Hip, effects, fences & knobs

We say it EVERY year, but I'm gonna say it anyway - this year is flying by. AND we're into the 4th edition of The Word On The Sheet! I've not stuck to something for this long since the great Velcro incident of 2008.

Since we last spoke (since I last spoke at you), I've moved into the new millennium:

1. I joined Instagram. If you want to spy on me and see what I do outside of work, have a look.
2. I started using Spotify. Send me some suggestions please.

A rollercoaster, you'll agree.

I also joined a band. First one in a decade or so. Then I spent loads of money on cool effects pedals.

And to finish off the update, I went on a podcast or 4. Check out this one hosted by Tom J. . He has a way that gets you thinking AND talking - and that is some hefty multi-tasking for me.

Job of the month

A couple of pretty cool things to talk about here.

First up, I AM THE VOICE OF FENCES. That is, the voice of a fencing company. They got in touch about getting a voicemail done and it quickly expanded into LOADS of messages for all of their branches (that one's for the wood pun fans).

Consistency is important across a brand and that goes for your audio too.

Oak-kay? Good.

Then something a bit different from my usual day to day.

A local pal of mine Gordon Lamont (actor extraordinaire) came round to record an audition for a TV ad. He was to be playing an "object" so wouldn't be on screen, hence the VO style audition.

I really enjoyed being the producer/director and found myself digging into the script, offering up suggestions from my VO experience.

"Great to work with Martin Whiskin in his fab studio this morning. It was joyous being directed by someone with a good ear - seems Mr. W has two..." - Gordon Lamont.

Shameless link to the image over on my NEW INSTAGRAM ACCOUNT.

Behind the scenes

Got myself some near gear, didn't I? Yes.

This is a Scarlett 18i8 from Focusrite. It has more twiddly things than my last one and that's really the main benefit.

But it also has more inputs, which I needed now I'm making music again. It's a definite upgrade from my last audio interface and I'm already noticing smoother workflow.

A handy voiceover resource

There's a terrific book by JR Alburger called The Art of Voice Acting. It has pretty much everything you could ever need to know about the hows and whys of both voicing and the business side.

BUT, you can't learn VO from a book alone. Because books don't talk.

Ok they do now but you know what I mean. Like I said, I've only just moved into the new millenium.

Bye then

Actually I do have a bit of a CTA this month.

I'm co-hosting a fundraiser for some amazing mental health organisations. It's a 24hr online extravaganza with networking, workshops, presentations, performances, round tables, discussions, games and MORE.

It's tomorrow (Wednesday 8th May) at 1pm, until 1pm the next day. Do pop along and learn from all the wonderful presenters. Have a squizz at the line-up.

And then book a FREE ticket. You can drop in and out throughout the 24 hours.

If you'd like to talk to me about talking for you, or have a talk about talking for a living, let's talk.