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ROWELL GORMON

V O I C E O V E R S

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Everyone Should Have an “Uncle Willie” (part two)

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One of the biggest reasons I hit it off so well in the studio with producers and directors is my Imagination.  I’ve even had writers create something with one of my voice characters in mind.  I sometimes wonder why that sense of imagination isn’t commonplace.  And then I wonder where kids get their imaginations now…if they have any.

My parents fostered mine and gave it plenty of room to grow.  But it was my mom’s younger brother (he let us call him “Willie” instead of Bill) who gave it a sharper focus, and made it the launchpad into a career, even before he knew he was doing it for me.

Treasures From an Accidental Time Capsule

It was there in a stack of battered comic books left behind in grandma’s house, including the original Captain Marvel.  It was there in the old 78rpm records of Spike Jones & His City Slickers he must’ve listened to as well.

Mom and dad would take the family to the drive-in movies once in awhile, but I think Willie was the only one brave enough to take me to a Kiddie Matinee at the local theatre.  We were probably the only ones there who actually came to see the picture (“The Lone Ranger“), and I can still remember my usually cheerful uncle’s sour reaction as we went home: “That’s the LAST time I go to an indoor movie!”

Can’t Find One?  Can’t Afford One?  Make One!

Aside from the boost into Radio and Production, Willie (and Joyce) always seemed to be able to create something fun out of practically nothing.  This was no more evident than in their annual Halloween decorations.  Inspired by our mutual fascination with the Disney parks and audio animatronics, he’d rig up simple effects like a piece of fishing line running from a hidden motor to the base of a rocking chair, or use an old 4-track tape cartridge to feature my thunderstorm sound effects loop, with inaudible pulses on an alternate track to make a light fixture flash just before the sound of the thunder.  He rigged up a dummy in a “coffin” to rise up on cue (thanks to an old motor and armature from a washing machine), and had Joyce out front scouting the neighborhood kids as they came up. She’d quietly feed him their names so that the dummy could greet them by name, his spooky voice coming from an old speaker in the thing’s chest, while Willie and his microphone hid just out of sight.

In our worlds, cardboard and string, magic markers and paint, masking tape and makeshift electronics were literally the “stuff that dreams were made of”.

The Family That PLAYS Together…

And the creativity didn’t end with Willie and Joyce.  Their kids shared with me as well.  Debbie and her little brother Richie let me use their voices as little kids in an ill-fated six part audio series I did on Old Time Radio called “The Radio Museum“.  Both Deb and Richie have families of their own now.

Of course, I didn’t get to visit much after I moved to North Carolina, but that never affected the “fan club” treatment I got from Willie and Joyce (my brother Lee and I almost ran their names together when we talked about them, as if they were one person).  They’d sit and listen to tapes of my best radio commercials, or watch my clips from local tv, even when the immediate family had lost interest.

I’m so grateful Willie was still around when I landed those movie gigs with Jim Henson’s Muppets as a literal “hired hand”.  I think he and Joyce were even more proud of me than my parents or my wife…at least they showed it more openly.

 

Final Act

I’m pretty sure Willie knew how much I appreciated everything he did for me and my eventual career in radio, tv, film, and voiceovers.  But he also gave me one last thing…my hatred of cigarettes.  See, Willie was a Marlboro Man, and I can’t ever remember him without a cigarette in his hand unless he was playing guitar or handling a soldering gun.  Those things put him in the ground, many years ago – way too early.  And I was too far away and too broke to make it back for his funeral.

Joyce has continued their legacy of love, laughs and imagination with her own offspring, their kids, and is the youngest grandmother (or is that great-grandmother) I know.

Fortunately, Willie left me with a lot of his creative spirit to remember him by, plus his ability to make something cool out of practically nothing.  It never occurred to me until later in life that not everyone is as lucky as I was.  Really…if you didn’t get an “Uncle Willie” in your family…you wuz robbed!

