Storyscaping – Details, episodes & analysis

I'll admit it: I'm wiped out! But I wanted to leave you all with a final bit of encouragement before I break for the summer, so after some introductory remarks, here's the rough script to another trailer idea I worked on. Can you hear the difference in the sound? The "sonic ID" I recorded with the Shurt SM7b, and had Katie's help making me sound my best. The middle bit I recorded with the Shure MV88+ in my car, in my parking garage at work. It sounds OK. Then the actual "story inside you" script I think I recorded on my phone in the closet — just for workshopping purposes, didn't have time to re-record. 

Also, I did this episode in an hour and a half at the hotel in Mexico for our friends' wedding! Here's to hitting deadlines, letting good enough be good enough, and having time to really take a break. See you in September for season two. 

What is it that gives narrative podcasting its unique power for intimate connection with listeners? In previous episodes, we talked about two key elements: words (scriptwriting and editing), and the voice (recording and narration). In this episode, we talk about the third key element: music. 

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Show notes: 

• I ran out of time to list these in the episode, but had a whole thread on Voxer with two of my friends about musical memories. Two other standouts for me were my sister bringing pop music into the Davis household for the first time, the Beatles' '62-66 greatest hits on those red cassette tapes. Then hearing Paul Simon's Graceland on my friend's record player under a blanket fort. And third, banging on the dashboard of my friend's old VW GTI to the opening tom-tom hits of the Eagles' Hotel California. 
• using famous songs in your podcast: blog post ("no, but..."), fair use, creative commons, etc. 
• What makes us human?  

So you came here to make a great narrative podcast — but what about a more creative life? Checking that big thing off your creative bucket list? Should you try for a heroic effort, like NaNoWriMo, or just try to peck away, 15 minutes a day? In this episode, we get into that. (Spoiler alert? Yes.)

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Show notes: 

• First Person Story (with links to other live storytelling events)
• Elizabeth Gilbert's wonderful creativity memoir Big Magic (good as a book; even better as an audiobook). 
• Hunter S. Thompson's letter to his friend
• James Clear, Atomic Habits
• Brad Stulberg, consistency column in Outside Magazine

Have you ever struggled with putting more of yourself into your job than it's giving you back? Or do you have a somewhat-creative day job that leaves you with little creative energy left for your writing and podcasting? This episode's for you. In this personal essay inspired by the "iceberg technique" of Ernest Hemingway, I reflect on a lesson about "guarding my heart" that it took me way too long to learn — and experiment with a slower, more pared-back style of narration and sound design. 

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Show notes:

• A great feedback partner can help you uncover additional layers in your work that you hadn't managed to differentiate yourself, and that's what Jacob did with this draft. My thought was there is no such thing as a perfect job (i.e. role or workplace), so accepting that can help us maintain the emotional distance we need to preserve creative energy for our own projects. But what Jacob pointed out was the duality in that original statement: no such thing as a perfect job" could also mean accepting "good enough" in our own creative projects — because it's creative living, not the individual creative projects, that are the real point. We'll return to this latter idea in another episode, working title "The artifact is not the point."
• Hemingway's story "Big two-hearted writer" is what this episode title riffs on, but it's his novel The Sun Also Rises that I've read multiple times. 
• Another creative input that has prompted me to keep evaluating my delivery and narration is First Person Story. It's been a delight to collaborate with Harriett, and each other creative medium we interact with can help us enrich our perspective on podcasting, creative writing, or whatever our expresion of choice is. 

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Storyscaping exists to inspire the next great narrative podcast: yours! The goal is to cover a wide range of creativity-and-podcasting related topics, a sort of curriculum that doesn't feel like a curriculum:

• Finding, and keeping creative motivation
• Story elements and structures
• Sound quality and connecting with listeners
• Your unique narration and voice
• Defining boundaries in creative work
• Accepting messiness in the creative process
• Sustainability and how not to podfade

Are you in this just for a project — or are you in this for life? In this episode, I learn a gardening-inspired lesson for long-term creative growth and sustainability — a lesson that's countercultural in our always-on society. 

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Show notes: 

1. The Wheel of Life exercise (scroll down a bit)
2. Shelter in Place episode Productivity Unhacked
3. Thanks to freesound.org and soundbible.com contributors for the SFX. 
4. My neighbor Suzanna is also a talented jazz singer! Bay Area folks, look out for her next show. 

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Aspiring narrative podcasters are the primary audience for Storyscaping, but anyone who wants to develop their writing and storytelling skills will find these less-than-ten minute episodes inspiring. We can't wait to hear your stories!

