DIY Narrator: For Instructional Designers Who Narrate eLearning

Ok, I'm just going to start by saying I'm obviously biased in my opinion about where AI can (should?) live in the eLearning narration world. Full disclosure, in the last year (2020) around 50% my income was from eLearning Narration work. There was a HUGE surge in people needing to produce virtual training, especially in the upskilling/certification world. Not necessarily in the world of corporate learning, that was honestly pretty steady compared to 2019, for me at least. That said, I try to keep my eyes on future advances in technology related to voice and learning, things that might impact my future as a voice talent. In the last couple of months I have seen a handful of articles touting the "benefits" of AI voices in eLearning narration. It's mostly been focused on saving money and speeding up production. No one seems to be talking about how the learners feel. Or how effective it is at accomplishing the real goal... learning. Setting my bias aside, I want to hear from you in the community. What do you think? Is it a handful of companies producing AI voice avatars simply targeting an industry that uses voices and is often very budget conscious? Or... Are we a decade or less from the rise of AI in eLearning and the end of eLearning voiceover for DIY and Pro alike? Knowing full well, we can't predict how good these robots will get, I still feel we're a long way off from a robot expressing empathy or urgency in their read. Let me know your thoughts. Shoot me an email or look me up on LinkedIn.

Last week, the wonderful Devlin Peck released a video titled "Does your eLearning Project Need Narration?" - which I thought had some great ideas around necessary application of narration in eLearning. If you haven't watched it, I absolutely suggest you go check it out. Subscribe to his channel while you're over there! Great videos released much more consistently than episodes of this podcast! In this episode, I riff on some of my thoughts on Devlin's major points and expand on them from the perspective of a narrator. I know what you're thinking..   There is one point where I kinda, sorta, somewhat disagree.  It's really less of a disagreement and more of a difference of perspective based on what could be a differing approach to the craft of eLearning Narration. That said, I don't really know Devlin's familiarity with my approach to narrating eLearning or if he does any narration himself, so it isn't fair of me to assume anything. Plus my bias as a narrator obviously comes into play when talking about whether or not narration should be included in a project. That said, I'd love to hear your thoughts and comments, so drop them in the box and let me know what you think.   Resources Devlin's website Does your eLearning Project Need Narration? - Devlin Peck Mayer's Principles - Devlin Peck Image by mohamed Hassan from Pixabay

A piano, guitar, and the alphabet walk into a bar... Oh wait. That's a different thing. After a bunch of questions, I'm revisiting the concept of practicing your eLearning narration.  Many of you have asked "How much do I need to practice?" or maybe "What should I practice?" Well, listen in and you can hear me riff a little more on what practice actually means to me. You can also listen to the previous episode, if you want to dig in a bit more.  Photo Credit: https://www.pexels.com/photo/music-musician-piano-keyboard-4934190/

Ask any good musician and they'll tell you the trick is the space between the notes. That's what we're here today to talk about. Pauses. We're usually so focused on the words and the performance of them, that we forget to address intentional silences. We can use them to catch a breath, add emphasis, and help pull a listener along. They can also be used to overwhelm a listener or ruin your effectiveness because you paused for too long and left them wondering if maybe the audio dropped out. Because less is more, that's all I have to say for now. Enjoy the episode.

This month I've been working through a huuuuge eLearning Narration project. I mean, HUGE. Nearly 80,000 words, more than 30 modules, all for one client. That equates to probably close to 8 hours of completed audio. The full process involves the following main steps: A quick read to know what's coming Recording the first take and fixing mistakes as I go Creating regions for file naming Proof listening a module to find mistakes I missed during recording Cutting in new lines or recutting an entire section to improve the original take for clarity/pacing/spaces/etc Fixing any annoying breaths, mouth noises, or odd background sounds I didn't notice while recording Rendering to MP3 Making sure the individual files are all there, named correctly, and sound as I expect (rendering errors and artifacts can definitely happen!) The Wandering Mind The biggest problem you have when you're doing this much narration is a wandering mind. At various point during the process you can start drifting mentally to any number of places. Especially if you find the content a bit dry, you've been going too long without a break, or you have a lot of different things pulling at your attention. A drifting mind has a number of consequences for your learner, the worst is a disengaged performance. Your learners take your cue from you. If you're engaged and interested in what you're saying, they'll be interested in what you have to say. But if you have no energy, are thinking about dinner and what you have to do later, and checked out while you're reading to them... well, they aren't going to be listening. Keeping your eLearning Narration focus, will also lead to an increase in your perceived Authority. So that's a win-win situation for you and your learners. Also, check out the 20-20-20 rule for preventing eyestrain while reading