–over and out–

 

Everybody Should Have an “Uncle Willie” (part one)

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The Man of Multiple Names Could Hear My Multiple Voices

To his wife Joyce, his co-workers and other friends he was “Bill”.  His mom, my grandma,  always referred to him as William Thomas (I always wondered who that “William Thomas” guy she kept talking about was).  But to me and my younger brother Lee (pictured above), he was Willie.  Not even “Uncle” Willie…just Willie.  It was what my mom and his other siblings called him, and he graciously allowed us to keep using that name for the rest of his life.  Willie was probably the person most responsible for developing my creative talents and imagination.

Don’t get me wrong.  Mom always read stories to me (shifting her voice with the characters), and she and Dad always made sure I had imaginative toys, books, records, crayons & paper,  and  (of course) plenty of cardboard boxes.  Dad had plans to go into drafting (before the government beat him to it and drafted him for a little assignment in 1940s Germany), so my drawing and cartooning abilities doubtless came from him.  Mom and Joyce both made puppets for me over the years and if they ever thought I was weird for doing the voices of my stuffed toys as I played, they never let on.  But it was Willie who actively joined in the play, and invited me to join in his own, right thru adulthood.

The Electric and the Eclectic  

It was Willie who fostered my interest in things electronic.  He built me a crystal radio set and showed me how to string antennae wire all over grandma’s spare room and listen to voices and music over the headphones.  It was Willie who put me on the air for the very first time…even if it was just a quick “hello” over his custom-built ham radio set-up.

It was Willie who took me over to visit his friend Don Scales, who built hi-fi systems and had this funny contraption called a tape recorder.  He let us kids not only record our voices, but play around with tape echo effects.  And some years later it was Willie, through his connection with Don (also chief engineer at the home town radio station), who got me my first part time job as a radio announcer/dj  while I was still in high school.  It’s no false modesty when I say it was Willie’s doing  and not my own talents — I still have the original audition reel and it’s cringeworthy!

When I got a tape recorder of my own and started messing around with character voices and the sound effects I could pull off my cartoon kiddie records, Willie not only encouraged me, he wrote some silly “radio serial” scripts about the guys he worked with in the radio/tv repair shop at Sears – “The Adventures of Picture Tube Charlie”, and did some of the voices alongside mine.  I’m told the gang at work kept bugging him for new “episodes”.

Expanding the Circuit

While I never learned any electrical engineering, Willie did provide for the advancement of my on air style, creating a makeshift “portable consolette” for me out of old record players, a recycled cart machine, basic microphone and a small mixing board which he built himself.  I even used it at a few of my high school dances…the only time you’d find an un-datable square like me at such an event.

Willie , who worked as a TV Repair man at Sears, salvaged an old b&w tv from the shop and got it working so I could have it in my basement lair at home (another blog for another time).  That was the one I remember watching the first moon landing on.  During college, he repaired another set for my first apartment, and it was the first color tv in our immediate family.  Willie and Joyce had a big RCA color console at their house, of course, with sound that could be rigged through his custom stereo.  As kids, we were thrilled when a Saturday family gathering or a rare overnight stay gave us a treasured glimpse into this magical new world of color.  Promos for the upcoming week’s “Batman” almost gave me a sensory overload!  On more than a few Sunday nights, mom and dad grudgingly let our visit go into overtime so we could watch Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color before heading  home.

Still later, during the Betamax years, Willie could always be counted upon to faithfully watch the tapes  I’d bring home of a tv commercial or promo I’d directed or appeared in, or the few clips I was able to snag when my puppet characters and I appeared on the local kiddie show, “Time for Uncle Paul” (again…another blog for another time).

Even when the rest of the family wasn’t really that interested, Willie (and Joyce) served as my enthusiastic and encouraging audience.  And Joyce actually contributed one of the makeshift puppets I used on the show, Malcom, who was built from a teddy bear body and a ‘cookie monster’ style head that could “eat” cookies through a slot in the back of his mouth.  On the show, though, he quickly developed into a sweet, slow-witted soul not unlike Edgar Bergen‘s bumpkin, “Mortimer Snerd“.  The puppets couldn’t actually do much, physically.  But they really came alive as characters.

