I’m rather obsessed with Italian rice balls, Arancini. Here are some of my favs from Rome, Italy from earlier this year.
Friday, July 15, 2022
Hi Wavie,
Am too hot to have a long intro this week. I hope you’re doing well and that you’re enjoying all the new content on our YouTube channel AND the job and community banter in our new Google email group.
Okay, okay, let’s get you info drenched!
-Steph
Global Podcast Editors newsletter is a space where we share podcast editing business, technical and creative conversations and resources along with our professional bumps in the road and ultimately, growth.
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As a Podcast Editor
…I’m getting help to improve my technical skills, again
I don’t admit it enough when I achieve something. I like to grow so I tend to spend time on only what’s needed instead of what’s been achieved. This post talks about both.
Stretch goal reached: podcast episode chapters
I’ve been writing and making videos quite a bit about my exploration with podcast episode chapters. I feel comfortable doing them now and my workflow is smooth. The next step is deciding if I want to offer them to clients. That’s another pricing post for another issue. Let me know if you want me to dig into this some more. But the point here is I DID IT.
Stretch goal reached: reaper video size issue
Although I’ve not written about the final outcome of this video size issue in Reaper yet nor made a video about it, boom, it’s done. I’ve not shared the results because I’m not entirely sure how to describe how I got there. I did many things that folks suggested in a short period and something worked. I’ll figure out how to share it, promise, but right now I want to share that it’s done. Achieved. My stubbornness paid off. Many Reaper editors said there was no solution outside of an external program to change the file size. That’ not true. It is and I finally found someone who was kind enough to share how to do it.
Stretch goal WIP: comfort with levels
And yet with all these advanced audio and video skills under my belt, I can’t shake my own insecurities about the volume of my own podcasts.
Why does this matter
I don’t compare my work to others per se but I DO get inspiration from others. That may seem like splitting hairs but it’s an important distinction to me.
With that in mind, I’ve been noticing that when I switch between some of my favorite podcasts that I think sound great to my client’s podcasts or my own, I have to turn up the volume. I don’t like this.
I use LUFS, compression, etc
Technically, I’m doing everything “correct.” I’ve checked and triple-checked but I can’t figure out where the differences are. And no, the podcasts I’m aspiring to sound like are NOT network ones using professional studios and the like.
How am I going to get more comfortable?
After I hit the stop recording button on this recent imposter syndrome conversation with Matt Cheney, I admitted one of my own imposter syndrome moments. This volume issue.. Okay, there was another one but this level one is a longer discomfort. Matt was kind enough to offer to help me dig into it, not just in a tech way but in a mindset way. So we’re starting next week.
Here are the 4 possible outcomes I can imagine coming out of this:
I get to where I want to level go with the tools I’m using
I drive Matt crazy with my millions of questions
I try out new tools (DAW, plug-in, etc) to get there
I let go of the goal and accept that my levels aren’t tragic
If I forget to update you on this by August, please nudge me.
☕ Podcast Editing Espresso Shot
The Podcast Editor Academy is sharing one of their "Quick Wins" videos every few days. Watch the first 5 minutes for free, then join their newsletter to watch the rest. At the time of publication, Learn the Basics for How to Use Asana in 22 minutes, with Kendra Swalls was the quick-win video available.
🥛 For some sugar, milk, or ice for your espresso shot, you’ll need to order the premium version of the newsletter.
❤️ Thanks to Melissa Lent, Host of the new podcast Tired In My Twenties, for inspiration on shaping these espresso shots. Listen to her wavies, she’s wise!
We got another “Hi Wavie” on the socials!
Thanks Carrie!
Feel free to say Hi Wavie on any of the socials. I’m @stephfuccio. Bonus smiles if you add this link: https://globalpodcasteditors.substack.com/
As Business People
…Amy and Nick of ANT Podcast Management are struggling to hire the right freelance editors
Per your wonderful suggestion, we’re adding more of your stories to the newsletter. This first segment is about a husband and wife production team that I video met recently thanks to Claire of The Silent Why podcast, who I interviewed for The Podcast Show piece for The Podcast Host.
