Steven Lowell posts excellent tips for everyone who does voiceover work from home on the Voice123.com blog.
Tips for working from home
Career Advice
Pricing advice
Paul Strikwerda has written a superb blog post about setting rates. My thanks to DB Cooper for posting the link on the VO-BB.
(Updated to add the link to Paul’s voiceover site.)
How get the most from an event
Kristine Oller is flat out brilliant when it comes to organization and career planning. How brilliant? Well, read this article about how to get the most out of attending an event and then you tell me.
The Voiceover Class
If you’ve been thinking about seriously pursuing voiceover there are a couple of things you need to do. Get your performance skills up to speed. I’ve talked about the voiceover coaches I recommend on this blog loads of time. Links are in the Career section of my blogroll. But, you also need to get yourself in the mindset that this is a business, not just a way to have fun. Which is where the tele-classes that Harlan Hogan and Dan O’Day will be doing this year in May will make a huge difference.
I took this class last year and even though I’ve been working as a professional voiceover for over 25 years, I got a lot out of the classes. I recommend you sign up. All the details are here. And if you mention in the comments section at the bottom of the registration form that I recommended the class to you, I’ll get a commission. If you don’t want me to get that commission, don’t mention me. Whether you do or not, the price of the class is the same.
Great minds and Masterminds
My friend Doug Turkel started a voiceover mastermind group in South Florida a year ago and it has been a wonderful experience for all involved. Doug wrote about this group, and offers thoughts about starting one in your part of the world, in an article on VoiceOverXtra. Well worth your time.
Pat Fraley presents Game World
Video game voiceover skills. Do you have them? Do you want them? Pat Fraley will be joined by Todd Resnick and Chris Borders for a day of intense focus on game voiceover skills. Saturday, May 1, 2010. Details and registration information are on this page at Pat’s site.
Marice Tobias in the Pacific Northwest
Working with Marice Tobias since October of 2007 has transformed my work. If you are a working pro voice actor, Marice will be Vancouver, BC and Portland OR in a few weeks. Here are the details.
“The Shift”
The Change in the Pro V.O. Game
It’s sweeping through the industry, but it isn’t totally replacing the reads many producers still seek, so how do you know what to bring to the booth? And how does this jive with the emphasis we’ve placed on The Signature Read since we started focusing on voiceover?
This is the challenge of Pro Game: More complicated, more competitive and way faster.
Join us for two days of rapid-fire rounds, in-depth insights and a sobering, stakes-raising reality check for playing today’s Pro Game full-out. This drill-intensive, performance-intensive training presents round after round of challenges in the major disciplines of Commercial and Narration.
The Shift™ is here and has drawn a line in the sand between then and now. Those who know how and when to bring it have the competitive edge and are booking huge wins. Bring your best shots, leave with better ones. You in?
The Shift: The V.O. Pro Game
Sat & Sun, April 24th and 25th, Vancouver BC
Sat & Sun, May 1st and 2nd, Portland OR
10am to 5pm – Studios TBA
No-host group dinner by invitation only Saturday evening
$775 or $650 for returning attendees, by check or Paypal
Limited attendance, industry referral required, full payment secures spot.
Events sell out quickly. Please call or e-mail CEM asap.
(503) 246-2239 Stacey@CreativeEntertainmentManagement.com
Your voiceover business
Yes, I said business. You do understand that it’s a business right. I mean doing voiceover work is a lot of fun, but growing your business so that you can just do this all the time doesn’t happen by magic or little green elves working overnight.
Last year in May, the very month that I made my transition and left my day job, Harlan Hogan and Dan O’Day produced a series of teleseminars on the business of voiceover that was very helpful to me. It helped me sharpen my focus on my business as a business and I’m very glad I signed up for those four weeks of classes.
Maybe you heard about last year’s classes or maybe you didn’t. Either way, that was last year. This year Harlan and Dan are going to take what they learned from us test subjects and refine the classes to be even more useful and helpful. All the detalis, including registration information is at TheVoiceoverClass.com.
If you decide to sign up and you mention that you learned about the class from me in the comments section at the bottom of the registration page, I may get a commission. Whether you mention me or not, the price is the same so it’s up to you whether you want to mention my name or not. But I hope you will check out the information.
Break Into Audiobooks is next week
News from from Nancy Wolfson and Anna Vocino:
Our Break Into Animation Part 1 Teleseminar was such a hit, we’re at it again–but this time with Audiobook Superstar Hillary Huber!
Join us for Break Into Audiobooks on Wed March 31, 2010 – 6 pm PST/ 9 pm EST.
