Category: podcast

3, 2, 1, it is almost here

Who is ready for another Coffeehouse Junkie audio podcast? This weekend, the next episode will be made available through select podcast services for you, the faithful Coffee Den patrons. Stay tuned for details tomorrow. Next week the podcast will be available to the general listenership.

So, what is on tap? First, how does an artist translate visions and dreams into pigment on canvas? These and other topics are discussed with artist Eva Scruggs. Next, poetry readings and acoustic singer/songwriter sets are common at bookstores and cafés. Join me and take a glimpse behind the scenes of one of those events that takes place at Malaprop’s Bookstore in Asheville, North Carolina. Finally, visit the Grey Eagle music hall and meet Deborah Crooks as she shares a conversation about liberation and home.

And, as always, the podcast features special music by a singer/songwriter I was introduced to thanks to some of the poets and writers in Racine, Wisconsin. I think you may enjoy the lo-fi, indie quality of this artist.

How long does it take to write a haiku?

How long does it take to write a haiku book cover

Purchase How long does it take to write a haiku? [Kindle Edition]!

One autumn evening, during supper, a father tells his children about the poet Basho. They are filled with curiosity and questions. One child asks, how long does it take to write a haiku? This collection features that story and others—plus a story that asks, is it possible to write a poem in your sleep?

When the Lights Go Out

When The Lights Go Out book cover

Purchase When the Lights Go Out [Kindle Edition]!

A light breeze from the south carries echoes of stories about creative space, laptop versus hand-writing and more.

A weather event prompted the author toward thoughts about our culture’s dependency on electricity and technology. These and other short stories complete this collection.

The Vanishing Art of Letter Writing

The Vanishing Art of Letter Writing book cover

Purchase The Vanishing Art of Letter Writing [Kindle Edition]!

When was the last time you wrote a letter? Not an email, but a handwritten letter with pen, paper, envelope and postage. Learn about a legacy of letters from a WWII soldier discovered by a son who never met his father. Years later he learns about his father through a collection of old war letters.

[Podcast] The Vanishing Art of Letter Writing

06 June 2014 Podcast Cover

Listen now:

 

When was the last time your wrote a letter? Not an email, but a handwritten letter with pen, paper, envelope and postage. Learn about a legacy of letters from a WWII soldier discovered by his son. Also, a short story about poetry, jazz and a rainy afternoon.

This show is unofficially sponsored by Circa Celeste — a cafe located in historic downtown Racine, Wisconsin. Check them out at CircaCeleste.net.

Special thanks to John Hayes. He enjoys several musical incarnations from honky-tonk country to jazz to silent music scenes. His current incarnation involves old blues. Enjoy some of his music on his Bandpage.

Listen on:
PodOmatic: coffeehousejunkie.podomatic.com
SoundCloud: soundcloud.com/coffeehousejunkie

Or subscribe on:
RSS Feed: RSS Feed
iTunes: iTunes

[Podcast] When the lights go out

06 June 2014 Podcast Cover

Listen now:

 

A light breeze from the south carries echoes of a recent place in memory. In this episode, stories about creative space, laptop versus hand-writing and more.

It is warm enough to finally open the windows and let the Spring air fill the house. The first segment touches on that in a story titled “Creative Space.” Recently, the village where I currently live experienced the first tornado of the year. Everyone is fine. Thankfully, the only dangerous weather was thunder, hail, and rain. But it got me thinking of our culture’s dependency on electricity and technology. “When the lights go out” is the second segment. The third segment answers listeners’s question in “An audience of one.” The final segment for this episode is titled “Life is lived as a messy first draft.”

This episode’s unofficial sponsor is The Steaming Cup located in the beautiful downtown area of Waukesha, Wisconsin. For more details, visit TheSteamingCup.com.

Very special thanks to Lee Tyler Post for permission to use his song “Life Without Fences” in between segments. I first heard his music on The Great America Music Hour hosted by Jerry Jodice. Learn how to get any or all of Lee Tyler’s six studio albums on his website LeeTylerPost.com.

Listen on:
PodOmatic: coffeehousejunkie.podomatic.com
SoundCloud: soundcloud.com/coffeehousejunkie

Or subscribe on:
RSS Feed: RSS Feed
iTunes: iTunes

 

Two ways to hear the audio podcast

08 May 2014 Podcast Cover

If you missed last week’s Coffeehouse Junkie audio podcast, “How long it takes to write a haiku?”: it is available on SoundCloud and PodOmatic.

Here’s a link to SoundCloud: soundcloud.com/coffeehousejunkie

Here’s the link to PodOmatic: coffeehousejunkie.podomatic.com

Again, thanks so much to Amy Annelle for the music and Maniac Coffee Roasting for some great beans! Stay tuned for the next audio podcast coming soon.