But Willie’s influence, and Joyce’s, didn’t stop at local radio and local tv.  It’s literally gone around the world thanks to all those years of creative nurturing.  More on that in the next post.

— over and out —

Hitting the Voiceover Trail (you can’t get there the way I did)

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It’s an honest question. I get it a lot.

“How do I get into voiceovers?”

Usually, the person wants a Secret Formula…wants to know how I did it…wants to know how to follow the same path I did.  The thing of it is:  you can’t follow that path.  It simply doesn’t exist anymore.

Broken Roads

The first thing I used to tell these people (back when I knew everything) was, “Get a part time job at your local radio station.”  My start was a 250 watt AM station in a small Indiana town, which (until they added FM) could barely reach the city limits.  Places like that do still exist, but now they’re usually just outlets for syndicated programs with someone else doing all the talking.  Even if you did manage to find a station that’d let you do much on the air, chances are you’d be stuck in a rigid format that frowns on any individual personality.

Voiceover’s “Poison Pill”

But let’s say you did find a local station that’d let you keep that mic open for more than ten seconds at a time.  Chances are, you’d be learning and developing skills alright… the wrong ones.  For one thing, you’d likely be tempted to sound like the other radio DJs you’ve heard all your life, and who are on the air with you now.  Trouble is, that DJ sound is exactly what voice seekers don’t want anymore.  They avoid it like the plague.  Send out a voice audition with what we used to derisively call the “Ron Radio” sound, and you probably won’t be heard past slating your name.  Even if you’re not yukking it up like a DJ, chances are you’ll be considered “too announcer-y“.  It doesn’t matter how nice your voice sounds.

Writing Your Own Ticket

Unlike my experience, you also won’t find yourself in a position to develop your own style by creating your own material.  It didn’t take long for me to figure out I’d never make it as a Disc Jockey.  But I did enjoy running what they used to call a “tight board”, turning the various elements of an air shift (commercials, Public Service Announcements, time & temp, and the music) into one smooth audio flow.  After a few wrong turns I was finally able to see a more likely radio future in the production room.  Doing commercials and little comedy bits for the “real announcers”, I was able to use all the character voices I’d gleaned from years of watching Bugs Bunny and Yogi Bear and Bullwinkle.  Not just funny voices.  Characters.  Eventually (very eventually), I got hired by a radio station who wanted a production guy who could “think like [Stan] Freberg and keep it clean”.  There I found a like-minded mentor who showed me how to adapt my writing skills into creating good, engaging, and entertaining advertising copy.  Within a year, I started picking up local Addy Awards.  Part of my secret was being able to write material for myself I already knew I was good at.  The other part was luck in having advertisers who let me do it.  You may not be able to rely on your own word-smithing to give you an edge.

So What Am I Supposed To Do?

Chances are, you can’t get away with doing what I did.  Heck, I wouldn’t be able to get away with it myself.  Radio stations don’t have time to train you, they want you to hit the ground running.  And formats are so rigid today, the kinds of stuff I created would never get on the air.  And studios?  They don’t have time to un-train you!

Parallel Highways

Have you ever been driving down an Interstate and notice an old two-lane road running alongside?  It’s an older way to get somewhere, but not exactly the same route or even end point.  There are still ways you can adapt the things I did to get into voice work.  Not everyone has the same experience, but here are some parallels.