Today, we're talking about finding your intent in your eLearning Narration performance.  And I may have just simultaneously written the best and worst headline in the history of the Internet, but it will all make sense when you listen to the episode. What is Intent? Stop. Right. THERE! Intent is not a "what". Intent is your "why". Why are you narrating this eLearning? Why are you saying the thing you're saying? Why are you talking about this concept before the next one? Do not confuse your "why" with your "what"! Your intent is not just to get someone to learn something, it's not to diffuse the information you have to all of the learners out there. What you're trying to do is get people to absorb and learn the concepts. But the harder question is "Why are you trying to get this person to learn this concept." The emphasis on each is very important. Why do they need to know how to be better, faster, or stronger at their job? (Hint: it's not so the company makes more money) Why do they need to go through the 2021 benefits training when the 2020 benefits training was almost identical? (Hint: It's not because HR is required to train every employee every year) Finding Your Intent To make finding your intent easier, first let's make this less confusing and define our terms. We already know "Why" = "Intent". Let's call "What" your "Objective". This is the outcome you're trying to produce: Learning something new, getting better at your job, etc. You can find your intent by working through the answers to the 6 key questions posed in the magnificent headline of this article. Listen in and you'll hear me work through these questions and give you some examples of how you should approach each question. You'll also get a little insight into my own personal "Why". Links and Things I've discussed many of these concepts in other episodes, but I was inspired to dig this by Larry Conroy's 2009 article on an actor's intent, "What is the Difference Between an Action, an Objective, and an Intention?" This episode will also play well with another acting-focused episode: Nebulous Woo Woo Stuff

"I still sound like I'm reading!" I've heard that sentiment from a number of people trying to get better at eLearning Narration... Then I realized something. All of these people (possibly even you!) are missing one key ingredient when it comes to improving their eLearning Narration and sounding like a professional voice talent — not someone sitting in an office and reading a script or an even worse version of Amazon Polly. That key thing is something you're very familiar with. In fact, when you hear it on this episode, it's going to hit you like a flyswatter on a hot August afternoon. Take a second and think about your typical approach to narration. You only fire up your mic once it becomes time to lay down some dulcet tones on that fancy eLearning module you just built in Articulate. Or maybe for today's forty-second Zoom Meeting. And right there is your problem! The Problem People only worry about being a great eLearning narrator when they have to do the voiceover for an eLearning Module. You don't get better at something by only doing it once a month or even once a week. You need to do things much more often. There's a word for this... hmm... What do we call it when we repeatedly perform a task with the aim of getting better? PRACTICE! When I was first getting into voice over I would fit learning about the business and practicing the craft into as many spaces of my life as I could. I'd listen to podcasts on my drives and dog walks, read about it at night before bed, and practice, practice, practice on my microphone every. single. day. I was submitting hundreds of auditions. Early on, I didn't lie to myself about getting hired for the job, but I knew that every script I read and every hour I spent with my DAW got me a step closer to getting good enough that I'd be able to do the work of a voice talent as a full-time career. And now voice over is what I've done full-time, more comfortably than I was as software developer or a corporate trainer, for nearly three years now. But don't worry about getting 10,000 hours on the microphone. That's not necessary, you just need more focused practice time than you're currently getting. Which can't be hard. More than zero isn't much! How to effectively Practice eLearning Narration Take a listen to the episode for my tips on how to effectively practice your eLearning narration skills. You don't need to spend hours a day recording yourself. But it'll help if you have some guidelines and a good benchmark to work towards. In this episode you'll learn:   3 specific things you need to do make sure you're practicing effectively A simple way to create a benchmark to strive for (what good is practice without a goal?) How often you'll need to practice How to avoid practicing the wrong things and ingraining bad habits Why the CDC Hand Washing article can be an effective practice script Related Episodes Here are some episodes you can check out to help you practice more effectively:   Bad and Incomplete Advice Who's it For? Part 1 Who's it For? Part 1 Control Your Breath 5 Performance Tips for Engaging eLearning Narration

