VC Radio
Voice Coaches Radio #562 – Tawney’s Question
Voice coaches, radio, everything voiceover. Welcome to a brand new episode of voice coaches radio. My name is Marissa. I hope that you are ready for Christmas and every other holiday that is happening this month. Uh, here we are. It is, um, just days away. I mean, it's. It's December 16th, if you were listening to this on release day, and, um, I feel like I've got everything in order.
Mmm, do I really? I don't know. I did a whole bunch of wrapping the other night, which means I got a lot of paper cuts. Those are painful little things, little buggers, uh, but I got a lot of it done and I do feel like I have a good handle on things. I've decided, my grandmother's the hardest person to buy for, right?
She's 90. Like, what do you get a 90 year old? Like, that is just, it's impossible sometimes to figure it out. And it dawned on me, like, she lives alone, she can't go anywhere, really, unless we bring her somewhere, because she doesn't drive, which is probably for everybody's safety. Um, but, I, I just, uh, I wanted to give her either something to do, or, or something like that.
And, it, just like, boom, idea. Getting her a betta fish. And I realize, saying it out loud, it sounds ridiculous, but like... It's a new little friend. She can watch it swim around while she's like watching TV and like, you know, reading and whatnot and like, I don't know, could she have conversations with the fish?
I mean, I have conversations with my pets. I know I couldn't get her like a cat or a dog. She'd hate me. Uh, but a little bait of fish might just be the best idea. So we'll see. I'll find out in about a week, huh? I have not gotten the fish yet because I'm scared I'm going to kill it, but that's besides the point.
Uh, anyway, so I had a message pop up on my Instagram from Tawny, and she's about to start the Voice Coaches program, and she had a question for the podcast, and she's been listening, and she said, for voice actors with home studios, is it normal for them to sort of go through what they've recorded, or would they send their recording to a producer who would then do their magic on the recording?
Does having a home studio mean that you potentially are expected to produce your own recording? Uh, she says, I hope I'm making sense. And yeah, you totally are making sense, Tawny. Here's the thing, is I know that recording your own audio and editing your own audio and all of that seems so incredibly frightening at first.
Because I remember being in radio school when I was starting and like one of the first classes, you know, my teacher showed us. A WAV file, and like he went and he recorded something and he was like, Yeah, I know exactly what I said and where I said it based on what the WAV form looks like. And I was like, I am never, ever, ever going to be there.
And guess what? I was there rather quickly. You know, it's just a matter of doing. It's a rather, um, a matter of... Educating yourself and taking the time to go ahead and, uh, play around with that audio and, and do it. You know, it's just like building your skill as a voice actor in general. Except this is now another skill and that's the editing process and the recording process.
And so, the situation is, like, if you are recording something at home, I mean, could you send that? That, um, unedited file to somebody and they go ahead and they work their magic. I mean, sure. I mean, it's probably on a project by project basis in that kind of scenario. Um, but, you know, a lot of, like, audiobooks as an example these days, you're doing it from home, you're gonna be editing that.
And, That can be a little tricky. I'll admit. I, you know, I've only done a handful of audiobooks and I feel like I've gone back and I've listened and I'm like, Mmm, you know what? Probably could have given things a little bit more breathing room, you know? It's just because I'm always used to editing radio and commercials.
Commercials, it's like you gotta be tight. You gotta, you know, things gotta move. Um, so, you know, Different Animal, Different Little Beast is an audiobook and, you know, it is, it's a learning process. It's a learning curve. And even for me, doing this almost 20 years, like it's It's still a learning curve, like I have to go ahead and make sure that I give it the care that it needs, and truthfully, I just haven't had.
The time I need to provide that care, um, you know, that will be changing, but, you know, for you, I know it can seem very frightening at first, but the best thing I can always suggest is just be kind to yourself and give yourself that time, um, give yourself that time to, to not only just do the editing itself, but also to like, learn it.
And immerse yourself with it, you know, don't be afraid to go on YouTube and look at a tutorial video. That's what like a lot of voice actors and people in this industry do because we have to lean on each other. We have to, uh, you know, it's the only way to really get by in life is to lean on each other for everything, by the way.
Uh, you know, so it's, it's very, very important to, um, understand that. Everything will get easier in time as long as you put the effort into it and to keep practicing and keep growing. Um, You know, you can go ahead, I'm sure, and have somebody else edit something for you, but there's gonna be a cost in charge, um, a cost in, in place, I don't even know what I just said, that, that was probably not English, it's fine, um, but, you know, you're gonna end up inflicting a cost, is what it comes down to.