  1. Find A Place To Stink. Comedian George Burns lamented the end of Vaudeville because, he said, it left “no place to be bad”.  Touring the circuit, performers were able to learn what worked and what didn’t, until their talents were polished and their individual styles emerged.  You may not have local radio, but there are podcasts, local theatre, or even just fooling around with the record button on your phone.  Learn to listen to yourself.  Compare what you hear to the sound and style of national (not local) commercials.  Don’t imitate those voices.  Find a way to do your own version of those styles.
  2. Find a Mentor. Sure,  you probably won’t have anyone like the guys who took me under their creative wings at the radio stations.  But you can find teachers online, maybe even where you live, who’ll guide you to finding your own voice (or voices).  I’m not talking about the people who want to sign you up for an instant voice demo after a $2,000.00 weekend seminar…I’m talking about someone who’ll work with you, one-on-one.  If you don’t have stage fright (or even if you do), get involved in community theatre.  You’ll learn how to use your voice in the context of a character (straight or comic). See what you can learn from various directors.  It’s likely you’ll have several mentors shaping you before you’re ready to “show yourself”.
  3. Learn what you’re good at. You may be able to do a great Homer Simpson but guess what.  That  job’s already taken.  Perhaps you can sound like Morgan Freeman or whoever the celebrity-du-jour is for producers.  But unless you’re a great impressionist, just develop your own way of adapting those styles.  It’ll happen over time.  And it will take time.

What A Long, Strange Trip It’s Been

So, yeah.  You probably won’t get anywhere in your voiceover career by trying to do it the way I did it.  But that’s because this is now…and you’re you.  I’m still at it because I’ve tried to keep learning and adapting as styles and market demands change (and they’ll always be changing).  Once you get the hang of reading the signs, I bet you’ll find the “road rise up to meet you”…instead of coming to a dead end.  I’d be interested to hear what routes you’ve discovered.

— over and out —

Grunters and Screamers

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I’m not a Grunter or a Screamer.  No, this has nothing to do with my love life.  (Shame on you.)

 

“Whooooo Are You? Who-Who, Who-Who.”

One of the first tools I received as a budding young copy writer was “Tell ’em who you are by telling ’em who you ain’t.”  That may not be the current wisdom, but I’ve found it helpful in several areas of my career…not just in scripting ads.

It can apply to your image as a voice talent.  For example – my friend and marketing genius Doug Turkel promotes himself as the Un-nouncer, giving potential clients an instant idea of his style before they even click a demo.  It must be a good idea, because at least one other VO ripped off the theme for his own use before Doug put a stop to it.

But there’s another way to apply that “who you ain’t” tool, which will save you loads of frustration and wasted promotional efforts…plus make voice seekers appreciate you, even if they decide not to listen to your samples.

 

“I Gotta Be Me” 

Decide, early on, what you can…or what you want to do…with that voice of yours.  You’ll save your potential clients some search time and, even more importantly, save yourself a ton of unsatisfying effort struggling to do something you just don’t enjoy.  I’m not talking about refusing to try a different style of read at the behest of a client or coach.  And I don’t mean you should never explore things outside your comfort zone.  But in my experience, it’s been beneficial to know what I’m best at, and what I’m better off leaving to others.

Back to the title above.  I’m strictly a PG rated voice talent.  But I discovered early on that I just don’t want to spend my time at the mic repeatedly screaming my lungs out in terror or pain, or doing an hour of variations on “ungh!!!” for video games.  If it’s just part of a character I’m voicing, sure that’s fine.  But if that’s the whole character?  I’ll be glad to recommend some talented friends who not only enjoy that type of work, they excel at it.  I don’t know about you, but if I enjoy what I’m doing, I generally do a better job (and the director is going to get a better end product)!

Now, does that mean I never do video game voices?  Of course not.  But I found my specialties early on.  And, like most of my other acting, it rarely involves being the star.  My main value, and what I really enjoy, is being the voice of that slightly offbeat character the hero encounters…you know, the peddler who has that special equipment. or the magical earth spirit who has the next step in the quest, or the commander who sets out the mission and barks orders, or the little creature who offers a clue to a puzzle.

 

Jack-Of-All-Trades, Master of SOME

This philosophy also helps in radio spots or tv voiceovers.  I don’t enjoy doing screamer spots (“If YOU have a job and NINETY-NINE DOLLARS, YOU can DRIVE TODAY!!!” or “BE Therrrrrrre!”).  And that’s cool.  There are plenty of other talented people (and yes, I admit it’s a special talent) who do that better than I can and probably enjoy it more.

