Leslie Diamond

Double Divas 2 Toronto

Leslie Diamond — Sat, 17 Sep 2011 23:21:27 +0000

Double Diva’s East Meets West VO Adventure Workshop is one of the best steps I could take on my voiceover journey. Do not pass up the opportunity to work with Debbie Munro and Elley-Ray Hennessey. These two Canadian voiceover powerhouses will keep you on your toes the entire weekend and pull out of you talents you never thought you had. They generously shared information on marketing, branding, agents, unions, vocal exercises, monologue and dialogue work, narration and advanced character techniques, and many other tricks of the trade. The atmosphere was comfortable and relaxed and everyone felt free to play. Their critiques were spot on. Deb and Elley-Ray also invited a panel of experts from various aspects of our business. All-in-all, not a moment wasted. Seriously! West Coast or East Coast – catch these ladies in action. You won’t regret it.

Trish’s Twitter Training!

Leslie Diamond — Sat, 20 Aug 2011 04:53:19 +0000

OMG! Trish Basanyi is an amazing teacher. I can recognize one when I see one – I taught for 27+ years. Thanks to John Florian and VoiceOverXtra for hosting Voice Over Super Socials, Trish taught us all we needed to know about using Twitter effectively – and then some. Today, I listened to her webinar again, took notes, and I’ve been twittering like crazy ever since. If she decides to offer this course again, don’t miss it.

Catch Dave Courvoisier presenting LinkedIn, Voice Over Universe, Google+, and YouTube on August 24th. Go to VoiceOverXtra to sign up.

My Year-long Adventure

Leslie Diamond — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 17:23:46 +0000

I’ve missed you, dear reader. I’ve been away almost one year. Busy moving into a new home in a new city and selling our previous home. In the interim, I’ve dealt with open houses, construction, landscaping, heating and cooling, telephone, internet, satellite, sprinkler systems, generators, tool sheds, bike paths, getting familiar with my new studio set-up (thank you, Dan Lenard), awnings and patios, gas lines, finding my way around my new city, Buffalo, enjoying my new neighbors, making new friends, finding new doctors, decorating, family events, new clients, old clients – it’s been quite a year. Finally feeling settled in and loving it.

And ready to share with all of you.

Right now, I’m looking forward to spending some time with Mom and Dad and my brother Mike, celebrating my 24th wedding anniversary; then learning all I can at Double Divas in Toronto, and Faffcon 3 in Hershey before the High Holidays begin. Life is good and very busy.

I’m Back!

Leslie Diamond — Sun, 17 Jul 2011 20:02:22 +0000

Joey came home one day last June and said, “I’ve had enough, Honey. Start looking.” He’d had enough of driving back and forth from Rochester to Buffalo and back again every day for work. He wanted me to start house hunting. While house hunting on-line and with a Buffalo realtor, I began the process of downsizing our existing home: closets, drawers, cabinets, the basement, the toolshed. It’s amazing how much stuff two people can collect in just 10 years. Most of the stuff I donated, or packed, the rest trashed. Now I began driving to and from Buffalo in an effort to find our new home. Three months later, we found it in Clarence Center. Back and forth offers, an agreement, and the paperwork began. Mounds of paperwork. What a difference in regulations and wasted paper from this transaction compared to my first two homes. Real Estate is now a nightmare.

Voice 2010!

Leslie Diamond — Sun, 06 Jun 2010 20:08:01 +0000

Dan Lenard, Jodi Krangle, Leslie Diamond

The Sneeze Audition is Back!

Leslie Diamond — Fri, 21 May 2010 13:54:34 +0000

I got a call Tuesday from a “NYC Casting Agent.” His “name” was Tom Walsh. He said he found my website, listened to my voice, and thought I was perfect for the new allergy product commercial his client wanted made. The only thing – he had to make sure I could sneeze on cue! He asked me what my sneeze sounded like and then told me to sniff a pinch of black pepper and then a sniff of cayenne!! But his phone number came up “Blocked” on my iPhone, and he wouldn’t answer me when I asked him the name of his agency.

I played along (hoping some bit of information would help me identify him) for as long as I could; but the sleazy scammer eventually tired of his game. He said he would call back in a couple of days. Of course, he did no such thing.

I shared with Debbie Munro (who was coaching me at the time) what had happened. She told me scams will occasionally hit our business like any other. Voice actors are eager to please and there’s the unusual request from a client now and then, but we need to be vigilant. She said to check with Bobbin Beam, who had written an article about this kind of thing.

I googled “sneeze audition scam,” and Bobbin Beam’s excellent article for VoiceOverXtra popped up. Please click http://www.voiceoverxtra.com/article.htm?id=3gkovc8l to read it. It’s an eye-opener.

