Customer Reviews

So You Want to Be a Voice-Over Star

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1 star:		(2)

 

 

I wanted this book to tell me something I could actually use. It is so lacking in any kind of real content. The chapter on building a studio says: "You will need one. They cost anywhere form $10,000 to $100,000". OK, but that's all it tells you! This whole book screams out to me the same way a 1980's TV infomercial does, where they tell you if you sit there through the commerical they're going to give you the precise secrets, step-by-step to buying real estate with no money down. Then you wait through the commercial and you're dissapointed that the steps they give you are: "You face your dreams and grab hold of the winds of opportunity and meet the challanges of tomorrow!" That's what this book is. It's full of pictures of the author saying "Look at me as a disc jockey. Here I am in an anonther important session." The section on how to interpret copy says: "Know your copy. You should be able to get it in several takes. You might mess of up some words cause you are human." But what about HOW to interpret the copy? Such lack of anything you can use from a book with such an ambitious title. Instead of giving specific, helpful techniques on how to interpret scripts or what exactly you'll need for your home studio, the author wastes page after page displaying photocopies of his big paychecks. This in a book of only 79 pages of "content" to begin with, and very large double spaced type. Sorry to be so honest here, but there are so many books already on the market on this subject with real content. Real how-to. I wanted to praise a book that gives insite on what the cover suggests "You can make up to $250,000 and up per year." Instead, this is a lot of "Grab the winds of change and face a handful of tomorrows and you'll be cool like me, and look at the photocopies of my big paychecks!" This is just an homage to the author's very large ego. I feel VERY ripped-off.

Although there is some useful information for someone wanting to break into the field of voice over work, Sandy Thomas, for the most part, just skims the surface. The never-ending typos and sentence fragments are also very distracting. The "Exhibits and References" section in the back can be useful, but still does not justify the book's pricetag.

With few good books available on the subject, this book is a must. The author apparently has considerable practical experience in the day to day aspects of the industry. My knowledge of the subject was highly limited so I found this book to be a good jumping off point for my orientation into the little understood world of voice overs. Sandy did a good job in bringing to life the reality of the industry. He clearly warns of the unrealistic expectations a newcomer to the industry might have. Its a difficult industry in which only the very best make it to the top. At the same time he shares some of his secrets for interpreting copy, prepares you mentaly for this competitive industry and gives valueable industry resources. Thanks for the insight.

I own nearly every book on voiceover published in the last decade, and I can honestly say this is the worst of the lot. Poorly written and apparently published without having passed under the nose of a proofreader (much less an editor), it gives no actual advice or tips and instead is a sort of brag book about how good he was as a radio announcer and how work has fallen in his lap through the years. Actually, it's kind of funny to read line after line of text such as "So thn I got a call form this guy who said he loved my voice and I should be there voice. I didn't even autition. My voice is so awesome that weveryone who hears it loves it adn that's how I got to be the voice that everone hears when they turn there tv on." Okay, slight exaggeration, but not that much! Read it for a laugh, or just to fill out your voiceover library, but don't read it expecting to learn much. I'd highly recommend Harlan Hogan's book "VO: Tales and Techniques of a Voice-Over Actor" as the best first-person-narrative voiceover skills, tips, and reminiscences book on the market.

I recently read Sandy Thomas's new book and was quite thrilled with it. I was lucky enough to speak with the author before my purchase and his words to me was, don't be fooled or irrational to think that this book will make you a voice-over star. What he did say was that this book will share with you a pure insight into the field, give you a vision of what it's like to make to the top and test your personality to see if you have a strong enough one to make it in this very competitive industry. Along with that, it provided me with some credible industry trade references. It accomplished that. I was quiet disturbed by one reviewers comments on Amazon putting the author down. To think you could read one book on voice-overs and than WHAM I'm gonna be a voice-over star, quite naive. Basically if your looking for a perspective about this industry, from a credible highly successful consistently working Voice Talent and want info on getting started then this is a perfect book....if your expecting to be a voice talent after you read this...than this isn't a book to buy, in fact there is no book on the market that will achieve that. There's more to making it in Voice-Overs than reading a book.

Sandy Thomas' book, "So You Want To Be A Voiceover Star," is a lot of things...

What is is not is a quick fix. It is not a hand-holding, "insert slot-A into flap-B," guide for children. It is not, as one reviewer wrote, an infomercial full of promises. It is not a a look at the voiceover industry through rose-colored glasses, and it is not a guarantee.

For those who have had their hands held all their lives, who have never invested time, hard work, nor the risk of making a success of one's self, for those looking for a be-all and end-all, this book will fall short. Consider yourself warned. The book will not make you a star voice talent, nor will it make you a pig farmer. You will make of yourself what you will.

It is an accurate picture of what it takes to make it in professional voiceover. Period. If one is vastly disappointed in the lack of "real content," (read: Do it for me, Daddy), then one lacks the motivation, persistence, and thick skin required to make it in voiceover to begin with.

This book was clearly not written to be the ONE BOOK for begining voice talent. Only the lazy expect to read one book and become a success at anything.

For those who already have a base level of talent, who believe in themselves, who are motivated and persistent, who are looking for an accurate portrait of the business, Sandy Thomas' book is a must-read.

It is loosly narrative in nature..."This is how I did it." And it doesn't take itself too seriously. It is clear that Thomas' recognizes that life is about a bit more than career. True, there are a number of typos, but these are the fault of the editor, not the author. At least they had the courage an forsight to publish an important book for the business from one of the top talents in the industry. Perhaps they just need a better proofer.

I highly recommend this book.