Well, we really coloured outside the lines with this one! Trixie and I sat down by the fire on Thursday evening to discuss our podcast and the survey results, and recorded an hour of audio, which I managed to cut down to 45 minutes.
The podcast might make a lot more sense if you read along with our notes on the survey results (PDF, 715kb).
You’ll probably be interested in this discussion only if you really have a personal attachment to myself or this podcast. You get to meet Trixie, and have a little behind-the-scenes look at how we think and talk about Howell Creek Radio.
This kind of episode is an indulgence, probably more fun for us to record than it is for most people to listen to. I only feel comfortable foisting this kind of thing upon you because because it’s rare (once in five years). Production-wise, it was a real learning experience compared to the way I normally podcast, and there are definitely things I’ll do differently next time to increase focus, sound quality and efficiency.
As regards the survey itself, I feel it was a success and I’m thankful for all your thoughts. Off the top of my head, here are my major take-aways:
- More episodes: I’ll be releasing consistently on Saturdays and announcing when I’ll be taking time off.
- Music: I didn’t mention this in the podcast, but I’ve already been thinking it would be good to start relying less on the music to lend interest to each episode. One response in particular confirmed for me that this was the way to go. I’ll definitely still be using music in a multi-layered fashion as I have been, but the selections will be shorter and take more of a back seat to the writing.
- Memberships: All past and future episodes will always be free to listen to – it seems I didn’t make that clear enough in the survey. The results still seem to confirm, though, that making some kind of donation mechanism available would be a good idea in the not-too-distant future. A print edition and a coffee mug are the most likely next steps, whenever I can get to them.
If you have any responses or thoughts about anything we talk about, let us know in the comments, we’ll be there to respond!
Comments
Rundy #
You said you didn’t want to get Arlan and I mixed up, and sometimes you do in your mind. Our writing styles are probably rather alike seeing as we are siblings, much as physical resemblance can be close. Funny story: Two of our other brothers work at the same large facility (one in IT, the other in maintenence). One day IT brother was talking to a lady, his back to the doorway while she faced him. Suddenly she went white as a sheet and said, “I just saw you walk by outside!” He then had to explain it was his brother, not his double or his ghost. (They are not even that close in age—the physical resemblance is just close enough.)
The comment about the Christmas episode was me. I’ll own up to the comment ;-)
I am one of the people who listens to your episodes in front of the computer. I can’t do other activity while listening to HCR episodes because I can’t pay attention and do something else at the same time. Must be that walk/chew thing. If I am paying attention to what you are saying, then I am not doing something else. If I am doing something else, I end up not paying attention. You could take the fact that people are willing to sit in front of their computer and listen to you as a compliment to the high quality of your material!
Also, since I don’t have a smartphone it does limit my other options. If it makes you feel any better, sometimes I listen while eating my breakfast in front of the computer (so I am multi-tasking!).
Joel Dueck (Author) #
In thinking about it, I think a big part of it is that, often, both of you happen to write to me at the same time. Your writing styles are similar, but your perspectives are different enough to be distinguishable. If I had faces and voices to put to the names, it would probably be easier, so we may have to remedy that at some point.
It’s a good point about focusing and sitting in front of the computer. I most often listen to podcasts while driving, so I’m able to focus and not be in front of a computer screen; but I went out of my way to select a car stereo that would make this possible, and I use my iPhone which downloads my subscribed episodes without hassle or wires, so it’s easier for me to listen that way than it is for many others. At any rate, I’ll do my best to keep things riveting enough to warrant focused listening :)
Rundy #
Yes, some time when you are heading up to the Niagra area via New York state you can take a four or so hour detour and stop in. Would enjoy meeting you in the flesh.
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