Whether you’re just starting out or an established Voice Over Artist, chances are you’ve dipped your toes into a Pay-to-Play (P2P) site or three. They’re called Pay-to-Play because Voice Actors must pay in order to have access to jobs. P2P sites like Backstage, or Voice123, are big search engines for people looking for voices, and they’re a great way to gain experience and clientele for Voice Actors. P2P sites like Voice123 are one of the many tools you should have in your toolbox for getting clients . It should not be the only one. (For ways to increase your bookings, click here.) Wanna ..read more

Rookie VO mistakes, anyone? Today, I want to tell you about a little (ok, big) mistake I made recently. It feels like such a rookie mistake, especially because I’ve been voice acting for 25 years now—but actually, mistakes are ageless, right? Still, I’m hoping my experience can help you avoid repeating this incredibly time-consuming error with your own voice acting clients. The Audition So, a client of mine reached out and asked me to record a few voice-over auditions. They were excerpts of a few scripts for a project they were casting. As I’ve mentioned in another blog, I think it’s very impo ..read more

A successful voice actor wears three hats: performer, business manager, and audio technician. On the technical side, one of the first steps you’ll take in your VO career is buying the right kind of microphone. Many different microphones are available on the market, but voice-over microphones can be divided into a few simple categories. I’ll walk you through them to help you narrow down the choices. The first choice you’ll have is between USB vs XLR mics. The names refer to the kind of connector the mic uses, but they also have some other differences you’ll need to consider when buyin ..read more

This is the second article in a series on choosing a microphone for voice-overs and voice acting. In the first, we compared USB and XLR microphones. This time, we’re focusing on another choice: dynamic microphones vs condenser microphones. The terms “dynamic” and “condenser” refer to the mechanism the two mics use to detect sound. For our purposes, we only need to know that these two mechanisms pick up sounds a little differently. Dynamic Microphones Dynamic microphones are made for singing. They sound great when you’re belting into them at high volume. Because of the way they’re designed, the ..read more

We’ve been running through the various microphone options for starting your voice acting and voice-over career—and we’re on the home stretch! Previously, we covered the choices of USB vs XLR and dynamic vs condenser. The next choice sounds a little more technical, but don’t stress, it’s really very simple. Cardioid or Shotgun microphone? Microphone Polar Patterns “Polar pattern” comes from some techie geometry, which we’ll skip! All we need to know is polar pattern simply means the directions from which a microphone will pick up sound. Omnidirectional Take my Neumann mic (pronounced Noi-Man, b ..read more

This Pandemic is driving everyone nuts, including professional actors who can no longer work in the jobs that allowed them to continue to pursue acting (e.g., restaurants). It’s time to think about setting up a home recording studio. The pandemic isn’t all bad news for actors: while some work has dried up, there is plenty of work to be had online. Although most of this work is non-union, some agents are opening up their rosters and taking on actors who have good voice acting booths to record from. Some of these agents have access to union breakdowns. While having a voice over studio was option ..read more

So, you’re an actor (or announcer), there’s a pandemic and your agent is telling you about voice acting opportunities you’re missing out on because you don’t have a voice over booth.  You’ve got a quiet space (or you’re hoping it’s quiet enough) and you’re ready to try out this voice over thing. Now you’re wondering about voice acting kits, voice over equipment and voice acting microphones.  I’ve been at this for almost twenty five years and tried a bunch of gear. I’m here to tell you something that may surprise you: don’t overspend on gear. No voice acting microphone, audio interfac ..read more

Everyone talks about Voice Acting Demos, or Voice Over Demos. They’re your foot in the door, your ticket to booking Voice Over gigs. But what are they, really? What’s the best way to make one? How do you find the voice over script for your demo? Today we’ll answer all these questions, and more! But Really, What is a VO Demo? Simply put, a Voice Acting Demo is a short snippet of audio that showcases your voice, your range, your acting chops, and your performance skills. Your demo is how you sell yourself to the world. It’s your portfolio, your calling card, and your business card, all rolled in ..read more

Let’s talk about microphone technique! As voice actors we can do so many wonderful things just by playing around with our body position in relation to the microphone. In real life, we don’t always speak at the same level or the same position in space. When I see my cat rolling around in the dirt outside before he comes into the house, I might whisper underneath my breath, “Oh my God, you dirty cat…” And if I lose my keys, I might get loud and high pitched and turn my head towards the ceiling, “Oh my God, where are my keys!” When we’re recording our voice-overs, we have the opportunity to repli ..read more

Today, I want to tell you about a little (ok, big) VO mistake I made recently. It feels like such a rookie mistake, especially because I’ve been voice acting for 25 years now—but actually, mistakes are ageless, right? Still, I’m hoping my experience can help you avoid repeating this incredibly time-consuming error with your own voice acting clients. The Audition So, a client of mine reached out and asked me to record a few voice-over auditions. They were excerpts of a few scripts for a project they were casting. As I’ve mentioned in another blog, I think it’s very important to take your time r ..read more