1. Perfecting the Audio Narrationin Instructional VideosBy Tom Johnsonidratherbewriting.comOctober 23, 2014

2. The Traditional ModelWrite a scriptor outlineReview andapprove the scriptVoiceover talentrecords audioAV specialistproduces itProject managerwants changes 3. The Traditional ModelWrite a scriptor outlineReview andapprove the scriptVoiceover talentrecords audioAV specialistproduces itProject managerwants changes 4. Problem: Writing skillsdont equal speaking skills 5. Presentation Outline1.Equipment2. Scripts 3. Delivery 6. 1. Equipment 7. Set up your environment cloth walls no fan unschedulable isolated lockable windowless 8. Avoid visible places 9. Get some good equipmentElectro-Voice RE-20with suspension mount 10. Mixer/Preamp 11. USB MicYeti Blue 12. Avoid plosivespop filter 13. Dampen echoesHarlan Hoganportable foam boothReflexion filter 14. 2. Scripts 15. Try to sound naturalWritelike youwouldspeak 16. Ways to sound natural Use contractions Avoid long introductory clauses Read the conceptual paragraphs, but wing theaction steps from an outline. Keep sentences somewhat short Imagine saying it to another person 17. Use dual monitors to adjustWhen writers are able to talktheir text into a computer, speecherrors may suddenly appear inwriting. But other things may alsohappen. Writing, as somelinguists and computer expertssuggest, may change form andbecome more speechlike, morelike a talking text than we nowknow, but yet not speech writdown. There is also thepossibility that what will emergewill be a friendlier text thancould or would be produced bythe pen or typewriter. (Horowitzand Samuels, intro) Peter Elbow,Vernacular Eloquence 18. Lynda.com and scriptsI do record my screen and narrate simultaneously, asdo all of the authors at lynda.com. I personally rehearseeach movie before recording, but even then, it's notalways a perfectly smooth recording. All recordings,once completed, move onto our editors and testersbefore any customer ever sees them. So, while I try mybest to get each movie captured in a single take, there'smore happening behind the scenes long after I'vecompleted my part. David Rivers, trainer on lynda.com 19. Scripted Versus UnscriptedUnscripted narration(David Rivers)Scripted narration(Peter Drew) 20. Keep the script shortPercentage of video completedLength of videoideal run-time forweb video 2.5 4minutes Video2zero 21. Audience attention spanMost [users] donthave the tools ornarrative capabilities tohold the attention of anaudience for any realspan of time. Brooks Andrus 22. 3. Delivery 23. How many ways can youread these two sentences?She stole the money.The door is open. 24. 1. EnunciateEnunciation: Openyour mouth widerwhen you readwords, making sureto pronounce thetext crisply andclearly. 25. Voice SampleNatasha, Wicked Prince 26. Enunciation PracticeBite on a pen while reading your copy withas much enunciation as possible. Nowremove the pen and read the copy again. 27. Practicecopy to read 28. 2. Vary your pitchVary the pitch ofyour voice from highto low to mid-tonesas you read. 29. Voice sampleRyan Trimble, Les Mis Harlan Hogan, DemoChip, Aesops Fables 30. Pitch Variation PracticeBreak out of a monotone pitch by movingyour voices pitch higher and lower (in anintelligent way) as you read. 31. 3. Read ahead 32. Reading ahead practiceLook about 6-7 words ahead as you readto better anticipate where the sentence isgoing. 33. 4. Breathe/pause 34. Voiceover SamplesBill Bryson, Short History 35. Breathing practiceAfter a sentence ends, pause and take aninaudible breath. 36. 5. SmileAs Ekman and Friesenresearched the different facialmuscular movements, they beganto realize that just making thefacial gestures affected theiremotional state. For example,making an angry facial expressioncaused their heart rate to startbeating faster and their hands toget hot. When they madeexpressions of sadness oranguish, they started feeling badinside. Malcolm Gladwell 37. Smile 38. Voiceover SamplesLisa Greenewahl, Demo 39. Practice with SmilingThink happy thoughts for a little bit, closeyour eyes, force a smile. Then read yourcopy. 40. Voiceover tips summary1. Enunciate2. Vary your pitch3. Read ahead4. Breathe5. Smile 41. How do you read and drive themouse simultaneously?Hey man, I dont havelizard eyes. How can Ifocus on two things atonce? 42. My Recording Process1. Record demo and script simultaneously.2. Separate out audio track and import itinto Audacity.3. Note timing on script.4. Re-record the audio script keeping inmind the pauses.5. Line up the original recording with re-recording. 43. Dub Over the Original 44. Contact InformationTom JohnsonIdratherbewriting.comtom@idratherbewriting.com@tomjohnson (Twitter) 45. References Ryan Trimble. Librivox.http://ia600305.us.archive.org/2/items/les_mis_vol01_0810_librivox/lesmiserables_vol1_00_hugo_64kb.mp3 Michael Allen Such a Voice Video Clip. Youtube.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_6fpMBcFCc Harlan Hogan audio clip. E-Learning. http://www.harlanhogan.com/Demos.shtml Video2zero time graph. http://video2zero.com/ideal-length-for-web-video/ Chip from Tampa audio clip. Librivox.http://ia700506.us.archive.org/3/items/aesop_fables_volume_one_librivox/fables_01_00_aesop_64kb.mp3 Lisa Greenawell audio clip. Suchavoice.com.http://www.suchavoice.com/Page/Sample_Voice_Over_Demos Bill Bryson. Audible. A Short History of Nearly Everything.http://www.audible.com/pd/ref=sr_1_1?asin=B002V0KFPW&qid=1348701545&sr=1-1 Dan Levine on Smiling. Technique Tips. Suchavoice.com.http://www.suchavoice.com/Page/Technique_Tips Drew, Peter. Cadence quote. from peter drew --http://www.peterdrewvo.com/html/finding_the_natural_rhythm_in_.html Conversation. Photo from Flickr. http://www.flickr.com/photos/sepblog/3676361977/sizes/m/ Raise Your Voice! Acting http://raiseyourvoiceacting.com/tag/voice-over-exercises/ Pause/Play Button. Flickr. http://www.flickr.com/photos/dominicotine/7862424222/sizes/c/ Lizard eye. Andi Jetaime, Chameleon. Flickr. http://bit.ly/10eFFMc Urban Bikers Tips and Tricks, 3rd edition. Dogs. Chris McQueen. Tips for Voice Overs. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a6hXoU426Hc