Here’s a picture of Amy and Nick in Portugal.
What do you do in the podcast editing space?
We offer podcast editing, production, and management services.
As someone who hires editors, what do you wish editors would do when they reach out to you?
1.CONTACT REASON
We want our potential editors to explain why they are contacting us specifically. Have they followed us for a while, do they like our work, or are they particularly interested in our podcast topics?
This makes the person more memorable and forms a connection. The skill level and experience should probably be the most important thing but as humans, we like connections and stories. We want to work with people that we like. When contacting someone for a job, try talking about them first and yourself second. It shows you not only want a job from them but you also want your work to be helping the world i.e. you're giving back and not just taking.
2. SKILLS: BE OPEN TO LEARN
If there is something on a job description that you're not sure about then you can either ask the company you are applying to or the answer will probably be on YouTube. We all had to start somewhere. Watching tutorials and practicing in your own time will pay off. The more you edit the better you'll get. This is where it helps to do a job that you love. If you love it then you'll be happy to spend time perfecting your skills.
3. COMMUNICATION
If you do get the job then communication is key. Realistic deadlines are fine, we don't want to rush the work but when allocating jobs the client often needs to know quickly if the editor can complete the work or not. If the answer is no, that's fine, they will just need to find someone else who can. If it looks like a deadline won't be met then let your client know asap. Normally it's fine as long as they can prepare for this. A client should never be chasing an editor after the deadline.
Thanks for sharing these tips with our editors Amy and Nick. One last question, how did you get started in the space.
Amy worked for the BBC as a radio producer before we started our own podcast (What The Pho Travel Podcast) in 2015. This was a hobby, just a bit of fun, but after a few years of growth, we both quit our jobs and traveled around the world with the podcast, working with tourist boards, tour companies, and journalists. It was during this round-the-world trip in 2019 when our first client reached out to us online asking if we could pay us to edit their podcast and boom, ANT Podcast Management was born.
Fun fact: ANT = Amy Nick Thomson
Podcast Conference: Blk Pod Festival
Podcast festivals can be intimidating for audio folks who are used to working in pretty isolating environments for long stretches but Sidney Evans did not let this stop him from enjoying Blk Pod Festival. In this conversation, we chat about his experience at their first in-person event since they started the conference as well as his own personal roller coaster of an audio career. His audio origin story has a plot twist that I think you'll find inspiring. Have a listen.
00:00 conversation introduction
00:41 What Sidney does in the podcast editing space
02:42 Blk Pod Festival, Blk Podfest
06:46 podcast editing side of the conference
11:53 the most impactful sessions at the conference for him
14:11 Sidney's podcasting background
15:46 getting comfortable in front of the mic
19:30 how he learned to podcast edit
23:26 lifelong learning
26:02 how much do our editing tools matter?
26:35 the future of Blk Pod Festival
28:09 His conference advice
31:34 Sidney's contact information
Free business promo: Recording Podcast Live Events
I’m writing an article for August publication about recording podcasting live events. Would love your feedback on tech, workflow, and other tips. If you’d like to contribute, email me the answers to the below questions. Everyone who is quoted will get their name, business name, and link in the article. You can see previous posts on The Podcast Host here for how I do what I do!
What’s the one thing you wish you knew before you did your first live podcast recording?
What’s your favorite online resource for making this easier?
What are some good examples of other people’s live podcast recordings gone right (the opposite of those insanely echoey lives that most network shows publish!). Link, please.
What else should people know about recording a live podcast?
What name, company name, and link should I include in the article if you’re quoted?
thank you!
☕ Business Espresso Shot
Why it may be time to let go of a client (14:55 long)
The Podcast Manager Show, Lauren Wrighton.
Sometimes you outgrow a client. It happens and is NOT always a bad thing. It might feel bad if they replace you before you leave them but either way, there’s a bit of grief that can happen. I’m in that space right now after doing this a couple of months ago. This episode healed me a bit. Thanks, Lauren!
