What makes audiobook narrators stand out from the rest

In this episode I am joined by the hugely talented Roderick Edwards where we discuss what it takes for an audiobook narrator to get the job and be successful.

His Secrets for Audiobook Narrators

Audiobook narration is such an amazing career path and I personally absolutely love the process of narrating a book. I highly recommend it to actors especially if you are like me and you love a good read. I personally have always been particular as to what books I choose and the ones I've gone for have always clicked with me in one way or another.

I was first introduced to Roderick on the first book that we did together called How To Overthrow a Government and although the title an bookcover are very provocative, it is not really a guide on how to actually overthrow a government, but rather Roderick takes a historian's approach and looks at facts and what has actually happened before in history.

However, he does openly share his guide to narrators. His secrets if you will to what makes voice actors stand out and get chosen to narrate his books.

1. Tone and Voice Quality

The one factor that probably plays the biggest role is tone and voice quality. Roderick says that whenever he is sifting through voice actors he knows exactly what type of sound he is going for. What sound would best fit his stories. This means that no matter how great a narrator someone is, they may not get the job if their voice is not right for the part.

We get that in all walks of acting really. It is not about us. It's all about whether what we bring to the table serves the story or not. It is not personal. There is something a lot more important than that. And that is the story.

So, next time when you don't get the job, don't get disheartened. Just remind yourself that this wasn't the book for you. Look at it from the perspective that you will eventually match the vision of the author or producer and will get a job. Don't beat yourself up and say to yourself that you are not good enough. It could be just down to how you sound and, guess what, there's not much you can do about that.

You could try and change your voice, but this would be super difficult to endure, especially if the book is longer than 3 hours.

Instead, continue to improve and know that eventually you will be the exact voice that the author or producer want for that one book.

2. Now comes your skill

Do you sound convincing? Are you managing to tell the story as intended? Are you getting the humour, or the underlying message? Here come your acting skills. Can you immerse yourself enough that you take the audience with you?

The way I always look at it is do you believe everything you're reading yourself? If you do - great news, so will the listener.

Don't you just love when you put an audiobook on and the narrator just takes you on a journey? You begin to explore with them, or they share the knowledge of the author with you. I personally love books in all formats, but audiobooks are that little bit more personal if done right. So, make sure you sit down and really work on your acting skills. On your ability to tell a story.

Another big skill that you need to develop. A muscle rather. Is that of reading out loud. It is so crazy and counterintuitive that because we read a lot that we can read out loud with the same speed and enough clarity. It will not come so easy, trust me. For most people at least. If you are an outlier and an exceptional natural reader and that is easy for you - well done, you got my applause. But for most of us, regular folks, that will not be the case. So make sure you practice, practice, practice. Reading long format is not easy and you need to keep the clarity up for hours and hours. Good diction will be your enemy. You will need perfect diction if you want to do a great job.

Getting the pronunciation right is also crucial. I made a mistake when narrating Roderick's latest book - Should've Been With Me because I got over-confident with my pronunciation. At one point in the book, he had written the initials H.I and I just read them as they were. The letters H and I. Did not even cross my mind that it may have been the abbreviation of an American state - Hawaii. So, back to the booth I went.

This, of course is a minor mistake. However, you want to avoid making such mistakes especially when only auditioning.

3. Equipment

Now comes the tricky part. Getting into voice over work altogether requires a bit of an investment. You need some hardware and software if you want to sound professional.

I know that this may be slightly off-putting for a lot of people and I understand. But I'd rather be honest with you and not get your hopes so high up without you realising what you actually need to do and get first.

4. Motivation

Finally, and perhaps my favourite point is your motivation. What are the reasons why your going into this branch of acting? If it's money - same as all other aspects of the acting biz - there's not much at the start.

However, if you do it for the love of a good read, acting, charater exploration and then the finished product, you're in for a treat. The gratification in the end is extremely satisfying.

