Alicia King

When deciding to refresh my website, I had some specific ideas in mind – specifically the addition of a Rorschach. I love Rorschachs as everyone sees something different in each design. Amy Archibeque and I worked together to create this design and I wanted to know how she found it designing a Rorschach.

 

– Did you enjoy designing the Rorschach? 

I did enjoy designing the Rorschach! It was a fun and challenging project. I always enjoy working on pieces that the client feels a personal connection with, because it’s so much more rewarding when they are happy with the outcome. Working with Alicia and Tanya was a very pleasant experience, and I really love these collaborations when the client and I can work together on coming up with ideas on how to create the image they want. 

 

– What was your process? 

For my process, it was important that I started out getting to know Tanya as a client and what she really wanted to represent. I got to speak with her, find out about her style, and see what images she was drawn to the most. We then went back and forth on some mockups in styles she was drawn to. Once we determined a style, I was able to move forward with the logo design.

 

I started with finding naturally occurring ink blots, specifically in the style of spray paint and ink splatter. With Tanya, we wanted to create more of an edge to her design, so I wanted to use this style of ink,  as opposed to the classic water-based medium of Rorschach ink blots. The ink splatter allowed more movement and expression in her design, helping to create a stronger statement. I initially built up a few pieces that formed a crown, then added accent pieces along the edges to help create more movement. 

 

As a rule of thumb, however, it’s always important to step back from your art and get a fresh perspective— as Tanya pointed out, one of my initial designs looked like a raw chicken. And she was right–haha. As soon as I zoomed out and stepped back, all I could see was a cold dead chicken breast with skinny legs. Another reason this piece was so fun to work on was how subjective this piece was– everyone was going to see something different! Obviously, we didn’t stick with the chicken, but Tanya then came back with the raven idea. I worked off a Rorschach piece she liked and used ink splatters again to create movement along the wings and form the outline. 

 

I also had to be mindful of having enough space in the middle to add the logo, so I did have one of the original crown pieces help fill in the middle. It was subtle enough that it could still pass for the chest of the bird, or part of the wings, or whatever one wanted to see.

 

– What do you see when you look at the Rorschach? 

When I look at the Rorschach, I see a woman wearing a crown, with her head tilted down, eyes drawn up. Behind her, a raven has just taken off for flight, scattering feathers, leaves, and other particles in the air around it.

 

Comment below what you see in the Rorschach!

“Life is what happens while you’re busy making other plans”. 

The late and great John Lennon said it best, but what’s interesting is that we’re constantly told that success only comes from having a plan.

Raising a family?

Have a plan. Get savings. Get a house. Get a well-paying career. Start building that college fund.

Growing your career? 

Have a plan. Get trained. Get educated. Get a qualification. Take that internship. Write those damn CVs and cover letters.

Starting a business?

Oh, you’ve guessed it. You better have a plan in place, or you’re going nowhere.

Here’s the deal.

Despite what everyone else says, what if you did all these things, just without a plan?

It’s okay to have goals and a sense of direction, but what if, and hear me out, you took your foot off the gas and the plan was flexible?

This is how I’ve lived, and it’s turning out well.

Allow me to explain.

I’ve always been politically minded and against the status quo.

John Lennon’s on my mind today.

But he does have a few fair points, doesn’t he?

I’ve never been a fan of the status quo. 

Take my time in the voiceover industry.

I’ve been standing at the mic for over 30 years now, and I’ve seen countless trends, styles, and approaches come and go during that time. People with plans and ambitions that they want to bring to life.

But so many have faded away, given up, or moved on to something else. 

But why? 

Why are the people so ambitious and driven to succeed just letting go?

I took some time to think about this, and I can’t move past the one barrier that comes up time and time again, and that’s having a plan.

Now, I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have some kind of plan when I started out in the voiceover industry.

I planned to be the best voiceover artist in the world. I wanted to thrive in every genre possible, and I wanted to be like water to the point that I would be able to evolve and change with the trends and markets effortlessly.

I’d never be out of work, and I’d always thrive.

Three decades on, I can safely say I’m doing it. That’s the life I’m living.

