Unfiltered Thoughts

2022.04.30 – 0485 – 10 - Ad-libs
10 - Ad-libsAd-lib around, swapping out words as you come across them
It’s acting, isn’t it? And OK, it’s a bit odd to script sentences and then ignore the structure. And so too is creating a logical argument and then creating the impression that it’s ad-libbed!
When I write a script, I’m certainly doing so with an ear for it to be read aloud. But sometimes on air, the rhythm or a word seems wrong and I adlib something different, with, I hope, greater effect.
We look more at ad-libbing later, but here are a few more points:·        Highlight the key points of a script and practice logically moving from one of the ideas to another without looking at each individual word. ·        Ad-libbing will help you find a natural rhythm and alternative natural phrases that you hadn’t considered when sitting at your keyboard: “Y’know”, “Let’s face it”, “As you know”, “Which kinda makes sense” and so on which you can have to hand or build in to the presentation (but beware of verbal crutches – phrases that you use too much and come to rely on instead of clear, compelling content). ·        Include additional oral ejaculations – so if talking with a co-host this may include “well…” or “that’s right…”, “now” or “so” at the start of answers, or “uh-huh” to agree with them as they are talking. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2022.04.29 – 0484 – Articulation In Conversationality YOUR ARTICULATION Of course, people have to understand what it is you are saying, and as we saw before, the level of articulation has to be appropriate for the message and the audience, but if you worry too much about them sounding right, then you may sound artificial rather than conversational. Robotic rather than warm. And that means that in some situations it may be possible not to have to read every single word. When you have a voiceover script you of course have to read it exactly. It’s been written, edited, redrafted, submitted, approved, timed and signed off.
News scripts too will (hopefully) have been crafted for clarity, fluency and legalities.
But a script for a podcast may invite a little more fluidity and you know what, you don’t have to read every word as it is written.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2022.04.28 – 0483 – Eliminate Banality and Formality
Obviously, the kind of words you use will differ depending on your audience – another reason why you should have your target demographic front of mind. If someone feels left out of the conversation, confused by the formal phrases or technical terms, they’ll feel left out and will turn off.
Using unnecessary jargon doesn’t make you sound smart, it makes your listeners feel excluded.
So, eliminate banality, formality unnatural business-speak wherever you can. You want good writing that feels real. Formal writing creates a barrier between your idea and the audience, conversational writing (surprise!) can more easily lend itself to a conversational reading.
The construction of the sentence should be conversational, not just in using less-formal words, but also without clauses, which we don’t normally use when speaking ‘normally and naturally. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2022.04.27 – 0482 – 9 - The Form Of The Words   THE SCRIPTSpoken language doesn’t need grammar to give a meaning to the sequence of words. The grammar of the written word evolved to replace the intonation of the spoken voice, and that’s what causes problems when we try and read a sentence and make it sound natural.
Spoken language doesn’t have sentences: we speak in a collection of phrases.
9 - The Form Of The Words To sound conversational, use conversational language.
A reason why studio script-reading is unnatural (alongside no immediate ‘facial feedback’ from the listener) is that we are usually not adlibbing our own words, inspired by the uniquenessof the moment, but instead by someone else’s words they thought at a different time and situation, and translated into grammatical sentences which are now represented by squiggles on a screen or on a piece of dried wood pulp. “Do you see what I did there? I used incomplete sentences. I said ‘kinda’. I used a simile with the words ‘really cool.’ I used the word ‘like’ in the same way I would have if I were talking to you at a bar. I said ‘really good’ instead of something print-newsy like ‘phenomenally gifted newsman’, or ‘a revolutionary voice that defied convention blah blah blah’.NPR reporter Sam Sanders[1]  If you use more of your own words where you can, writing like people talk and not writing how you think people ought to write, then you will be more conversational, and make more of a connection.
[1] https://training.npr.org/2015/02/25/how-sam-sanders-is-finding-his-voice/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2022.04.26 – 0481 – Conversation QuestionsTo summarise, ask yourself·        Who is this information important to?·        How can you talk to them 121?·        What are you telling them?·        Why should they listen to you?·        What are they likely doing while you’re telling them?·        What’s the point in you telling them this? If the key to the first part of this book was ‘breathing is the key thing’, then the overriding message for this part is ‘understand what you are talking about and who you’re talking to’. Your delivery is as important as the definition of the words you are saying. Only when you truly understand the significance of the script can you deliver it[1] with compelling conviction.