Do you want that to be taken out of what you're making? That's the, that's the real question you have to ask yourself. Same thing goes with home studio versus going to a studio. Do you want to inquire that cost? Acquire, not inquire. You would think that I, it's Friday, it's fine. Um, I don't need to make sense, right?
It's just a podcast. Um, but um, you know what I mean. Like, you have to weigh the pros and cons. And honestly, the best pro that I can suggest is just keep educating yourself. The better that you get at all of this, the more you get to do on your own. The more money you get to make. I think that probably just perked your ears up a bit, huh?
Yeah, so, so yeah, I mean, hopefully that answers your question, Tawny, because I think that... You know, while something can seem very frightening and daunting at first, you know, the more that you do, the easier it all gets, the more that you grow. So always keep that in mind. And you know, like I've said before, even, you know, today, it's just like, you've got to just be kind to yourself along the way.
If you get frustrated and you feel like, bah, like it's just step away for a moment, go back to it. You know? Like, just. Remove yourself from the environment. Go back. Um, you know, because the last thing you ever want is for you to look at any of this kind of stuff and feel frustration when it's supposed to be fun.
All right. And just, I want to take a moment real quick. Um, something, something happened. It popped up in the news the other day. And I just think it is worthy of, of making a note while not in the voiceover field, um, just, you know, kind of a prominent figure, um, that you may have known from the Ellen DeGeneres show or so you think you can dance, uh, but Twitch, uh, he was the DJ on Ellen.
And I mean, it's just a situation of a life gone too soon. And that was the choice that he made. Um, you know, it's the holiday season. It's been a rough couple years for people. And you just never know what somebody's battling. On the inside. Uh, I want to point out that the people that usually are out there trying to help other people, the people that are trying to bring the most joy to others, Are usually battling something inside.
Um, if you see somebody on social media, they look super happy. It does not mean that they are. So it is very worthy of checking on all of your people at all times. Uh, listen, have a great holiday. Be safe. Uh, if you've got anything that you'd like discussed on the podcast, info at voice coaches. com and Hey, if you need an ear.
I got two of them. You can always reach out to that as well, all right? Don't be afraid, uh, to do that, cause I, I, like, I decided to be a life coach for a reason, so. You know, it's just one of those things. But, uh, have a great holiday. We'll talk more about that coming up next week. And stay safe, everybody.
Visit voicecoaches. com for more voiceover news and information.
Mmm, do I really? I don't know. I did a whole bunch of wrapping the other night, which means I got a lot of paper cuts. Those are painful little things, little buggers, uh, but I got a lot of it done and I do feel like I have a good handle on things. I've decided, my grandmother's the hardest person to buy for, right?
She's 90. Like, what do you get a 90 year old? Like, that is just, it's impossible sometimes to figure it out. And it dawned on me, like, she lives alone, she can't go anywhere, really, unless we bring her somewhere, because she doesn't drive, which is probably for everybody's safety. Um, but, I, I just, uh, I wanted to give her either something to do, or, or something like that.
And, it, just like, boom, idea. Getting her a betta fish. And I realize, saying it out loud, it sounds ridiculous, but like... It's a new little friend. She can watch it swim around while she's like watching TV and like, you know, reading and whatnot and like, I don't know, could she have conversations with the fish?
I mean, I have conversations with my pets. I know I couldn't get her like a cat or a dog. She'd hate me. Uh, but a little bait of fish might just be the best idea. So we'll see. I'll find out in about a week, huh? I have not gotten the fish yet because I'm scared I'm going to kill it, but that's besides the point.
Uh, anyway, so I had a message pop up on my Instagram from Tawny, and she's about to start the Voice Coaches program, and she had a question for the podcast, and she's been listening, and she said, for voice actors with home studios, is it normal for them to sort of go through what they've recorded, or would they send their recording to a producer who would then do their magic on the recording?
Does having a home studio mean that you potentially are expected to produce your own recording? Uh, she says, I hope I'm making sense. And yeah, you totally are making sense, Tawny. Here's the thing, is I know that recording your own audio and editing your own audio and all of that seems so incredibly frightening at first.
Because I remember being in radio school when I was starting and like one of the first classes, you know, my teacher showed us. A WAV file, and like he went and he recorded something and he was like, Yeah, I know exactly what I said and where I said it based on what the WAV form looks like. And I was like, I am never, ever, ever going to be there.
And guess what? I was there rather quickly. You know, it's just a matter of doing. It's a rather, um, a matter of... Educating yourself and taking the time to go ahead and, uh, play around with that audio and, and do it. You know, it's just like building your skill as a voice actor in general. Except this is now another skill and that's the editing process and the recording process.
