fbpx
Back to Top

Tag Archives: Blog Hop

Blog hop posts. Hops are joint efforts by multiple bloggers to share.

Hiring a voiceover artist for Pietas #PietasFans #SciFi #MFRWhooks

Hiring a voiceover artist takes time and patience. I found mine on Fiverr. Here's how it went.

Hiring a Voiceover Artist

Be prepared to listen to samples and watch video reels. This can be fun. You will see many different levels of expertise.

You might get lucky and find the right person on the first try, but I had specifics in mind and that made it a bit more daunting.

If you'd like to search for a voice actor yourself, try this link. Fiverr Voice Actors

Giving a Voice to Pietas

In 2018, I worked with the Russian cosplayer Nik Nitsvetov, who is a dead ringer for Pietas. After he recreated the Ritual of Strength from the book, Origin of Pietas, I decided to find a voiceover artist who could give Pietas a voice.

I wanted someone with at least a slight English accent, as if he'd learned English from someone in the UK. And he'd been born in Wales, so that was important to pull into the sound.

Also, Pietas has a tenor voice, not too deep. He speaks properly. The immortal king is a perfectionist who demands the best of himself and others, so he had to enunciate each word without sounding like he was reading a script.

Are you thinking -- you are one crazy woman, Kayelle. Where are you going to find someone like that? And how could you afford it? Yeah, I was thinking the same thing.

I decided to try Fiverr. I've been lucky at getting help there over the last few years. I recommend giving it a try if you need help on a quick project -- or a long one. I've successfully added automation to my newsletter, engaged Twitter followers (not bought them) and created more than one video, and I've hired several artists. I'll share info on those in another post.

After listening to bajillion different samples of voiceover artists, I settled with one. Got the sample back, and hired him ($60). He did a great job, but I wasn't quite satisfied. I decided to try again. The next one also cost me $60. Yet I still wasn't happy with the final product.

Should I try one more time, I wondered. You know what they say about the third time being a charm? Well it was true on this one, because I found someone who sounded EXACTLY the way I hear Pietas in my head.

Here are the three voice artists (each sample under 20 seconds). One is no longer on Fiverr. I'll provide links to the ones that are.

Each created a sample using this dialogue:

"No. I cannot imagine settling down with the same person for eternity. How mundane. It would take a special person indeed. I have, however, cohabitated with the same person for centuries and been quite happy. At least at first."

Voice talent artist Lukedact records professional voiceovers in a British accent. You can hire him here. https://www.fiverr.com/lukedact

Drywvoiceover has left Fiverr and I have no contact information for him. Here is his sample.

Hiring a voiceover artist for Pietas #PietasFans #SciFi #MFRWhooks


Zack from Zack Black Voiceovers was the perfect candidate for voicing Pietas. He is now a member of my Creative Team. You can hear him on the Ritual of Strength video, with performer Nik Nitsvetov as Pietas. Here is Zack's sample.

 

Is it any wonder I went with Zack? I'll be posting a video next week using Zack's voice and Nik's performance to answer a few questions. I hope to see you then.

Comments or questions about working with a voiceover actor? Pop a note in the comments. I'll be glad to help if I can.

Check the links below to find more authors in this blog hop.

Pick up the first story in the Bringer of Chaos series, Lights Out, free by joining a reader group!
https://kayelleallen.com/reader-groups

Origin of Pietas

Origin of Pietas: Bringer of Chaos #SpaceOpera #SciFi

Forged in Fire

Forged in Fire: Bringer of Chaos #SpaceOpera #SciFi

Lights Out

Lights Out: Bringer of Chaos #SpaceOpera #SciFi


JOIN US FOR BOOKHOOKS
Book Hooks is a weekly meme hosted by Marketing for Romance Writers as part of the MFRW Authors Blog. It's a chance each week for you the reader to discover current works in progress or previously published books by possibly new-to-you authors. Thank you for stopping by. Please say hello or leave a note in the comments.