What happens when you put your usual writing blueprints aside, and just let yourself play with language? I find out on my birthday morning, when I free-write my way to a David Foster Wallace-esque reflection on global manufacturing, thinking about aging, and how we want to spend our fleeting days. 

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Show notes:

• David Foster Wallace's essay collection Consider the Lobster
• Our scriptwriting workshop is coming up  April 7
• Thanks to all the contributors to Soundbible.com for the effects!

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Curious what you'll get from our scriptwriting workshop? The two-hour interactive session will include live exercises, feedback, and breakout rooms. We'll dig into key topics like moving from idea to script, different story structures, and navigating the messy middle of editing. Also:

• Tools for building a strong narrative arc
• How to pull great stories from interview tape
• Ways to map out your story in scenes
• Crafting dynamite openings (with examples)
• Techniques for writing for the ear
• Our proven hacks for overcoming writer's block

Many great writers and podcasters say how important it is to edit your work to make it better—but after you have a draft script, how do you know what to keep, and what to cut? Beginning with trip back in time, Nate shares a dead-simple script and audio editing practice he uses every single episode to help his creative babies grow up into healthy episodes. 

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Show notes:

• For more on editing, see chapter 5 of Jessica Abel's wonderful graphic novel about narrative podcasting, Out on the Wire.
• Can't wait to hear what other steps I go through to audio edit and sound design? Here's a whole blog post about it.
• The Voxer voice memo app is my favorite way to share rough scripts with feedback partners.

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Listening to someone tell a story is primal; it's how we understand our families, our cities, ourselves. Stories are how we create, share, and learn culture. Narrative podcasts are the timeless human tradition of storytelling, adapted for today's mobile, digital age, and this show is dedicated to helping you make your own. 

Why is it so important to make a trailer for your narrative podcast, and not just regular episodes? Nate explains in this episode, and then gives a checklist of the five things a great trailer will do. 

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Show notes:

• Hear some sample podcast trailers from graduates of our online course and workshops
• How do you triage audio? Or what's your editing ethos? Check out this post for my 15-step audio editing and sound design process, with DAW screenshot for reference.
• Need some expert feedback to refine your own trailer? We offer private podcast coaching.

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Whether you've got a brand new idea that needs developing, you're buried in interview tape, or you need help with tracking narration or sound design, our personal coaching sessions are tailored to your specific needs and project. You'll get feedback on your work, clear next steps to move forward in your project, and resources to deepen and expand your craft. 

A narrative podcast begins with a script, then ends with audio editing and sound design, but what's the all-important middle step? Recording and narration — but what's so special about narration? Why is embracing and discovering your "podcast voice" so important? Nate reflects on his own journey with narration and his own voice, and shares a handful of tips to help you find your own voice as a podcaster. 

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Show notes:

• Our DIY / home recording studio setups for Shelter in Place and Storyscaping, with pictures and descriptions
• List of vocal warmups
• Voxer voice memo app (I use it daily! The convenience of texting, the warmth of a phone call. Great for practicing and just, friendship)
• My first experience doing a lot of narration for an episode of Shelter in Place about aging. I'm discovering my voice. 
• Our blog post from 2012 with the video of our presentation on fair trade.

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Whether you call it a fiction podcast, narrative podcast, or story podcast, we say "voice your story, change your life" because we've lived it ourselves. Your voice, and your experience, are one in eight billion. We can't wait to hear your stories. 

What can we learn about narrative podcasting by dropping our kids off at school? An important lesson, as it turns out. Join Nate to hear about the one-in-eight-billion spark inside each of us, and how to bring that to our recording studio. 

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Show notes: 

• Scientific American article on how clothing influences our mindset
• I don't have a sequinned t-shirt, but I do have a sweatshirt with an "exclamation baby" print by Keith Haring: The Boy Who Just Kept Drawing
• Sparkly narration: 99% Invisible, "Whomst Among Us Let the Dogs Out"
• Sparkly narration: Decoder Ring, "Mystery of the Mullet"
• Sparkly narration: Snap Judgment, "Watching Over Mountain Village"
• Mystical Fire campfire crystals
• Oh, and curious about my audio editing for this episode? In this long blog post, I detail my 15-step process for audio triage and sound design, and include the screenshot of my DAW for the episode. 

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What's a narrative podcast? Our definition is 1) telling a story, 2) working from a script, and 3) creating an immersive soundscape. This episode on narration dovetails with the second workshop in our three-part Narrative Foundations series, where we distill the key skills for creating great scripted podcasts into three two-hour interactive sessions. Learn more and sign up at narrativepodcasts.com.