12 short scripts picked for your first reads, out of 1,980 in our free library. Plain language, one clear job each, and a coach's note on what to listen for.
Written by the VO Journey Academy coaching team. Updated 3 October 2026.
If you're new to voice over, start small. These scripts are short, so you can do lots of takes without getting tired. Read one cold and record it on your phone. Listen back once. Then read the coach's note on the card and try it again. Doing that every day is how you get better. The 7-day plan below tells you what to read each day.
Short commercials to start
15 and 30-second spots that any voice can read. More in the commercial library.
Midday glare off the water. Everyone's squinting except you. Even the ones who paid more.
Sunwarden polarised sunglasses. Light frames, proper lenses, and a scratch guarantee for two full summers.
Sunwarden. See the whole beach.
Direction: Bright, sunny, relaxed Aussie energy What it is for: A light sunglasses spot. Trains a relaxed, smiling read with a regional accent that stays clear. Coach's note: Watch out for letting the accent swallow the brand. 'Sunwarden' needs both syllables clean. Smile through 'polarised' without rushing it. What casting listens for: Casting wants the accent to feel lived-in, not performed. Relaxed wins.
Sun's out. Sand's hot. And you are seriously thirsty.
Crack open an ice-cold Sundial Cola. Crisp, bubbly, and cold enough to make you forget the sunburn, at least for a minute.
Sundial Cola. Summer, in a can.
Direction: Excited and sunny, a smile you can hear, crisp on the tag What it is for: The classic summer soda read in fifteen seconds. Trains energy and a tag that lands. Coach's note: Watch out for starting at full volume. The first three short lines build heat; 'Crack open' is the release. Keep 'Summer, in a can' simple. What casting listens for: Beverage casting listens for a smile. Energy is not enough if it does not sound refreshing.
It's eleven fifty-two. You have work in the morning. And the episode just ended on a cliffhanger. Literally, someone is hanging off a cliff.
Couchlight has thousands of shows and movies, from the series everyone's talking about to the film you forgot you loved. New stuff every week, on every screen you own.
So go on. One more episode. We won't tell.
Couchlight. Try it free for thirty days.
Direction: Playful, conspiratorial, a late-night grin What it is for: Comic complicity. You are on the listener's side against their own bedtime. Coach's note: Watch out for missing the joke on 'Literally, someone is hanging off a cliff.' It is a throwaway, not a punchline. And 'We won't tell' is a whisper, not a wink. What casting listens for: Streaming spots cast for personality. Casting listens for a read that feels like a friend on the couch.
Okay so I made glitter slime, and glow slime, and slime that smells like cherries, and one that's super stretchy AND squishy!
The Gloopsmith Slime Lab. It's the best mess ever. Ask a grown-up first!
Direction: Kid-sounding character, breathless and delighted; adult performer What it is for: A kid-voiced character spot. Trains a believable child energy without baby talk. Coach's note: Watch out for going squeaky. A kid voice comes from thinking like a nine-year-old: excitement, run-on breath, big emphasis on gross words. Keep the brand clear. What casting listens for: Casting listens for a kid who sounds real, not a cartoon. Specific excitement beats pitch.
Hotel & resortAdult (25-40)Neutral American1 (any)15 secondsabout 13s
The pillows are ridiculous. The robe is ridiculous. Breakfast in bed? Ridiculous.
And checkout is at noon. Which is, honestly, rude of them.
Hotel Veralune. You'll want to stay a little longer.
Direction: Sleepy-happy, a lazy stretch in the voice, then crisp on the tag What it is for: A comic mood piece in fifteen seconds. Trains a lazy energy that still lands the brand. Coach's note: Watch out for letting the sleepy tone blur the brand name. The yawn lives in the first two lines only; 'Hotel Veralune' is wide awake. What casting listens for: Hotel spots want personality in small spaces. Casting listens for a relaxed read that still sounds sharp.
All 12 scripts on this page in one printable sheet, with the 7-day plan on the first page. Leave your email and it opens straight away.
Short story reads
Audiobook excerpts of a minute or less. When you're ready for more, try the audiobook library.
The Mapmaker's Confession
Partition, South AsiaMature (55+)Neutral British1 (any)45 secondsabout 46s
By the time Cyril Radcliffe boarded his plane back to London, he had already burned his notes. He refused his fee. He never returned to India and he never spoke publicly about what he had done there — not once, in the thirty years he had left to live. He had drawn a border through a country he'd visited for five weeks, in a language he couldn't read, through villages he'd never seen. Fourteen million people were moving because of lines he'd made with a pen. He knew it. He went home, and he was quiet about it for the rest of his life, and I think that silence tells you everything the documents cannot.