In this scene from At the Mercy of Her Pleasure, NarrAy Jorlan has just met Senth Antonello for the first time. She’s taking it slow, sizing him up for the job at hand. Usually, men are distracted by her pheromones, but on this occasion, she finds herself on the distracted side.

Do Opposites Attract?

NarrAy crossed her legs, exposing a good portion of her skin under the short dress. If she’d been sitting opposite Senth, the length might have been welcome. But his father lounged in that chair and Senth sat beside her on the couch. Her position put her a little closer to him.

“Empress Destoiya murdered my parents,” NarrAy continued her story, “as surely as if she’d been the one who shot them in the back. They were scientists working on secret technology. When rumors got out that they were planning to give their findings to the rebellion, the Conqueror had them killed and then confiscated everything, including their personal belongings. There was a locket my mother inherited from my grandmother, which my grandmother inherited from her grandmother. It’s mine and I want it back.”

She met Senth’s penetrating gaze and held it. She heard rather than saw Encie enter the room and take up a place near the door. Broxus moved to stand beside her. NarrAy couldn’t take her gaze off Senth. How did I ever see him as a boy?

He had a man’s hands, well-groomed nails and sinewy forearms that revealed power and strength. His biceps bulged. Angular jaw, a firm mouth with lips made for kissing. A hot flutter rose within her and she tamped it down at once, refusing to let her pheromones get the upper hand.

Senth watched her, gaze narrowed, head tilted. He gave a sniff and then eased into a smile. His proximity heightened her desire. He smelled clean, fresh and ruggedly male. A tingle signaled the imminent letdown of her pheromones and she clenched her hands into fists, fighting to calm the spike of lust flickering through her like a torch about to combust.

Senth’s faint smile revealed nothing, but he lifted his head, sniffing the air. Kin could smell emotion and desire. Could HalfKin?

He asked me something. Pay attention to business and not your body. She sat up straighter. “I’m sorry. Would you repeat that, please?”

“What I said was no one hires a level-nineteen thief, transports him to another world to break into a government building and then wants him to steal back a locket with sentimental value. Especially one in the custody of the Conqueror. What’s it really worth?”

“It’s a priceless heirloom.” She set a hand against her bosom.

Senth didn’t follow her hand movement. Instead he tilted his head as he leaned back against the couch. “I’m more skilled at this job than you are beautiful, NarrAy and that’s saying something. Tell me the truth.”

Her cheeks warmed. When had she ever blushed over an offhand compliment?

At the Mercy of Her Pleasure

Antonello Brothers 1: a Scifi Romance
At the Mercy of Her Pleasure is a military science fiction romance set in a dystopian world. The standalone story has a heat level of PG13 and a happy ending.
Hired to steal back a prototype taken by the imperial armada, Senth Antonello retrieves it, but his brother is kidnapped to force Senth to surrender the device.
Now he has to rescue his brother, outsmart the armada, and keep the item out of imperial hands. All doable, except for one small problem. He must do it in the company of NarrAy Jorlan, a genetically altered woman whose pheromones could enhance the mission or crumble it into dust with a single siren kiss.
He’s a thief. She’s a soldier. Do opposites attract? Oh, mercy!

Genre: Sweet Romance, Science Fiction Romance, Sci Fi
Heat level: PG13 – sweet romance with kick
Publisher: Romance Lives Forever Books
Series: Antonello Brothers (standalone books)
Universal book link https://books2read.com/ab-at-mercy

The sequel for this book is For Women Only.

Giveaway

Download the free printable Antonello Brothers Coloring Book
https://kayelleallen.com/media/coloring-book-antonello.pdf


JOIN US FOR BOOKHOOKS
Book Hooks is a weekly meme hosted by Marketing for Romance Writers as part of the MFRW Authors Blog. It’s a chance each week for you the reader to discover current works in progress or previously published books by possibly new-to-you authors. Thank you for stopping by. Please say hello or leave a note in the comments.

