It's amazing how much I hate the way my voice sounds

[msagara]

I have spent the last two days trying, off and on, to record myself reading, because I had this totally stupid idea that I would make an .mp3 of it and put it on my web-site.

What I have discovered--or rediscovered as the case may be--is that I cannot stand the sound of my recorded voice. I've tried reading first chapters and the beginnings of short stories, and all I can say is I have profound gratitude for the people who like my writing--or me--enough to sit through an hour of me reading out loud.

And now, writing looks like it will be so much less of a disaster, and holding that thought, I'm going to write.

Comments

[drenilop.livejournal.com]

Agree with the commenter that said you might want to consult a voice instructor to learn about using your 'chest' voice. Learning proper breathing technique will make a HUGE difference in how your voice sounds. To get a rough idea, record yourself saying some random sentences like your children's full names and birth dates or something like that. Do this standing up, using your normal posture, breathing style, and speaking style. Then, lie down flat on the floor. Put a hardback book or a sneaker or something on your diaphragm, between your bellybutton and the bottom of your ribs. When you breathe, you should be able to see (in your peripheral vision) that the shoe/book is rising and sinking with each deep breath. Now re-record whatever you said in the first try, from this lying-on-the-floor-with-something-on-your-stomach pose. Compare the recordings.

Your other option is to do a fan read-along. :-) Break up a chapter into one or two page segments, offer them to your readers on the Yahoo list to read and convert to mp3s, then put up a page with the links to everyone's mp3 files.