But likely as not, they can’t do what I do…at least not as easily or as well as I can.

Versatile as we may be, we’re serving a voiceover marketplace that usually has a narrow focus.  In my own case, it’s a constant struggle to zero in on what the voice seekers are seeking…not the literally hundreds of voices and character variations I can come up with.

When I worked in radio, our small cadre of announcers/DJs would stretch vocally to match any mood or character or accent as best we could.  Now with the internet, clients have plenty of the “real thing” to call on.  No need to accept a “stretched” voice talent.

 

“Know Thyself”

I’m not saying find one voice and one style and make everything you do sound the same (although there are people who’ve made a career of that).  Do find and exploit every variation and offshoot within your range and style.  Develop a core group of “voices” in your head you can easily switch between, should the copy or the director happen to throw you a curve…much like altering your basic look with a hat or other costume piece.

You’ll be making life easier for your potential client, who may need your specialty next time.  Ultimately, it’ll make life easier for you too!

And if that means being the best darn Grunter or Screamer money can hire…go for it!  I’ll be cheering you from the sidelines, saving my energy and vocal cords for when it’s my line.

 

— over and out —

Star Wars — Episode Whatever – A Lost Hope

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It’s taken more than thirty years, but I’ve had it.

While I’ve never dressed up as a Wookie or gone to a movie theatre toting a Light Saber, I’ve considered myself one of the original “Star Wars” fans ever since that first frame of film hit the screen in 1977. I was in my 20s, and even arranged the first preview showing in the area through my radio station job before that Time Magazine article came out and everyone else started jumping on the bandwagon.

It was more fun than I’d ever had at the movies. Yeah. I knew it was a only a movie. And I knew it had its flaws. But I bought in and cheered it on.

I grudgingly accepted the stupid mid-filming script change that killed off Obi-Wan in the original.

I went along with the cheesy “Luke…I am your father!” in “Empire Strikes Back”.

I put up with Ewoks, a Death Star re-run, and the Humpty-Dumpty Darth Vader reveal in “Return of the Jedi”.

When the bloated “Special Editions” came out, I tried to overlook the wretched excess.

I put up (barely) with Jar Jar Binks, midi-chlorians, insipid disc-jockey pod race announcers, and “Yippee” in “Phantom Menace”. (I also remember feeling like I’d been punched in the gut and given a wedgie after going to the midnight preview showing.)

I got through “Attack of the Clones” by reminding myself how good Ewan McGregor and Christopher Lee were at handling awful material when teen-angst Anakin wasn’t taking up screen time, whining.

I even held down my dinner as “I-wanna-be-a-badass” Annie killed a trusting group of children, amid total green-screen/CGI overload, culminating in being expected to accept the instant transformation of said whiny teenage brat into the galactic terror of Darth Vader (now with improved James Earl Jones voice) in “Revenge of the Sith”.

Through it all, I refused to join the enraged online fanboy screams of “George Lucas raped my childhood!!!”

But even semi-blind fanaticism has its limits. And I’ve reached mine.

For all the fun and all the joy the original brought into my life in 1977, imperfect though it may have been…I can’t take another betrayal.

I waited cautiously all year for December 2015, remembering how good the theatrical previews for “Phantom Menace” looked at the time. As the release date approached, I carefully avoided spoilers, and even admired the new bosses’ ability to keep media leaks to almost zero. What showed up in the previews and online features looked like it might just be a return to form.

And now? I’m not even going to see the damned thing.

Yeah…I gave in. I turned to the Dark Side…I finally looked at the spoilers and confirmed the rumours.

Ya know what?

I’m tired of my heroes being trashed. I’m tired of seeing Zorro unmasked and dragged through the street. I’m tired of the Lone Ranger being made a bumbling second-banana to a deranged Tonto. I’m tired of the Green Hornet being re-booted as a n’er-do-well slacker. I’m tired of The Shadow turning into a smirking Alec Baldwin. I’m tired of Starship Enterprises repeatedly getting blown up. I’m tired of the Mission: Impossible team being killed off and demonized just so Tom Cruise can take over. I’m tired of James Bond being mired in murky personal problems instead of saving the world from over-the-top villains. I’m tired of Superman being anything but a hero. And I’m REALLY tired of Batman being dark and gothic and depressing.