[1] Again, the word ‘script’ or ‘story’ in this book can mean any pre-considered text such as a news story, voice over script, audio book, e-learning etc., or an adlibbed live show, in other words ‘verbal audio content’.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2022.04.25 – 0480 – Focus On The Message More Than Your VoiceYou may find it useful to go further and question:·        What exactly is this product or service I’m advertising / recommending? What does it do and how? What are the benefits? How is it different from similar products or services on the market? What are the details not actually in the script so I can read it with a greater sense of understanding?·        What is the usual tone of this company’s commercials? What is their brand voice? (A casting director will consider the age of the voice they employ, their accent, their gender, and most importantly is their attitude, right? Do they have the right playfulness or energy for the product or brand or message?)  Knowing these answers will help you focus more on the message and less on your voice. Remember, if the ad features you as a father, targeting other new dads with a range of nappies, you are not selling nappies. You’re selling a clean bottom, and a happy baby and less crying and a happy household. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2022.04.24 – 0479 – Pitching Your Presentation Changing the words, the style, the pace and so on helps the message become more effective. Having a picture in your mind of the ‘target listener’ and their needs (a worried first-time dad, a time-poor businesswoman, a holiday-hungry teenager…), will help you pitch your presentation in a way that they will care more about the message. That ‘vocal connection’ will give you a more genuine delivery. The more you can get under their skin and work out why you want to reach them (do you want to calm, entice or excite them?), you’ll be better able to find the right ‘voice’ and style. If it’s your story then you should know what there is about it that you want to share it with your audience and inject that interest in your voice naturally. If it’s someone else’s, then work hard to find the intention in the script. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2022.04.23 – 0478 – The Emotion Duplication
You need to be able to identify the different parts of the script that instil those emotions in you, so you are better able to replicate them in your voice and so connect with potential buyers:·        How will this new gadget improve someone’s life?·        What is the emotion that the copywriter wants to achieve in a listener to this car commercial?·        Why is this specific story in the bulletin, and do I understand it enough to explain its significance to my audience through my voice as well as the words…? So maybe it’s a commercial where a carpet stain (problem) can be solved by a new shampoo (resolution); an unboxing where intrigue about a new phone (problem) is satisfied by knowing what the expert thinks of it (resolution); a news story of a man crushed by a falling wall (problem) being rescued by fire crews. So, think of your tone, projection, speed, every element of scriptreading, are subtly altered depending on the developing emotional state. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2022.04.22 – 0477 - 8 – Know What The Desired Response Is Of That Audience 8 – Know What The Desired Response Is Of That Audience[1]So, you have the message and the person it’s being delivered to, but you also need to know the intention of what you are saying. Is the point of the message to inform them, drive them to action, amuse them, get them to sign up or buy, to change their habits, to tell someone else …? Knowing the answer to this will help you direct your voice to them in a meaningful way.
Most news stories are to inform the audience as to what is going on – with others to amuse or entertain. But imagine your target listener, say a teenager, if you read them a story about an economic forecast? They may be confused, disinterested, distracted… Hmmm, not the response you want – after all the story may be of important to them even if it’s not immediately interesting. So, it’s up to you as a news writer and reader, to create that story in a way that will engage: the words and the presentation. That may be talking about the likelihood of getting a job, or a loan, or buying a first flat and so on, in a voice and style that’s similar to theirs.
Commercial reads often follow a format of setting up a problem that the listener may be familiar with, and then providing a solution for it in the form of a product or service. And you need to know what to feel at each stage of that short scenario, say, frustration and then relief, or anger followed by calm, to be able to give an authentic delivery.[1] Which reminds me of the episode of Seinfeld where Kramer gets a line on a Woody Allen film, and the friends have different interpretations on how it should sound: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yMe7mlRv8UE Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2022.04.21 – 0476 - 7 – Imagine Where That Audience Is Listening / What They Are Doing 7 – Imagine Where That Audience Is Listening / What They Are DoingSo now you know the kind of person the story or the script is aimed at, and why they should be interested. In a moment we’ll consider the desired response of that audience, but first let’s spend a short time thinking of where that audience is when they are listening to you – because that too will help ‘direct’ your voice appropriately. For instance, won’t you naturally change your voice if you are talking on a video that will be to a room full of people – or to one person listening on headphones? Won’t your style change if you are a presenter on a Saturday night radio show , or a late-night bedtime show? Or if your commercial is for an instore supermarket read, or one that’s on a podcast? It may be similar content – or the same content – but thinking what the listener will be doing as they hear you will help you create the best, most engaging voice for the message. It will help style it, and focus on the listener if you imagine them in a car with kids on the way to work, hearing the announcement on an airport Tannoy as they wait for their flight to be announced, or taking a shower before bedtime. Oh, err, …. It’s a small and perhaps subtle change, but even if makes an incremental difference to your style, then it’s one that will benefit your connection with the listener. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.