Community Profile

How it all started:
For CMEM-08 Lbilover had the idea for LJ users to read a chapter of The Lord of the Rings aloud using voice posts. The chapter A Conspiracy Unmasked was selected to read, and eight people participated in reading it aloud. As there was interest in continuing with the idea, it was decided to go back and start at the beginning of LOTR with Chapter 1, and every other month read another chapter aloud via voice posts. The Read_LOTR_Aloud community was set up as a central location where the voice posts can be gathered for the listeners' enjoyment, and new reading aloud sign-ups and assignments can be made.

Who is welcome:
All who love Tolkien are welcome to participate in the readings, whether you are experienced at reading aloud or not. The hope is to foster a sense of community, share our love for Tolkien's words, and have fun! We are not intending to compete with Rob Inglis. :) Those who are interested simply in listening to the chapters are equally welcome to join the community.

How it works:
A maximum of 20 people can sign up for a given chapter or chapters (if consecutive chapters are short, we will read two chapters instead of one). A section of that chapter will be assigned to each person after the sign-up period is over. Sections will be about 3-4 minutes in length (voice posts are limited to 5 minutes). Ample time will be allowed for people to practice their sections before the actual posting begins. Sections should be read without any introduction so that a listener can move from post to post seamlessly.

Voice posts should be made in individual LJs and kept unlocked. They should not be posted in this community, but links to the community from your LJ are welcome. When all the sections for a given chapter have been posted, they will be gathered into one master post by the mods, and added to the community.

If more than 20 people sign up for a given chapter, those who were unable to participate will have spots reserved for them for the next chapter. We hope to ensure that as many people as possible have the chance to participate.

Please note that only plus, paid or permanent accounts have voice posting privileges. Basic accounts do not. For more about voice posting and how to do it, please see this FAQ. When establishing your voice post settings for Reading LOTR Aloud, please be sure to disable 'auto transcription'. The voice post settings page is: http://www.livejournal.com/manage/voicepost.bml

Also, if you are from a country that does not have its own voice post phone number, you can still participate by using the UK, Australian or Canadian numbers (although you may have to pay for the call). You can also use the site http://www.box.net/ which allows you to upload recordings for free and play them directly from your Box.net account. This has worked well for a number of readers.

Lastly, the web site Librivox has an excellent list of ways to improve your recording that you might want to check out before doing your reading. Another site that may be of interest is How to Read out Loud Without Tiring Your Voice, which has some useful suggestions for reading aloud.

Questions, suggestions or comments may be directed to dreamflower02 or ysilme.

DISCLAIMER: No profit is intended from this project. It is being done strictly for fun, and out of love for J.R.R. Tolkien and his writing.