4.9 rating
8K+ Reviews
behind the soundscapes
What's a soundscape? It's Novel Effect's custom designed music and sounds that keep up with your personal reading style, following your pace and your voice to elevate read-alouds with the best kids books and poetry.
an unforgettable read-aloud
a soundscape, a story, & you
Set the stage
First, the music, sound effects, and character voices that make up a soundscape are individually composed, recorded, and designed to complement the story.
Strike up the band
Then each audio element is brought together by a soundscape designer in Novel Effect’s Soundscape Studio software to react to your voice at just the right moment
Rock your read aloud
Finally, they’re shared with you on Novel Effect where, with a little magic, the soundscape seamlessly integrates as you read-aloud to bring the story to life.
New soundscapes added regularly.
A soundscape is a unique work of art made up of many individual elements that create a rich, immersive experience when you read aloud with Novel Effect.
Every story we choose has a light, and we do everything we can to help it shine. If it’s a funny book, we laugh while we’re creating the soundscape. If it has a more serious tone, we feel introspective and curious about the heart of the story.
Engineering an interactive soundscape
In video games, when a character jumps, we hear a jump sound. When they enter a new environment, we hear new music and environmental ambiance. This is called interactive audio because you, the player, control the actions, or inputs, that make various sounds play and change.
We borrow techniques pioneered by video game makers in our design process, using many elements to create the rich, immersive experience you enjoy while reading aloud with Novel Effect. Instead of inputs from a handheld controller, our soundscapes use input from your voice through the microphone on your device to control our interactive audio.
Interactive Music
Nearly all the music you hear on Novel Effect is original. Our team of composers writes and records music that has been carefully crafted to lift up each scene, help children better understand the emotional subtext of the stories, and promote further empathy with the characters.
Sound Effects
Each Novel Effect soundscape contains dozens of sound effects. Sometimes these sounds are made electronically using synthesizers. Other times soundscape designers spend time in nature or around town with a portable field recorder and microphones, trying to capture that perfect recording of a train whistle, babbling brook, or wildlife.
But in many cases, simply capturing real sounds is not enough. Sometimes, the book demands that we find creative ways to make the sounds of creatures that don’t exist (or at least haven’t existed for millions of years).
Character Voices
In order to bring the characters on the page to life, we work with professional writers to craft dialog that feels authentic to the characters and moves the story forward. We then record actors, singers, and children to perform the lines.
Meet the soundscape designers
Many of our talented team members have written music and created sound effects for feature films and video games. Some are touring musicians and recording artists. No matter the area of expertise, they all share a passion for children’s books and telling stories through sound.
Matt Boerner
Director of Production
Hey! I’m Matt Boerner, I help make sure that every piece of content we release is a little world made of pure magic. In addition to creating my own soundscapes, I lead a large team of world-class composers, sound designers, and voice actors in the audio creation process.
In an effort to fill the world with stories, I’m also a songwriter/bandleader, author, pianist, actor, and video editor.
First soundscape
Favorite soundscape
María José Felix Vega
Soundscape Designer
Hi! I’m Maria, I create music and sounds for the books and help make sure each of our soundscapes is filled with magic! I have experience as a composer for film, videogames, and other media.
When I was little, I fell in love with music and reading. I love bringing stories to life with my music and helping kids around the world immerse themselves in these worlds and stories.
First soundscape
Favorite soundscape
It's a dream come true to help a whole new generation of kids fall in love with reading and music!
Working on this newest evolution of story with Novel Effect is nothing short of amazing!
Landon Ashby
Soundscape Designer
Hi, y’all! My name is Landon, my goal with every soundscape I work on is to help bring the magic of the story off of the page and into the readers’ hearts and minds.
I’m a sucker for a good story! It’s this love of tall tales that led me to write music in the first place. I believe that every piece of music can help tell a story and I believe there’s power in a story. Stories can make us laugh, make us cry, make us love, and make us question. I enjoy working with stories in many different mediums, including films, video games, and musicals.
First soundscape
Favorite soundscape
Rose Oliver
Soundscape Designer
Hi, Rose here! I’m a composer, sound designer, and voice actor–as well as a singer/songwriter.
I’ve always been obsessed with music and stories, and I have so much fun combining them at Novel Effect. I especially love using my voice as an instrument, and adding lots of sparkly sounds–more sparkles = more magic! My hope when creating soundscapes is to help kids and grown ups get lost in a good book!
First soundscape
Favorite soundscape
Our creative vision
We believe every soundscape on Novel Effect should delight listeners, by responding to the reader with bold creative choices that serve the story. A soundscape designer’s mission is to complement and enhance the emotions that the author and illustrator have created so each story is felt more deeply.
Don't miss a beat!
Try Novel Effect soundscapes long as you like for free. Unlock unlimited Premium access with an individual plan.
Share the magic with flexible pricing to fit libraries, schools, and districts of all sizes.
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4.9 rating
8K+ Reviews
