This is a presentation I gave Oct 2014 at Information Development World in San Jose. For more information, see idratherbewriting.com or more specifically, this post: http://bit.ly/1sWgdo2. That bitly link contains the audio recording and the slides with the media embedded.

1. Perfecting the Audio Narration
in Instructional Videos
By Tom Johnson
idratherbewriting.com
October 23, 2014

2. The Traditional Model
Write a script
or outline
Review and
approve the script
Voiceover talent
records audio
AV specialist
produces it
Project manager
wants changes

3. The Traditional Model
Write a script
or outline
Review and
approve the script
Voiceover talent
records audio
AV specialist
produces it
Project manager
wants changes

4. Problem: Writing skills
don’t equal speaking skills

5. Presentation Outline
1.
Equipment
2. 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 equipment
Electro-Voice RE-20
with suspension mount

10. Mixer/Preamp

11. USB Mic
Yeti Blue

12. Avoid plosives
pop filter

13. Dampen echoes
Harlan Hogan
portable foam booth
Reflexion filter

14. 2. Scripts

15. Try to sound natural
Write
like you
would
speak

16. Ways to sound natural
• Use contractions
• Avoid long introductory clauses
• Read the conceptual paragraphs, but wing the
action steps from an outline.
• Keep sentences somewhat short
• Imagine saying it to another person

17. Use dual monitors to adjust
“When writers are able to talk
their text into a computer, speech
errors may suddenly appear in
writing. But other things may also
happen. Writing, as some
linguists and computer experts
suggest, may change form and
become more speechlike, more
like a talking text than we now
know, but yet not “speech writ
down.” There is also the
possibility that what will emerge
will be a “friendlier” text than
could or would be produced by
the pen or typewriter.” (Horowitz
and Samuels, intro) – Peter Elbow,
Vernacular Eloquence

18. Lynda.com and scripts
“I do record my screen and narrate simultaneously, as
do all of the authors at lynda.com. I personally rehearse
each movie before recording, but even then, it's not
always a perfectly smooth recording. All recordings,
once completed, move onto our editors and testers
before any customer ever sees them. So, while I try my
best to get each movie captured in a single take, there's
more happening behind the scenes long after I've
completed my part.”
— David Rivers, trainer on lynda.com

19. Scripted Versus Unscripted
Unscripted narration
(David Rivers)
Scripted narration
(Peter Drew)

20. Keep the script short
Percentage of video completed
Length of video
“ideal run-time for
web video 2.5 – 4
minutes” —
Video2zero

21. Audience attention span
“Most [users] don’t
have the tools or
narrative capabilities to
hold the attention of an
audience for any real
span of time.”
— Brooks Andrus

22. 3. Delivery

23. How many ways can you
read these two sentences?
She stole the money.
The door is open.

24. 1. Enunciate
Enunciation: Open
your mouth wider
when you read
words, making sure
to pronounce the
text crisply and
clearly.

25. Voice Sample
Natasha, Wicked Prince

26. Enunciation Practice
Bite on a pen while reading your copy with
as much enunciation as possible. Now
remove the pen and read the copy again.

27. Practice
copy to read

29. 2. Vary your pitch
Vary the pitch of
your voice from high
to low to mid-tones
as you read.

30. Voice sample
Ryan Trimble, Les Mis Harlan Hogan, Demo
Chip, Aesop’s Fables

31. Pitch Variation Practice
Break out of a monotone pitch by moving
your voice’s pitch higher and lower (in an
intelligent way) as you read.

32. 3. Read ahead

33. Reading ahead practice
Look about 6-7 words ahead as you read
to better anticipate where the sentence is
going.

34. 4. Breathe/pause

35. Voiceover Samples
Bill Bryson, Short History

36. Breathing practice
After a sentence ends, pause and take an
inaudible breath.

37. 5. Smile
“As Ekman and Friesen
researched the different facial
muscular movements, they began
to realize that just making the
facial gestures affected their
emotional state. For example,
making an angry facial expression
caused their heart rate to start
beating faster and their hands to
get hot. When they made
expressions of sadness or
anguish, they started feeling bad
inside.”
— Malcolm Gladwell

38. Smile

39. Voiceover Samples
Lisa Greenewahl, Demo

40. Practice with Smiling
Think happy thoughts for a little bit, close
your eyes, force a smile. Then read your
copy.

41. Voiceover tips summary
1. Enunciate
2. Vary your pitch
3. Read ahead
4. Breathe
5. Smile

42. How do you read and drive the
mouse simultaneously?
Hey man, I don’t have
lizard eyes. How can I
focus on two things at
once?

43. My Recording Process
1. Record demo and script simultaneously.
2. Separate out audio track and import it
into Audacity.
3. Note timing on script.
4. Re-record the audio script keeping in
mind the pauses.
5. Line up the original recording with re-recording.

44. Dub Over the Original

45. Contact Information
Tom Johnson
Idratherbewriting.com
tom@idratherbewriting.com
@tomjohnson (Twitter)

46. References
• Ryan Trimble. Librivox.
http://ia600305.us.archive.org/2/items/les_mis_vol01_0810_librivox/lesmiserables_vol1_00_hugo_6
4kb.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