" But it's probably just me ;)
I'm particularly proud, perhaps, of:

Hell Is Fine This Time of Year. It's an R-rated SPN Sam/Dean fic, by jukeboxhound, in which Demon!Dean talks Sam into the role of Boy King. I manage to give a good, well-paced reading with the character voices just-so :)

[themusecalliope]

*cracks knuckles*

Alrighty then.

Have you listened to 26 Pieces yet? It's a collab in the Sherlock fandom that I had the honor to work on. What a ride! Those ladies are awesome, and I'm really proud of the finished product.

Another recording I'm proud of is A Brief History of Liars. It's a story about Yrael from Garth Nix's Old Kingdom series. It's melancholy, but I love it. ...and this is the first podfic I did a bit of singing for.

(you must know that i'll follow you) is a combination of two things that I love: James Bond and Doctor Who. In this AU, Q is the Time Lord and Bond is his companion. I love the flow of this story. I had already decided to podfic it before I finished reading it.

I love Marcella in Grosse Pointe Blank...so, how could I resist Four Ways Marcella Could Have Ended Up Working For Martin and One Way She Did? I love the way it turned out. She has such a snarky voice! Also...I got to sing a wee bit of Baby Got Back.

So, there you go. I hope that you all like these too. :)

podfics by aethel that don't have horrific technical issues or embarrassing fake accents

[aethel]

Some podfics that turned out close enough to what I wanted that I can enjoy listening to them:

The First Rule of Online Dating by Chash. Teen Wolf, Danny/Stiles, 11 minutes. Recorded with a Samson Go Mic. Recording this story made me happy, and I think it's audible. But I was mainly excited about the chance to use Katamari Damacy for the music.

Must Have An End by derryderrydown. Torchwood, Jack/Jack, 35 minutes. Recorded with cheap headset. I started recording this first thing in the morning because I like what it does to the pitch of my voice. Also the opportunity to use 1940s music.

Your First Time Should Be Special by Helen. Star Trek Reboot, Kirk/Spock, 45 minutes. No music. Recorded with cheap headset. Helenish's story is so good and matched my energy? reading style? something, and I didn't make any mistakes in it that made me hate myself, so I'm able to listen to this one a lot. :)

What Not To Expect When You're Not Expecting It by thehoyden. XMFC, Charles/Erik, 1 hour. Recorded with cheap headset. Okay, I mispronounced Moira's name and apparently bumped the mic several times, but the story is hilarious and I enjoy how I read the lines. No music.

[nickelmountain]

I've got a couple I'm pretty proud of right now. Let's see...

experimental procedure and A House in His Head (Cyteen). I recorded both of these earlier this year, and I think they're some of my strongest work to date. experimental procedure is actually a re-record of a podfic I made a couple of years ago and wasn't very happy with. Once I decided to make A House in His Head, I knew I had to re-do experimental procedure as well. I'm really happy with all the dialogue in experimental procedure (I tend to struggle with dialogue), and I'm really proud of the editing and use of sound effects in A House in His Head. The fandom is really small, but I love it a lot and I love these fics to pieces. Both of these podfics are personal favorites. Oh, and I'm also pretty happy with the covers I made for them!

Groundhog Day (SPN). I recorded this one last year, right before heading out to Wincon. It's Sam/Dean, and it's the only really explicit podfic I've made so far. I'm just really pleased with this one all around. It's a Mystery Spot fic, and like the episode itself it walks the line between comedy and tragedy. Sometimes I struggle with recording humor, but I felt like I found the balance in this performance, letting the funny parts be funny and not drowning the whole thing in sad. I also made it through the sex scenes without cracking up or getting really robotic and awkward! Yay! I'm really happy with the editing in this one, too. I tried some stuff, and I think it worked.

Two-Step (Star Trek TOS/AOS). This was actually already recced very kindly this amplirecathon by yue_ix, which made me so incredibly happy! I hope it's still okay to put another word in for it. It's Nyota/Gaila pre-femslash, and I have a lot of feelings about it. I got extremely lucky with the music for this one - it was a random find from a Google search, but it fit beautifully with the story, and I'm really proud of how I edited it into the podfic, managing the volume and balancing the emotion of the song with my vocal performance. I often use music for intros and outros, but I felt this fic called for the music to be woven into the body of the recording in a way I hadn't ever tried before. It was an experiment, and I couldn't be happier with how it turned out.

And finally, I want to throw out a rec for the A Peck on the Lips 3 multifandom f/f podfic compilation recorded for KISSES Fest at audiofemme! I have four short podfics on the compilation (including Two-Step), but I'm not just pimping myself here. All the other readers submitted really wonderful work this year, and I'm just so proud to be involved with such a fantastic group. Co-modding KISSES Fest with the lovely cantarina is one of the highlights of my fannish year, and I absolutely love working on A Peck on the Lips. Every year gets better and better!

[neverbalance]

Well, this feels very strange and gauche indeed, but here goes.

Teen Wolf, Stiles/Derek, very explicit: The Worst Thing I Ever Did

I am disproportionately fond of how the first chapter of Worst Thing turned out. I always love reading happily desperate, horny Stiles, but for some reason, this one turned out so well I'm always surprised when I relisten to it.
Obviously, the fic is mind blowing, so I had a lot of awesome text, quips, and most importantly mood and chemistry between the characters to work with. But even with all that, this is probably one of my very favourites of all the things I recorded/edited because I actually don't just not hate the recording, I can actually enjoy listening to it. To quote Inkjunket reading Firejuggler's Stiles: VICTORY ARMS!