March 2010 Archives
- @ParisVegas @DrewCommins & I were at Barry Manilow's FAB show on Sun., but we didn't get glow sticks. With 2nd row seats, it didn't matter!
- What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, unless it's my visit with voice actor Dave Courvoisier. My tell-all blog: http://tinyurl.com/yc82thm
- @ParisVegas @DrewCommins & I just celebrated our 25th anniv. at your awesome hotel. LOVED Paris, Eiffel Tower Rest., Manilow. Thanks!!
- @KilgannonSays Sorry I'll miss your open house. I'd love to get to know you all, especially if I can help you with some voiceover projects.
- @JeffBriggsVoice So glad you find my blog posts about a #VoiceOver career to be helpful! Live your dream life, and best wishes for success!
- @TrishsVoice A form letter response to #voiceover newbies is a huge time-saver. I give them info on books, training, marketing, & equipment.
- @TrishsVoice In addition to my link that @LisaRiceVoice sent you, I refer newbie #voiceover folks to this post: http://tinyurl.com/yed2doj
The catchy TV ads for Las Vegas tourism caution you: What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas. A banner at the airport reminds you of that slogan as you head to your departure gate.
What happens in any place I travel stays there.....UNTIL I get home. When Drew and I travel, we never post anything on-line to indicate we're not at home. Tweets about the trip, Facebook photo updates, and blog posts all have to wait until we get home. It would be too easy for crooks to see our on-line updates, find our house with Google maps, and clean us out while we're gone.
Now that I'm back from a fabulous trip to Vegas, all bets are off. I had such a great time that a tell-all blog is in order!
Drew and I went to Las Vegas to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary by renewing our vows while sitting on a Harley at the Little White Wedding Chapel Tunnel of Love. Yes, we renewed our vows at a drive-through window! We expected the ceremony to be just a few sentences, like "Do you still take her? Do you still take him? Okay, ride on then!" However, the ceremony actually was very meaningful while still being fun and unique.
Karen and Drew Commins say "I do -- again!" at a Las Vegas drive-though chapel
Although our vow renewal ceremony was the reason for the trip, a big highlight for both of us was finally meeting our friend, the dedicated news anchor, energetic Renaissance man, and talented fellow professional voiceover actor Dave Courvoisier. Dave and I have exchanged many thoughtful e-mails, and occasionally, we've even surmounted time zone differences between Las Vegas and Atlanta to talk on the phone. It was such a joy to be able to spend a few hours with him in person.
Dave generously invited us to sit in on his 5pm newscast at KLAS-TV, where he anchors the 4pm, 5pm, and 11pm newscasts. Such a grueling schedule would be enough for many people. Dave's busy, high-profile job is just a part of his work week. For instance, he was an emcee on Saturday, 20 March for the Chefs for Kids Gala, a benefit at which Las Vegas chefs combine efforts to raise money to provide nutritionists and meals at Clark County schools.
Las Vegas KLAS-TV anchors Dave Courvoisier and Denise Valdez in a newscast.
Dave is on the air in this picture.
Dave is on the air in this picture.
After the newscast, we enjoyed a relaxing and delicious Italian dinner at Nora's Cuisine. The conversation flowed easily; we never encountered one of of those awkward, pregnant pauses. We talked about our families and the sadness over losing our parents. We talked about Drew's recent certification as a Dive Control Specialist. We talked about the technology at the TV studio and Dave's role as a leader and teacher of social networking among the staff.
Naturally, we spent a good bit of time talking about our voice-over careers. I rarely come out of my studio to talk with another voice talent, so this discussion was quite refreshing. Dave has been in voice-over for about 5 years, and I've been doing it for 11 years. We're on similar paths as we both continue to evolve and grow as professional voice talent. In fact, we've both recently completed extensive coursework from celebrated LA voiceover coach and branding guru Nancy Wolfson and created new commercial demos under her direction.
I was impressed to learn that Dave created a second web site solely aimed at audiobook narration. I also have had the same idea, but Dave has actually implemented it. I admire his targeted and focused marketing to one of his niche audiences.
By the way, Dave insists that he DOES sleep 6-8 hours a night, but I still find it difficult to believe that he has time to sleep at all!
Drew and I had a very special anniversary trip to Las Vegas. Spending quality time with Dave Courvoisier made it all the better, and we look forward to visiting with him again soon.
Voice actors Dave Courvoisier and Karen Commins
bask in the glow of the neon light from a tattoo shop.
What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas!
bask in the glow of the neon light from a tattoo shop.
What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas!
