Written by Jim Frederick, executive editor of TIME Magazine and managing editor of TIME.com, Black Hearts is a remarkable book that is on more than one military commander’s reading list for all officers who may lead soldiers into combat.

I was privileged to read this book, and I hope whoever wins enjoys it.

I wish to thank Tantor Audio for making a giveaway copy available. I will be doing more of these giveaways for my other titles in the future, so watch for them here, on my Facebook and Twitter and of course on GoodReads!

Head on over to GoodReads and sign up to win your own copy of this great audiobook!

 

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Black Hearts

by Jim Frederick

Giveaway ends June 12, 2013.

See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.

Enter to win

My latest audiobook, Kali’s Tale by David Niall Wilson is now available on Audible.  Go check it out! If you like urban fantasy, then the DeChance Chronicles are right up your alley. This is the fourth book in the series, but they’re all a lot of fun.

And I also found that one of my other recent projects, Black Hearts: One Platoon’s Descent Into Madness in Iraq’s Triangle of Death is getting good reviews and feedback.  This is a book about a terrible war crime committed in Iraq in 2006, and what created the conditions that allowed it to occur. It’s a harrowing book and I was deeply honored to read it.

Review One

Review Two

Full disclosure: I know the second reviewer via an online community, but I did not ask him for a review.

What a great way to start the week! I’ll try to keep the number of chest-thumping posts to a minimum, but I had to share this.

When you write YOUR blog, is it nothing but shameless self-promotion and “look what I did?” posts? Because that’s such an easy trap to fall into, but people aren’t interested in a list of your achievements. Your friends and family might be happy you got a new gig, or that your latest client loved your work- and make no mistake, that’s very important- but in the end your blog should be about being interesting to your customers and to your peers.

Why peers? Because in the world of VO, oftentimes your peers are your customers and vice-versa. It’s a very small world we operate in and I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve gotten a job from a fellow VO whose client was looking for a voice like mine.  So take a tip from me and when you step up to the blog editor, have a topic in mind that you want to share information on.

That said, it’s perfectly acceptable (in MY opinion, anyway) to occasionally have a bit of self-promotion. Your blog is where customers come to see your work and it’s good for them to see that you are in fact booking work. Just don’t make it the centerpiece!

So here’s another round of FaffCon thanks, and if I missed anyone this time I offer my apologies.

Some More Thanks

Doug Turkel – You are an inspiration and I consider you to be a true friend, Doug. Your sense of humor combined with a razor wit are a formidable combination; I still chuckle every time I hear the word “dipthong”. On a personal note, I want to thank you for giving me the perspective I needed about my confidence. It came at the right moment and I am grateful for it.

Matt Cowlrick - It wouldn’t be FaffCon if you weren’t there, mate. I’m looking forward to the next time we can crack a knuckle or two. Thank you for your friendship and for making FaffCon an even better experience for me.

Bob Souer – If Amy is Faffcon’s mother, you would definitely be its father (Godfather?). Thank you for everything you do and have done to make FaffCon the resounding success it is. Here’s to more of them!

Amy Taylor – Thank you for being such a generous, kind and warm person. And thank you for sharing your amazing talent with all of us at FaffCon.

Monk Schane-Lydon – I look forward to seeing you each and every FaffCon. You’re a great talent and a good friend and I thank you for both.

Jeff Simpson – It was such a pleasure to see you at this FaffCon- seeing someone from my first class in voiceover (whose talent I admired from the start) there was a great confidence boost, and I owe you personal thanks for getting me some great contacts!

Connie Terwilliger – Your tireless efforts to document FaffCon in photos is sincerely appreciated, and your friendship even more so. You’re an absolute joy to know and work with. Thank you!

Pam Tierney – You work incredibly hard for FaffCon- thank you. I’m both indebted to you for your hard work and grateful to be able to work with you as FaffCon staff. Looking forward to the next one!

Adam Verner – Always a pleasure to meet a fellow audiobook guy, and even more so to get such great insight from a really talented pro. Thank you!

Cliff Zellman – It was a distinct pleasure meeting you, Cliff. I enjoyed each of our conversations and I can’t thank you enough for the great insights you brought to FaffCon.

Trish Basanyi – I can’t say how much fun it is to see you ! Thank you for all you do and for bringing your talent and energy to FaffCon; I always have such a great time when you are around.

Again, I sincerely hope I didn’t leave anyone out, but I probably did. I can only plead being old and not terribly organized in some ways. But I am and will remain to each and every Faffer for being there to share their “Golden Nuggets” with the rest of us.

The format of FaffCon is an “unconference”, which means it’s totally driven by the participants. There is no agenda coming in, all the content is created collaboratively by the people attending. We’re all experts, we’re all learners, and we’re all peers. Whether you’ve been doing this for only a couple of years or a quarter of a century, the contributions you make are valued and the information you come away with is beyond compare.

I discovered something about FaffCon, though- the investment pays off in exponential amounts. At the first FaffCon I attended (number 3, in Harrisburg, PA) I learned a huge amount. The takeaways I had were very technical in nature and while extremely valuable were still quite narrow in scope. I took those “golden nuggets” (the Faff terminology for a piece of information you got from someone at FaffCon) and applied them- I think pretty well. This FaffCon, the insights I had gained as a result of the previous one, plus my intervening experience, enabled me to pick up on a whole new level of understanding about my business. I had a number of realizations about how I was approaching auditions, editing, and the quality of my sound- and they would not have been possible without the insight I had gleaned from the previous FaffCon.

