A Certain Point of View, Too

Adventures in Audiobook Production: Waiting, Wondering, and Hoping for ACX Approval

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Alex Diaz-Granados
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Thursday, November 6, 2025 – Orlando, Florida


“We never live; we are always in the expectation of living.” —Voltaire

Today marks the first full day since I approved Brandon Padilla’s audiobook adaptation of my novella Reunion: A Story on ACX, Amazon’s platform for independent audiobook production. The project—47 minutes of audio paired with a cover I designed in Canva Pro—is now in ACX’s quality assurance review, a process that can stretch up to ten business days. If Reunion clears every hurdle, it should appear on Audible and Apple Books sometime next week at the earliest.

Reunion: A Story
A Call from Miami In this emotionally layered excerpt, Jim Garraty prepares for a routine phone call from his lifelong friend Mark Prieto — a call prefaced by academic fatigue, cryptic email, and the quiet rituals of a historian’s evening. What begins as a familiar rhythm of banter and memory becomes a slow descent into emotional rupture, as the setup gives way to a revelation that reshapes Jim’s world. A meditation on friendship, emotional compartmentalization, and the moment when history becomes personal.

I don’t expect to find an email from ACX announcing that this second Jim Garraty audiobook has already been reviewed. Still, I find myself checking my AOL inbox more often than I’d like. It’s been nearly a week since I uploaded a replacement cover for Comings and Goings – The Art of Being Seen, produced and narrated by Bryan Haddock.

The original illustration failed ACX’s strict standards because of one detail—a border. Last Friday, I spent hours redesigning the cover, a process that required investing in a $120 annual Canva Pro subscription to unlock the necessary tools. The new design met every technical requirement, but several business days have passed without word from ACX. The silence leaves me uneasy.

Reunion: A Story
Reunion: Coda
The final Canva Pro cover for the Comings and Goings Audible edition.

I hope to hear soon about either audiobook. I listened closely to both Reunion and Comings and Goings before approving them, and each exceeded my expectations. Bryan Haddock captures Jim Garraty’s dry wit, self-deprecating humor, and quiet vulnerability with uncanny precision. His narration preserves Jim’s “historian’s eye” and makes the character feel alive in audio form.

Brandon’s interpretation of Jim in Reunion is more somber and reflective, which fits the story’s tone. Book One of the Reunion Duology is a meditation on grief, lost love, and missed opportunity.[1] Though lighter moments exist—especially in Jim’s scenes with his best friend Mark Prieto—the overall timbre is elegiac, and Brandon’s performance honors that mood beautifully.

I’ll admit: I’m not known for nerves of steel or the patience of Job. Concentrating on The Jim Garraty Chronicles feels impossible while I wait. This is my first time seeing my literary work adapted into another medium, and the anticipation is both thrilling and nerve-racking.

While I wait for ACX’s verdict, I’d like to gently remind readers that Jim Garraty’s journey is already available in print and Kindle editions. If you haven’t yet read Reunion: A Story or Comings and Goings – The Art of Being Seen, now is the perfect time to dive in. And if you’ve already read them, I’d be grateful if you left a review—your words help these stories find new readers and keep independent publishing alive.

[1] Book Two, Reunion: Coda, is being produced by Stefan Lee for ACX, but it won’t be released until February 2026. Comings and Goings  is a companion piece to the Reunion Duology.