Please welcome my guest, Aaron Paul Lazar, author of the LeGarde mysteries and Healey’s Cave, the first book in the Moore paranormal mysteries. Lazar says:
I’m wondering if every author needs to take voice-over training. Especially if they want to record their works in audio formats.
Readers like hearing the author read. Right? They know that only the author really understands the nuances of each sentence, the way it was supposed to be said aloud. I do believe this, and wish I could download books read by Dean Koontz himself, or that John D. MacDonald could come down from Heaven for a while to record his Travis MacGee series for us. Wouldn’t that be cool?
When you’re reading from your own character’s point of view, you really have to get inside his head. You have to feel his pain, suffer his humiliations, and share in his joy.
Could you do that? If so, it’s a good sign that you really know your characters.
And what do you do if your character is of the opposite sex? I guess unless you’re a woman with a very deep voice, or a man who does a reasonable falsetto, you’ve got to find someone who fits that mold, a friend who can sound like your character and really get inside his or her brain.
Would you like to get to know a character, even before you read his book?
Well, I never took acting lessons, but I sat in the back of the auditorium while my daughter performed in fifteen musicals and plays. Maybe a little of the training rubbed off on me. I don’t know.
Regardless, I figured it was a good idea to help create a little buzz for my debut book in my new green marble series by writing a letter from Sam Moore to his future readers. Would you like to hear it? See what you think and please let me know, below.
Sam Moore’s most intimate and tortured thoughts are in this video. It’s not really a normal video, but the only way to get audio on YouTube or other sites is to put a jpeg image behind it and save it as a movie file. ;o) Took me all day to figure that out – shows you how bright I am. And I didn’t want to make it into a book trailer, for Heaven’s sake. I already have one of those!
Sam Moore is a retired country doctor in the new paranormal mystery series, Moore Mysteries. The first book just came out via Twilight Times Books, and you can read the first few chapters here: Healey’s Cave .
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Aaron Paul Lazar writes to soothe his soul. The author of LeGarde Mysteries and Moore Mysteries enjoys the Genesee Valley countryside in upstate New York, where his characters embrace life, play with their dogs and grandkids, grow sumptuous gardens, and chase bad guys. Visit his websites at www.legardemysteries.com and www.mooremysteries.com and watch for his upcoming release, FIRESONG, coming Winter, 2010.
Bertram's Blog 
September 17, 2010 at 5:28 am
Pat, thanks for letting Sam Moore speak today!
September 17, 2010 at 4:30 pm
Aaron, Thank you for the opportunity to introduce your new series.
If anyone would like to help me interview Aaron Lazar, you can find the chat here: http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?topic=14701&post=71667&uid=155091741301#!/topic.php?uid=155091741301&topic=14701
September 17, 2010 at 10:28 am
I love the trailer… now I have to buy the book! The video is a great idea and the passage chosen enhances my desire to read the story. The only thing that occurred to me is that Sam’s voice sounds a little too young to be reminiscing about “fifty long years ago”. (Is that a compliment or a criticism???) Not that a 62-year-old’s voice would always be a little rough around the edges, but I expected Sam to sound older, maybe pausing more during the reading, too, reflecting on his memories as we “retired folks” are prone to do. BTW, the cover art, and photo of it that was chosen to accompany the reading, is wonderful. 🙂
September 17, 2010 at 7:13 pm
Hi, Carol!
I’m so glad you liked the trailer! You know, it’s funny, but of course I recorded it, and I’m almost as old as Sam. I’m 57. I guess I just don’t have a typical voice for the age?
September 17, 2010 at 2:00 pm
I think I’ll have to pay someone to record my book. My voice doesn’t cut it. It’s bad enough that I have to read at readings. LOL. Ah, the poor life of a struggling writer.
Thanks, Aaron and Pat. Great post.
September 17, 2010 at 2:29 pm
Thanks, Joylene! You cracked me up about your reading – I’m sure it’s not as bad as you think!!! Enjoy the weekend!
September 17, 2010 at 6:18 pm
I enjoyed the video. I keep thinking I should try recording something, but I hate the sound of my recorded voice. Must be something to do with the teachers in elementary school. When I wouldn’t learn to write they tried putting me on tape, and the pen was just so much less scary than the microphone…
September 17, 2010 at 7:12 pm
Thanks, Sheila! I know what you mean, we always sound weird to ourselves, I think!
September 17, 2010 at 7:18 pm
Pat, thanks so much for hosting the tour today on your two blogs!