Your queen is risking her life. Show some respect #Excerpt The Last Vhalgenn #Fantasy #MFRWhooks

 

 

The Last Vhalgenn

Duty.

Honor.

Ritual.

One of these things
may kill her.

The Vhalgenn is the last of her kind, a companion bred to serve the king. Duty and honor burn in her blood.

When the queen begs for a secret blessing to save the newborn prince, the Vhalgenn answers.

But when she takes the babe to the queen's homeland for the ritual, what she discovers could topple the king and overthrow the kingdom.

To save them, she must abandon every last thing she holds sacred, and do the one thing that will destroy her own heart...

Excerpt from The Last Vhalgenn

Duty has shaped the Vhalgenn's life since birth, but to protect the newborn heir, she must betray all she holds sacred.

In this scene from The Last Vhalgenn, the heroine, Raik, has just bathed and eaten, and is alone with King Orix. They grew up together, but his new queen barred Raik from the palace. Raik is back to deliver news of a battle and while delighted to be with Orix, is nervous about his queen discovering them.

---

Orix set his fingers beneath my chin, and turned my face up to his. "You're more than pretty. You're magnificent. My queen has never once sat near the fire with me and talked."

It had been our nightly ritual. "Never?"

"Never." He brushed my hair back from my face. "I've learned to get along with her, Vhalgenn, but I never had to learn anything with you. We grew up with one another. You were my partner in everything I did. My lover, my sister, my sparring partner, my best friend. My everything."

I lifted my head to look up at him. As I did, his mouth came down on mine. A feverish chill coursed through me at his touch. I'd wanted his mouth from the moment I'd seen him on his throne. Orix could not help but be languid and sultry and hot. I felt desire emanating from him like heat from an oven with its door ajar. It scorched my face and I drew in a shallow breath, afraid of being burnt.

Resisting him was something I had never done, except in play. He thought I meant it that way now and made as if to pressure me, until he saw my eyes were brimming.

"Please, Orix. Don't." I pushed myself away from him. "I can't."

He frowned, confused. For him, life was simple. A need? Fulfill it. Thirsty? Drink. Hungry? Eat. Lusty? Love.

"Half the palace must know I'm here. Do you think your queen will let this go unnoticed? She'll have someone in here to check on me before the night's through and I won't be thrown out again, Orix. I couldn't bear it."

"Vhalgenn, I promise. She'll never know."

"No!" I moved away from him. "She's no fool. She's your queen and she's risking her life to have your child. The least you can do is be faithful."

The look of horror on his face tore out a piece of my heart. Then I realized he was looking past me.

His pregnant queen stood in the darkness, right outside the door.

Publisher Romance Lives Forever Books
Universal book link https://books2read.com/u/mYgNnp

Pick up a free, behind the scenes illustrated book and "see" the countryside of this world.

 

Be sure to check below for all the other authors in this hop.


Free Illustrated Starter Set

Pick up a free illustrated starter set when you subscribe to my newsletter.

KayelleAllen.com/Reader-Groups

 

Pick up five free books when you subscribe to my newsletter.


 


JOIN US FOR BOOKHOOKS
Book Hooks is a weekly meme hosted by Marketing for Romance Writers as part of the MFRW Authors Blog.
It's a chance each week for you the reader to discover current works in progress or previously published books by possibly new-to-you authors.
Thank you for stopping by. Please say hello or leave a note in the comments.

The Ugly Christmas Sweater, T-shirt version

 

The Ugly Christmas Sweater... Shirt.

In this scene, the hero, Scott, finds the dreaded ugly Christmas sweater, his in shirt form, a gift from his mother.

The Christmas Sweater / Shirt

In his old room, Scott stripped out of his uniform and put on sweatpants and slippers. On his bed was the loose T-shirt with a blond-haired elf on the front that his mother had given him the year before. The elf was shirtless, wearing red boxer shorts with holly on them, and he was licking a candy cane while dangling a round ornament on one finger of his other hand. Some people got an ugly Christmas sweater. His mom gave him the T-shirt version he could wear all year. Yay. Lucky him.

