In Part 1, I looked at some common production methods thatprofessional podcasters use to keeptheir projects interesting and engaging. Specifically, I discussedsetting the scene first, hooking the audience, varying character voices, andtalking like real people. In this article, I will continue with more productiontricks that can substantially increase the quality of your narrative podcasts.
Use musicto reset scenes
It’s not revolutionary to suggest that learners tend to haveshort attention spans, and the case is no different when it comes to narrativepodcasts. Every so often you need to reset your learners’ brains in order tokeep their attention level high.
One excellent way to accomplish this is through the use ofmusical breaks. Music breaks can function as a type of auditory palate cleanser,allowing the brain a few moments to stop focusing on information that is beingpresented and prepare the learner to be ready for the next section of content.This can be especially helpful in instances where you need to change scenes inyour story. Rather create a reason for your story to move to a new scene, youcan end a scene with a music interlude and pick your story back up in a newlocation. The music break signals your listener that they have a moment torelax before you return back to another important part of your story.
So how long should a music break last, and how often shouldyou use them? There is really no concrete answer to these questions, and itdefinitely depends on your particular story, but as a general rule, musicbreaks should last longer than you think they should. I try to make mine goanywhere from 30 to 45 seconds. This seems like a long time, but there is amethod behind the madness. You want to give your listeners ample time toprocess what they have heard, reset their attention spans, and ready themselvesfor a scene or story change that may be coming. As for how often to includemusic breaks, it really depends on making sure they fit naturally with the flowof your narrative. I try to aim for a music break every seven to eight minutes,but you shouldn’t force breaks just to do it. Make sure your breaks are comingat points where your story is about to shift directions or after periods oflengthy content delivery.
Host/producerstructure
The host/producer story structure is extremely common inprofessional podcasting and one of my personal favorite tools. Essentially,this structure utilizes host and producer characters that set scenes and movethe narrative forward. The host acts as a narrator, setting up scenes andintroducing concepts. Usually the host only interacts with the audience and theproducer, rarely the story characters, and tends to have their audio entirelyrecorded in a sterile studio environment. The producer is the character who isreporting the story from out in the field. They are the one interviewingcharacters and interacting in scenes. The purpose of the producer is to movethe story forward, to drive the narrative where you need it to go. Often the produceris recorded “on scene” with the appropriate background ambience. After all,they are a part of the story, so you want it to sound like they’re where theaction takes place.
Get out ofthe studio
Much in the way that you want to vary character voices sothat your audio doesn’t get stagnant, you want to do the same with yourbackground sounds. You don’t want your podcast to sound too clean, or it won’tfeel authentic. If a scene takes place outside of the studio, record the sceneoutside of the studio. Use ambient noises and sounds to build layers aroundwhat is going on. If a conversation is supposed to be happening outside, thescene will have more realism and weight if it actually sounds like the conversationis happening outside. If you have access to a field recorder, this is the timeto use it! If you don’t, remember that just about everyone has a field recordersitting in their pockets in the form of a smartphone. The nice thing is thatyou want the audio to sound like the location you are in, so it’s OK if thesound quality is a little lower than the microphones in your studio. Thisauditory difference helps to underscore the idea that your scene is takingplace on location.
(Editor’s note: See Matt Sparks’s article, “Metafocus:How to Make a Mobile 360 Video Studio” for some good tips on fieldwork, including audio tools.)
Another good trick with regard to recording on location isto record phone conversations through actual phones. Have one actor callanother on speaker and then mic their phones. If the scene is one where someoneis talking to another character on the phone, then it’s helpful if theconversation actually has the sound of one that takes place over a phone line.
Don’t fearinsignificant details
Not all your information has to be content. In fact, thatwould actually turn out to be pretty boring. Use seemingly insignificantdetails to build up your scenes, give context to your story, break up monotony,develop characters or change scenes. If a listener remembers a little detail ora short interaction that doesn’t tie directly to your content, they are morelikely to also remember the context of what happened around those details.Recalling something that seems insignificant may actually trigger the listenerto remember the important stuff, too.
Using some or all of these production values can really helpyou makeyour podcast stand out, as well as make it memorable and engagingfor your listeners. Ultimately, these techniques can lead to a greater level ofcontent retention, which is always the end goal.
