October 2007 Archives

Al Gore typifies my motto of "things happen for a reason."

I like Al Gore, and I voted for him in the hotly-contested 2000 Presidential election. While millions of Americans were immensely disappointed and even angered that he didn't win the election, we can see that it was better for him personally that he didn't become the 43rd President of the United States.

If Gore had become President, he would not have had the time or energy to lead the crusade for the environment. In 2007, Gore has achieved rock star status. First, he won an Academy Award for his documentary An Inconvenient Truth, and now, Gore is the co-recipient of the coveted Nobel Peace Prize. You don't have to agree with his assessments about the environment or his politics to be impressed by his monumental achievements.

So what do Al Gore and his push to save the environment have to do with you as a voice-over talent?

If it's possible, I love traveling as much or even more than my voice-over work. In the past, I haven't taken equipment with me on my trips. Since the beginning of this year, I have changed my equipment so that I can voice auditions and projects on the road. I now have a Macbook Pro laptop with Pro Tools LE running with a Mbox Pro mic interface. To facilitate the usual work here in my stunning soundproof studio, I just bought a Tranzport wireless workstation control, which will allow me to control and edit Pro Tools from within my booth while leaving the computer and other equipment outside the booth.

A while back, I had read Harlan Hogan's excellent article about creating a portable booth. I couldn't find the Reisenthel Home Box pictured in Harlan's article at my local Container Store or at that company's web site. However, I did find and order the box from Amazon.

The company shipped it out immediately. It arrived this week, so I haven't tried using it as a portable booth. I do have a lot of Auralex foam left over from the days when my recording booth was in a walk-in closet. I had planned to leave my Neumann TLM 103 mic here in my recording booth and take my CAD condenser mic on road trips. The CAD mic is too heavy, and I'm now looking for a smaller, lighter mic to use in my portable configuration.

I also have decided to sell my Telos Zephyr ISDN codec. I really don't have much occasion to use it since I mostly work in long-form narrations and audiobooks. If you're looking to buy an industry-standard ISDN unit, let me know soon! Otherwise, I will post the unit for sale on eBay.

Speaking of travel, I need to travel away from home right now in search of brunch!

Anyone who knows me knows that I love Barry Manilow. You may have heard his name lately because he is promoting a marvelous new album. One reason behind his longevity in the music business and his millions of fans is that Barry is constantly involved in some new venture, and he isn't afraid to let people know about it.

I was thrilled to speak with Barry over the phone for a couple of minutes when he visited a local radio show as part of his continuing promotional efforts. While I could barely speak in my excitement, Barry's words are true and clear. When the host told Barry "you don't stop," Barry replied with words to inspire any creative person and especially this voice talent.

Rodney Saulsberry, a voice talent known for his work in commercials and movie trailers, agrees with Manilow. Saulsberry wrote in his fantastic book You Can Bank on Your Voice: Your Guide to a Successful Career in Voice-Overs:

Many people seem to be more passive about ensuring their career success. I have heard many voice actors and others using the expression "when my ship comes in", meaning that your luck, opportunities and hopefully your fortune have just become more positive. I read a story once about the origin of that phrase.

In the time of world exploration hundreds of years ago, a ship coming in to the harbor was a big deal. The monarchs and wealthy patrons who financed the explorers did so with the knowledge that the ship might sail away and never return. If the ship did return, it might be damaged. At the very least, the explorer might return with nothing more than a bad case of sunburn and stinky clothes to show for the adventure. However, the financiers of these operations would continue to send out ships, hoping that one would return with the motherload of treasure.

The point of the story is applicable to voice-over talent or anyone in business for themselves:

If you want your ship to come in,
you have to keep sending the ships out.

Some of your ships will never return. Some will return carrying letters like the one I quoted in a previous entry. A glorious few will sail in with a new client on board!

Like Barry Manilow and Rodney Saulsberry, I send out as many query and promotional ships as possible in as many directions as possible. You can be sure that when my ships come in, I'm not at the airport, but sitting in my stunning soundproof studio and ready to get to work!