With us, our special guest and audiobook veteran Hillary Huber gives thorough, no-BS insider answers to all of your audiobook questions.
From business to craft to all the details in between, Hillary’s gonna spill the beans on everything audiobook.
Go to Break Into Voice Over to reserve your space on the call (includes a studio quality MP3 of the teleseminar as well).
Just a few of the great questions to be answered:
* Do you read the whole book? Do different people read different parts and characters?
* How do you get into audiobooks? It seems so mysterious…do I need to know book publishers and authors?
* Do I need a specific audiobook demo? Are there audiobook agents?
* How could I even keep track of recording a whole book by myself in my home studio?
* I’ve been listening to a ton of audiobooks, and I KNOW I’m ready to break in, so tell me the action steps I can take NOW to get the audiobook gigs coming my way!
Go to Break Into Voice Over–$49 buys you a seat on the call and a studio quality MP3 copy as well.
More About Special Guest Hillary Huber
Hillary Huber has been working steadily as a voice over talent for 15 years. She has done hundreds of commercials for clients such as Toyota, McDonalds, Tylenol, Coffeemate, Boeing, Subaru, Ford, Taco Bell, Walmart and countless others; promos for WE, CBS and the E! Network; and live announcing for The People’s Choice Awards, The Family Television Awards, and The Emmys. She discovered audiobooks in 2006, when her research, perseverance, and creative thinking resulted in a flourishing and profitable career in audiobooks. She now records books on a regular basis for major publishers such as Harper, Macmillan, Random House and Scribner. Some titles include Skinny Bastard and Light in the Piazze. Her next project is Tell-All by best selling author Chuck Palahniuk. Her narration consistently garners both critical acclaim and industry awards, including several Audie Award nominations.
“Hillary Huber’s narration is lyrical enough to be set to music.”
-Audiofile Magazine
Go to Break Into Voice Over to reserve your seat!
Break Into Audiobooks
News has just come from from Nancy Wolfson and Anna Vocino:
Our Break Into Animation Part 1 Teleseminar was such a hit, we’re at it again–but this time with Audiobook Superstar Hillary Huber!
Join us for Break Into Audiobooks on Wed March 31, 2010 – 6 pm PST/ 9 pm EST.
With us, our special guest and audiobook veteran Hillary Huber gives thorough, no-BS insider answers to all of your audiobook questions.
From business to craft to all the details in between, Hillary’s gonna spill the beans on everything audiobook.
Go to Break Into Voice Over to reserve your space on the call (includes a studio quality MP3 of the teleseminar as well).
Just a few of the great questions to be answered:
* Do you read the whole book? Do different people read different parts and characters?
* How do you get into audiobooks? It seems so mysterious…do I need to know book publishers and authors?
* Do I need a specific audiobook demo? Are there audiobook agents?
* How could I even keep track of recording a whole book by myself in my home studio?
* I’ve been listening to a ton of audiobooks, and I KNOW I’m ready to break in, so tell me the action steps I can take NOW to get the audiobook gigs coming my way!
Go to Break Into Voice Over–$49 buys you a seat on the call and a studio quality MP3 copy as well.
More About Special Guest Hillary Huber
Hillary Huber has been working steadily as a voice over talent for 15 years. She has done hundreds of commercials for clients such as Toyota, McDonalds, Tylenol, Coffeemate, Boeing, Subaru, Ford, Taco Bell, Walmart and countless others; promos for WE, CBS and the E! Network; and live announcing for The People’s Choice Awards, The Family Television Awards, and The Emmys. She discovered audiobooks in 2006, when her research, perseverance, and creative thinking resulted in a flourishing and profitable career in audiobooks. She now records books on a regular basis for major publishers such as Harper, Macmillan, Random House and Scribner. Some titles include Skinny Bastard and Light in the Piazze. Her next project is Tell-All by best selling author Chuck Palahniuk. Her narration consistently garners both critical acclaim and industry awards, including several Audie Award nominations.
“Hillary Huber’s narration is lyrical enough to be set to music.”
-Audiofile Magazine
Go to Break Into Voice Over to reserve your seat!
Harlan Hogan and Dan O’Day
Last May I took part, along with a number of other voice actors around North America, in a month long series of teleseminars hosted by Harlan Hogan and Dan O’Day. The focus was on Starting Your Own Voiceover Business. The discussions stayed on topic. Even though I’ve been a voice actor since 1983, I found a lot of valuable information in these 4 weeks of classes. So, why am I mentioning all of this so many months after the fact?