PS Check out her Podcast Manager Program as well. I’ve just started it and will report back on some impressions in a bit. I can see already why it’s so popular.
🥪How about a panini to have with your espresso shot? Head over to the premium counter at the bottom of this newsletter. Oh no, you can’t see the premium register….let me show you what it looks like:)
Want To Attract More Clients? (workshop)
The most feedback I get on this newsletter is about attracting more clients and getting work. The Google email group is a newer space where we’re sharing work that we find but we still needed a space to address how to attract more clients. These are, in fact, two different things.
In the premium version of the newsletter, I’m adding client attraction tips but it sounds like that’s not enough. So I’m combining a lot of the information I’ve learned from others and from my own experiences with splashes of accountability and sharing them with you in a 90-minute client attraction workshop.
We'll be focused on what actionable steps you can take to attract the podcast editing clients you want with genuine outreach and conversations.
This is an interactive session with a maximum of 6 people.
The first workshop is on Wed, July 20th (rescheduled from July 14th due to illness) but there are also stand-alone workshops in August and September. You can sign up for one of them OR all of them, depending on your client attraction needs.
More info here!
And the winner is…
Podcast Editor Cristina Lumague! Woot woot! Congrats Christina!
She’s the winner of our Global Podcast Editor newsletter challenge from our last GPE live event. Three months free of the premium newsletter is the prize.
Speaking of the last GPE live chat….
GPE Live Chat: July 7, 2022
Holy cow was this a great chat to be a part of. The vulnerability and openness of our guest editors humble me wavies. Humbles me to my core.
And I’m not alone in that appreciation. This conversation got the most views and more importantly, ENGAGEMENT of any of our lives to date. Even if you don’t watch the video, check out the comment section. I promise you, it’s not the mean comment section you hear about on YouTube. It’s thoughtful and kind.
00:00 GPE community and this event introduction
01:30 meet the editors
03:33 Sam's challenge: learning how to mix and master ProTools
10:32 hiring a DAW tutor to learn faster
13:25 Bekah's challenge: to work or not work with folks that have deep value differences from you
31:00 newsletter subscription giveaway announcement
34:11 Charles' and Steph's challenge: how to give clients what they need not just what they're asking for while also stoking your own creative fire (that's a long one, whew!)
49:16 editor's info
July & August GPE Live Chats
We’d love to have you on as a guest!
21 July @ 19:00 Central European Time (1 pm New York)
Watch LIVE on YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=NbOPkytfAgI
Participants:
1. Angelina Gurrola, (Chicago, IL, USA), www.theintentionaledit.com
2. Filip Krstevski, Stip, North Macedonia, www.fixingyourpodcast.com/
3. non-North American podcast editor preferred
4. Steph Fuccio (American expat in Spain): Host!
4 August @ 14:00 Central European Time (8am New York)
Participants:
1. Marcus dePaula (Nashville, Tenn, U.S.) podcastaudiolab.com,meonlylouder.com , twitter.com/meonlylouder
2. non-North American podcast editor preferred
3. non-North American podcast editor preferred
4. Steph Fuccio (American expat in Spain): Host!
18 August @ 20:00 Central European Time (2 pm New York)
Participants:
1. non-North American podcast editor preferred
2. Kim Parkinson, (US) kpcreativemedia.com/
3. Laura Davis,(US) Kasama Labs, shelterinplacepodcast.org/labs
4. Steph Fuccio (American expat in Spain): Host!
Sign up here: forms.gle/8PSyMPKNes7JcxLw5
As a Podcaster
…I’m crossing the line between business and pleasure and politics
I’ve had dynamic ad insertion for my 2 podcasts on the stretch goal list for ages. Over a year at least because that was one of the main reasons I switched Geopats from Captivate to RedCircle. Then of course Captivate added the tool. Figures!
I did it!