What it is for: A historian's voice with an opinion. Trains the move from fact to 'I think'. Coach's note: Watch out for judging Radcliffe with your tone. The facts are the judgement. 'He knew it' is the turn, said quietly, and the 'I think' at the end should sound like the author, not a verdict. What casting listens for: Casting listens for an author-narrator who sounds as if they wrote it.
People-pleasing isn't a personality trait. It's a survival strategy — one you probably developed very young, in an environment where keeping the peace was necessary and expressing your real needs felt dangerous. It worked. It kept you safe. The problem is you're still running the same program in a life where the threat is gone, and it's costing you everything. It costs you your time, your voice, your sense of self, and eventually your relationships — because nobody can truly connect with someone who won't let them know who they actually are. This book is about learning to disappoint people on purpose. It's harder than it sounds. It's also the most freeing thing you'll ever do.
What it is for: Naming a pattern the listener recognises in themselves. Intimate and direct at once. Coach's note: Watch out for sounding clinical on 'survival strategy'. You are talking to one person about their childhood. The turn is 'learning to disappoint people on purpose'; let a small smile in there. What casting listens for: Casting listens for whether the listener would feel understood rather than diagnosed.
World politics, suffrageAdult (25-40)Neutral American1 (female)45 secondsabout 42s
On the tenth of April, 1946, less than a year after the end of the war, Japan held a general election under new rules. For the first time, women could vote. For the first time, women could stand.
About two in three eligible women turned out. And when the count was finished, thirty-nine women had been elected to the House of Representatives.
It was a remarkable number for a first attempt. It was also a number that would not be beaten for almost sixty years.
Winning a right, it turns out, is one campaign. Using it is another, and it lasts a good deal longer.
What it is for: A short, clean history cut with a reflective last line. Good audition length for non-fiction. Coach's note: Watch out for making the last paragraph a lesson. 'It was also a number that would not be beaten for almost sixty years' is the turn; say it plainly and the moral takes care of itself. What casting listens for: In short non-fiction cuts, casting listens for the first sentence and the last one. Make both clear.
The dogs met first, which is how Priya later insisted the whole thing should be credited.
Hers was a greyhound with the personality of a filing cabinet. His was whatever had happened when a terrier made a series of poor decisions. They met in the third-floor hallway at seven in the morning and immediately conducted themselves like old colleagues at a funeral.
"Sorry," the man said, doing nothing to shorten the lead.
"You're not sorry."
"I'm not sorry," he agreed. "He's been talking about this for weeks."
Priya looked at the dog, who was now lying down in the middle of the corridor with the serenity of the recently retired.
"He's blocking my door."
"He is."
"Is this going to be a daily thing?"
The man considered it. "Depends how you feel about seven o'clock."
She did not answer, and she was late for work, and for the rest of the week she left at seven exactly.
What it is for: Light third-person narration with two characters inside it. Narration plus dialogue in one read. Coach's note: Watch out for making both characters sound like the narrator. Give each a small shift and keep the narrator neutral. What casting listens for: Most romance narration is this: narrator, plus two voices that stay distinct without becoming cartoons.
A work kitchen. KIRSTY, 32, who hasn't watched the season finale yet. MEL, 30, who watched it last night and is not coping
KIRSTYDon't.
MELI didn't say anything.
KIRSTYYour face said something.
MELMy face is neutral. This is my neutral face.
KIRSTYYour neutral face doesn't normally have tears in it.
MELHay fever. It's spring.
KIRSTYIt's June, Mel.
MELThe seasons are all over the place now.
KIRSTYI'm watching it tonight. I've bought snacks. I've told my family not to ring me. Just survive until five o'clock.
MELI can do that. I'm a professional. I'm a grown woman.
KIRSTYGood.
MELCan I say one thing?
KIRSTYNo.
MELIt's not a spoiler. It's a feeling.
KIRSTYFeelings are spoilers.
MELBring tissues.
KIRSTYMel!
MELThat could mean anything! People cry at weddings!
KIRSTYIs there a wedding?
MEL...I can't answer that.
KIRSTYWhy can't you answer that?
MELBecause I promised not to spoil it.
KIRSTYSo someone dies.
MELI didn't say that.
KIRSTYYou made a noise. You made a little dog noise.
MELThat was the kettle.
KIRSTYThe kettle's not on.
MEL...I'm going to go and sit in my car until five.
What it is for: One friend hasn't seen the finale; the other has and is falling apart. Trains playing someone failing to hide a secret. Coach's note: Watch out for Mel over-acting the struggle. She genuinely thinks she's hiding it; the tells leak out despite her. Kirsty drives the interrogation and gets sharper each line. 'You made a little dog noise' needs Mel to have actually made one. What casting listens for: Casting listens for relaxed Australian delivery with snap, and for comic reactions that are small and truthful.
A phone call, 7 a.m. BRIDIE, 79, in Cork, trying to ring her grandson. LIAM, 24, a stranger in Dublin, who picks up half asleep
LIAMHello?
