You’ve probably heard the phrase practice makes perfect.

Another way to say it is practice makes possible.

That couldn’t be more true when it comes to voice acting.

There’s no way pursuing a voice over career will be possible without hours and hours of practice.

The downfall of most new voice actors is the idea that it will be easy.

You just talk, right? Wrong.

You’ll find out quickly (probably already have) that’s not the case. And hopefully you won’t get too discouraged when the reality of what it takes to make it as a voice actor doesn’t match up with your expectations.

Setting proper expectations that match the reality of becoming a successful voice actor is what we are going for here.

When something is challenging, you need to practice. And practice. And practice. And that’s not a bad thing. Anything worth having is worth the effort put in to earn it.

It should be enjoyable to practice, get better, and see your progress. You’ll feel your voice over skills sharpening through the process and that’s an amazing feeling!

So how do you sharpen your voice acting skills?

With practice.

Practice Voice Acting Scripts: Where to find them and what to do next.

I’ve collected several resources that will make your search for practice voice over scripts easier. We'll talk about what to do with them further down.

Voice Actors Websites - From the site: Thousands of Voiceover Practice Scripts for Voice Actors to Practice. Including Commercial, Narration, IVR, PSAs, TV Station Imaging and more. The public domain scripts listed here are provided as a free resource for voice over talent.
Edge Studio -From the site: Free Voice Over Scripts For Artists
After you Log In or Create a free account you’ll have free access to over 6,000 more practice voiceover scripts.
Such a voice - 20 practice voiceover scripts with brief direction ready to print, rip, and read!
Bunny Studio -From the site: Sample entertainment commercial voice over scripts you can use for training. As they reflect various parameters such as voice style and length, you get some idea of what to do when you get a gig in the entertainment industry.
My iSpot page - Several spots you could copy down and practice.
Voices.com has a large practice script library. (I found two places on the website.. Here and here.) -From the site: If you’re looking to script a commercial but need some help with the writing and artistic direction—or if you just want some voice over practice scripts—these samples, organized by industry, will help you to succeed. Each script features a fictional company and contains artistic direction and demographic information. You can use them as inspiration and as a guide to help build your understanding of how audio scripts are formatted.
Voice Reel Scripts

Here’s a few tips from my friend and fellow voice over coach Alyson Steel on how to find good voice over practice scripts:

All of the sites listed above have a ton of practice voice acting scripts, but some of them are Generic, Hackneyed and not always very current. Now while that may sound like a bad thing, those things can be useful. It forces the VO actor to dig deep and make the script their own! If you can bring an older script to life it will make it easier to work with fresh scripts.
You can also transcribe current Commercials from TV and Radio. Literally write it down on a piece of paper or type it up and print it. TV and Radio are great because they are running everything national that is current.
Ispot.tv is great because you can type in any product in the search bar and all of the current spots pop up. Super helpful because you can narrow your search to spots that you are interested in practicing.
YouTube is also another great place to find your own practice spots. Again, transcribing the copy, and then practicing the script. And you can search for companies and products also. Most companies have their own channel with their commercials posted and you can play them over and over. (You don’t have to just wait for the commercials to play before other videos.) For example: Search for “Target” or “Grammarly” and you can scroll through dozens of spots you can easily use for your own practice.
The key with all of this is to practice with intention. Practicing productively as opposed to rehearsing and falling into a pattern….but I digress. 😉
After you’ve practiced and recorded your takes, ask yourself how do your takes stand up to the original. Can you imagine hearing your VO on the TV, radio, or online? You can go as far as putting your voice and some music over a commercial to get a real feel of how you stand up to what's being produced out there.

* Remember these scripts are for practice only. Never use an existing voice over spot on a demo reel! Learn how to create a voice over demo reel here.

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Practice Voice Acting Scripts. What’s next?

You’ve found some great practice voice over scripts, now what?

Time to practice.

And remember, this is supposed to be fun!

If you aren’t having fun and enjoying this process take a step back and figure out why. If you are stressed and nervous it’s going to be hard to deliver an upbeat energetic read about puppy food.

Tips on how to practice working with voice acting scripts.

1) Do your homework: Learn how to break down the copy.
2) Practice with a Strong Point of View. Change it up on each read.
3) Read it out loud at least 4-5 times before hitting record.
4) Learn how to and practice doing an “a,b,c” read.
5)
Use your practice time to find out where your voice fits into the VO market. What genre are you most likely to book work in?

EXTRA TIP: Don’t over rehearse. Learn how to “rip and read” and move on.

Working with a good voice acting coach is the best way to learn these practice skills and develop your voice.

Check out my list of recommended voice over coaches.

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Carrie Olsen

I'm a full-time professional voice actor and voiceover business coach. I have done work for Taco Bell, REI, BNSF Railway, Bank of America and ESPN to name a few. I dreamed up this community of voice actors to connect, grow, learn and get mentorship from each other. We're the most dedicated group of voice actors on the net, and we're here to help each other build and sustain profitable voiceover businesses.