Todd Menesses has been a voice actor for more than 20 years. Todd’s passion for voice work started at an early age with a love for animation. All things voice-related soon became an obsession studying voice, acting, improvisation, and broadcasting in college. Todd has been described as a vocal chameleon by studio producers, able to change his voice at will and on command and can easily transition from one voice to another in a script without missing a beat. Great at accents and characters, Todd continues his training with instructors like Pat Fraley, Scott Brick, and local voice coaches. Todd has narrated diverse audiobook genre’s from science fiction and fantasy to horror, military thrillers, and religious works. 

Say the word “actor” and the image that comes to mind immediately is a stage or screen actor, not a voice actor. The first question that comes to mind is what made you decided to become a voice actor?

I guess you could blame my dad. He got me hooked on old radio plays as a boy by giving me a 78 RPM recording of some Old Lone Ranger radio plays from the 40’s. I was instantly hooked with telling a story with no visual just words and sounds. I’m also a big animation fan and when I realized that Mel Blanc was the guy doing all the WB voices that really intrigued me. I started clowning around doing impressions of cartoon characters and others and writing my own radio plays. Years later that turned into a career in broadcasting in those 80’s morning zoo’s, I would be the guy doing all the crazy voices and characters. Flash forward 30 years and a slight push and suggestion by Harry Shearer and here I am.

How did you develop the skills needed to do voice acting effectively?

Well it’s the same way you get to Carnegie Hall right…practice, practice, practice. The main part of the term voice acting is the word acting…its an action word meaning you have to do something. I hear from many people that say, “I’ve always been told I have a good voice and I should be reading audiobooks,” well the truth is you don’t just read them…you have to perform them. Even non-fiction books to an extent are not just reading but relaying the authors words and intentions in fiction you get to actually do that and bring the character to life. There are many courses and classes you can take online to learn to do this properly and most of us that do this still continue to take new courses and train with some of the best in the business. My advice to anyone wanting to get into the business is to start reading out loud all the time…and in a very small room. The vocal booth all the books are performed from is just 4 x 6 and sometimes I spend up to 6 to 8 hours in there a day.

What technology skills does a voice actor today need to master?

Training is the first thing you need, no gear or tech will make you sound good if you don’t have the basics down. Then invest in a good quality microphone and other recording equipment, you can start as low or as high as you want when it comes to buying equipment but again it will only sound as good as your skills are. Microphone, interface to the computer and a fast computer and internet connection are all the basics.

Authors can name writers who inspired them. Are there any voice actors that inspire you?

Oh yeah, I mentioned Mel Blanc before some others both past and present would be George Guidall, Jim Dale, Simon Vance, Ray Porter and Scott Brick.

In the world of voice actors, do different styles of voice acting exist? For example, movie actors can be “character actors” or “method actors.” Are there categories of voice actors like these? I wouldn’t say ‘method actors’ but yes there are character actors and such. Mostly it’s divided into the genre of the book, Fantasy and Science Fiction will be narrated different in tone and feel than say a horror book or a murder mystery or a comedy. Most voice actors can do all the different genre’s but many specialize in just one or the other because they are known for it.

What is the most challenging aspect of working with an author whose written word you are trying to bring to life?

Well the most challenging is trying to get the authors intentions of a character correct. There are ways you can say a line in a book that can change the whole meaning of the scene or tone so you want to make sure you have it so it fits. Which words do I emphasis for best meaning, did author intend for that to sound menacing or to sound mysterious…was it said in jest or seriousness…things like that. The only way you get them is by reading the whole book.

Of all the books you have narrated, do you have a favorite one? I like them all actually, there are some characters in books that I liked to perform because they are fun or have a great background story, but I don’t think I have a favorite.

If someone new to using audiobooks wants to find a well narrated book, what suggestions do you have to help the individual find what they’re looking for?

My suggestion would be to listen to the sample that is with most books before you buy them or borrow them from the library. Don’t just go by the reviews alone as many times what someone else does not like you may like. Also Audiofile Magazine is a great resource for really well narrated books. Again it all comes down to the listeners preference.

What is the biggest challenge you have in narrating books and bringing them to life?

Coming up with so many different voices and trying to keep them straight…I have one series that I am doing that has over 500 different characters and is ten books long. Really have to stay on your toes for those. You also want to make the character believable like this could be someone you could see on the street in this same setting or up on a movie screen in this role.

How do you prepare to narrate a story?

First and foremost…read the book!

You want the story to be a surprise to the listener not to the narrator. As a narrator I need to know all the twists and turns of the story so I can present them in a believable way to the listener. Prep the book by reading and taking notes on characters, the book will usually give you clues as to how they sound, keep track of the characters and when they appear and re-appear in the book. Take the time before hand to look up words or places or names that you are not sure how to pronounce this saves time in the actual recording. Above all the more prepared you are the easier the narration will flow.

What advice would you give to someone who is considering becoming a voice actor?

Investigate it online but with a grain of salt. What I mean is just like any other business of late the internet has made it easier and harder to break in all at once. There are many ‘scammers’ out there that will try to teach you what you need to do or convince you that they have a plan that will get you noticed and making ‘6 figures’ in a few months. Doesn’t work that way. Most big publishers will not look to cast you in a book until you have narrated at least 50 or more books for smaller or independent publishers and authors. And beware of ‘get rich quick’ talk, this is a business it’s not a get rich quick scheme nor is it just merely talking in a mic and you get a big fat check. Now a days narrators are also expected in some cases to do some or all (depending upon how you want to do the work) of the post production work, so you need to understand computers and audio and how to make both work properly. You will need a sound treated room or vocal booth especially for audiobooks as it requires some of the lowest noise floor around (meaning no room sound or extra noises.) Also be prepared to invest money back into your career in the form of further training and promotions. I would check out the folks at Edge Studio online they have a really good training program.

Website: Toddsvoiceworks.com

Facebook:Todd Menesses/Brown Box Studio LLC