Upon reflection, this comes down to not having a plan.

The status quo of the modern world is to get yourself a plan in life and to stick with it, but I’ve found time and time again that this does not work.

Life is messy and unpredictable. It takes its course and surprises us at every turn.

Take a moment to think about just how many times that has happened in your own life. More than a few, I’m sure.

Here’s the issue.

When you have a strict and rigid plan in place, it can feel like every bump in the road causes a problem. This mindset leads to everything in life feeling like a problem, and you’re only going to hold yourself back.

By letting go of your plans but putting yourself on a path in life and just letting yourself figure out what you need to do when you need to do a road trip through your life fueled by passion and ambition, then you’ll make it.

I’ve seen it in my own life and the lives of so many others.

Bruce Lee once said;

“Empty your mind, be formless. Shapeless, like water. If you put water into a cup, it becomes the cup.”

A river doesn’t have a plan. It doesn’t know how it will cut through the forest or across the fields. It doesn’t know what obstacles stand in its way or what dams will hold it back. Yet, over time and with perseverance and its overall goal in mind, it always gets to where it wants to be.

In your own life, when you’re fueled by passion, you put yourself on a path, but you’re free to go with the flow of the universe, and this is far better than trying to walk yourself through a brick wall.

Far better just to walk around it, even if that wasn’t in the original plan.

When you can do this, that’s when life gets exciting.

Curiosity is one of the great secrets of happiness.

When life inevitably happens, and you’re thrown a curveball, do you feel like a failure?

So many of us do. We crush ourselves and beat ourselves up because we clearly weren’t capable enough to do what we set out to do.

I say don’t be so damn hard on yourself.

Embrace the disappointment, devise a new plan: and take a breather from planning. 

For good.

I say again life is messy and complicated, and 99% of the things that happen in your life are outside your control. 

The trick to success is to be able to go with the flow and still be able to get to where you want to be, regardless.

You won’t get every job you apply for. Not every person you’re interested in will like you back. Not every movie will be all it’s cracked up to be. Sometimes you’re going to oversleep or fail a test.

That’s life.

Don’t let this perceived (but not real) failure hold you back. Instead, pick yourself up, and start dodging and diving. Let your passion for your dreams take you to where you want to go.

Keep doing this, and you’ll get there.

Not necessarily in the way you originally planned, or at the same time, but you will get there.

The only way you can ever indeed fail is if you give up completely.

And hey, I get it. Some of us love to be in control and feel lost without it. Well, why not add some spice to your control?

If you have to think strategy, think outside the box. 

• Grab yourself a dartboard and post-it some ambitions onto it.
• Close your eyes, take aim, and let that dart fly!
• Wherever it points to is what you should do next – no matter what.
• Don’t think; just do – right now! There might be something unexpected where the target leads, a new realm of possibility for you and your goals.

 

My whole career, I’ve been guided by nothing but the opportunity to work in my beloved voice industry.

Of course, it’s important to note that I’ve been doing this for a long time, but this is just me speaking from the heart about what works for me. 

If you need to plan something out, go for it. 

But why waste time on mundane planning techniques when you could have a blast just living your life and doing it?

Dream. Have ambition.

Feed that ambition with nothing but curiosity, excitement, and fun.

Don’t put it into a rigid box.

So go forth and plan, but be bold and switch up your route when the universe throws something new your way!

You never know where it might take you. That’s the beauty of life.

 

A Professional Concern: the Patchwork Voice Actor

If you’re working with a professional UK voice-over artist, or if you are one, there are certain terms that you need to learn and be comfortable with to make sure jobs go smoothly.

One is the “BSF”, which means Basic Session Fee or Basic Studio Fee (i.e. the artist’s labour to record for an hour in a studio).

Another is the “usage”, which means the fee for how many people are going to hear the voice-over’s message.

And a third one is “pick-ups”, which are extra lines that are recorded if a script is changed later.

But there’s also a fourth term that you might like to bear in mind when working with a UK voice-over artist or voice actor.

And that is: “patchwork voice acting”, or the “patchwork voice actor”.