Upon seeing the shirt when Scott unwrapped it, a cousin had started singing, "Don we now our gay apparel..." and had broken into riotous laughter. That didn't stop the family from insisting he wear it. He was sure he'd asked Mary to give it to Goodwill, so how it had shown up again this year he couldn't explain. Yet, there it was. It could only have come from one person.

"The things we do for our mothers." Scott slipped it on over his head and headed for the kitchen.

He leaned against the door jamb, enjoying the sight. His mother was chopping things for the stuffing and adding them to her biggest bowl. His dad sat at the end of the counter, reading a Popular Science magazine. Neither seemed to pay attention to the other, but while his mother was cooking, Dad always kept her company. She'd crochet in a wooden rocker in the garage while he worked on the boat he was building. As if they couldn't bear to be parted from one another, even though they didn't talk much. Maybe they didn't need words.

Scott had thought he and his wife would be the same, but he and Mary had shared a different lifestyle. Both were often busy, and sometimes saw each other only in passing. He'd worked nights, and she'd worked days. She'd had a downtown office, working as an architect for government housing. Time spent outdoors had given her a great tan, but exposed her to hazardous toxins no one had known were in the old buildings being demolished. When she fainted at work, the company sent her in for a check up. After the diagnosis, the project had been shut down immediately, but cancer took a quick toll. Mary was gone in six months. A government investigation into the cause was still ongoing.

Scott now had sole custody of a four-year old daughter and a job that took him into danger every day. He'd shifted to the downtown beat and day shift because it seemed safer, and he could still do what he loved doing: Helping people.

A Romance for Christmas

On Amazon, when you purchase the paperback for a friend, you can get a Kindle version for yourself at no cost. Once you buy the paperback, go to the Kindle version of the book and refresh the page. It will tell you the book is available at no cost. Merry Christmas!

Paperback: http://amzn.to/2nBb37J

 

Image credits: In my honest opinion, this elf is the cutest thing ever!
Created by author/artist Janet E Jones

It's Christmas Eve and a cop is at the door... #SweetRomance #MFRWhooks

Meet the heroine of Crystal Clear Truth #SciFi #Romance #MFRWhooks

Shohn Lexius is a Kin, a catlike alien who looks mostly human. She's been in multiple books, but always as a supporting character. She has a major supporting role in A Stolen Heart, the first book in the Antonello Brothers series. It seemed fitting she should get a starring role in the final* book of the series.

This is her first time having a point-of-view role, and she was full of surprises.

In this excerpt, we meet her at the start of her journey in Crystal Clear Truth.
*"Final" subject to character approval ;)

Excerpt edited for most current content - Mar 2022

Though she ached to slam it, Shohn Lexius eased her office door shut, then took a civil and polite step back. Hissing, she swiped the air with her claws and stuck the smallest ones straight up.

Claws retracted, she stalked to the narrow window, braced her hands on the sill and pressed her forehead to the glass. The spring sun offered no heat. And why? Because on human worlds, builders installed special glass so their precious little sun wouldn't hurt their precious fragile skin.

Humans. Honestly.

Oh, all right, she'd admit human skin was sleek. Nice to stroke. She even liked its smoothness against her tongue, but come on. Would it hurt so much to let in a little heat?

Humans protected themselves from such trivial 'dangers' as sunbeams. On this world, indoor temperatures never fluctuated. And forget opening a window.

Not on the seventieth floor of the city's tallest building.

She laid back her ears, aching for the fresh air of her homeworld. The freedom of a hynder beneath her, galloping full speed in sunshine along the beach. Charging through the forests, cantering in the rain. A purr rumbled in her chest at the memories.

