Audible is bringing a few new features to its audiobooks service. One of these is Interactive Stories, which allows readers to have brief conversations with story characters. Specifically, in the voice of the actor narrating that character. The first character is Renfield, the unfortunate who falls under Dracula’s spell in Bram Stoker’s novel of the same name. Artificial intelligence will play a key role here, obviously.
There are other features also inbound, inspired in part by Amazon’s Prime Video. Character Guide will give listeners insight into the voice actors. Visual Explorer will provide image assistance for folks who’ve had their imaginations stunted by too much short-form video. The only catch with these functions? They’re still in beta for Audible users in the UK and US.
Foul Audible
Audible’s Interactive Stories is the most intriguing new feature, even if it’s also slightly horrifying. Renfield, an inmate at the Seward Sanitarium, is corrupted by the invading vampire, eventually helping Dracula in his quest to acquire Wilhelmina Harker. The new function, made in conjunction with the actor portraying a character, sets up a scenario using the actor’s voice. Listeners are given a role to play — you’re not supposed to guide this yourself — and then a short interaction will play out, facilitated by AI.
It’s certainly one way to immerse yourself more deeply in a story, but it’ll all depend on how well Audible handles the execution. Nothing that happens during an Interactive Story will be canon, obviously. There’s also the issue of readers trying to guide the character and scenario off the rails. Dracula is the test-bed for this, and the company reckons it has most concerns handled.
“Creators define the foundations of each Interactive Story, including the opening scenes, turning points, and character persona, with Audible’s product design ensuring the story stays faithful to the creator’s vision all the way through.”
If this all works out, and Renfield’s performance doesn’t result in horrors beyond human comprehension, the next work adapted for Interactive Stories will be Benjamin Percy’s Exoplanet. That’s expected on 5 November this year, with Andy Weir involved as an executive producer. Dracula is no longer subject to copyright laws, and Percy’s work is an Audible original. Amazon’s obviously not about to take chances at this stage.
