Well, I can’t tell you what to do, but here is how I got into narrating audio books.

I have been asked this question a few times in the last few weeks and so I figured why not have an answer for everyone already laid out and ready to go. I recently released the news of the audio book I had the privilege to narrate being available for download. It was quite the surprise to many people because I did what I usually do when it comes to my life; live it without sharing it.

I feel I did that mostly out of security.

Many of you know what I mean by that. Let me not tell anyone about this pursuit, in case it does not work out. Mhmm.  We need to stop that; And that is why even though I was not completely please with the production myself, I decided not to allow the lack of perfection keep me from sharing something I placed so much time, work, and energy into.  Perhaps people should be able to see that you don’t have to be PERFECT to begin to attack goals.

So I released it on my Facebook and Instagram and immediately people were in my text messages wondering how I got into doing something like this. I do feel it necessary to mention that this wasn’t something I decided to do on a whim. As a theatrical actress who aspires to break into film, I have always slightly sought out opportunities such as this.  I say slightly because like many of you, I found ways to get in my own way. I know I got in my own way because the minute I decided to FULLY immerse myself into the research and committed to following through, the information needed seemed to fall right into my lap.

And when I say fall into my lap I mean, I took out my phone which was likely in my bag or back pocket, and took to YouTube. Looking for voice over acting opportunities was the goal at the time because acting is acting, and any forms of it is something I am willing to try. I also have been told ALL of my life that I have a nice voice.  Now, I do not think so, but no one does, and furthermore, I have learned through my research that having a nice voice is actually NOT EVEN NECESSARY. Again, do not be deterred by negative talk, which can include limiting yourself by thinking you do not have what it takes for a particular field.

Nowadays we have plus sized models, short basketball players, boxers with no muscles, female sumo wrestlers, and yes, there are voice over actresses whose real voice sounds like they are always sucking on helium.  They are making it happen, because not everyone needs or wants a “nice voice”. They may want unique, deep, raspy, hoarse, or even something that sounds like you are and will always be 6 years old.

Now that we know you can do it, let’s talk about what I did to get started when I had no information whatsoever. I only had the desire and the internet.  The desire must be internal, and if you do not have access to the internet, you probably wouldn’t be reading this for one, and two, your desire is not strong enough because library cards and access to the internet are free, mmkay!

I said that I began by going to YouTube but really I started with a simple google search.  I searched SO many sites including some needing startup fees that came with promises. But before I went that route I was like, if I am going to pay for this that means I have that much faith I can do this. If I have that much faith I can do this then I might as well get an agent for FREE and let him do the work of finding me work.  

But getting an agent to get work was going to take longer than I felt I wanted to wait at that time. Furthermore, I thought, agents would be able to get me some gigs that I could not find myself, but not ALL. There HAS to be something out there I can find myself; I can be my own damn agent!

So I then came across this site.  I will not mention the name of the site as it is trash and not worth my time, and I do not want to send any of you to the dumpster.  I did place a profile on this site, and part of the requirement was that you upload a demo of your voice over.

Guess what people? I DIDN’T EVEN HAVE THAT!  

Yet another powerful lesson to learn.  Do not focus on what you don’t have or can’t do in any moment. Focus on what you do have and can do, and build on the rest. So, I did not have a demo and in order to make a demo, you needed the hardware and the software. I bet you wondering if I at least had that, and the answer is, partially. I did have a laptop. That was it.

I bet that you have a laptop or access to one. If not, this is something you will want to invest in at some point. Maybe you are able to borrow or rent from a friend or family member for when you need to do some recording. But if you are just in the researching stage and want to see if this is right for you, go to your local library, get a library card, and start getting empowered with information.

Despite only having a laptop, I STILL created the profile on this trash voice over site. Being that you needed a demo in order to even get  recognized (supposedly), the act of me putting the profile up was just motivation for me to keep looking into ways I could get a demo completed as quickly as possible. No one wants someone to possibly go to their page with interest, and then not have anything for them to see?  Having that profile only made me more interested in learning about what I needed to do to move forward.

Since I could not record a demo of my own yet, I started listening to other people’s demos on that site and getting ideas for what I needed for mine. There were some GREAT demo’s on there. My old self would have been so intimidated by that, that I likely would not have wanted to try to compete. But then I reminded myself:

There is no competition; it’s just me. I am NOT up against them.

I am simply going for what I want and will surely learn to get it right. Someday I would have some content as dope as what I was listening to. I had to remind myself that it was not rocket science, though there are methods to keep in mind. But that stuff is for another post. I also want to say that even if it was rocket science, we should keep this one thing in mind:

EVEN THAT CAN BE TAUGHT, and therefore, IS something YOU can learn.

Listening to other actors demo I knew that I would at least need to get a mic. This would allow my voice to stand out and be clear. I also knew that I would need to be able to edit the clips because all of the demos had several clips with different voices that they could portray to clients.  These clips would show their range of voice over ability from commercial, to radio announcer, to movie trailers.

There are voice overs for SO MANY THINGS. I realize this every time I get into an elevator that has the lady saying “going up” and “level 4”. I find myself repeating these voices and thinking, I can surely do that.  And haven’t you always wanted to be the voice of the GPS? Look at all the opportunities that are out there!