Working up an honest sweat mucking out stalls, tending the stock, shoulder to shoulder with family, everyone laughing and singing. Accepting her word that when she asked for something, she should get it. No one telling her how much money she could spend or asking why she needed it. She reined in her thoughts. That was her old self talking.

The person of privilege her family had reared her to be, not the fighter for equality she'd become. Sometimes, though, living off-world rankled. Here she was, a Kin warrior with the honor blade at her side to prove it, stuck working in a human-oriented office on the capitol planet of what she'd once considered her people's enemy.

Well, she'd brought this on herself, hadn't she? She'd left her homeworld of her own accord. It was her fault she spent every day with round-eyed humans whose ears could hear a third less than her own. A race oblivious to the overpowering reek of its own species.

Not that humans stank, individually. At least, not once they shed themselves of the cloud of cleaners and so-called deodorizers that added more scent to what was already there. But put a crowd of 'clean' humans in a room?

She hissed at the thought.

A Kin's sense of kahlah caught the scent of human lies no matter how small. A handy skill during interrogations. She knew before a human spoke if they would try to pull a fast one, and they all tried. As for the tartness of their fear, well, a clawed Kin had better get used to that pretty fast, because a fanged smile was no help whatsoever.

A knock at the door pulled her back to here and now. She picked up a notereader tablet and fanned herself, dispersing any scent of frustration she might have released.

After straightening her green-and-black uniform jacket, she squared her shoulders. "Come."

Here's the blurb so far for the new book. I plan for this to be the last book in the Antonello Brothers series. We'll see! Sometimes characters have other plans.

Crystal Clear Truth - Antonello Brothers series #5

His entire life, Joe worked for this moment: Terraforming Specialist First Class, assigned to the firestorm planet. Yet tragedy mars the day with the accidental death of both parents. Grief-stricken, he plods through family decisions and moves forward, surviving day by day. While reading his mother's handwritten diary, he discovers a folded flatpic of a teenaged girl and the cryptic words, "our son's mother." He searches for details, determined to know more.

When a friend asks Shohn to help a locate someone, she jumps at the chance. She's researching the firestorm planet for her employer, who seeks access to eyes-only information. Helping Joe might be her opportunity to uncover long-hidden secrets.

A window on a new world. Sneak peek at Crystal Clear Truth #SciFi #Romance

As their unexpected friendship deepens into more, each mystery they solve reveals yet another hidden layer. The truth they seek could immobilize interstellar commerce in the empire. To protect the Empire they both love, they must solve the riddle behind the elusive young woman in the picture, and trust one another.

But how can they trust when the "truth" they've been fed is a lie?

A slow-burn, forced proximity romance set in the far, far future in an empire full of treachery, mystery, and long-hidden secrets...

Antonello Brothers

Click covers for the buy link. Click text for the website page and excerpts.

#SciFi #Romance


JOIN US FOR BOOKHOOKS
Book Hooks is a weekly cooperative meme hosted by Marketing for Romance Writers as part of the MFRW Authors Blog.
It's a chance each week for you the reader to discover current works in progress or previously published books by possibly new-to-you authors.
Thank you for stopping by. Please say hello or leave a note in the comments.

You'll find these characters mentioned in many books in my story universe.
Download a printable book list and check them off as you read.

Characters mentioned on this page might be found in multiple books in my story universe. Download a printable book list and check them off as you read.


~ Copyright ©2024 Kayelle Allen. All rights reserved ~ Kayelle Allen participates in the Amazon Services LLC Associates program, an affiliate advertising program which provides the means for sites to earn fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com. If you purchase an item listed on the site from Amazon.com, Kayelle will earn a small commission. Other sites might be affiliate links as well. These will not result in higher prices for you. Thank you for your support!


To experience art, sci-fi, romance, and space opera with unstoppable, unshakeable, unforgettable characters so real you'll swear you've met them, join me on Ream Stories!

Crystal Clear Truth - a slow-burn, forced proximity scifi alien romance set in the far future, in an empire full of treachery and secrets

Crystal Clear Truth is supposed to be the final* book in the Antonello Brothers series.