I’m tired of people somehow being ashamed of wanting to see a fun, escapist adventure without a lot of dark and “meaningful” overtones once in awhile.

So, forgive me 1977 Star Wars (no bloody “Episode 4, 5, or 6”), if I don’t plunk down more good money to have the props knocked out from under me again for no good reason, other than the new director needed some shock value.

I don’t care how good the first three quarters of the new movie may be…and I’m told it is truly great, as are the new actors.

I’ve had enough. I’ll take my old toys and go home

No, I won’t be burning them in some kind of adolescent tantrum. But if anyone asks, I don’t want a BB-8 or Kylo Ren doll for Christmas.

If you like “The Force Awakens”…good for you. Take over.

For me…even George Lucas never stooped so low.

 

— over and out —

Honesty: the Best Policy…Even If You Think You Can’t Afford the Best

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“Clients From Hell” are well documented. There’s even a website devoted to them. I am compelled to declare equal time for one from the Other Camp.

I met him last week through a friend’s recommendation and yes, he is an agency guy.

It was a quick turnaround VO, statewide use. I quoted what I thought was a decent rate and was gratified to be given the nod.

Even with the tight deadline, the guy warned me his end-client was known for changing things a couple of times and this would be covered in fees. He was also honest enough to tell me the piece would be used online and told me to figure that in as well.

True to form, the script went through two more last-second re-writes, each (of course) was an “emergency.” I delivered to my new patron’s complete satisfaction and … in effect … made him look good to his client.

Then he sent me a link to the finished spot. It’s a TV spot – and I had quoted him a Radio rate!

After a few choice words to myself, I communicated my mistake (ONLY to avoid having him think any future work would be priced so low, and that I WANTED to work with him again).

A quick check of emails showed it was completely my own goof, and I said I would honor the quoted price now that the work was done.

To my surprise, there was an immediate response – asking me to submit a new invoice. I replied I didn’t think it would be ethical for me to do that, especially after the spot was done and sent out to stations for air.

This new client of mine … who had assured me the voice work I did was just what everyone wanted (and that I didn’t get the gig just because my price was so low) … replied that while he appreciated my attitude, he himself did not feel it was ethical to let things stay at the original price.

Being completely flummoxed at this point, I used a friend’s fall-back line:

“Well, what would you think I could charge and still have you feel you got a good deal?”

He came back with an itemization that totaled a whole lot more than I would have asked, saying it was in line with what his agency is accustomed to paying for this type of project.

Oh, and he assures me that we WILL be working together again in the future. You can believe next time I’ll be paying more attention.

Even without a “Client From Hell”, the Devil truly is in the details!

— over and out —

Two Words That Should Be In Every eMail You Send

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…no, I don’t mean “Hire Me” or “Pay Me”.

They’re simple words, easy to use, often neglected or thrown about as an afterthought.  But I’ve come to think they’re two words that don’t get used enough:

“Thank You.”

I’m not sure when I started including a “thank you” in nearly all my emails, but during the past year it’s been one of my more commendable habits.

No matter what I’m writing about, there’s almost always a way to work in a “thank you”.  And really, who doesn’t want to be thanked?

Of course it’s easy to use those two magic words when you’re sending out a request for information, or acknowledgement of winning a job…or sending an invoice.

I think I started noticing it had crept into my “stylebook” as I shot out more mundane things, like auditions.  Granted, you never know whether a person or a piece of software is handling your latest vocal gem, but what’s the harm of saying “thank you” for even the chance to participate?  …of being invited to the call, cattle or otherwise?

A “thank you” always looks good when acknowledging receipt of a script, or even requests for advice from someone who’s been told he/she “has a great voice”.