And so, the situation is, like, if you are recording something at home, I mean, could you send that? That, um, unedited file to somebody and they go ahead and they work their magic. I mean, sure. I mean, it's probably on a project by project basis in that kind of scenario. Um, but, you know, a lot of, like, audiobooks as an example these days, you're doing it from home, you're gonna be editing that.
And, That can be a little tricky. I'll admit. I, you know, I've only done a handful of audiobooks and I feel like I've gone back and I've listened and I'm like, Mmm, you know what? Probably could have given things a little bit more breathing room, you know? It's just because I'm always used to editing radio and commercials.
Commercials, it's like you gotta be tight. You gotta, you know, things gotta move. Um, so, you know, Different Animal, Different Little Beast is an audiobook and, you know, it is, it's a learning process. It's a learning curve. And even for me, doing this almost 20 years, like it's It's still a learning curve, like I have to go ahead and make sure that I give it the care that it needs, and truthfully, I just haven't had.
The time I need to provide that care, um, you know, that will be changing, but, you know, for you, I know it can seem very frightening at first, but the best thing I can always suggest is just be kind to yourself and give yourself that time, um, give yourself that time to, to not only just do the editing itself, but also to like, learn it.
And immerse yourself with it, you know, don't be afraid to go on YouTube and look at a tutorial video. That's what like a lot of voice actors and people in this industry do because we have to lean on each other. We have to, uh, you know, it's the only way to really get by in life is to lean on each other for everything, by the way.
Uh, you know, so it's, it's very, very important to, um, understand that. Everything will get easier in time as long as you put the effort into it and to keep practicing and keep growing. Um, You know, you can go ahead, I'm sure, and have somebody else edit something for you, but there's gonna be a cost in charge, um, a cost in, in place, I don't even know what I just said, that, that was probably not English, it's fine, um, but, you know, you're gonna end up inflicting a cost, is what it comes down to.
Do you want that to be taken out of what you're making? That's the, that's the real question you have to ask yourself. Same thing goes with home studio versus going to a studio. Do you want to inquire that cost? Acquire, not inquire. You would think that I, it's Friday, it's fine. Um, I don't need to make sense, right?
It's just a podcast. Um, but um, you know what I mean. Like, you have to weigh the pros and cons. And honestly, the best pro that I can suggest is just keep educating yourself. The better that you get at all of this, the more you get to do on your own. The more money you get to make. I think that probably just perked your ears up a bit, huh?
Yeah, so, so yeah, I mean, hopefully that answers your question, Tawny, because I think that... You know, while something can seem very frightening and daunting at first, you know, the more that you do, the easier it all gets, the more that you grow. So always keep that in mind. And you know, like I've said before, even, you know, today, it's just like, you've got to just be kind to yourself along the way.
If you get frustrated and you feel like, bah, like it's just step away for a moment, go back to it. You know? Like, just. Remove yourself from the environment. Go back. Um, you know, because the last thing you ever want is for you to look at any of this kind of stuff and feel frustration when it's supposed to be fun.
All right. And just, I want to take a moment real quick. Um, something, something happened. It popped up in the news the other day. And I just think it is worthy of, of making a note while not in the voiceover field, um, just, you know, kind of a prominent figure, um, that you may have known from the Ellen DeGeneres show or so you think you can dance, uh, but Twitch, uh, he was the DJ on Ellen.
And I mean, it's just a situation of a life gone too soon. And that was the choice that he made. Um, you know, it's the holiday season. It's been a rough couple years for people. And you just never know what somebody's battling. On the inside. Uh, I want to point out that the people that usually are out there trying to help other people, the people that are trying to bring the most joy to others, Are usually battling something inside.
Um, if you see somebody on social media, they look super happy. It does not mean that they are. So it is very worthy of checking on all of your people at all times. Uh, listen, have a great holiday. Be safe. Uh, if you've got anything that you'd like discussed on the podcast, info at voice coaches. com and Hey, if you need an ear.
I got two of them. You can always reach out to that as well, all right? Don't be afraid, uh, to do that, cause I, I, like, I decided to be a life coach for a reason, so. You know, it's just one of those things. But, uh, have a great holiday. We'll talk more about that coming up next week. And stay safe, everybody.
Visit voicecoaches. com for more voiceover news and information.
This week on VoiceCoaches Radio, Marissa had a question pop up in her instagram dm’s from Tawney on recording and potential editing…