What a shame that this guy has nothing better to do with his life than call busy professionals with phony scams. Poor thing. I guess he hasn’t thought about taking the time he wastes on his scams and using that time to help others.

A Special Colleague

Leslie Diamond — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 01:49:03 +0000

Male Voice Talent Peter K. O'Connell and Female Voice Talent Leslie Diamond

I had the most amazing evening. I attended the 7th Annual RAF Freelance Creative Expo at the Museum of Art in Rochester, NY. This was my first time in attendance; I wasn’t sure what to expect. I slowly made my way around the room, meeting each exhibitor, learning about their craft, exchanging business conversation and cards, when – surprise! Peter K. O’Connell of audio’connell Voice Over Talent had a wonderful table display of all things audio’connell. I was thrilled to see Peter in my “backyard” – he is one of Western New York’s super voice talents. After exchanging an “It’s great to see you!” hug, Peter invited me to share his exhibit and talk voice acting with fellow attendees. Peter is a consummate professional and a genuine people person. He took the time to learn something about each person he met, and then shared how professional voice acting could make their work even better. He introduced me to everyone who stopped at the table and shared each conversation. What fun! Peter radiates the kind of fundamental decency and generosity that has a name in Yiddish – he’s a mensch. Thank you, Peter.

Looking to Think Outside the Box?

Leslie Diamond — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 22:57:58 +0000

Mac Anderson, Founder of Simple Truths, reminds us that coming up with new ideas is easier than letting go of the old ones. To spark your imagination, check out “The Paper Airplane Movie.” http://www.paperairplanemovie.com/

Phishers and Scammers: A Plague on Both Their Houses!

Leslie Diamond — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 04:52:59 +0000

As a relatively computer savvy person, there’s nothing more embarrassing or frustrating than getting hacked. It happened to me this week. Someone had nothing better to do than to use a third-party connection to annoy my Twitter buddies in my name. GRRRRRRR! It feels akin to having one’s wallet stolen. I contacted Twitter and followed their advice:

“Due to concern that your account may have been compromised in a phishing attack that took place off-Twitter, your password was reset. Please create a new password by opening this link (Twitter provides one) in your browser. This will reset your password. Remember to choose a strong password that is a combination of letters, numbers, and symbols. Do not reuse your old password. As a reminder, you should be extraordinarily suspicious of any third party that offers to artificially inflate your follower count. We do not endorse any of these sites.

Please make sure to:

Scan your computers for viruses / malware, especially if unauthorized tweets continue to be posted in your accounts even after you’ve changed the password.
Check the Connections page at and revoke the access privileges of any third party applications that you do not recognize.
Avoid providing your username and/or e-mail and password to untrusted third-party sites.
Remove any updates that you did not post personally.

You can also visit our help page for hacked or compromised accounts.”

Having taken care of Twitter, I went through all my important accounts and changed passwords, even though Twitter was the only account affected.

Thank goodness my Twitter buddies were understanding. Nonetheless, from now on I will be even more vigilant.

When was the last time you changed your passwords?

Hear My Voice – Voice Actors Helping Those In Need In Haiti

Leslie Diamond — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 19:30:15 +0000

From VoiceOverXtra.com: “The victims of the Haiti earthquake continue to need help, of course. And a voice-over event just announced for next Wednesday night, Feb. 10, will send all proceeds to the Red Cross’s Haiti relief efforts - plus deliver to you a stirring evening discussion with some of the industry’s leading audiobook narrators. Hear My Voice – Voice Actors Helping Those In Need, is a unique tele-conference in which industry giants will share stories, advice and perspectives on making your way in the audiobook industry. It’s slated for 8 to 10 p.m. EST and will conclude with a 30-minute Q&A between panelists and the online attendees. The event is the brainchild of David Bourgeois, owner of Voice Coaches, the voice-over training firm, and David Goldberg, owner/producer Edge Studio, the voice-over training and audio production company. Bourgeois and Goldberg will co-host the event. Narrators currently on the growing list of narrators are Alan Sklar, Carol Monda and Grover Gardner. And remember, you’ll be able to talk with them live during the Q&A.”

“How to Attend: Participants will receive a dial-in PIN and an access code to attend the conference. Following the event, participants will also receive a link to download the audio, to replay it at home anytime. To attend, a minimum $25 registration donation is suggested, but larger donations are encouraged. All proceeds will go directly to the Red Cross’ Haiti relief efforts, say the sponsors. For more about the panelists and to register, please visit: www.voicecoaches.com/hearmyvoice “