Lake Bell first explored the power of voice in her award-winning 2013 film about the voiceover industry, “In a World…,” which she wrote, directed and starred in.
Now, nearly 10 years later, the actor-writer-director-producer further unpacks the fixation in “Inside Voice: My Obsession With How We Sound,” an audiobook set to be published by Malcom Gladwell’s Pushkin Industries on Nov. 1, 2022.
“Inside Voice,” Bell’s first book project, will delve into her complicated opinions about voice — and “how this vital piece of our identity serves as an X-ray of our personal histories, exposures, vulnerabilities and conditioning,” according to Pushkin.
“Without hyperbole, the subject of voice has been a lifelong passion, inspiring my work and life from every angle,” Bell said in a statement provided to PvNew. “I’m so grateful to have Pushkin as a creative home and collaborator for this deeply personal project.”
The five-hour audiobook will feature nearly 20 contributors with iconic voices including Drew Barrymore, Susie Essman, Tracey Ullman and Jeff Goldblum, as well as a range of experts like linguistics professors, dialect coaches, poets and voice actors. Bell takes listeners through her own personal journey — covering how her own love of accents and dialects inspired her career as an actor — while also investigating how society treats people based on the way they speak.
“Inside Voice” includes interactive exercises and games, spoken-word poetry, self-narrated personal stories from the likes of the legendary Pam Grier, outspoken transgender author and podcaster Samantha Allen, and a slew of impressionists including Bugs Bunny himself among other archival audio clips from film and TV.
Bell’s acting credits include “Children’s Hospital,” “No Escape,” “Man Up,” “It’s Complicated,” “What Happens in Vegas,” “How to Make It in America” and “Bless This Mess,” which she also co-created and produced. She has written and directed two feature films (“In a World…” and “I Do… Until I Don’t”) and is currently developing her third original film, “Baja Black Sheep,” which she wrote, will direct and star in, produced by Stacey Sher, Pablo Cruz and Jett Steiger.
In addition, Bell recently directed two episodes of Hulu original series “Pam & Tommy,” starring Lily James and Sebastian Stan. She stars as the lead voice in animated film “Cryptozoo” by Dash Shaw, as Poison Ivy in DC’s “Harley Quinn” animated series and as Black Widow/Natasha Romanoff in Marvel’s “What If…” animated series on Disney+. Bell serves on the board of Women in Film, a nonprofit organization advocating for the success of female peers in the entertainment industry. She was born in New York City and lives in L.A. with her two children.
Bell’s “Inside Voice” joins Pushkin Industries’ slate of audiobooks, which includes “Miracle and Wonder: Conversations With Paul Simon” by Malcolm Gladwell and Bruce Headlam, “Heartbreak” by Florence Williams, a newly recorded version of Michael Lewis’ “Liar’s Poker” and Joshua Cohen’s novel “The Netanyahus,” winner of the 2022 Pulitzer Prize in fiction.