One major complaint, gripe, or observation I've heard a number of times is that professional voice talent can sometimes sound too professional. When you've heard it, you may have said something like this: "They just sound too professional!" "They don't sound like us." Traditionally, a voiceover talent performing eLearning has a very distinct sound. It could be described as "professional." But more often, I'd probably describe it as steady, deliberate or precise... but on the less-nice side maybe even dull, droning, or boring. The thing is, that "professional" sound that pops into your head is something that you should be trying to avoid. Your learners want to hear someone who sounds like a trusted coworker, not someone who sounds like they're doing an impression of a VO. Listen in to the episode to learn tips to avoid the "too professional" sound in your own eLearning narration by keeping your narration casual and engaging for the learner.

With apologies to Eli Manning... Listen to this one before the Cease and Desist letter hits my mailbox. Last night was Super-Duper Football Game night. As usual, the commercials were the true highlight. Though, when you can see them all online the week before the surprise of a really good Super Bowl commercial is shot. As is usually the case, my ears were focused on the commercials that feature voiceover. I'm listening to hear if there is a voice I recognize, how it was performed, what the big trends are. Super Bowl commercial VO is a great place to get a feel for the current expectations of a high-caliber VO performance. Then I heard the spot from Verizon and the NFL titled "One More Sunday". This one was voiced by Eli Manning, which was an inspired choice given his recent retirement and the idea of the end of the season not necessarily meaning the end. If Tom Brady were retiring, he would have had this paycheck locked down. The idea behind the spot was great: The NFL season is ending, use the time you're getting back next Sunday to volunteer and make a difference. Excellent idea for a campaign. The thing is, Eli's performance just didn't do it for me. He just wasn't connected to the intent and meaning of the spot. Because of that, he fell a bit flat at key moments. I think it turned what could have been an excellent and highly effective spot, into one that did the job but wasn't amazing. You can hear the spot if you listen to the episode, but feel free to check it out on iSpot.tv. Listen to this episode to hear my breakdown of Eli's performance and how this relates to your DIY eLearning Narration. I'm not doing this to pick on Eli, I just thought some of you may be interested in hearing the stuff that is going through my head when I hear spots like this and when I breakdown copy. Head over to Verizon's site for the "One More Sunday" campaign to check it out and sign up if you are so inclined. And to prove that I'm not an Eli hater here is one commercial he did that I specifically remember laughing way too hard at: Photo by karatara from Pexels

This episode is a change of format for DIY Narrator! In this episode, I'm joined by Neil Zielsdorf. Neil is an Instructional Designer for Amazon who has recently moved into a new house. As a result, he's been incrementally setting up a room in his home to be his new workspace for recording eLearning narration and videos over a green screen. We had a great discussion about sound reflections (echo), acoustic treatment, and attempting to keep the sounds of a household out of your space. In this conversation, we cover a number of approaches you can take to improving the acoustic quality of a room. Everything from bass traps, acoustic foam, and moving blankets to DIY acoustic panels and weatherstripping. As an added bonus, we had a quick conversation about VR and AR as well as how voice over fits into that format a bit differently than your typical eLearning narration. If you want to get in touch with Neil, you can reach him on LinkedIn. Links We talked about a number of things in this episode. Here are some links if you want to check any of them out! The DevLearn Las Vegas Hotel Room EpisodeSamson Q2U micAudio Technica ATR-2100 USB micPurple Panda Lavalier (Lav) micThe Impulso AppBooth Junkie Acoustic Panels

Hmm... Title ideas... The secret that Voice Over Talents don't want you to know!These 5 things help you sound more conversational. You won't believe number 4!Don't even think about recording your eLearning narration without doing this first! Oh wait, I'm producing valuable content here, not clickbait. But seriously, this really is one weird trick that most voice talents use on a regular basis and it will probably have an immediate impact on your eLearning narration delivery. And it is so simple. The "lead-in" is essentially a short phrase you add to the start of your read that keeps you from slamming into the first word after hitting record. It also has the added benefit of helping you keep your frame of mind on the key components of your narration scene: Who are you?Who are you talking to?Why are you saying this? Check out the last episode for more info on those concepts and why they're important.

