Now that everyone now knows, I thought I'd share it with the world, This was originally to be sent in a card to all my family members as their Christmas Gift from my wife and I, but we didn't quite get that done and it was all done either in person here in KC or by phone to my immediate family members. This is the greatest gift ever to given to Kiki and I and we look forward to August 18th, 2008 when we'll welcome a new addition to the Larson home.
Happy New Year,

What a Christmas!

I'm going to be a father!. I'll post a pic later of the test, and my wife and I couldn't be more excited as it's been a 10 year struggle with infertility that the miracles of medicine and faith in the Creator of Life, our Lord Jesus Christ has bestowed this blessing upon us. The most exciting part of it really, was telling our relatives, brothers, sisters, Grandparents and friends. It is the very best Christmas present I have ever received or probably will ever recieve. Happy Holidays to one and all.

The Christmas Blog

As I wind down 2007 it has been a difficult year for both my freelance business and my personal life, but there is good news. If you look back at my first post in Life 101, I explained that my wife Christen and I were trying to conceive a child... I'll let you know the results on Christmas Day when we take the test again.

In January of this year, I resolved to find better paying freelance voice over jobs, pay off some debt, and continue to not to smoke cigarettes. Well.. at least I don't smoke anymore. Christmas will mean more to me this year than any other for a lot of reasons, I have a home, I have a job, I have family and I live in the greatest country in the world. Life 101 is getting better and better. In 2008 I resolve to once again try and market myself and my services better, I'll be a better Christian, I will do my level best to provide for my family and I'll do everything I can to make this world a better place for you and I. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

Voice of the Holidays

It's that time of the year, the hustle and bustle of the rude, the obnoxious, yes, the holiday shopper. Voice work is at a premium here, everyone wants to advertise their wares and most want to do it without sounding "Christmasy"( is that even a word?). A lot of potential advertisers are writing their own scripts, badly of course and they want you to sell their product in the most conversational way possible. But here's the caveat; the commercial copy is written in bullet points and you are to "ad-lib" the delivery.

Tough call, do you turn it down and risk losing a potential client forever, or do you try and read through it a couple of times to get the feel of the copy and then try to have a conversation with your imaginary muse. Hmmm, the latter would probably drive you crazy with multiple takes but... just imagine how imaginative you can become when you get to improvise and "sell" the product.

Here's an easy way to get into that mode of delivery. If you have children, make up stories and use that to "ad-lib" your way through it, if you don't try volunteering at the local library or you can talk to yourself, (at the risk of people looking at you weird) .

I have found that on more than one occasion, telling a story to a 4 year old is great practice, it's fun and you'll find yourself able to converse in an ad-lib type format for just about any product. Now, as far as the copy is concerned, well, you'll just have to live with that one.