OK, now that you can read a script accurately and warm it up with a
smile, it’s time to add some attitude to your voiceover practice. Pick
anything that you like: happy, sad, sarcastic, wry, compassionate,
skeptical – even if it’s not what the spot calls for – it’s all good for
your workout. Of course, when you’re actually auditioning, you’ll want
to stick to what the client is looking for (more or less), but for now
feel free to stretch your voice acting chops.

So how do you do that? There’s no one way to get the result, but being
human and having lived and experienced the full range of attitudes and
emotions (I assume), you should be able to develop the ability to tap
into those feelings and turn them on and off at will. Some people can do
this naturally and easily, like flipping a switch off and on; others
need to work at it more and develop some specific techniques. Also, most
people are better at certain emotions and attitudes than others.

Try recalling a situation from your real life that evoked the emotion or
attitude that you’re looking for. Really dive into the memory and let it
cause a visceral response – you should FEEL it more than you’re THINKING
it. If no memory comes to mind, imagine a scenario that would have the
same result. Pretend that you’re speaking to someone who elicits a
particular attitude from you (the easiest example of this is speaking to
a child). Or, simply concentrate on the word itself – your understanding
of the word will bring about a response.

Record yourself as part of your voice acting practice sessions, and
listen for how much or how little what you feel when you’re reading
translates to the recording. Often you’ll find that you need to give it
a bit more attitude (and energy) than feels natural to get the
performance to come across the way you want. Recording yourself
frequently has the added benefit of helping you become more objective
about critiquing your work, which will come in handy when you record
voiceover auditions and jobs at home.

And remember – have fun!