(and do you have the selfies to back it up?)

Yesterday marked a milestone in my career.

My first audiobook title for Penguin Random House Audio was released - King of Thieves by Karina Halle.

It wasn't a massive role - I literally voiced the last chapter.

But it was a great project to be involved in, and huge credit must go to the AUDIO PUBLISHERS ASSOCIATION for helping to get me in front of the right people.

So what's the 'big five'?

In the audiobook world, these are the most established, reputable publishers in the business:

Penguin
Hachette
Macmillan
Harper Collins
Simon & Schuster

That doesn't mean they do all the best books.  But for 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦 narrators, getting on their rosters is a clear target to aim for.  I'm currently working on a project with my second 'big five' client this week 💪

But perhaps most interestingly, until I'd started working in the genre, I'd never once heard of this 'top five' concept despite being a full-time voice actor for seven years.

In video games there is a similar parallel when it comes to production houses (for the UK market at least).  Audio for a LOT of the big titles are produced at:

Side
OMUK
Molinare
Liquid Violet
Bigmouth Audio
Pitstop Productions

Do you need to have worked with them to make a sustainable career?

Absolutely not.

And most of the general public wouldn't know their significance at all.

But if you're aiming to consistently be involved in the biggest projects of the gaming world, you're likely crossing paths with them at some point.

Such list building can be incredibly useful for providing structure to your goals. If you have a target to aim at, then you're aware of whether you're taking steps toward it.

The flip side is when you're on the outside looking in...

Taking the obligatory actor-selfie outside one of the above studios is a great way of logging your achievement and  sharing that you're operating at a high level without breaking NDAs.

I do them for precisely that reason - it's the low hanging fruit of the social-proof variety.

But if you've never worked at such a studio and see lots of your peers there... that's when such concepts become less conducive to one's mental health.

So I'd be intrigued if other industries have a 'top x' equivalent in them.  And if so, do you find such thinking useful or a hindrance?

Feel free to contact me here and we can discuss your voiceover needs directly

By Christopher Tester, British Male Voice Actor