This week’s feature is all about one author, Beau Bridgland.
In January Beau had his debut novel published with us and he’s gone onto great things. We thought it would be a great time, 6 months after publication, to have a little chat with him!
First Beau, how are you?
I just got a very nice message from a voice actress I have admired for years, so I’m absolutely fantastic at the moment.
When did you first decide you wanted to be a voice actor?
I had the initial realisation about what voice acting really was when I was 12, at which point I thought it would be a cool job to do. I had another epiphany at 18 and that was when it became the only thing I wanted to do with my life.
Did it help that you have to be literate in voice acting to project your thoughts into your book?
I think there are various skills and abilities from voice acting that helped me write the book. I think there are things I’ve learned from writing the book that have made me a better voice actor. Part of acting is about taking written words and learning the truth behind them. Part of writing is about having a truth and figuring out the words to best express them. Writing for me always feels like learning how to reverse-engineer.
Is it common for voice actors to write books?
I’ve certainly read a lot of books on voice acting written by voice actors. Plus I know of a few voice actors who have also written books on other subjects too. Lots of voice actors certainly will write screenplays and scripts or adapt them as well. There’s definitely a lot of creative overlap and lots of actors write in one way or another at some point.
We know that you have narrated several audio books about an autistic boy named Jodi. How was that?
It was really great. My favourite of them was the first called “Jodi’s Journey”. All the books are written by his mother Jean Shaw but this first one is done from Jodi’s perspective, trying to work out what might have been going through his mind and what he might be feeling. My younger brother has autism, so these books were close to my heart and were a good fit for me.
Have you ever thought about voicing more of them?
I have thought about it. Though I know I wouldn’t want audio books to ever be the main focus of my work (there are other areas of voice-over I am much more passionate about), I think for the right projects, absolutely.
What was your favourite part about being published with us?
Holding a copy of the book in my hands for the first time. It was incredible to see this project that we had collaborated on for a long time and put so much hard work into come to life. It was amazing to see the final product.
What are you most proud of so far in your voice acting career?
Meeting so many of my heroes in this industry, plus just all of the wonderful people I have met on my journeys. I am also really proud of my most recently discovered role; I am Rinjin in the immensely popular Fruit Ninja and have been for 9 months. I almost didn’t know I was in one of the biggest game apps in the app store.
.jpg)
How does it feel to know that your book has potentially helped so many people who struggle with the same anxiety and depression that you used to feel?
It’s a wonderful thought. Depression, anxiety and low self-esteem are awful and so if I can help anyone with their struggles, then that would be incredible. I’m the kind of guy who feels if I take one thing away from a book, it’s worth reading it. If someone takes something from my book that makes their life a little bit better, then that is spectacular.
If you could give any advice to aspiring voice actors, what would it be?
Learn to act and do what you can to become a better actor – it’s the most important piece of advice but also the one that everyone gives, so I’ll add another piece. Be a nice, genuine, sincere, grateful and passionate person.
Same question to those that want to write?
Write down all your ideas, everything you think of. You never know when it could be useful and the more ideas you write down, the more ideas your brain will start throwing at you.
