#53: Embracing inconsistency and experimentation
Maybe this will cure our imposter syndrome. Maybe
Friday, July 1, 2022
Hi Wavie,
Greetings from Valencia, Spain. The weather is hot, the food is salty and there is a lovely breeze everywhere I go. Our Air BnB also has the coolest kitchenware. I’ve been using an electric lemon juicer to speed up making lemon ice cubes, a blender more stable than any car I’ve ever owned to make green smoothies, and knives that are so sharp that I actually like chopping veggies again. It’s kinda blissful if I’m honest. Okay, okay, let’s get to podcast editing. I’ve got so many goodies for you today!
-Steph
Global Podcast Editors newsletter is a space where I share podcast editing business, technical and creative conversations and resources along with my own professional bumps in the road and ultimately, growth.
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Pure Joy!
Someone, Al Booth specifically, used the greeting, “hi Wavie” outside of this community!
It was in the Pod People community space, actually. Which I’ve not written about yet. I’m still testing the waters out and will probably write something soon. If you’re interested. Let me know if you’re curious. Until then, thanks Al, this really made me smile!
As a Podcast Editor
…I’m fully embracing DAW templates
Hindenburg does not technically support templates but there is a workaround and I’ve finally gotten so used to it that I have one for all the podcasts that I edit.
After writing this segment I realized that it was really a video. So I made one. Here it is!
Thinking about Hindenburg templates brought up 2 questions that I have for you about ALL DAWs. Let’s discuss them here.
☕ Podcast Editing Espresso Shots
A really clear and user-friendly podcast editing packaging page by DR Fay
this discussion in our LinkedIn Group about EQing by ear OR by number
how to format show notes in all major players from Podnews
As a Business Person
…I’m adjusting my freelance physicalness
During our live events, I’m constantly talking about balancing different aspects of my freelance life. Here’s a deeper dive into a physical balance.
Sitting and not-sitting balance
Despite being heavy, I’ve always been an active person physically. Teaching language to adults for 15 years gave me the chance to run around the classroom, wave my hands in the air as I gestured, and so on. But when I stopped teaching, it got harder to find this balance.
In early 2020 I started to podcast edit for clients AND freelance write about podcasting for The Podcast Host and Discover Pods. Although both tasks were at the time accidental, they balanced each other out really nicely when it came to my sitting-not sitting work balance. Both of these tasks sound desk-bound but writing for me is often a movement forward activity, at least until drafting occurs.
Making space for podcast editing-focused tasks
So with the newsletter getting more attention recently (with over 400 total subscribers), I needed to take a long, hard look at this sitting and not-sitting balance. It’s slightly out of whack. I’m sitting much more than not sitting. So I had to come up with an adjustment.
I want balance between…
sitting at my computer versus walking (this is the most off right now)
typing words versus removing them from audio
set income tasks versus seasonal client work
client work versus community commitments
Here are some minor tweaks that might put it back in balance:
take on more podcast editing work (either editing only clients OR white label work)
go back to doing my newsletter writing sessions in coffee shops (there’s non-sitting involved in getting to the coffee shop.)
doing more phone calls in the park. I have yet to find a big park in Valencia but I’m meeting a friend in one this weekend. So that’s good.
I’m a huge believer in making small, impactful changes so am going to leave the list at 3.
More frequent job emails
I’m in a lot of Google email groups. A lot! Most are U.S.-centric but there are a few others. I thought it would be productive to create a GPE Google email group where we can:
share jobs (what we find online, when we need to outsource, etc)
help each other with tech questions
connect globally
I love writing this newsletter but it’s a blast from me to you. I’ve been trying to find a place for you-you-you-and me to share info. Could this be it? We’re trying it out!
So far we’ve got a few subscribers in the group but I’d like to invite more folks. I want active folks who will give back to our lovely community, so although this invitation is open to all subscribers, you’ll need to work for it!
Sooooo, if you’d like to join us, do the following:
post on social media about this newsletter (use this link please: https://globalpodcasteditors.substack.com/)
Please quote something in the newsletter that you think is valuable for podcast editors to know & use the word “subscribe”. Maybe include a screenshot of a section of the newsletter?
Tag me in the post, I’m @stephfuccio in most places.
Email me at stephfuccio(at)gmail.com with “google groups invite please” in the subject line.
