Serial Fiction Podcasting: the New Frontier? by Joanna Roddy

Some of the great literature of the past came to readers through serials. Charles Dickens published most of his novels as newspaper serials, and nearly all of the Sherlock Holmes mysteries were published one by one in the The Strand.

Media today is vastly different, and where once a small handful of editors held the reins to popular culture, now with blogs, podcasts, and self-publishing, it's a big wide world of creative output. But it seems we're moving back toward old ways of publishing as creatives write serialized fiction. 

Lots of now big name authors have published their novels serially by blog before wider publication, including Andy Weir's The Martian and E.L. James's Fifty Shades of Grey. And In the podcast world, NPR's Serial, which followed a murder case in its first season, became a cultural phenomenon as listeners reached over 80 million. Fans channeled their inner detective and developed their own pet theories about whether or not the man convicted was actually guilty. 

It's a time of pioneering and groundbreaking in many ways, but it's interesting that we hearken back to old formulas that still work. The serial format can be addictive. How often do you hear the term "Netflix binging" these days? Dumping an entire television program season made of cliff-hanger episodes onto its site at once has made Netflix a must-have for in-home entertainment.

My kids, ages 5 and 7, have recently become addicted to a kids fiction podcast: The Alien Adventures of Finn Caspian. Here's the description from the site: 

He can’t sleep, he can’t shake the feeling someone is following him, and he can’t stop the monsters who show up to smash his cake. In other words, it’s turning out to be more exciting than he expected. That’s all in the first few episodes of this serialized, sci-fi podcast for kids. Finn, his friends and their pet robots aboard the Famous Marlowe 280 Interplanetary Exploratory Space Station discover uncharted planets, help aliens in far-off galaxies, and take tips from listeners back on Earth as they try to solve the universe’s great mysteries. 

Now, my kids have never been interested in podcasts or audio books. They love to be read to, but I haven't been able to get them interested in audio media. But with this podcast, they are begging for more, laughing out loud, wanting to go to the website to see artwork and listener contributions, and recording sound effects to send in and hope to hear on a future episode. I feel like we've been plunged back in time to the days of Little Orphan Annie on the wireless. It's awesome.

There are lots of podcasts for kids out there, but I haven't been able to find any others that are serial fiction. I would hope that they do exist, but finding them isn't easy. I'd love to hear of any others that readers or Mayhemmers are aware of. Finn Caspian is targeted at kids 5-10, so lower middle-grade at best for our demographic. Maybe this is a market hole just waiting for the right story to fill it. Maybe the new frontier is really just old-fashioned good story-telling that leaves the reader wanting more--in audio form. 

Have any of you thought of doing a serial podcast? Let us know in the comments!

The 3 Acts of Sound: Re-inventing How You Write with Audio by Donna Galanti

 photo by Jonathan Grado Creative Commons License 

Sound. It’s such an important part of our every day. Nature. Music. Machines. Heartfelt conversations. Heated arguments.

Writing requires digging into our senses to show what a character feels, hears, sees, tastes, and smells. But what about the writer? Enriching our own senses can enrich our writing. It can spur a mental and physical response that deepens our characters and setting.

Silence was once my friend and what I thought was required to write. This past year, my writing process has evolved out of necessity. My writing habits grew stale and the words lost their fluidity.

Without realizing it, over the past few months I’ve organically infused new processes into my writing to combat this. When taking a closer look at them I realized they all had one thing in common: sound.

Here are the three ways sound has become a new foundation for my writing process.

                                          

Use real life setting to infuse your story setting

photo by Paul Bilca Creative Commons License

Act 1
Audio record 

I discovered the magical concept of recording on my new smartphone. Not since I was eleven years old with my push button cassette recorder, had audio story telling so claimed me! Back in 1980 I downed Kool-Aid and Nutter-Butters with my best friend as we created commercials on wishful products like … Pepsi Flakes Cereal (wouldn’t that be a cool breakfast?).

Now, strolls through woods suddenly became paths to other worlds. People in my story walk beside me, speak to me. They love, they fight, they suffer, they rejoice. Mountains loom, storms rage, rivers flow, and secrets tumble. My character’s words and their world spill out from me, the narrator, onto the story stage (and if no one is around I get theatrical and act my scenes out!). 

The earth and air around me weave into my story, crossing into fantasy. The whispering wind chills my skin, the burbling creek roars in my ears, the crackling leaves crush beneath my feet. And it all infuses my story. The real life world becomes my story world.

As I fade back to the solid world and my desk, I transcribe my words and embellish on all I’ve recorded.

Try this:
Place yourself in a similar setting of your scene (or one you can connect to for your story’s sake) and use it to your advantage incorporating the senses as an active participant in the story. See the story setting before you and use the real world to describe it. In transcription, you will have a second pass to edit what you’ve recorded and likely guaranteed to have extended thoughts that build on your audio file.

 My awesome critique group! 

Act 2

Critique Group 
I was excited to be invited to be part of a critique group of children’s authors this year that meets once a month. This was something I’d never ventured doing! I’ve used editors and beta readers, but never been held accountable to submit work and review work in a group.

Our rules state that a moderator reads the first page then the person being critiqued must wear The Sombrero of Silence for twenty minutes while the other members speak freely about their work (thanks former Mayhemmer Joe McGee!). Listening to others debate your scenes while keeping mum has been fascinating. I am a fly on the wall, scribbling notes as their words, passion, and ideas spew around me. This one-way audio sensory experience enables you to hone in on each spoken word with clarity and to seek its meaning. You are a receiver of sound but not a producer of sound.

Try this:
Paired with writers of the same level and mindset in a critique group keeps you accountable to your work and pushes you to see issues in other works that you may see in your own. Also, the camaraderie inspires community in a business that is very much solitary. Being a non-participant, hearing your work read aloud and discussed without your engagement, peaks the senses to pick up on each idea and word with total awareness.

The Sombrero of Silence

Act 3
Write to Music
I had always connected songs to characters and scenes in my previous novels, but I never wrote to the music. I would listen to theme songs prior to writing and then sit down to write, the melody and mood flowing through me to capture scenes on paper. Recently, stuck on my current work-in-progress, I decided to write to instrumental music. I purchased headphones and chose soundtracks to match the storyline and setting (Lord of the Rings and Gladiator) not knowing what to expect.

My first day I wrote with such fervor, the tears flowed and covers flew off two letters with my keyboard pounding. Like recording scenes outside in nature, I was transported to my world. I became this anguished character, witnessing the roiling sea before me and facing a life of desperate yearning. A new doorway had opened for me writing to music. One I never knew existed.

Try this:
Music sets the mood and our mood as writers. Having difficulty envisioning a scene? Close your eyes and listed to mood-inspiring music to see it and feel it on the page. Some writers I know use Pandora to create playlists. Try these directories to write by: Sound Fuel and 8Tracks.

I wonder what sense is next to be blended into my world of writing? They say the nose knows. New research proclaims that the nose can remember 1 trillion smells – far from the long believed 50,000. Smells are powerful memory triggers. When you first smell a new scent, you link it to a person or event. Like the scent of fresh cut grass can remind you of a summer day, even if it’s the end of autumn. And when you happen upon that smell again, the link is there, ready to pop that memory open.

Imagine popping open those memories to deepen character and setting. I love stewing apples with cinnamon all throughout the year. Why? The smell reminds me of childhood when my mom gathered apples in our orchard and stewed them for breakfast with homemade biscuits and sorghum. Up next – writing to scents!

Has sound transformed the way you create as an artist? If so, how? Share your experiences!