BRIDIEConor, it's your nan. Did you eat anything?
LIAMSorry, I think you've the wrong number.
BRIDIEDon't be smart, Conor.
LIAMI'm not Conor. I'm Liam.
BRIDIESince when?
LIAMSince I was born?
BRIDIEWell, you sound like a Conor.
LIAMI'll take that as a compliment.
BRIDIEI wouldn't. Conor's a terrible eejit. He's after moving in with a girl who has a snake.
LIAMA snake?
BRIDIEIn the flat. A python. Called Gareth.
LIAMThat's a good name for a snake.
BRIDIEIt is not. It's a name for a dentist. Did you eat anything?
LIAMMe?
BRIDIEYes, you. Conor's not on the phone, is he?
LIAM...I had a biscuit.
BRIDIEA biscuit. At your age. Put on a pot of porridge.
LIAMI don't have any oats.
BRIDIEWhat kind of house has no oats?
LIAMA rented one?
BRIDIEGod help us. Right. If Conor rings you, tell him to eat something and keep the snake out of the bed.
LIAMWhy would Conor ring me?
BRIDIEWell, he's not ringing me. Liam, is it? Ring me Sunday. I'll see did you get oats.
What it is for: A Cork grandmother rings the wrong number and adopts the stranger who answers. Trains a steamroller character against a polite one who can't get a word in. Coach's note: Watch out for Bridie being cute. She is a force of nature and she does not slow down for anyone. Liam's job is to be flattened politely; his reactions are the jokes, so keep them short and quick. Ages: Bridie 79, Liam 24. What casting listens for: Casting listens for an Irish accent with real musicality at speed, and for a mature character voice that stays human.
A front hall, 11 p.m. JEN, 41, back from her first date night in two years. HAILEY, 18, the babysitter, who is being extremely calm about something
JENHow were they?
HAILEYGreat. Amazing. Angels.
JENReally?
HAILEYMostly.
JENWhat does mostly mean?
HAILEYSo, first: everyone is fine. That's the headline. Everyone is alive and in bed.
JENWhy would they not be alive?
HAILEYThey would. They are. I'm starting with the good news.
JENWhat's the bad news?
HAILEYThere's no bad news. There's just news. Owen has a new haircut.
JENHe's four.
HAILEYHe did it himself. With the craft scissors. It's mostly on the left. It's quite modern.
JENOh my God.
HAILEYAnd Lily gave the goldfish a bath.
JENThe goldfish lives in water.
HAILEYThat's what I told her. Warm water, though. With bubbles. He's fine. He's much cleaner. He seems confused.
JENIs that everything?
HAILEYOne more thing.
JENHailey.
HAILEYThey taught the parrot a word.
JENWe don't have a parrot.
HAILEYThe neighbours do. It lives by the fence.
JENWhat word?
HAILEYYou know what, the Hendersons will tell you. They seemed really keen to talk to you. So! How was your date?
What it is for: A teenage babysitter delivers bad news in the calmest possible order. Trains controlled comic delivery where the character is managing the listener. Coach's note: Watch out for Hailey sounding nervous. She has rehearsed this in the kitchen for an hour and she is doing it like a news anchor. Jen's reactions get shorter as the news gets worse. The last line is a pivot: bright, fast, desperate. What casting listens for: Casting listens for a young voice with poise and precise timing, and a partner whose silences are funny.
Read the first commercial cold and record it. Listen back once. Don't fix anything yet.
2
Same script. Read the coach's note, then do three takes. Keep the one that sounds most like you talking.
3
Two new commercials. Pick one person you're talking to before each take.
4
Your first story read. Read it out loud twice before you record.
5
A second story read. Find the turn the coach's note talks about and mark it on the page.
6
Read a scene with a friend. Swap parts and read it again.
7
Record Day 1's script again. Play both takes back to back.
Want feedback on Day 7? Bring that recording to a free class.
Questions
Do I need a microphone to start?
No. Your phone is fine for practice. Record in a quiet room with soft things around you, like a closet full of clothes. Get a real mic once you're practicing every week. Our gear page has what we use.
How long should a beginner script be?
Short. 15 to 30 seconds for commercials, which is about 35 to 75 words. Under a minute for story reads. Paste anything into the script timer to check.
Can I use these scripts in a demo later?
Yes. Every script here was written by VO Journey Academy. Record them, post them and use them in auditions and reels. Just don't resell them as scripts.
What do I do after the 7 days?
Keep going with a new script each day, and get a coach to hear you. You can try a free class with us.
Use these freely. Every script in this library was written by VO Journey
Academy. Practice with them, record them, post them as demos, reels or social clips, and use them in auditions.
Please do not resell them or publish them as your own scripts. A credit is always welcome, never required.
