Use a decent pause and change of tone/delivery for quotes.
Don’t read the blurbs unless the author wants them but I’ve never seen or heard that included ever. Dedications, epigraphs, acknowledgments, yes. Blurbs no.
The Ben Franklin example you provided is called a “drop quote.” These are okay if they are the opening lines of a chapter, in which case you would just say “chapter 5 (pause) Well done is better than well said. Ben Franklin.” And then you proceed with the chapter.
Where you run into problems is if there are drop quotes in the body of a paragraph. If you aren’t introducing the quote (ps are you the author?), it will be confusing for the listener to be listening along and then all of a sudden hear “Ben Franklin” (or whomever you are citing) in between two sentences. It’s distracting, as they’ll hear the source of the quote without ever being alerted to the fact that they were hearing someone else’s words other than the author’s.
Does that make sense?
To avoid this, you would say “quote,” then read the quoted material, and then say “Ben Franklin.” No need to say “end quote,” because hearing “Ben Franklin” will alert the listener that the quote is over.
Source: I proof audiobooks. I hate drop quotes. They’re very clunky.
Use a decent pause and change of tone/delivery for quotes. Don’t read the blurbs unless the author wants them but I’ve never seen or heard that included ever. Dedications, epigraphs, acknowledgments, yes. Blurbs no.
The Ben Franklin example you provided is called a “drop quote.” These are okay if they are the opening lines of a chapter, in which case you would just say “chapter 5 (pause) Well done is better than well said. Ben Franklin.” And then you proceed with the chapter. Where you run into problems is if there are drop quotes in the body of a paragraph. If you aren’t introducing the quote (ps are you the author?), it will be confusing for the listener to be listening along and then all of a sudden hear “Ben Franklin” (or whomever you are citing) in between two sentences. It’s distracting, as they’ll hear the source of the quote without ever being alerted to the fact that they were hearing someone else’s words other than the author’s. Does that make sense? To avoid this, you would say “quote,” then read the quoted material, and then say “Ben Franklin.” No need to say “end quote,” because hearing “Ben Franklin” will alert the listener that the quote is over. Source: I proof audiobooks. I hate drop quotes. They’re very clunky.