This group is BUSINESS...where are the jobs today that pay narrators? Who has these jobs? What are the sources we might contact with a demo to get narration jobs? Sure, we can talk about narration techniques too...
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A thought from Bettye.... You are entering the PUBLISHING INDUSTRY. Learn about it!

You must have a killer audio book demo to get paying work in this field especially from PUBLISHERS. You also must separate jobs you do on your own in your home studio from voicing for publishers, often in their studios. When you read for publishers, the pay is better and you often don't do the audio engineering. Mostly, they prefer readers in their own studios. The audio book jobs advertised on the online pay to play sites are usually from vanity publishers or the authors themselves or for other reasons...not publishing house jobs. Know the difference. And get used to the fact that audio books usually pay for THE FINISHED AUDIO HOUR. How long will it take you to get one finished audio hour that is perfect? That depends....could be two studio hours could be twenty studio hours with you engineering and voicing it too! Be very cautious on your price bidding.
Bettye Zoller

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  • Ran Alan Ricard November 18, 2009 at 4:39pm
    thankya ... thankyavermuchium ;o)

    We better get serious here or their liable to give us a swift ..

    KICKIUM IN THE RUMPIUS

    Ran
  • Norman Gilligan November 18, 2009 at 4:33pm
    Hi Ran.

    "ANOTHERUS JOBUS" works for me .. your Latin is impeccable.

    Best regards.

    N.
  • Ran Alan Ricard November 18, 2009 at 4:15pm
    Secundae Gigiae works ... or we could just use the simple latin,

    ANOTHERUM JOBUS ;o)
  • Norman Gilligan November 18, 2009 at 2:49pm
    I think it should be "SECUNDUS GIGIA" or maybe "SECUNDAE GIGIAE" being the ablative of the second person plural .. man can I talk some rubbish .. I knew those Latin lessons would come in useful someday !! I look forward to getting an SG too.

    On a more serious note .. I recently put together a set of sample book reads and covered Shakespeare, Dickens, Jane Austen, Anthony Trollope and a couple of non-fiction technical items. The feedback I got was to keep the technicals and replace the classics with more modern items. Part of the reasoning was that clients are likely to be wanting to hire for a modern piece and will probably want to hear modern idom. I didn't get a result for that one.

    Best regards all.

    N.
  • Bob Souer November 18, 2009 at 2:00pm
    Bettye,

    Excellent group idea!

    Be well,
    Bob
  • Shania Jackson November 17, 2009 at 4:50pm
    I'm excited about this group and also excited that you, Bettye, are the moderator. Hello to all of my fellow vo-ers out there! The questions you posed, Bettye, are exactly what I ask myself as I look into studying this genre. I'm anxious to see what I can learn from othere here.
  • Joe Geoffrey November 17, 2009 at 4:03pm
    Bettye, can't wait to learn more of what you know and so willingly share in this business! I've built on my demo with performances since our last visit. And, I launched a web site for marketing efforts http://www.joegeoffrey.com. Would love your comments, thoughts, and suggestions. Really looking forward to picking-up insights on marketing. Blessings, Joe
  • Bettye Zoller November 17, 2009 at 3:17pm
    Congratulations to my friend Ran Ricard on his "Secundus Gigium" (see his email below) and onward and upward.
  • Bettye Zoller November 17, 2009 at 3:14pm
    To Lynne and everyone here...where do I find copy for my demo, she asks...Lynne, copy comes from real books. Choose passages from books that fit you well as a voice. Then practice. Then record yourself and play it back. Do this until each passage sounds totally wonderful. Then you're ready to make that demo. Get professional production help from someone near you or else, you'll have to travel to work with a producer of audio demos. Let me know if I can help.
  • Bettye Zoller November 17, 2009 at 3:11pm
    To Lynne: An audio book demo should highlight your best strengths. Dialects? Shakespeare? Heavy drama? Maybe not? Maybe you're not trained in acting? Then stress non-fiction. Are you good at "counseling" or "children" or??? That is what makes us decide on the selections to be put on a demo. It's so individual to each person. Publishers like to hear longer excerpts and I like about one minute each selection. Six to eight selections would be fine. There is some variance in agreement on this point but generally, people agree with me that the demo is longer than other types of demos. As for coaching, I do telephone coaching. But I don't want to turn this into an advertisement! Contact me privately since you ask about training, Lynne. I do give workshops too.
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