[Podcast] How long it takes to write a haiku?

08 May 2014 Podcast Cover

Welcome to the relaunch of the Coffeehouse Junkie audio podcast. A lot of things have happened during that time and there is much I plan to share with you, just not in this episode.

Yes, it is true. The last two years or so I have fasted from coffee. I almost had to rename this blog and audio podcast because of it. Thankfully, my sister introduced me to Maniac Coffee Roasting in Bellingham, Washington. Specifically, the Decaf Espresso Royale blend. Check them out at ManiacCoffeeRoasting.com. They are the unofficial sponsor of this episode. If you would like to officially sponsor an episode, email me at coffeehousejunkie [at] gmail [dot] com for details. Please include “podcast” in the subject line so that your email doesn’t end up in the spam folder.

Amy Annelle - A School Of Secret Dangers
Amy Annelle – A School of Secret Dangers

Very special thanks to Amy Annelle for granting permission to use her song “Will Try” between the segments. Years ago, the album A School of Secret Dangers introduced me to her work. If you like her song, check out Amy Annelle’s latest album The Cimarron Banks. Visit the website HighPlainsSigh.com for more info about her music or find her music on Apple iTunes.

Here’s what’s coming up in this episode:

  • How long does it take to write a haiku?
  • So many books, so little time
  • Keep Calm and Write Something
  • Last night, I fell asleep writing a poem

 

Listen here:

 

Or listen on:
PodOmatic: coffeehousejunkie.podomatic.com
SoundCloud: soundcloud.com/coffeehousejunkie

 

Experiencing technical difficulities

Technical difficulties
Technology offers great time-saving efficiencies. Until something breaks. You probably know what I mean.

Your faithful laptop suddenly experiences hard drive issues. Instead of waiting until it is too late, you preemptively order a replacement and it arrives. But it is the wrong model. How did that happen? So you return it and its replacement delivers to your apartment (according to the online package tracking system). But you never see it. Nor does your neighbor, who nicely inquires about the missing package with other apartment dwellers. But alas. It is missing. How does something as simple as replacing a hard drive eat up nearly a month of hassle? So, disappointed by the delay, you place another order for the hard drive. It arrives! Yay! You do the happy dance. (Until you realize that you now have a month of backlogged freelance and contract work to do in a single week.) And you’re back to business.

Well, maybe you do not know what I mean. That never happens to you, right? Yeah, me neither.

All that to say, the relaunch of the audio podcast has been delayed, but is on its way. As soon as I catch up on some projects. Stay tuned.

[Podcast] Re-release of episode 14

Here is a re-release of episode 14 of the Coffeehouse Junkie audio podcast. It is a bit dated in the fact that there is a reference to gingerbread latte. Anyway, the relaunch of the Coffeehouse Junkie audio podcast is almost here.

The Flood Fine Arts Center in Asheville, North Carolina was the home to poetry writing workshops I directed. One of the six-week workshops featured a syllabus and writing exercises. There is discussion at present to make that syllabus/workbook available as an e-book for those interested parties. This episode features the essay “The Hunger” from the poetry writing workshop. It is abridged and will be released in an expanded version in a forthcoming book.

Listen to: Episode 014

I look forward to your feedback. Post comments, question and/or requests in the comment section of this blog post and I will address it in an upcoming episode. Thanks for listening!

Unreleased demo tapes

In preparing for the relaunch of the Coffeehouse Junkie audio podcast, I discovered some old, unreleased episodes. According to the notes on the audio files, three episodes were recorded and set to publish sometime in 2010 or 2011. But these demos never made it to the airwaves (or cyberspace). One episode is too corrupted to release. But the raw demos of two podcasts (what was planned episode 16 and 17) might make a fun bonus. Anyone interested in hearing these unpublished demo podcasts?

In other exciting news: It reached 42°F outside today. Time for a long walk in the thawing tundra.

[Podcast] Re-release of episode 13

As mentioned last week, here is a re-release of episode 13 of the Coffeehouse Junkie audio podcast. This episode features the essay “The Field” as well as two poems that are discussed in the fourth session of the poetry writing workshop I directed at the The Flood Fine Arts Center in Asheville, North Carolina.

As a side note, each poetry writing workshop I lead concluded with a class chapbook featuring the best of the students’ work and a poetry reading. Additionally, the essay featured in this podcast is abridged and will be released in an expanded version in a forthcoming book.

Here is: Episode 013

As always, I look forward to your feedback. Post comments, question and/or requests in the comment section of this blog post and I will address it in the upcoming episode 15. Episode 14 will be re-released later this week. Thanks for listening!

[Podcast] Re-release of episode 12

As mentioned earlier this week, here is a re-release of episode 12 of the Coffeehouse Junkie audio podcast.