I said that when I wrote book #2 also, so there's that.

This excerpt introduces the hero, Joe Townsend.

In this excerpt, we meet him at the start of his journey in Crystal Clear Truth.
*Subject to character approval ;)

Meet Joe - Crystal Clear Truth

Tarthian Empire, Kyrenie
Fenris City, Taskya District
Birit 53

 

The barren house echoed the void inside. Empty places looked back, demanding a reaction. But Joe Townsend the third had nothing left to give.

From the moment he'd learned of his folks' accidental death, life had screamed past him like a banshee. The never-ending whirlwind of people needing around-the-clock decisions sucked his energy dry. He leaned against the inside of his parents' front door and slid down.

Today, he'd said his formal goodbyes at their memorial. He'd smiled like a wooden soldier at the unending I'm-so-sorrys and the non-stop oh-poor-Joe-how-are-you-doings.

How did they think he was doing?

Life had plunged him into a lightless, inescapable world of sympathetic platitudes.

How could he move forward when everywhere he looked, the past held him fast?

How could he move forward when every step led him further away from the people he'd loved most?

How could he move forward and lever past this pain?

There had to be a better way to handle heartbreak. A saner way.

Joe stood and dusted himself off. He would throw himself into his work. That's what his dad always--

A fresh ache swept over him.

"Whatever you can't change, accept and work through, Son. Focus on what you can do, what you have to do, and don't waste time looking back."

Joe braced an arm across his stomach. Would he ever think of his father's words of wisdom again without this foreboding sensation of loss? This sense that part of himself was missing? Or of his mother and her strength? Her abiding belief in him, encouraging him, guiding the way?

Dragging his feet, Joe staggered through the house, back to the room that had been his when he lived here as a boy, now stripped bare. His parents had put the house on the market and accepted an offer weeks prior to their deaths. They'd put everything in storage, preparing to move. The new owners would arrive tomorrow.

Nothing remained of the place Joe had once called his haven.

There was no home to go to. Starting tomorrow, this place would be someone else's. Not his parents'. Not his. Not anymore.

This sterile room symbolized everything he'd lost.

He couldn't think about this tonight. Couldn't think about work, even work he'd been preparing for his whole life.

Joe had longed for the opportunity to work at his father's side. The pride he'd felt when appointed had rivaled the thrill of collaborating with him. The joy of raw discovery, uncovering new truths while pushing the frontiers of knowledge to the nth degree.

Now, he was taking his father's place instead. Trying to fill shoes he would never be worthy to wear.

Right this moment, success was a meaningless distraction.

Exhausted, he curled up in the middle of the floor, surrounded by nothing but loss. He'd spend one last night in this empty shell of a place he'd once considered home.

Come morning, he'd walk away forever.

Antonello Brothers

Click covers for the buy link. Click text for the website page and excerpts.

#SciFi #Romance


Welcome to Book Hooks!
Book Hooks is a weekly cooperative meme hosted by Marketing for Romance Writers as part of the MFRW Authors Blog.
It's a chance each week for you to discover current works in progress or previously published books by possibly new-to-you authors.
Thank you for stopping by. Please say hello or leave a note in the comments.

You'll find these characters mentioned in multiple books in my story universe. Download a printable book list and check them off as you read.

Characters mentioned on this page might be found in multiple books in my story universe. Download a printable book list and check them off as you read.


~ Copyright ©2024 Kayelle Allen. All rights reserved ~ Kayelle Allen participates in the Amazon Services LLC Associates program, an affiliate advertising program which provides the means for sites to earn fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com. If you purchase an item listed on the site from Amazon.com, Kayelle will earn a small commission. Other sites might be affiliate links as well. These will not result in higher prices for you. Thank you for your support!


To experience art, sci-fi, romance, and space opera with unstoppable, unshakeable, unforgettable characters so real you'll swear you've met them, join me on Ream Stories!