 

What is a Patchwork Voice Actor?

A “patchwork voice actor” or “patchwork voice-over artist” is a voice actor who’s unable read a script, without mistakes, in one go.

They also tend to struggle with bringing out the demands of a script, including things like vocal inflections, tone, energy and so on.

And because they struggle with these things, they also have difficulty reading to time, which means fitting the script into, say, 30 seconds.

So not only is a patchwork voice actor unable to deliver in one go; but they’re also unable to deliver on time.

It’s a bit like going internet shopping and clicking on ‘guaranteed next-day delivery’, only to get your items late, in separate deliveries, and with the contents squashed.

Not a great service, eh? And hardly professional.

 

How much does a patchwork voice actor cost?

I’ve worked as a professional UK voice-over artist more than 30 years – and I have to say that patchy delivery in the studio goes against everything I believe in.

Some people might say: “well, what’s the problem? These days, you can record the best bits and quickly stitch them together. So what? Things don’t have to be perfect like they were when voice actors were recording to tape”.

Well, that might be partly true, but what if the patchwork voice actor’s finished recording is not only made up of lines of text, but individual words or even syllables?

What if the recording took twice as long, took the producer twice as long to edit, and cost the client twice as much?

What if the client wasn’t exactly thrilled with the clunk and crunch of the different takes that had been stuck together?

What if the client was gritting their teeth during the recording session, wondering if they’d made the right decision with the voice?

What if the client was so disappointed with the overall experience that they scrapped the project and gave the work to another company?

And what if the client never worked with the original company or voice actor again?

Hmm… suddenly, the patchwork voice actor is making everyone look bad – not just them.

 

Patching things up

This got me wondering where these patchwork performers come from – and who else they’ve worked with.

Well, I soon found out.

The other day, I worked with a new customer on a voice-over project.

At the beginning of the recording session, I was asked if I wanted to record the script “line by line” – to supposedly help my “breathing”.

Of course, I had to politely decline the offer, because, well, after 30+ years of voicing, I knew pretty darn well how to creatively interpret a script, breathe in the right places, and do it all to time.

So I recorded my first take.

“Tanya…” said the voice at the end of the line.

“Yes”, I replied.

“That was bang on 30 seconds”.

That’s great, I thought to myself. It was meant to be!

What a confusing recording session. Why was this person so surprised that I could read the script to time?  And why did they ask if I wanted to do it “line by line”?

There can only be one answer to these questions, really, and that is: it should be normal for a professional UK voice actor or voice-over artist to interpret scripts alone and/or with direction, and to be able to read to time.

To continue the story, I recently recommended one of my Richcraft voice-over coaching graduates for a job that required two voices: male and female. I’m pleased to say that he performed his parts perfectly. His counterpart (who was not a graduate of mine and was supposed to be an established professional voice) wasn’t so lucky, though. Her takes, I am told, took two hours – and were literally patched together into the final commercial.

 

Patchwork voice-over demos and voice-over showreels

If you’re looking to work with a voice-over artist, you should be aware that this kind of patchy work can also be found in voice-over demos and showreels.

For those not in the know, a voice-over demo or a voice-over showreel is a compilation of audio clips of an artist’s actual paid work, or recordings that have been professionally produced using scripts designed to show off their talents.

However they’re put together, they should be able to demonstrate what a voice-over artist can do in a professional setting.

What they shouldn’t be, of course, is a patchwork of patchy performances. So if an artist can’t reel their off scripts in one go, with good dramatic interpretation, and to time, and if they have other weaknesses in their voice like soft Rs or sibilant S sounds, then really, they should not be recording a showreel with the aim of getting professional work. They’re not ready and would be better off spending their showreel budget on extra vocal lessons.

So to all clients, agents, casting directors, producers, and students – please, take it from me: be mindful of being, or working with, a patchwork voice actor. Yes, audio can be easily stitched together these days, but a voice-over’s ability to nail a handful of takes will always ensure that projects pass off smoothly and are delivered on time and on budget.

 

Yours, because I want the best for you and your business,

Tanya Rich.

International Voice-over Artist