024: AKA Method Acting for the Instructional Designer This episode picks up where last episode ended: My presentation at the Learning Solutions conference. Last episode, I talked about the Bad and Incomplete Advice you've been given and some pitfalls that can cause your narration to be not so conversational sounding. This week, we're going cerebral! Time to get in your head and figure out what you're thinking about when you're sitting down to narrate. I bet I can guess what you're thinking about: "Time to knock out some narration before my meeting in 20 minutes!""I hope I don't stumble over my words! I hate starting over and having to edit!""I only had one [beverage of choice], I shouldn't slur my words... too much." You could probably guess that those kinds of thoughts are not helpful when you go to narrate your eLearning course. Listen to this episode to hear my thoughts on where your head should be when you go to narrate. Stuff In This Episode A 3-part template for getting your head rightA one-man play I wrote called "The Bathroom"My LSCon Slide DeckSome bad adviceProbably not any Method Acting at all, actually Subscribe! Be sure to subscribe. Find all the links here. Question? If you have any questions for me, please email them over to host@diynarrator.com or send me a message on my fancy new Questions Page. That's all for now. Be sure to subscribe in your podcatcher so you can catch the next episode. Get Notified! Be sure to sign up for updates about new episodes and resources. Especially things that are not part of the podcast! #btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .text {font-size:28px;color:#FFFFFF;font-weight:bold;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 {padding:16px 24px;border-color:#000000;border-width:1px;-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;background:#004a80;box-shadow:0px 1px 1px 0px rgba(0,0,0,0.5);}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .gradient {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .shine {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .active {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .hover {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}Get Notified We value your privacy and would never spam you

023: Learning Solutions 2019 Presentation - Part 1 Note: I accidentally pointed the last post to the wrong file! This is a duplicate/new post to make sure everyone gets the right file downloaded. You might not have noticed, but in case you think you already grabbed this episode, that's what's up. First, a story: Once upon a time, there was a guy who had a podcast and was speaking at a conference. He thought, "Hey, I'll record my session and release it as a podcast." He bought a cool lavalier mic for his phone and tested it to make sure it worked. Session day came and before he started presenting he fed the mic through his shirt, plugged it in and tested it out. Everything worked! Then, about 35 minutes into his session he realized he forgot to actually start recording the session. The End. Sooo... At the end of March, I was honored to be allowed an hour to present at The eLearning Guild's Learning Solutions conference in Orlando. It was an amazing experience. If you made it to my session, thank you so much for coming. For those of you who didn't (which I think was most of you since I have a few thousand listens and about 40 people in the room), I want to recap my session over the next couple of episodes. This episode focuses mainly on the advice you've heard in the past and how it's lead you astray. Not because it was bad advice, but because it was incomplete. You've heard it all: Billboard Important Phrases!Speak Slowly and SteadilyE-nun-ci-ate Your Words These are all great pieces of advice, but I've found that there isn't enough context or understanding out there about how to properly implement them.

Yer gonna wanna listen to this one! This week we continue with the question “Who’s it for?” and dig into how you can adjust your narration style to sound more conversational with the intent of appealing to and connecting with your audience. If you haven’t heard Part 1, check it out! And if you have heard the episode on how I failed by not answering the question of “Who’s it for?”, be sure to check it out here. I guess you could call that Part Zero. Oh, be sure to listen all the way through to hear my impression of the worst elements of conversational American English and a horrible pirate joke. In the next episode, we'll talk about your energy levels and sounding "authoritative"... whatever that means. ;) Things covered include: Elements of conversational narration style How they all fit together When they don't work What NOT to do! A terrible pirate joke Subscribe! Be sure to subscribe. Find all the links here. Question? If you have any questions for me, please email them over to host@diynarrator.com or send me a message on my fancy new Questions Page. That's all for now. Be sure to subscribe in your podcatcher so you can catch the next episode. Get Notified! Be sure to sign up for updates about new episodes and resources. Especially things that are not part of the podcast! #btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .text {font-size:28px;color:#FFFFFF;font-weight:bold;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 {padding:16px 24px;border-color:#000000;border-width:1px;-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;background:#004a80;box-shadow:0px 1px 1px 0px rgba(0,0,0,0.5);}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .gradient {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .shine {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .active {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .hover {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}Get Notified We value your privacy and would never spam you