- New blog post: What my hair stylist taught me about #voiceover http://www.blog.karencommins.com/2010/03/what-my-hair-stylist-taught-me.html
In the last few days, I have enjoyed reading my friend Dave Courvoisier's excellent 3-part series of blog articles about setting rates. When I saw the comments about not leaving money on the table when negotiating the price of a voice-over job, I remembered some unrelated advice given to me by my hair stylist. You might wonder how a hair stylist could help a voice talent, but we're both business owners. I decided to dig up and publish my entries from my journal from that day as her advice is sure to help other voiceover artists.
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Photo: iStockPhoto.com/Gerry Hernandez
Saturday, 25 January 2003
We went to get our hair cut. As I was sitting with wet hair and wearing my lovely vinyl smock, my phone rang. I thought and hoped it might be someone calling about my Prelude harp since I posted ads to sell it just this morning.
Nope. It was [client], calling about the sound files. He was trying to compress them and was getting a hissing sound. I felt bad that I didn't do any file reduction before I sent them to him. I sent him what he asked for -- CD audio. He didn't specify the sampling rate or resolution. I told him I'd try to help him when I got home. By the time I got here, I had an email from him saying that they had converted the files.
Sunday 26 January 2003
I was worrying over [client's] phone call yesterday while Theresa was cutting my hair. She said she understood exactly how I felt. She equated [client's] call to me as being like one of her customers deciding they didn't like the hair color they asked for, which would cause Theresa to have to use more product and spend time she hadn't planned. She wouldn't get any more money for the job, but she would make the customer happy.
Theresa advised me to create a manual that would include my procedures for different types of projects and questions I should ask. She hit the nail on the head when she said my business is in a growth phase. Even though I had been planning for it for quite a while, it's still hard to be fully prepared for every circumstance that crops up.
I feel this whole experience with [client] is a valuable learning experience from an operational standpoint. My manual should help me to remember to ask or do:
1) to see the script before agreeing to a final price
2) ask the client how big the final file size should be
3) if I know the files are going on a phone system, I should create smaller files before sending them to the client
I've also been reminded in the past week:
4) When someone asks me for a quote, I should ask them first if they have a budget and a timeframe in mind.
Even though it's been 7 years since Theresa advised me to devise a manual, I continue to write down numerous operational aspects of my voice-over projects, such as:
- When doing an audition, I scribble the "Moment before" on the script so that I can get back to the same frame of mind if I'm selected for the job.
- I note the method of file transmission that a client prefers. Some people want to receive files in e-mail, while others prefer services like YouSendIt.com and Dropbox.com.
- If I use music from my royalty-free library, I list the disc and cut that I selected. For podcasts, I also include the cues and timing in the music to maintain consistent intro and outro segments.
Writing my procedures allows me to spend more quality time producing my recordings.
As for the rates question that started this trip down memory lane, I want to add one thing. Asking people if they have a budget and timeframe (#4 from my journal entry) immediately weeds out those who are seriously interested in hiring me from those who want me to record for "exposure". In fact, just last week, someone proposed that I do voiceover projects for them in exchange for a link on their web site. After asking them about their budget, it's no surprise to me that I didn't receive a reply.
- @btzol Thx for the note. It's been a busy few weeks in #voiceover with a big e-learning narration & some new phone messages. How about you?
- All my TV channels work EXCEPT @lifetimetv. 40+ minutes of no Clark Rockefeller movie. Did the Rockefeller family sue &/or remove show?
- Hope 11pm show runs! RT @HeyRatty Heckuva job w/ that World Premiere tonight @lifetimetv! Now I may NEVER find out who Clark Rockefeller is.
- "The more you practice, the more you do, the better you get." -- voice actor Michael Wollner in News Sun story: http://tinyurl.com/y95pvbb
- Recd 2 calls in 2 days from people in other states wanting to rent my #voiceover studio to record someone else. Wondering if it's a new scam
- NYT article about audiobook narrators and library studio of @nyplheiskell, part of New York Public Library: http://tinyurl.com/ye4fhyp
- @CourVO Dave, great stuff today in your blog re: Chirbit! No one else is looking at all these options & seeing how they apply to #voiceover.
- Sorry for duplicate messages & crossposts to Facebook. @DrewCommins and I are testing FB Selective Tweets; it... http://bit.ly/chFK7E
- Sorry for duplicate messages & crossposts to Facebook. @DrewCommins and I are testing FB Selective Tweets; it reposts from FB to Twitter #fb
- Google is my friend when prepping #voiceover scripts. Googled pronunciation of French names before today's session about wine. Voilą! #fb
- LibriVox, home to 1000s of free audiobooks, is fundraising for web hosting etc: http://bit.ly/97tSKA #fb
- Second travel tip on plane fare sales: The time to buy it is when you see it. I received email at 12:35pm. Fare is unavailable within hour.
- Snagged unadvertised fare sale & have tip: It's cheaper to book directly with airline. Ex--Priceline had same fare but total was $298 more!
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