A Paint-By-Numbers World
As you begin your career as a professional voice actor, it’s easy to believe the industry is a clearly defined system: genres and niches, demo reels of every variety, pay-to-play sites, agents. It all looks sorted: just plug in and follow the formula.
It can feel like a coloring book with sharp outlines, or a paint-by-number set. Just apply the right color in the right spot, hit submit, audition, network—and eventually, you’ll succeed.
And to be fair, there’s a reason for the structure. We’re busy. Casting directors are really busy. The faster we can match the right voice with the right job, the better for everyone.
So yes, you’ll need to work within the coloring book. It’s efficient. It makes sense once you get your bearings. Everyone knows what to expect.
Cool.
But while you’re figuring out how to fit into that system, remember—so is everyone else. And in that crowded space, you either stand out or fade away.
We spend a lot of time learning how to stand out within the system: how to craft a demo that grabs attention, how to audition in a way that rises above the noise.
But that’s not what I want to talk about today.
How I Broke Out
Don’t get me wrong—I paint inside the lines: auditioning on pay-to-play sites and direct marketing have formed the backbone of my business and my income.
But I’ve also made a conscious effort to think beyond the standard paths. I want to encourage you to do the same.
Let me share my own example.
As your career progresses, you’ll gravitate toward certain niches—areas that call to you. Maybe it’s based on past experience, personal interest, or just a natural fit for your voice. For me, that niche was children’s book narration.
Maybe it’s because I’ve spent years working with kids in various capacities. Or maybe it’s that I play the “funkle” role (fun uncle) to all my nieces and nephews. Or perhaps it’s the broad performative style I developed in my background in Shakespearean theater and vaudeville-style performance.
Whatever the reason, I found myself drawn to narrating children’s books—and I was booking work through traditional channels. But I had a feeling there was more I could do.
So I started thinking beyond the rinse-and-repeat strategies I’d been using.
For me, that meant creating an audiobook publishing company dedicated to children’s books. At the time, nothing like it existed—and it felt like wide-open territory.
So I launched KidsBookNarration.com.
It started small—as just a subpage on my main voice-over site. You don’t have to start big! As the idea grew more central to my work, I spun it off into its own standalone site.
Then, I began inviting trusted fellow voice actors to join me and expand what we could offer.
Now, alongside the work I do within the traditional “coloring book” framework, I also own something. I can grow it to fit my goals. It has the potential to positively impact the industry and help children’s book authors reach new audiences.
And it’s entirely outside the “please-give-me-work” model that voice-over often operates under.
I’m pretty proud of that.
What About You?
So what does this mean for you? Do you need to start a business and target an underserved niche?
Of course not.
I’m sharing my story simply as an example. But I do want to encourage you to think about what makes you unique. What could you build around that? What could your own little corner of the voice-over marketplace look like?
You’re more than a voice. You’re a complex, fascinating, one-of-a-kind human being. Start exploring how to lift your career off the paint-by-number canvas and create something that’s unmistakably yours.
Here are a few ways to begin:
1. Niche Specialization
This was my approach: I found a niche that resonated and built a foundation from it.
What’s in your background that’s unusual or specific? What was your previous (or current) career? Is there a way to leverage that for voice-over opportunities others might overlook?
For example, before voice-over, I managed a high-touch tech support team for a small web-based software company. I volunteered to create a series of how-to videos. It gave me valuable VO experience and made my boss very happy.
I could have easily turned that into a specialization—producing explainer content for small tech companies.
So think like a prospector: explore your job history, your hobbies, your community, your life. Look for veins of opportunity you can mine.
2. Collaborate With Other Creatives
Voice-over is collaborative by nature. No script? No voice-over. No visuals? Nothing for your voice to support.
Along your journey, you’ll meet animators, editors, and writers—other creatives building their own careers. Connect with them. Build together.
Imagine teaming up with a writer and an animator, all of you at the start of your careers. You could create projects none of you could do alone—and open doors for each other.
As one of you finds success, you can pull the others forward. You become a creative clique—rising together.
And don’t limit yourself to traditional partners. What could you create with a dancer, a painter, a poet?
Tap into the creative friends you already have. Find joy in weird, unexpected collaborations. Follow the fun and see where it leads.
3. Go Where Your Clients Are
I love a good VO conference. The learning is rich, and the connections are meaningful. But let’s be honest—I’m not picking up clients at VO Atlanta.
As I built KidsBookNarration, I found it far more fruitful to attend book readings, join Facebook groups for children’s authors, and go to publishing and writing conferences.
Because that’s where my clients are.
So as you discover your niche, think about where your audience gathers—and go there. Embed yourself in those communities. Be present. Be useful.
Don’t Rush the Process
If you’re early in your journey, don’t feel like you need to define your “thing” tomorrow and start sprinting toward it.
Take your time. Learn your craft. Understand how the system works. Master coloring within the lines first—then start to color outside them.
You don’t want to rush headlong into a direction, only to find there’s no real opportunity at the end.
But as you grow and evolve, keep an open mind. Stay alert for the moment when you can step off the well-worn paths and start forging your own.
Yes, there are many established routes to success in voice-over. You’ll walk some of them, and that’s great. But there’s also tremendous value in carving out your own.
In the end, consider this: How can you build a career as original, vibrant, and one-of-a-kind as you are?
P.S. If you haven’t yet taken our introductory voice-over class, where we go over everything one needs to know about getting started in the voice-over industry, sign up here!