"Who's it for?" You already ask yourself this question when you begin working on a training module. It should impact every element of your eLearning: the outline, the visuals, the length, the language, and the method of delivery. It should also impact your narration in a number of ways. This week, we're talking about scriptwriting and pace. I did touch on pace a bit in Episode 19, so be sure to check it out as well. In the next episode, we'll move onto how the conversationality of your narration will change based on your answer to the question of "Who is it for?" Things covered include: Understanding the question "Who is it for?" Approaching your script Questions to ask to impact your performance pace Subscribe! Be sure to subscribe. Find all the links here. Question? If you have any questions for me, please email them over to host@diynarrator.com or send me a message on my fancy new Questions Page. That's all for now. Be sure to subscribe in your podcatcher so you can catch the next episode. Get Notified! Be sure to sign up for updates about new episodes and resources. Especially things that are not part of the podcast! #btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .text {font-size:28px;color:#FFFFFF;font-weight:bold;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 {padding:16px 24px;border-color:#000000;border-width:1px;-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;background:#004a80;box-shadow:0px 1px 1px 0px rgba(0,0,0,0.5);}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .gradient {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .shine {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .active {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .hover {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}Get Notified We value your privacy and would never spam you

It's been too long since the last episode, but it was all for good reason! Apart from being crazy busy over the holidays, I spent a lot of time thinking about where I wanted to take DIY Narrator in 2019. I think you're going to like it. Also, near the end of 2018, I took on my first project with a brand shiny new client and quickly proceeded to make one serious mistake that caused a bit of extra work on my end and some unnecessary stress on their end. I want to tell you that story in this episode, along with what you can learn from it to improve your next narration project. Things covered include: DIY Narrator Academy DIY Narrator Podcast Changes My eLearning Narration FAIL! Who's it for? Subscribe! Be sure to subscribe. Find all the links here. Question? If you have any questions for me, please email them over to host@diynarrator.com or send me a message on my fancy new Questions Page. That's all for now. Be sure to subscribe in your podcatcher so you can catch the next episode. Get Notified! Be sure to sign up for updates about new episodes and resources. Especially things that are not part of the podcast! #btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .text {font-size:28px;color:#FFFFFF;font-weight:bold;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 {padding:16px 24px;border-color:#000000;border-width:1px;-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;background:#004a80;box-shadow:0px 1px 1px 0px rgba(0,0,0,0.5);}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .gradient {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .shine {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .active {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .hover {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}Get Notified We value your privacy and would never spam you

Video is BIG in L&D. But I don't have to tell YOU that. All you have to do is think about the last time you visited YouTube and you'll realize how engaging and effective video content can be when done well. Or how ineffective it can be when done poorly. Specifically, I'm talking about poor audio quality. Knowing how effective video can be for training, I wanted to discuss how you can get started taking steps to improve your audio quality. With how great cameras are getting on phones these days, in my opinion, audio quality is the low-hanging fruit when it comes to improving the effectiveness of your training videos. Things covered include: A short rant about audio in videos Camera Audio Mic Solutions - Upsides and Downsides Lav mics Shotgun mics Recording Solutions Subscribe! Be sure to subscribe. Find all the links here. Question? If you have any questions for me, please email them over to host@diynarrator.com or send me a message on my fancy new Questions Page. That's all for now. Be sure to subscribe in your podcatcher so you can catch the next episode. Get Notified! Be sure to sign up for updates about new episodes and resources. Especially things that are not part of the podcast! #btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .text {font-size:28px;color:#FFFFFF;font-weight:bold;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 {padding:16px 24px;border-color:#000000;border-width:1px;-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;background:#004a80;box-shadow:0px 1px 1px 0px rgba(0,0,0,0.5);}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .gradient {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .shine {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .active {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .hover {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}Get Notified We value your privacy and would never spam you

