With the raging pandemic, we
have been forced to change our routines.
In the absence of maids, I
have to deal with finishing my household chores while working full time and
also writing.
As a writer, I have to read
more books. Like Stephen King says ‘If you don't read more books, you don't get
the tools to write.’
Sadly, for me, with all the
additional chores, I couldn't find time to read during the lockdown.
That was when I discovered
Storytel. And literally, it saved the writer in me. It has transformed me into
a listener alongside being a reader and author. I am glad that I can still
enjoy my book time while managing my household chores.
Storytel is an
audiobook app that you can subscribe to and listen to
as many audiobooks as you want during your
subscription. The app has more than 2lakh audiobooks to choose from and
in 12 languages! I am also enjoying the books in Malayalam.
And all this comes with a
monthly fee of INR 299/- only! Ideally, you
would spend this amount on just one book. With Storytel, you can listen to as
many as you want! Isn't that amazing? Not only this, but you can also download
the audiobooks offline to listen to them
later. This is an escape everyone should take!
I think the narration
quality of their audiobooks is just perfect. It is like your favourite person
reading out a book to you as you go through your daily chores. During these times, there’s
nothing anyone needs more
than this!
Storytel also has a section
where the authors and celebrities narrate the book for you. You can find
Jeffrey Archer's book being read by Lorelei King, Anupam Kher reading ‘Toba Tek
Singh’ and Rahul Bose reading ‘Love letters’ and many more.
Audiobooks come in handy
while one is cooking, travelling or cleaning – it simply makes gaining
knowledge a lot more convenient and easier. Plugin your earphones and you are
all set to get transported into a different world!
Let me tell you some of the
interesting features among the many that Storytel has to offer:
●
Sleep Timer: It has a sleep timer that
allows you to set a sleep timer by clicking on the clock icon on the player. A
menu pops out giving you the option to set the time. Once you do that, a moon icon
appears on the timeline in the player showing when the set time. I would use
this after a tiring day where I’d love to fall asleep while listening to an
audiobook, reminds me of my good father narrating a story to put me to sleep in
childhood.
● Speed Control: The speed control option allows you to control the speed of narration of the audiobook. Everybody has their own pace of listening and this feature is just the right addition.
●
Bookmark: Another facility that we
get is to create our own bookmarks. If you find any part of the book
interesting, you can add a bookmark. Just tap on the bookmark symbol on
the app and save it in case you want to go back to it again. I personally
like to bookmark my favourite lines from the audiobooks.
Now to tell you about the
four audiobooks I listened to during this month.
This book is based on a
series of lectures given by Harari at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. The
book tells the entire human history from pre-anatomically modern humans through
agricultural and scientific revolutions. It's pretty intriguing and engaging.
It looks at how Homo sapiens survived through the years and how we became what
we are today.
There are many health
hazards associated with the territory of being a writer. Anxiety, depression,
sleep problems, neck problems, eye strain, stress, loneliness, digestive
issues. You name it, writers have to deal with it.
In this book, the author
talks about how she dealt with her own struggles with being healthy. With her
co-author Dr Euan Lawson, Joanna Penn teaches us how to reduce pain, improve
health, and build a writing career for the long term.
This book was really an eye-opener for me.
The magic of thinking big by
David J Schwartz.
I have read this book before
as an e-book but I went back to listening to it as this has some very important
lessons for anyone who understands the power of goal setting. And the
experience of listening to it was entirely different. I feel ideas get
imprinted more when you are listening to something.
Why I killed my husband by
Anita Nair
This book
is narrated by my mentor, author Anita Nair herself.
That was added plus for me. This story can be anyone’s story but at the same
time, it gives the feel of a thriller. It will keep you guessing and also has
the typical Anita Nair brand of humour that will make you laugh out loud.
As you can see, Storytel
pretty much rescued me from a reading slump. 4 audiobooks in a month. Not bad
at all. It infused the writer in me with brand new ideas.
Want to check out the app?
There is a limited period
90-day offer available as
of now at INR 375/-only and I think you should grab this offer right away - http://mooimoments.in/campaigns/englishoffer
What are you waiting for? Open your ears to stories!