And while it’s merely my own choice, I opt for the full two words, rather than a quick “thanks”, which is a little less personal but probably just as effective.

If nothing else, you can use it to reward someone for taking time to read your whole message and not just deleting it after the first few words.

Kind of like this blog post.

So…”Thank You!”

 

 

 

— over and out —

Worried a Machine Will Take Your Voiceover Job? You Aren’t the First.

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I’m a contrarian.  I try to learn something OLD everyday.

Today I hit the jackpot with this story from the website www.curioushistory.com about a mechanical talking device that pre-dates the telephone, recording machine and talking pictures.  It’s one of those things that looks like a hoax, but is evidently true…and cool!


http://curioushistory.com/post/55136778566/euphonia-the-marvelous-talking-machine#.UeG72PrD-cx

There’s no known recording of the device, but conspiracy theorists are already buzzing that “she” is still in use, saying things like “Your call is very important to us.  Please hold for the next available customer service representative.”

–over and out —

The Demo Player That Thinks It’s iTunes

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Sample Image of the
ZamPlayer, used elsewhere on this site.

What if the voice style a producer is listening for is actually Segment Number Five in my sixty-second Demo? What if the producer stops listening after Segment Number Three? Is a problem. …for BOTH of us!

Not anymore.

Enter VoiceZam, a new type of audio player created by my friend, Bob Merkel, and now in use on www.voices2go.com. It allows listeners to zero in on just the part of any demo they want, without having to play the demos in their original order. Like iTunes, it can start at Segment One and play through, or start anywhere else and skip around and/or repeat or go back, INSTANTLY. Short Segments or the whole demo can be downloaded just as easily.

The player is set at one default (changeable by you)…in my case: Commercial. But the drop-down menu reveals all the other demos on offer, from Narration to Character to Audiobooks and E-Learning. VoiceZam’s player lets me upload as many different categories as I want to show off, but lets the listener pick and choose ONLY what he/or/she is listening for.

Added bonus: I can label each Segment in each demo just the way I want, so as to better match the type of voice being searched for. And updating & swapping out segments is so easy, even I can do it.

Once you get the hang of the player, it’s tempting to click around and see what other “buried treasure” you might have missed listening the old fashioned way. That’s just what I’m hoping my potential clients will do.

Best of all, the player is built to play instantly on any device….well…any desktop, laptop, tablet, smartphone, dumbphone, or Dick Tracy Wrist Radio. Bob still isn’t sure it’ll show up on your old-style digital watch, though. There’s more to say about the player, but it’s being said much better on the VoiceZam.com website. Don’t even get me started on the feature that lets you track who’s listening in, and for which segments, and for how long!!!

On a personal note: Bob is a delight to work with, taking hands-on ownership of any question, any potential problem. In my own case, he even went into his software “baby” and created a player skin color to match my website theme…and later created a catagory in the drop-down so I could also show off my Audio Production skills to potential clients. Not only that, but recently, he took note of numerous complaints about the cost of the service. Did he do a Steve Jobs and say “take it or leave it”? No. He did a “Bob Merkel”, and cut the cost in half.

I don’t know about you, but that’s the kind of customer response a “warm & friendly voice” talent appreciates.

— over and out —

The Curse of the Creative Mind

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…the Sleep Gremlins have finally found a crazy dream I cannot will myself awake from.

“Actor’s Nightmare”? Pish…I laugh in its face.

“Airshift Where the Studio is Suddenly My Grandma’s Living Room and All the Records Are Wrong”? I can dream I say, “Oh, come on. Wake up.”

But they got me last night with a simple dream of having a creative assignment where the script would alllllllmost come together, but not quite…but I could fix it if…no, but what if….well, nearly there, but…what about if we…. 

Even after waking up from it twice, I went right back to sleep to “fix” the problem. ….oh dear.

“Exhausted” is not the word. (…wait. what is the word? maybe if I…dang, it’s back again, and I’m awake this time!)

 

— over and out —