So I’m teaching a level 2 Audio class for those of us fans of the spoken word – whether audiobooks or commercial voice overs…and last night we were treated to an excellent session by guest marketing professionals Jenn Jaroszuk and Katrina Crowell of Strategic Media.  They gave the class a terrific run-down of their side of the marketing/VO biz as copywriters and voice over casting directors…..and this question sprang (is it a word – it should be!) into the room – What is Your “Money Voice”?  I think many of us voice actors- myself included – like to think of ourselves as oh so versatile – many voices – many possibilities – but in a world of increasing specialization…..well, it’s forcing all of us to be SPECIFIC.  So if you can’t exactly answer the question in a half a 2 floor elevator speech, give it some thought – there’s lot’s to choose from:  Check out the list at the end of the posting and please add some more…  Myself, I’m circling in on….warm, authentic…CORPORATE with a soccermom twist!

Meanwhile – my pal Bill Dufris of Mind’s Eye Productions is showing off his brand-new studio via audio of course! I have a sample on there of one of my favorite Barbara Kingsolver books and there are some awesome narrators on the site – so check it out here.

Coming up….  the Audiofile Lobsters Await party – a big networking “do” with lots of Audio Industry Names….but mostly it’s a celebration of the Spoken Word….and that big yummy crustacean with the big scary claws!

And…Fred Greenhalgh of Final Rune Productions joins us next week for podcasting and all things audio….

Be well

Kym

“Money Voices”  Partial list of Possibilities….

These are highly recognizable types that may be helpful in directing Voice talent

Are there others you would add to this list?

• Announcer (Game Show)
• Announcer (Promo)
• Announcer (Radio DJ)
• Announcer (Sports)
• Character-ish) with the following Character-ishtics
  • Arrogant
  • Attitude
  • Dry
  • Flamboyant
  • Friendly
  • Deadpan
  • Bubbly
  • Whiny
  • Regional: USA
  • Regional: British Isles
  • Regional: European
  • Regional: Global
  • Elderly grumpy
  • Elderly sweet
  • Elderly fiesty

• Corporate
• Documentary Narrator
• Gen-X
• Hip-cool, teenager
• Man-on-the-Street
• Young mom
• Wise mom
• Sarcastic
• Sincere, warm, authentic
• Smooth, silky
• Surfer Dude
• “Mature” voice
• Upbeat, energetic
• Urban
• Wacky, goofy
• Wry

I just got my first Audible recording opportunity!  And immediately, I remembered an interesting exchange I had with an engineer recently.  It was our first time working together, and he expressed shock that I had read through and prepared the manuscript ahead of time on an audiobook we were recording.  I was shocked that he was shocked…..  then he explained to me that most of the narrative work he does is with Audible and that the readers don’t consider the narrator pay rate to be worth the extra time it takes to do a pre-read and prep.

So. …here I am looking at doing a job at about a third of my usual rate.  Do I put in the usual prep time?   I know that Audible is getting audiobooks out there to a wider audience through significantly decreased prices….and my narrator fee is one source of those reduced costs…ouch.  So am I doing a pre-read and prep?  I want to say…. You Betcha.  It’s an art and a craft for some of us – not just a business.  What I put into the world through my voice is a significant piece of who I am, and I want to bring as much integrity to that “product” as I can.  But ask me after the hours spent reading and prepping and noting – pronunciations and references and dialects and trying not to think about how much my time is and is not worth…and I might be just a tad cranky about “craft”. …  What do you think?

Maybe you all know about this already – but a friend turned me on to wync Radiolab and now I’m addicted (I actually did some work for WYNC radio years ago!).  There is a fascinating podcast titled “Choice” that furthers the discussion on How We Choose – if fact, part of the show features Jonah Lehrer – So – check it out here along with all the other fascinating topics on the list to the right  of their web page- and enjoy!

Fred – I love your comment about good ads being the last bastion of radio drama!  I’m reading a really great book right now by Jonah Lehrer called “How We Decide” that touches on this subject in an interesting way.  His premise is that for all the information and data we have streaming at us – demanding we use our prefrontal cortex all the time to sort through it – we really do not make final decisions based on rational weighing of fact, but rather on our emotional response to the stories underlying the data.  He tells about a sad incident involving  a very successful businessman who suffered a severe brain injury which left him emotionally unresponsive, but seemed fine to go back to work because he could still retain data and information.  But after a few days it became clear that, although he could come up with facts on demand – his ability to sort through them and make decisions had vanished along with his emotional capacity.  So the stories in an ad campaign – and our response to them are critical in not only capturing our attention, but helping us decide how to take action.

Hello!  I’m sitting here hooked up to itunes (Steve Roach – it’s after and mulling over some voicing tidbits that came up this week in my consulting session with Strategic Media (www.strategicmediainc.com ). Who are we to some of these advertisers who create the ads we listen to?  I was in my car this week and on the radio popped up an ad for a debt reduction counseling program.  I could tell they had coached the voice talent to be warm and sympathetic – she was practically holding my hand and wiping my nose with her voice – and I had to ask myself – who did she think I was?  Who did the creators of these ads think they were talking to?  Apparently, I am a helpless sniveling victim of circumstances who hasn’t got a clue how to improve my credit and desperately needs….someone to hold my hand and wipe my nose.  I know they worked the copy hard with words like “non-judgmental” and “respect” – but that’s not how it played on me.   I felt very much  judged and disrespected as they assumed I had no capacity to help myself – and I’m not even in debt!  (Well…not that much….) So my question is…..have they really thought about their audience?

What’s YOUR experience as a listener to some of these ads?  Love to hear about it…..