And I’m happy to report that I’ve now figured out how to do preroll DAI (dynamic ad insertion) for both Geopats on RedCircle and GPE on Buzzsprout. It’s super easy. Super, super easy. The hardest part was recording something short. If you haven’t noticed, I’m a long-form kinda gal.
My womb (and Arielle) inspired me
So when Arielle recently tweeted about organizing a podcast pre-roll podcast campaign to protest the Supreme Court decision to overthrow Roe V. Wade, I jumped. Not because I needed a script to get started with DAI, but because the need to do something about this madness was much stronger than my indecision. Anger and frustration are decisive emotions.
So I did it. And both podcasts have this pre-roll running.
But, a few weeks later, many questions are floating around my head.
But now what?
How long do I keep this message there?
Am I going to alienate listeners who are outside the U.S.?
Do I want the business podcast (GPE) to have this political message attached to it?
That last question was the clarity moment. Because a big, giant
YES!
but in bold colors that Substack’s platform won’t let me type in kept hitting me over the head.
I am someone who could have gotten pregnant pre-menopause. Someone who could have gone through all kinds of abuse and unfortunate events and needed an abortion. But more so, I love people who may still need one now. How can I NOT say something? Do something. So that question is easy to answer. But how about the others? Essentially,
How do I calendar human rights?
And deciding when I stop participating in this DAI way is not easy at all. Changing this pre-roll is NOT an indication that everything’s okay or that I’ve stopped caring. Hardly. But I also do want to change it and experiment with other announcements.
And part of me feels gross admitting that with the gravity of the situation.
Advice?
Join LWC Studios' weekly creator meetup on Twitter Spaces!
Podcasting, Seriously Live is a weekly gathering of podcasters that gets into all things podcasting. We invite industry experts and creators every Wednesday to discuss everything from
launching a podcast
finding collaborators
promoting and marketing your show
finding and growing your audience
interpreting your podcast analytics
and more.
Wednesdays at 4 pm New York, 10 pm Rome on @LWCStudios Twitter Spaces.
☕ Podcaster Espresso Shot
I wrote this piece about podcasts on podcasting. And the folks on LinkedIn chimed in with more suggestions. There’s some good stuff in here.
🍰For a piece of our homemade shortcake to have with your espresso shot, head on down to the premium content at the bottom of this newsletter. Oh what, you aren’t a premium sub yet?
Podcast Awards
Thanks to Tony Doe for sharing this information with us.
African Podcasters and Voice Artists, APVA
The APVA Awards 2022 is a great opportunity to showcase the amazing talent that Africa has to offer in the world of podcasting, spoken word, poetry, voice acting, and voice-overs. We want to help influence and elevate African voices in the creative industry so that they can be seen, heard, and appreciated. Voting has commenced and the virtual event will take place in September.
ALSO: check out Tony’s newsletter, Podcast Related.
If you have any information you’d like shared in the newsletter, please fill out this form.
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.
There’s more in the subscriber version!
For those of you who can and would like to support the Global Podcast Editors community, feel free to subscribe.
A paid/premium subscription includes the free content PLUS…
client attraction tips and tricks
podcast editing, business, and podcaster espresso shots nibbles
digital nomad tips and resources
secret premium subscriber offers and opportunities
Paid subscriptions are $5/month or $50 a year. And founding members get even more benefits!
Remember, you, the professional podcast editor, can probably expense this newsletter. This is a global community so I can’t speak to every country regarding this so please check your local income tax and business laws for specifics.
Note: If you’re in a country that Substack payment does not support but you’d like to subscribe to, please contact me for an alternate payment method.
Thanks for reading the GPE newsletter. The next issue comes out on July 29th.
One of my favorite coffee shops in Valencia is Mayan Coffee. I’ve been going to the one in the old town and loving it but I also wanted to check out the one that’s much farther away. This lovely-hearted foamed-up coffee is from that branch.
The next newsletter will be out Friday, July 29th. Reach out if there’s something you’d like to contribute to it.
Until then,
Steph
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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