Spotlight on Katherine Kellgren, Audie Award-Winning Narrator
- Written by Stephanie
- 11:20 AM
- Add Your Comments (12)
Katherine Kellgren, though classically trained, sophisticated and sonorous, narrates stories from the depths of her soul, combining talent and skill with pure passion infused by a love of the spoken word, uplifted by her father's devoted ears.
I was there to see Katherine present at the Audies and also be acknowledged for her talent. Fortunately, I also was present to hear her speak at the BookExpo America Audiobook and Author Tea, discovering more about her creative process and hearing a reading from "Bloody Jack: Being an Account of the Curious Adventures of Mary 'Jacky' Faber, Ship's Boy."
Learn more about this lovely and gracious lady who not only walked away with three Audies this year but also with the hearts of those to whom she read.
"I'm Listening"
Before New Yorker Katherine Kellgren became the celebrated narrator that she is today, she studied at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, seeking her education abroad while keeping ties with home by sending her father a series of recordings that she narrated using a hand-held tape recorder of his favorite detective book from the 1920s in installments on audio cassette.
Each recording was an opportunity to share a special bond with her father, and while perhaps not being done so consciously or deliberately, further develop her narration skills and character voices.
At this time, Kellgren's father was very sick, so these installments came as a great joy to him. When she returned to New York after her graduation, she read him stories he selected by his bedside for several months. These short months, as it would turn out, were to be the final days of his life.
Just as he appeared to be fast asleep, which was one of the goals while reading aloud to him, Katherine would take a good look to make sure he was at rest and then stop reading, closing the book quietly, only to hear him exclaim from the depths of REM sleep, "I'm listening," prompting her to pick up the book and start reading again.
Dedication and Motivation
The words, "I'm listening," continue to echo in Katherine Kellgren's mind, helping her to get through long days in the recording studio. Buoyed by the acute ears and encouraging voice of her father, she is able to push herself to meet any challenge head on and pursue her work with gusto and meticulous attention to detail.
When doing research for audiobooks that she narrates, and depending on the complexities of the book, it can take up to two weeks to get a full grasp of the characters, the setting, jargon, expressions and dialects required. In studio, it can take between 2 to 5 days to record an audiobook from start to finish.
To be an audiobook narrator, just as an actor prepares for a role, it takes at times the mind and determination of a scholar. Understanding of context, rhythm, and a developing a deep connection to the characters does much for the narrator to help suspend the audience's disbelief.
Over the years, Katherine has narrated numerous audiobooks, and has won many awards for her work such as the AudioFile Earphones Award, the Peabody Award, and now most recently, several Audie Awards for her work on the sequel to Bloody Jack called "Curse of the Blue Tattoo: Being an Account of the Misadventures of Jacky Faber, Midshipman and Fine Lady", including the Audie award categories: Solo Narration - Female, Teens, and Distinguished Achievement in Production.
Have You Listened to Any of Katherine Kellgren's Work?
If you are a fan or colleague of Katherine, I'd like to invite you to comment. Also, if you are an audiobook fan in general or of the Bloody Jack books, I want to hear from you, too!
I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it.
Yours,
Stephanie
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Comments
She was on the panel at APAC too -- great to hear her talk about her experiences and approach. There was not a narrator/actor there who did not strike me as someone who loves doing this work with a passion. It was most inspiring.
Long before I chose narration as a career I was in awe of those story tellers who could literally breathe life into the words on the page. One could be visit different places and times while sitting in a car, or walking along.
The combination of a good writer and a gifted narrator is truly magic. I will definitely be listening to Katherine Kellgren's work.
I have not yet had the opportunity to hear Katherine's work, but after reading this beautiful article, I will seek her out.
I am now officially a fan of this lovely young woman. I'm certain her awards are well deserved, and very much look forward to listening.
Thank you for sharing this story.
Sincerely,
Matilda Novak
Thank you Diane, Daniel and Matilda for your kind comments and insight.
I will be reviewing her work soon and look toward to hearing from more of you!
Take care,
Stephanie
Katy is truly a marvelous actor - she is the only narrator who has appeared on TWO of the American Library Association's Odyssey Award for Excellence in Audiobook Production Honor titles! If you'd like to hear Ms. Kellgren speak about her craft and give a taste of her Bloody Jack & Curse of the Blue Tattoo character voicings, visit my Audiobooker blog here:
http://audiobooker.booklistonline.com/2008/11/20/hello-world/
Hi Mary,
Thank you for sharing and for introducing yourself to our community! I look forward to visiting your blog in more detail (I clicked through last night) and listening to Katherine talk about her craft.
Best,
Stephanie
A longstanding dream is that Katherine would voice one of my novels. I'm sure she could handle an Indian accent. Thanks for this; will be tweeting a link to it.
Thanks, Stephanie, for sharing inspiration stories like this about successful folks in the VO biz. My Dad died from cerebral cancer almost twenty years ago, and so I know, firsthand, the pain of losing a parent (and, I am the firstborn and eldest son of the family, so his passing away hurt me probably more so than my siblings).
My Dad always told me--and, many times it would just drive him crazy to have to admit to this--"Son, you definitely march to the beat of your own drum!" Back then, during all the times he said that, it would upset me, but now--almost twenty years later--I wear such a monicker as a "badge of courage," a "sign of uniqueness."
Your constant e-mails about winning VO professionals inspires me to get my digital multitrack recorder up and running and start getting serious about recording my own stuff. I've got a long way to go doing it full-time, but I KNOW I can do this biz and make a more-than-decent living at it much sooner than later. I always tell others that I am a "proud graduate from the 'School of Hard Knocks,'" and my (meager) talent will take me the rest of the distance.
Keep sending us these wonderful stories...for me, they inspire me to get out of the dead-end, go-nowhere rut of a regular J.O.B. ("Journey Of the Broke")!
Rick J. Radecki
Katherine Kellgren is by far the best reader I have ever heard, I am anxiously awaiting the latest installment of the "Bloody Jack" series, "My Bonny Light Horseman." It's almost too easy to get lost in the books, her treatment of each character is unique and the musical segments contagious (please don't prejudge the series by my use of a thesaurus - I am only daring to comment here because of my appreciation of writers/readers who are so talented). I intend to check out more of her work.
Hey, is your theme a free theme? i really like it and want to change my blog theme!
Hi Katherine40,
Thank you for commenting and asking me about the blog theme. It was designed in house and is not available for purchase.
Best of luck to you on your search!
Cheers,
Stephanie
I first heard of Bloody Jack through audio books from my library. i was completely amazed by her reading. I later re-read it to myself, but had to get the audio book back out because I lost the voice of Jacky in my head as I was reading. I liked hers so much, I couldn't stand the voice my head was saying and I'm not even sure my head voice. She did an amazing job on the Bloody Jack series! They are my absolute #1 favorite books ever, but they wouldn't be complete without the voices!