THE BOOK YOU NEVER KNEW YOU ALWAYS WANTED

I bet you $500 that most voice overs know more about the microphone they use, than about how their voice works. The only time they seem interested in finding out, is when there’s a problem. And even then, they’re more likely to treat the symptoms than the cause.

I’ve always found this very odd. Any violinist can give you a lecture about the instrument they play, and on how to take care of it. Opera singers know very well how to protect their money-making vocal folds. Athletes don’t start their workout without a proper warm up.

Most voice actors just start yapping and expect their voice to cooperate.

It’s not fair to single voice overs out, by the way. Teachers, lawyers, ministers, news readers, politicians, stand up comedians… all of them have to speak in public. It’s part of their job, and most of them know next to nothing about vocal hygiene.

This might have to do with an “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” attitude, but I think it also has to do with the fact that many books about how the voice works are rather clinical and uninviting.

Until now!

Today marks the official launch of Nic Redman‘s book “On The Mic” It’s the book you never knew you always wanted.

You may know Nic as the co-host of the award-winning Voiceover Social Podcast. She describes herself as:

“A voiceover artist and a fully-fledged, highly qualified, spoken voice coaching geek.” She writes: “I’ve even got a t-shirt with a larynx on it. I know, cool.

Nic continues:

“Ever since I was knee-high, I’ve been very vocal playing with voices, terrible impressions, accents and generally making a noisy nuisance of myself.”

Her introduction sets the tone for the entire book. From page one you know you’re in for a fun and illuminating read!

Nic is no slouch, by the way. She holds a BA in Performing Arts and an MA degree in Music Theatre. She also studied voice studies at the Royal School of Speech and Drama (one of the toughest schools to get into). Apart from recording voice overs, she coaches privately, and teaches workshops, online courses, and residential retreats on her farm in Ireland.

Nic says: “My passion is in sharing my knowledge and experience in a fun, accessible, non-faffy, often silly way.”

She also knows that information in and of itself doesn’t change people. That’s why the bulk of her book is experiential. It is packed with exercises that are easy to follow and effective. As an added bonus, you’ll find a QR-code leading to a ton of tutorials taught by Nic herself. She demonstrates body jiggles, hip circles, neck stretches, fly puffs, drawstring bag face, slug tongue, and so much more.

Here’s just one example:

In the back of the book you’ll find an “I’ve got a problem” section. In it, Nic addresses common issues such as:

• My voice gets tired quickly.
• I’m talking too fast
• I don’t sound like me on the mic
• Should I sit or stand when I record
• My voice hurts when I speak

Now, if you just read the book without doing any of the exercises, you’re going to learn a few fun facts, but your voice won’t really benefit from it. It’s like reading a cookbook without ever making a meal. To have a positive impact, Nic’s book requires audience participation.

As someone who has been using his vocal folds professionally for most of his life, “On the Mic” was not only an eye-opener, but a voice-opener. I often had to laugh out loud while reading the book, and I could hear Nic’s lovely Irish voice taking me from page to page, as if we were having a wee conversation. The section about nose farts was particularly entertaining and enlightening!

Kindle readers can get her book for only $2.40. If you prefer the paperback, it’s $15.63. An absolute steal!

From now on it will be required reading for all my students.

I had a chance to ask Nic Redman a couple of questions about her book. Here’s the interview.

Right from the start, your book surprised me. It has been “printed in Dyslexic font, designed to support neurodivergent readers and offer an inclusive reading experience.” Please explain.

I work with a lot of creatives who are often late in life diagnosed dyslexics and I wanted to make sure this book felt accessible to them. When I was chasing a font it felt like the only choice to make! Choosing a font ‘cos it was pretty’ or aesthetically pleasing felt really superficial.

Lots of books have been written about the voice. What do you think is missing from those books, that motivated you to write yours?

This one focuses on voice training for mic users so it’s choc full of very voice-on-mic specific answers to things – like plosives, sibilance, and the old to-sit-or-stand debate.. It’s also unique due to my experience and training. I’ve been a mic speaker for nearly 20 years and am a highly qualified voice technique specialist who is also qualified in coaching/teaching theory. I wasn’t able to find a book written with quite that bundle of offerings! I know what it’s like to be a mic speaker, the intricate workings of the human voice AND how to successfully impart knowledge to others. What a combo!

Your book is not only a book for voiceovers, is it? Isn’t it weird that people who use their voice professionally, like teachers, ministers, lawyers, and stand-up comedians, seem to know very little about how the voice works. How come?

Simply because these are the people that end up in my sessions! I work with so many different professionals who all have the same goal – they want to have vocal freedom and the confidence to be at home on the mic. They all have messages to share and people to affect with their speaking – usually with a mic in the way!

