The long term goal of Gentle's journey on Twitch has been to get his foot in the door with Audible and make a career out of narration. And he's begun! He has now provided professional narration for two books, both on sale now.
Shipyard Days & Nights (A dark comedy slice of life memoir)
Coming of Age in New Milford (A wholesome and wholly fictional bit of Americana)
Follow any of the links below (Audible uses country specific codes) if you want to show your support. Seriously, follow our link, sign up for at least 2 months and download the book and we get a kickback that is equivalent of subscribing to our channel for 2 years. Or just download it, leave a review and spread the word. That's good too!
Shipyard Days & Nights ---
United States https://www.audible.com/pd/B0CCG9R1JJ/?source_code=AUDFPWS0223189MWU-BK-ACX0-358793&ref=acx_bty_BK_ACX0_358793_pd_us
United Kingdom https://www.audible.co.uk/pd/B0CCGDT1KW/?source_code=AUKFrDlWS02231890H7-BK-ACX0-358793&ref=acx_bty_BK_ACX0_358793_pd_uk
Coming Of Age In New Milford ---
United States https://www.audible.com/pd/B0CN3T6Z1G/?source_code=AUDFPWS0223189MWU-BK-ACX0-373735&ref=acx_bty_BK_ACX0_373735_pd_us
United Kingdom https://www.audible.co.uk/pd/B0CN3V72RX/?source_code=AUKFrDlWS02231890H7-BK-ACX0-373735&ref=acx_bty_BK_ACX0_373735_pd_uk
Understanding the provenance of my name will tell you a lot about me. I love my surname of Fox so I had to include it. And as the number of streamers with fox in their name can attest, it's evocative, memorable and fun. But why gentle? Well, I have come to read softly and to provide comforting words in a soothing voice. Between that and my propensity for hugs (one friend even calls me Totoro), I couldn't think of a more apropos word. As for the ASMR... did you know that Twitch won't let you change your name for two months? I certainly didn't until I was already committed, but that's how it goes when you're new and honestly, it's growing on me.
So why am I doing this? I have for years been told, by colleagues, customers and strangers alike, that I am wasting myself working in customer service. Apparently they like my voice. So I thought I'd put it to work and have a bit of fun. Streaming has its challenges, but it's already more emotionally rewarding than trying to break into a brutally competitive field like voiceovers or even audiobooks. I like hearing back from my audience, about anything at all, and building the community experience a word at a time. And each time someone falls asleep to my voice, I enjoy the same satisfaction I might have felt if I'd ever become a father, reading to someone full of hopes and dreams and promise.
Beyond that though, I'm hoping that livestreaming will really become a staple of my second act. I'll be retiring in the not too distant future, and traveling the world in pursuit of volunteerism and unique moments wherever I may roam. If I can master this craft well enough, perhaps you'll be able to come with. Isn't that a rather nice dream?
If you read the quick bio, you'll know I am a linguist. This is by passion, not training. I am conversant in Spanish and Russian, have a smattering of Italian, Swahili, Japanese, Polish, Tumbuku and Basque. And for some reason I collect language dictionaries. Seriously, if you want to hear a bit of Mayan or Hawaiian, Guarani or Urdu, I will go to the shelf.
You may also have read that I'm a geographer. That /is/ by training, though I've hardly utilized it professionally. I've published a few maps and studied the world, but that degree has mostly fostered a sense of wanderlust I'll be exploring the rest of my life.
Enough about me. Let's read!
Let's talk a bit about copyright law. Twitch respects it and so do I. The fair use provisions for copyrighted materials are intentionally vague. They generally allow the unauthorized use of significant excerpts only for purposes of parody, scholarship and review. So what does that mean for a soft-reading channel? For anything published since the 1920's there is a risk of censure, if not by the copyright holder, than by Twitch itself. So if you are itching to hear Harry Potter or Eragon or Holes, be prepared to tell me exactly which small excerpts you want to hear.
1) RESPECT THE MODS 2) ENGLISH ONLY - I may well be able to follow you in Spanish, Russian or a smattering of other tongues, but I'll be busy reading stories. It's just best to keep things in English, especially if my mods are present. 3) NO POLITICS OR RELIGION unless they are directly related to the work being read. 4) EXPLICIT RACISM, SEXISM, OR ABUSE is grounds for a timeout or ban with or without warning.
So you've decided to support our channel, have you? Your interest alone speaks volumes, though generosity is always appreciated. Even a small contribution can have a huge impact on a channel and there are ample opportunities here, especially with regard to the core hardware (lighting, cameras, mics) (see also, my wishlist). In any event, if you do donate, you are attesting that you have lawful access to any funds used and are aware that they cannot be refunded.
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