I love public domain works of literature. some i have listened to many times and i can quote to you from some of my favorites. (im looking at you Smokestack joe).
I've gone through a good number of titles and can appreciate that so many people have been very very generous with their time and talent to make it all happen. Someone needs to send these people the vote of thanks they deserve.
That said, I intended Shortwave to be the repository for all kinds of digital literature. if a Listener could parse through the Narrator's they liked best, there was also a good chance listeners would like to hear more from that narrator in future works. but sadly, the internet archive just plain sucks as a website. if you've ever tried to dig through the gargantuan pool of media, its a nightmare to find something suitable for the occasion. Prepare to scroll your day away through mountains of unrelated material. Automation is whats called for, and i already had it well in the works.
What would happen if we could find a way to add a digital tip jar or some way to send a few bucks to our favorite authors and narrators? I personally would like to see PD (Public Domain) literature be of better audio quality and read by aspiring actors and actresses. I think if there was a way to kick them back a little fiscal love there would certainly be an overall increase in motivation for more talent to get involved.
THIS IS THE WHOLE POINT. To make PD literature better quality and VASTLY more accessible.
Quality is of course subjective. there are already many different versions of the same titles and tons more that have not even been narrated. I would like Shortwave to be the medium for voice actors to collaborate with audio engineers, editors, and new authors to share resources to get their material out there. The motivation being both compensation and or notoriety even though it would be under the public domain or creative common licences.