When I was at DevLearn back in October and introduced myself as "voice talent" often their response included some variation of the following question: "My friend/My spouse/I've always wanted to explore voiceover. Do you have any advice?" Lucky for me, I love to talk shop. For a long time, I've avoided this question on the podcast, but I wanted to cover it and get it out of the way! For the most part, those of you in L&D are passionate about learning and teaching and aren't looking for another career. But that's what this episode is all about. How can you, as an Instructional Designer narrating your own eLearning, get into other areas of voiceover? You have the equipment and you've improved your space and skills based on advice from the DIY Narrator podcast. Why not try your hand? Here's my advice, which doesn't really differ at all from my own path into voiceover. Things covered include: Listening to commercials! Coaching Getting Auditions Agents? A special announcement! Subscribe! Be sure to subscribe. Find all the links here. Question? If you have any questions for me, please email them over to host@diynarrator.com or send me a message on my fancy new Questions Page. That's all for now. Be sure to subscribe in your podcatcher so you can catch the next episode. Get Notified! Be sure to sign up for updates about new episodes and resources. Especially things that are not part of the podcast! #btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .text {font-size:28px;color:#FFFFFF;font-weight:bold;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 {padding:16px 24px;border-color:#000000;border-width:1px;-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;background:#004a80;box-shadow:0px 1px 1px 0px rgba(0,0,0,0.5);}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .gradient {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .shine {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .active {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .hover {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}Get Notified We value your privacy and would never spam you

The introvert in me needed a break from the amazing networking and learning event that is DevLearn... and what an amazing event it is. The Keynote from Julie Snyder (Executive Producer of the Serial Podcast) was killer (no pun made in poor taste intended), the sessions have been awesome and informative, the Expo is amazing, and everyone is the nicest person I've ever met. Plus, in Episode 15, I promised you a podcast! This week is all about doing the best with what you have and improving the sound of your recording. In a matter of minutes, I went from a very echoey room on a glass desk with a bunch of background noise to a very serviceable sound using just some stuff from the hotel room. Could it be better? Sure. But that's not the point. The point is simply that there is no excuse to use what you have around you to improve the sound of your eLearning Narration. Here are some photos- Desk Setup: Pillow Fort: Subscribe! Be sure to subscribe. Find all the links here. Question? If you have any questions for me, please email them over to host@diynarrator.com or send me a message on my fancy new Questions Page. That's all for now. Be sure to subscribe in your podcatcher so you can catch the next episode. Get Notified! Be sure to sign up for updates  about new episodes and resources. Especially things that are not part of the podcast! #btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .text {font-size:28px;color:#FFFFFF;font-weight:bold;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 {padding:16px 24px;border-color:#000000;border-width:1px;-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;background:#004a80;box-shadow:0px 1px 1px 0px rgba(0,0,0,0.5);}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .gradient {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .shine {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .active {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .hover {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}Get Notified We value your privacy and would never spam you

Whenever you have to record a longer project over the course of a few days, a flood of thoughts and concerns may come to mind: How will I make sure tomorrow’s recording sounds like today’s? What if I lose my voice from all of this talking? What happens if my computer blows up? This episode, I’m discussing exactly that. How to best prepare and manage your process during a marathon multi-day recording session. Subscribe! Be sure to subscribe. Find all the links here. Question? If you have any questions for me, please email them over to host@diynarrator.com or send me a message on my fancy new Questions Page. That's all for now. Be sure to subscribe in your podcatcher so you can catch the next episode. Get Notified! Be sure to sign up for updates  about new episodes and resources. Especially things that are not part of the podcast! #btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .text {font-size:28px;color:#FFFFFF;font-weight:bold;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 {padding:16px 24px;border-color:#000000;border-width:1px;-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;background:#004a80;box-shadow:0px 1px 1px 0px rgba(0,0,0,0.5);}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .gradient {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .shine {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .active {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}#btn_1_092e40a8514ed3d7365b7d53af014031 .hover {-moz-border-radius:6px;-webkit-border-radius:6px;border-radius:6px;}Get Notified We value your privacy and would never spam you