Because I think there’s a real good chance Harlan and Dan will do a series of classes again this year. Again in May. But, with the improvements and insights gained from last year’s classes. And again focused only on the BUSINESS of voiceover. Your business.
I’ll post again when I have more news.
(edited to fix typos)
Ditching your Day Job part 1
My friend Kristine Oller provides a ton of valuable information for actors and performers of all kinds in a series of videos that are now posting to YouTube. Here’s part one.
A spotlight on Nancy
Voiceover coach Nancy Wolfson is featured in the current issue of Radio and Production magazine. If Nancy has been true to form, and that’s a safe bet, here’s a ton of valuable information in the article. You might want to pop on over to their site and think seriously about subscribing.
Thoughts about marketing from Anthony
My friend Anthony Mendez is one of the brightest voice actors I know. He’s also brilliant at marketing, which is why you should spend a few minutes reading his recent blog post on this subject. It’s well worth your time.
Even if you missed the “Fix your website”
It’s not too late, even if you didn’t sign up for Dan O’Day seminar on how you as a voice actor can fix your website.
WEBSITES FOR VOICE ACTORS: Why Your Website Isn’t Working for You And How And Why You Need To Fix It Immediately (100% Non-Technical)
You see, the seminar was recorded and for only a few days (just until March 1st, 2010) you can get a copy of the 2.5 hour audio file.
If you’re a voice actor, I hope you’ll click here and get this recording while you still can.
Fix your website registration ends today
Dan O’Day is conducting a seminar designed to fix your website. It’s going to be 100% non-technical. Here are the details:
WEBSITES FOR VOICE ACTORS: Why Your Website Isn’t Working for You And How And Why You Need To Fix It Immediately (100% Non-Technical)
Wednesday, February 24, 2010 — 9pm Eastern / 8pm Central / 6pm Pacific
If you aren’t sure what this is about, a video from Dan explaining all the information including how to register to attend is right here.
You might wonder, what does Dan O’Day know about websites? Dan will explain here.
And yes, the seminar will be recorded so if, after you’ve registered, something comes up so that you can’t take part while it’s happening live, you’ll get a recording of the entire thing. This is also good news for those of us who like to got back and listen again to make sure we didn’t miss anything important.
If you’re a voice actor, I hope you’ll register now, because registration ends this evening.
Fix your website registration ends tomorrow
Dan O’Day is conducting a seminar designed to fix your website. Here’s the first piece of good news, it’s going to be 100% non-technical. Here are the details:
WEBSITES FOR VOICE ACTORS: Why Your Website Isn’t Working for You And How And Why You Need To Fix It Immediately (100% Non-Technical)
Wednesday, February 24, 2010 — 9pm Eastern / 8pm Central / 6pm Pacific
And the second piece of good news? If you aren’t sure what this is about, a video from Dan explaining all the information including how to register to attend is right here.
Now, you might ask, what does Dan O’Day know about websites? Dan will explain here.
And yes, the third piece of good news, the seminar will be recorded so if, after you’ve registered, something comes up so you can’t take part while it’s happening live, you will get a recording of the entire thing. This is also good news for those of us who like to got back and listen again to make sure we didn’t miss anything important.
If you’re a voice actor, I hope you’ll register now, because registration ends tomorrow.
It’s not about me
You’ve got to fix your website
Dan O’Day is going to conduct a seminar designed to just that, fix your website. And here’s the first piece of good news, it’s going to be 100% non-technical. Here are the details:
WEBSITES FOR VOICE ACTORS: Why Your Website Isn’t Working for You And How And Why You Need To Fix It Immediately (100% Non-Technical)
Wednesday, February 24, 2010 — 9pm Eastern / 8pm Central / 6pm Pacific
A video from Dan explaining what this seminar is about and all the information you need to register to attend is right here.
Now, you might ask, what does Dan O’Day know about websites? Dan will explain here. And yes, the seminar will be recorded so if, after you’ve registered, something comes up so you can’t take part while it’s happening live, you will get a recording of the entire thing. This is also good news for those of us who like to got back and listen again to make sure we didn’t miss anything important.
If you’re a voice actor, I hope you’ll register now, while you’re thinking about it.
It’s the least I could do
Seth Godin offers some powerfully cogent observations about two ways to run a successful business. Take a moment to read his blog post from the other day. Then take several more minutes to think about how to put into practice a few of the ideas that just popped into your head. They could be the most important minutes you spend on your business today. On second thought, the most important minutes will be the ones you spend actually putting them into practice.
