Once a week, on average, I get a call from someone with a "really nice voice". He (or she) has been told by co-workers, friends, and family so many times that he has a terrific voice that he can't ignore it any more. His call to me is a first step in what he hopes will be a lucrative career in voice acting. Why me? Because I'm a well-known voice actor, and I have worked hard to gain that reputation.

In seven years of blogging only to the community of voice actors, specifically on the subject of voice acting, I've educated myself and others on the challenges of being a freelance voice artist. My first diplomatic answer to my caller is: being a success in voice acting requires more than just a voice. I've had to gingerly explain the real secret to voiceover success so often that it became clear: somebody needed to tell the truth about being a voice-actor. It's hard work! It's a business and should be approached as a business. It takes more than just a voice.

By my best ballpark estimate: a good voice will get you about a 10th of a mile down the road of voice-over success. In fact, in the first chapter of More Than Just a Voice: The Real Secret to Voiceover Success, you'll hear me ask: "How well do you handle rejection, even when you know you're better than the competition?" and states, "Accept that growing opportunities are counter-balanced by declining compensations and increasing competition."

There is no other voice-over book on the market with more practical advice than this book: The first section of the book gets right to the heart of the matter with some of the nuts 'n' bolts of the business of voiceovers:

• Five reasons not to produce your own demo
• Seven essential reminders before you send that audition
• There is no downtime
• Finding great copy