Not only that, but from a collaboration like this, so many other opportunities may come up it is mind-blowing. I love when doing a job with someone that leads to something else, and then something else, and so on. That may be one of the best things about our business.

Work even in Lockdown

As hard as it is to start, it is a great way to branch off in your career and still be a working actor even during a complete lockdown. Audiobook production is a bit slower right now, however, if you manage to pick up some momentum, this will lead to so much work when things pick back up again.

Truth is, people mostly listen to audiobooks when commuting, so the more they commute, the more work comes in. But getting that portfolio ready is crucial.

For more amazing discussions go to The Actor's Breakthrough Podcast
For my chat with Actor Luke D'Silva click HERE!
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Having the Right Mindset

Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed no hope at all.

Dale Carnegie

In our latest podcast episode with sat down with the amazing Luke D'Silva to talk about success, perseverance and mindset when you're part of the Acting bizz. Arguably, the most competitive industry out there. How does one remain in the right mindset to keep them going when the going gets tough? What are the things that would make someone stand out?

D'Silva's Choice

What I absolutely respect about Luke D'Silva is his humility even after being part of the industry for a couple of decades, filmed several spectacular feature films, from which The Death of Stalin, Pandorica, and is currently in pre-production for Grail. A career that's spanned across so many years, so many great projects and the actor still remains humble. No matter what setbacks or obstacles life throws at him, he keeps standing up to face them.

Perseverance like that is admirable especially in the current pandemic. it is so necessary to be drawing inspiration from people like him who see this only as another opportunity to expand and grow.

We need to be brave and look at the eye of fear and not give in.

It's all about the mindset.

Something that I immediately had to write down in a notepad was the way that Luke sees mindset. How crucial having the right one when you're going into your career is. Also, how devastating it can be if that isn't the case.

Let's face it, wasn't this pandemic the perfect time for us to ask if anything really matters and we threw it all away? All the hard work out the window. Years of grinding just to admit that we have failed in the face of this changed world. I know I was on the verge of that on several occasions.

And yet, we still need to remind ourselves of why we got to where we are in the first place. To ask ourselves about the real reasons as to why we do what we do. Why do some keep standing up and eventually the spotlight shines on them, or why others give in prematurely and never see what they could have become?

Those are difficult questions to ask, especially when there isn't necessarily the most compelling future of all ahead of us. To be fair, the future is what we make it. And we must stop listening to what we are being told. There is a way to grow even during lockdown. There is a way to get inspired. There is a way to be fulfilled.

Trouble is... where is your focus? You need to create your future for yourself. And it all starts with your mindset.

Hard Work

We said that it starts with the mindset but what is the next step you should take? According to D'Silva, the other biggest distinguisher between those that succeed and those who do not is hard work. And in a sense that you need to be receptive of opportunity when it is presented to you. To grab it, to get a good hold of it and to jump right into it with the pedal to the metal. Full steam ahead. Cherish all opportunities and deliver your best because you never know what it may lead to.

I remember one project that I once worked on. It was a small budget short film with an unknown director. We had someone else on set with us and mine and that other person's energies were opposite poles. I am always super enthusiastic about anything I do, and aim to overdeliver because I truly love what I do. The other actor unfortunately didn't see this short film to be of great importance so they didn't bother giving too much energy.

We finished filming and got back to minding our own businesses. Eventually, however, a few months later someone else who was on set, not the director nor the other actor, but one of the producers emailed me saying "hey, loved the way you worked on this last project... would you be interested in doing ...". Out of nowhere, I had a new job come my way just because of my hard work and mindset when on set.

I guess, this is where it all ties together.

Thanks.

Super grateful for the great insight by an inspirational actor like Luke D'Silva who is on his way to creating even more great material in the future especially now he has pulled the reigns tight on his mindset and is ready to tackle anything full steam ahead!

To find cool FREE stuff with more coming very SOON go HERE!
Make sure you tune in to the Episode with Luke D'Silva HERE!