That’s it. I’ll add you to the group then. This invitation is open to ALL subscribers of the GPE newsletter, free and premium.
☕ Business Espresso Shots
Find/add your podcasting-related newsletter to this Tink Media database
Keeping your clients happy episode on the Savvy Social podcast
How do podcast editors find clients, check out this post AND reply to the experiences that resonate with your own experiences.
Special consultation offer
So, I'm happy to offer anyone who’s reading this a 2022 special consultation offer of $50 per hour where I can answer your questions and help you plan.
We can work on:
client attraction plans and deadlines
streamlining your podcast editing workflow
planning your digital nomad experience
and more!
A recording of the chat is available as well. Just screenshot this section and email me with the subject line, “remote podcast editor consultation” to get started.
As a Podcaster
…I’m experimenting with juggling two podcasts again
I never want to drop my own podcasting creation from the mix but it’s been hard to find time to work on my own podcasts over the last two years.
I used to have 3+ podcasts
Five years ago when I started podcasting, it was such a huge creative release that I gave in to every idea I had. One podcast became 3 (language, reflections, internet) and then I added more! Books, coffee, etc etc. I don’t remember how many it got up to but they were mixed together and then they were separate podcasts with different logos, theme music, and so on. It was a lot of time but honestly, it wasn’t a strain. It was invigorating to do it all. I was excited about my own curiosity for the first time in years.
But then I burnt out.
In mid-2019, 6 months before we moved from China to Germany, I started to feel that it had gotten to be too much. That’s when I wrote this Medium piece on the guest conveyor belt. What was once a welcome experimentation became drudgery. So I took a rather long break.
So I made a different plan
Skip ahead to early 2022 and I missed my own private podcast, Geopats. I’ve been recording the GPE live events and guesting on other shows but it’s not the same as Geopats.
Geopats is where I get to be ultra curious and pick guests’ brains about culture-driven nuances that I don’t hear about in many other places. I had been at the awkward point in my freelancing work where I was either busy working OR spending time looking for more work. I still am somewhat in this freelance adolescence. So how can I dedicate time to a passion project? How can I justify that time expense that could be income-making time?
I didn’t know but I needed to try.
Embracing inconsistency saved me it
Dropping the weekly publication ideal, I decided to try out a micro-season of 4 episodes in a month. So in June 2022, I published:
Mae from Maed in India (India)
Tony from The Tony Doe Podcast (Nigeria)
Tod from Today in Digital Marketing (Canada)
Dave from Tripeando (Mexico)
I’m proud of this season and excited to expand out to a completely new topic in August…or September. In that micro season, I’m getting more personal about my own otherness while connecting to expats who also grew up with immigrant parents. I want to know if this home environment made it easier or harder to navigate expat life later on for them. The results so far are surprising.
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Wednesdays at 4 pm New York, 10 pm Rome on @LWCStudios Twitter Spaces.
☕ Podcaster Espresso Shots
I’ve experimented with Zencastr recently and this piece about it
Becoming Internet Famous is a fantastic podcast showcasing folks who’ve made podcast production their career.
Podcast newsletter joy
Tal Minear’s newsletter, Podplane, is “a podcasting newsletter spotlighting trans and nonbinary podcasts!” It has #podcastrecommendations, audio drama crowdfunding updates, sound design interviews, and more! GOOOO!
Fiction Podcast Weekly is a solid read every time, even if you’re not in the audio drama space.
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Thanks for reading the GPE newsletter. The next issue comes out on July 14th.
This coffee moment is a flashback to our time in Split, Croatia. These were both espressos with milk but in different sizes. Aren’t the matching cups adorable?
Affiliate Links:
There are affiliate links throughout this newsletter. What this means is that if you purchase their product/service then I’ll get a small commission.
My current tools:
-Audio podcast editing: mostly Hindenburg & rarely Audacity
-Video podcast editing: Reaper and Windows Video Editor
Location:
Valencia, Spain for the next 3 months
DAWingly yours,
Guesting episodes:
https://www.podchaser.com/lists/stephanie-fuccio-guesting-spots-107aNEz7dI
Website:
Twitter: @stephfuccio
Instagram: @geopatscoffee
LinkedIn: @dstephfuccio
Email: stephfuccio (at) gmail.com
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