I can’t tell you how much I’m looking forward to FaffCon 5!

Some Thank-Yous

I wanted to take a moment and give some personal thanks to a few Faffers for their contribution and friendship. I know for a fact that I am probably missing a few, so my apologies if I missed you!

Peter Bishop – What can I say, my friend? It’s always wonderful to see you- your insight, knowledge, and your friendship are something I look forward to every time we meet. I consider myself very lucky to count you as a friend and fellow narrator- and I can’t wait until the next time we get to have a drink and talk!

Marc Cashman - I truly enjoyed meeting you, even though our conversation was sadly a brief one. I can speak for pretty much every Faffer when I say we were all grateful for your contributions. As Dan Friedman said (paraphrased), watching you work and share your incredible talent on the FaffCon crowd was a privilege. Thank you.

Liz de Nesnera - It was so much fun to see you again. Your energy and enthusiasm make every FaffCon a wonderful experience- not to mention your experience and insight!

Dustin Ebaugh- I would never count FaffCon a success if I didn’t meet at least one person who I considered a personal friend. It was great to meet you!

Melissa eXelberth – I had so much fun talking with you- your boundless energy and willingness to share your experiences with other Faffers was humbling. I really enjoyed our discussions and I look forward to the next time!

Dan Friedman – There is little to say that hasn’t been said elsewhere, but I’ll repeat it here because frankly, it bears repeating: FaffCon would not have been the success it was without you and your boundless energy, totally selfless attitude and expertise. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. Can’t wait to see you again, bud!

J.S. Gilbert - Don’t let anyone fool you, you’re good people. I was incredibly gratified to make your acquaintance and I’m not sure you know how much your contributions were appreciated. Thanks, my friend.

CC Heim - Another Faff Staffer without whom we wouldn’t have made it. Thank you! You are made of awesome.

Debbie Irwin – Such a pleasure to meet you again. You are an incredible talent and I hope someday to be able to emulate how easily you bring that talent to bear.

Mara Junot – Do you EVER stop smiling? I certainly hope not, it would shake my faith in the fundamental constants of the universe. You were an absolute joy to meet!

Dan Lenard – Your technical prowess is incredible and it’s remarkable you share it so selflessly at FaffCon. Thank you- I always learn something from you!

Bruce Miles – If talent could be transferred by proximity, just sitting next to you at lunch advanced my career by a decade. It’s always a pleasure to see you- I still chuckle when I recall your performance in the improv panel!

Lauren McCullough – How do I put this… Without you, I don’t think we could have pulled it off. Scratch that, I know we couldn’t have. You made it possible. I wish there were a way to communicate my profound gratitude for everything you did beyond just saying “thank you”- language is insufficient. You’re a wonderful person and I’m grateful to know you.

Peter O’Connell – Your energy, ready wit, sense of humor and willingness to laugh at pretty much anything make you a treasure. Thank you for your work on FaffCon! I’m definitely looking forward to the next improv panel.

Jamee Perkins - I hope your foot is recovered by now! I’m looking forward to seeing you at the next FaffCon- I just wish there were more time for all the discussions!

Jenifer Platt - A pleasure as always seeing you. Your enthusiasm, razor wit and talent make a formidable package, and I learned a lot from you. Thank you.

Amy Snively – There’s nothing I can possibly say that would communicate the depths of my admiration for you and your incredible work. Thank you for making FaffCon a reality and giving the voiceover community such an incredible resource.

Paul Snively – It was wonderful to meet you and I am very grateful for all your hard work keeping things going behind the scenes!

Devon Stewart- I was pleased to be able to provide an introduction to good Scotch to you! Looking forward to having a dram at the next FaffCon with you.

I was incredibly pleased and humbled to get an email from Peter not long ago, asking for ME to respond to the blog series. I had been following it with great interest and had not anticipated being asked to participate. Needless to say, I was “chuffed to bits” as my friend Peter Bishop would say.

So, go ahead and check out my responses to the Five Questions for Professional Voice Actors!

I’d also like to extend my personal thanks to Peter O’Connell for asking me to participate. It was a lot of fun, and I’ve been enjoying everyone else’s responses- I look forward to more!

Hello my friends! I’m pleased to announce I have a new demo reel- well, actually a freshened up version of the previous one, courtesy of the wonderful Scott Burns. If you are in the Puget Sound region and need to cut a demo reel or get some coaching, he’s a great guy to work with. I can’t recommend him highly enough.

I went to a bunch of colleagues, other voice artists and the like and asked their opinion about my current reel- I got some great feedback and carried it back to Scott who ran with it, coming up in short order with the awesomeness you can now hear:

There was this FaffCon thing too…

Yep, I went to FaffCon. Yes, it was awesome. No, I haven’t had time to finish my gushing blog post(s) about the experience… because I’ve been too busy booking work! (seriously. It’s amazing what’s been going on.) However, I have an epic post coming soonish, and there’s another entry in my ongoing video blog series in the works also. As always, thank you for coming to visit me here.

The video cannot be shown at the moment. Please try again later.

The video cannot be shown at the moment. Please try again later.

Some have what I refer to as a “cowboy poet” sound, where the narrator could be a cowboy telling ghost stories around a fire with the horses mere shadows a few feet away, while some have a more neutral delivery- and there’s even some first-person stories about a particular man carrying a dark secret and a terrible power.

In short, it’s a lot of fun and a real challenge. I’m really enjoying it and it should be completed fairly soon!