What confuses people most about how the voice works, and why is that?

Breathing! It’s down to (often well-meaning…) but inaccurate advice from other sources about what you can and can’t do with certain bits – most notably the diaphragm! Once I explain a few things about how the diaphragm works and what they need to do with their body when they breathe, things tend to clear up pretty quick! Another would be that people usual think warming up your voice needs to be a much bigger and more difficult thing than it really is.

In this book you wrote a lot about things we can hear. How do you write about sounds without being a phonetic fanatic, if you know what I mean. How do you keep it accessible to readers who don’t have your background, training, or jargon?

Most of my clients say I’m really good an explaining things simply, so I tried to write as I speak firstly. My willing team of proof readers pointed out anything that needed extra info too which was great. I had been through the process before when I developed my warm-up cards, The Voice Deck, so I had some practice. But I also cheated, as the book comes with a QR code that links to lots of the trickier exercises in video form as an extra tutorial.

If I understand you correctly, one of the biggest enemies of our voice is tension, or stress. First of all, how does stress influence our voice? Secondly, how do you suggest we avoid it? We live in a stressful world.

Yes, unnecessary tension or holding in the body leads to speaking being much more of an effort than it needs to be. This is nearly always linked to tension in the body affecting your alignment and physical freedom which then affects the breath. Awareness is the first step to any stress management and tension release. I suggest a mindful minute before starting your warm-up so you can tune in to how your mind and body are feeling and then target that with your warm-up. Generally, making space for exercise, fresh air, decent food, friends and talking are a pretty good antidote to stress. I’m also a big fan of ‘solutions not problems.’ I try to find solutions to the things that come up in life rather than dwell on the problem itself. I find solutions by walking. That’s my therapy. Usually, the answer comes to me at the top of a big hill I’ve grumbled up!

When people buy a book about becoming a better speaker, they may expect something that’s loaded with tongue-twisters. Your approach is much more holistic. In a nutshell, what does that involve?

Good spot! Yep, tongue twisters are of course an integral part of your warm up but they’re the last stage. You can’t shape the words until you make the sound, you can’t make the sound without breath and you can’t get the breath moving efficiently without a bit of body work! My approach is body – breath- sound – speech. You free the body and alignment, get the breath released and energized, make the vocal folds vibrate to create sound, explore that range and finally work on the speech shapes. So keep your tongue twisters til the end.

Isn’t one of the problems as a vocal coach that we cannot give people a different larynx? Aren’t you limited by what you have to work with?

To a degree yes, but I’m not here to change anyones voice – my ethos is “your voice is great, it’s who you are, let’s explore it, give you confidence and more options to play with.”

Some years ago, video game actors went on strike because the working conditions were poor, and damaging to their voices. Some even demanded stunt pay. You talk to a lot of voice actors. Are clients more mindful of the demands they put on voice actors, these days? On a side note, is it possible for a voice actor to ruin the voice permanently by doing a certain job?

The client will only be aware if we tell them what our experience is, so it’s up to us to educate the client wherever possible. Some are more aware but it’s an ongoing journey. Extreme voicing doesn’t need to be taxing or damaging either – I think that’s a common misconception for some VO/VAs. They just accept a bit of a voice blowout session and try to rest. It doesn’t take a lot to make things a whole lot easier. Most vocal fatigue experienced in big sessions can be recovered from with the right vocal maintenance program – a warm-up, resets, cool downs and general rest.

I’m not a vocal expert, but there were two things I missed in your book. First of all, I’ve always been told that the worst thing you can to your voice is to whisper. I don’t think you addressed that. Is this just a myth, or is there some truth to that?

Yes, whispering is more tiring for the voice, so if you’re ill or have lost your voice, it’s best to rest and do some rehab exercises and not whisper to be heard.

Secondly, as a tool for vocal health, the singing straw has become more popular. Did you leave it out on purpose because it’s not effective?

There are enough places to learn about straws so I decided to leave it out. I’m a big fan of how straws can help in a clinical rehab setting when supervised but don’t believe they’re totally necessary for the at-home environment. The book contains other exercises which elicit the same results. I do have an episode of The Voice Coach podcast on straws if you’re keen to know more.

Lastly, with this book, did you just put yourself out of work?

Ha! Well, I hope people feel empowered enough to look after their voices at home, so yes! Maybe! But I’m really just delighted the book is here to give people a wee flavor of what I teach in my online courses and private sessions. Most people who coach with me keep coming back for more – there’s always more to learn – so, read the book, then call me!

CLICK HERE to order Nick’s book.