. . . and welcome to Narrative Podcasts, a virtual community for audio storytelling and creative living. Here are a few quick scriptwriting & editing tips
Our podcast course, one-day workshops, and private coaching will give you a thorough view, but on this youtube playlist we give you peeks behind the curtain at the behind-the-scenes artistry of creating an award-winning scripted podcast.
How do you separate writing from editing, and approach each mode with. more productive mindset? Keep this simple distinction in mind.
You don’t have to get an MFA like Laura to improve your podcast scriptwriting — you just have to do this.
Thanks for booking a coaching session, signing up for the course, or joining our email list! This page has a few notes on the craft of scripted podcasting, and exercises to move toward sustainable creativity. We can’t wait to hear your stories!
The four universal elements of every engaging story
Whether you're talking about a whole scripted podcast series like Dirty John, or just sharing an anecdote with a coworker, including these four elements will make any story engaging:
CHARACTER(S): who are we following?
SETTING: where and when does this story take place?
CONFLICT: what are the internal and external barriers?
RESOLUTION: How does it turn out? What has changed?
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For more on this and other storytelling models and diagrams, join us at our next scriptwriting & editing workshop, or check out our self-paced course.
Join us at r/narrativepodcasts for ongoing discussions on the craft of audio storytelling!
Creative living exercise: the wheel of life
This is a favorite life assessment exercise of ours, and is also something we’ll come back to during the course. We have done this exercise at our annual marriage retreat for many years now, and while you can complete it with just 20 minutes, pencil and paper, it can provide very valuable insights. It’s helpful whether you complete it alone, or together for discussion with a partner, family member, or good friend. Download PDF.
Let’s pause and take a breath
Ever wondered how many breaths, mouth noises, and filler words careful audio editors remove from narration or interview tape? A lot! Whether you use your DAW like Hindenburg, or another tool like Descript, taking out filler words and breaths is persnickety work, but is one of those subtle touches that creates a truly polished sound. We talk about articulating your personal audio editing ethos in module 4 of the course.
(This short excerpt is from one of the audio tutorials for that module, Laura’s chat with Katie Semro.
Story elements and structure through audio editing and sound design choices
This two-and-a-half minute micro-episode dramatizes the voices inside our heads that can hold us back from creative work — as well as the satisfaction we can find if we do. This annotated screenshot shows the different audio editing and sound design choices that went into enhancing the story. We get into this a lot more in our audio editing & sound design workshop, and several modules of the course.
Have questions about scriptwriting, editing, recording, narration, sound design, our course, workshops, private coaching, or why you should make a scripted podcast at all? Email us!
Meeting and getting to know so many generous, positive, and motivated people through podcasting has been a highlight of the last four years for us. We’d love to hear from you.