Now at the very least I needed a mic.  I also needed editing software and had no idea what to do about that. This is when YouTube came into play. I was looking at video after video after video on equipment and frankly getting overwhelmed. Two weeks had gone by and I still did not have a demo or the equipment.  I shared these concerns with my boo and to my surprise, I was blessed with the news that a Mic was already on the way from Amazon. LOOK AT GOD!

The mic arrived a few days later and people, another blessing is learning that it was not super expensive.  The Mic I have is called Fifine and I do not remember the exact cost but it was under $120 I am sure. This is a USB mic so it plugs right into your laptop and boom, you are ready to go.  The beauty of the mic was that it came with instructions for how to use it with a FREE software program you could download onto your laptop!

Two things taken care of with one stone. Tuh! Tell me you can’t and I will just take your spot. Don’t let me do it, ok!

So, I download the recommended software called Audacity, which was actually something I had seen on YouTube from my research.  Many people raved about audacity, so I put it on my Toshiba laptop and was ready to record within minutes. I remember giggling like a school girl hearing my voice back like that for the first time as I recorded.  It was fun to play with the settings and learn to do the basics like record, stop, pause and delete. It seemed all too simple.

After I played around with the mic, I began to record my own personalized demo. All of the demos I had been listening to would have music or sound effects in the background. This seemed crucial. I had to then learn how to do that as well. ugh! that is another post for another day. After I taught myself how to do the basics of editing, mastering, and adding music, (which took DAYS), I was ready to post my first demo to the trash site. I did, and after a while, got nothing.  

But I did not put all my eggs in that one basket!

I was still looking for other options on YouTube. When researching recording equipment the suggested videos were geared to voice over work. Not surprising since that is what much of the equipment is used for. I started looking into them and found this lady with a cadence and professionalism to her voice that I just love.  Her YouTube channel is the Voice Work Academy. She was one of the few who began to mention ACX through Amazon.

I followed her channel more than others, but since her videos were being done as a series, I often did not want to wait a week or two for the next video to come out to learn what to do next. (All of the videos you would need to start are already available; how lucky!)

I had to stay vigilant!

I saw through her channel and some others that through ACX you are able to audition narrate books.  I thought to myself, “you were looking for voice over acting but here you are so, why the heck not”. What I love about ACX that was surely more legit than that other site, was that they did not just expect you to put up a demo and hope someone drops by your page. You  are able to put up a demo AND actively search for your own auditions for audio books!

They have THOUSANDS of titles you can search and audition for, so you can be the powerful, proactive, hustler that you are; after all, that is why you are here.

The lady with voice work academy tells you where you can find royalty free books to use for your demo. Since I am a writer, I did have a sample from an unpublished book of my own.  I put my sample on the site and began to audition. I auditioned for 2 books and was rejected. I even had someone reach out to me with excitement after hearing my demo, only to turn me down.

But I truly believe that was a test of faith.  Furthermore, there is nothing healthy about the expectation that it should always go right the first time. Just because you start doing the work, doesn’t mean the work will pour in immediately.  Also, getting the rejections were a blessing because it gave me more time to learn the importance of mastering audio. Had I not done that I would not have produced good quality material for the books I auditioned for. I simply was not ready.

Not being completely ready is not reason enough to cease pursuit.  If you have read this far that should be clear. But you should also be willing to do the work, learn what you need to learn, and be patient.  Mastering the audio on my own for someone who is not tech savvy meant long hours and frustration with not being able to get it “right”. It also meant that I learned the importance of controlling my recording environment as best I can. This way I didn’t have too much editing to do on the back end.  

When the timing was right, I knew, because it then seemed like all of a sudden, I was not having to audition. Instead, I was being approached.  How nice is it to just wake up to an email with someone being appreciative of your demo? And you know that it is not JUST the demo, but the mastering and editing that YOU did all on your own, with faith and patience.  

I began to get offers and went right back to researching (watching YouTube) on what to do with those offers. I learned that a 3 hours book could take about 20 hours of your time. I learned that ACX has standards you have to meet, and you will want to meet them because this work will be out there forever. I learned that sometimes, you have to do it over.  For my first book, I completed the entire book and actually had chapters to read all over because the background noise was too much to edit out.

Most importantly I learned that this is something I could do, with little equipment, and little money. I have already made back the money that was invested into getting started. You need to be willing to do the work it takes to learn your craft, and once you do, the rest will be easy.  I am now sitting here typing with one completed book and 3 more projects under my belt. I am certainly looking for more. In the meanwhile you look out for the next 3 books coming up. They should all be released by April 2019. Check back here for your copy!

To sum up, here is how I got started narrating audio books:

1. Researched what I needed.
2. Obtained the necessary hardware and software (laptop, Fifine USB Microphone, audacity editing software).
3. Set up an ACX profile. Free, and if you have Amazon, simply log into your account, navigate to ACX, and set up a profile.
4. Create your demo with royalty free books to read from.
5. Audition for titles.
6. This is really number one; believe in yourself and work through the frustrations. It is only a learning curve, so just stick with it. And have FUN!

Are you also a narrator or interested in becoming one?  Leave your comment and tell me all about it!

Look for the first book I completed on Audible. The title is: Jeremey: BWWM Romance.  Happy Reading!