The Flood Fine Arts Center in Asheville, North Carolina was the home to poetry writing workshops I directed. One of the six-week workshops was called “Coffee at Albiani’s” and featured a syllabus and writing exercises. This episode features an essay from the syllabus entitled “The Echo” and two poems that were discussed during one of the sessions of the poetry writing workshop.

Listen to: Episode 012

If you have a question or request after listening to this episode please leave it in the comment section of this blog post and I will address it in the upcoming episode 15.

One final note: Episode 13 will be re-released early next week and episode 14 the end of next week. Thanks for listening!

The return of the Coffeehouse Junkie audio podcast is coming soon

Many, many moons ago in a far distant place there used to be a Coffeehouse Junkie audio podcast. For professional reasons I had to place it on hiatus for an indefinite period of time. In, short, I launched and produced nearly 500 audio podcasts for a national news group earning nearly 800,000 downloads in a little more than two years. Since those professional obligations no longer exist, it is time to resume some Coffeehouse Junkie audio podcasting.

There will be some new features to the audio podcast.

  1. A few topics that seem to be popular on this blog include writing, poetry and publishing. Since I have years of experience in the publishing industry, I will feature some episodes on a behind-the-scenes look at publishing.
  2. Additionally, I plan to open up the request lines (to use an antiquated terrestrial radio expression) . If you have read something on this blog that you would like me to address, I will plan an episode around that topic. Please include your name, Twitter handle and request in the comment section of this blog post.

I will re-release the last three episodes of  the Coffeehouse Junkie audio podcast in the next week or so to prime the pump for the relaunch. The last episodes released featured essays and poems that were presented and discussed in a poetry writing workshop I taught at the Flood Fine Arts Center in Asheville, North Carolina. Episode 12 will be re-released later this week, episode 13 early next week and episode 14 the end of next week.

How do you use ‘cineast’ in a sentence?

Yesterday I tweeted a few words I had to read and record for an audio podcast. I gave away the spelling of one word, ‘cineast.’ But how would you pronounce it? Here’s another challenge. Try to spell the words I read in this podcast without clicking the link to see how they are spelled.

Is commercial radio extinct?

More than one in five people listen to commercial radio each week according to a study conducted by ADM and Edison Research. Nearly four in five listen to audio podcasts each week. And that’s why I enjoy producing audio podcasts! Audio podcasts provide targeted content listeners enjoy. Commercial radio is designed to hit the largest demographic listenership with the lowest common denominator of content.

One of the questions in the study goes like this, each week, do you listen/watch:

  1. audio podcasts
  2. cable tv
  3. network tv
  4. video podcasts
  5. public radio
  6. internet radio
  7. magazines/newspapers
  8. commercial radio

How do you rank as a listener/viewer?

Learning patience by installing a/v software

MacBook Pro plus new display screen

The new MacBook Pro arrived this afternoon. It’s wicked sweet! Also included is a 24″ display screen for Tweetdeck (jus’ kiddin’). The additional display screen helps with the running various tools while editing multitrack audio files.

Now I’m patiently waiting to load all the audio/video software so I can work on some more podcasts.

Learn what your social media specialist should know about podcasting

Last week I posted, “Learn what your social media specialist should know,” and received some response on- and offline. In the post I mentioned a report on podcasting I wrote for a client. Below is a non-client specific synopsis of the report that focuses on four key areas: workflow, programming, strategy and user interface.

Workflow:

There is a misconceptions that podcasts just magically appear in you iTunes podcast menu. Whether you’re producing a podcast a month or a podcast a day, a workflow chart is essential for podcast production.

My workflow looks something like this: audio capture, audio content review, script intro and outro, record intro and outro plus ad sponsor (if none is provided), mix it, save audio file as MP3, uploaded to web hosting server.

If you’re doing podcasts on your own (without the benefit of an IT team) you may have the added responsibility of: writing a XML file (complete with all details that tag your audio podcast which may require a bit of knowledge if writing basic HTML), and publish XML file to web hosting server.

Programming:

On the wild frontier of audio podcasts there are podcasts that listeners subscribe to and then there are podcasts that get lost in the vast obscure expanse of the internet. In spite of the harbingers of the decline of mainstream radio, the best podcast programming follows the same tenets of great radio shows. Your audio gear and your audio capture technique is important, but ultimately the podcasts content is what sells the show. Good content for good listeners.

Strategy:

As much as I love MAC products iTunes isn’t necessarily friendly to serious podcasters. iTunes does not provide any podcast download metrics. Still, iTunes is where most people subscribe to podcasts. Whether it is a necessary evil or not, I’ll let you decide.

The primary way to track audio content is through webstreaming content on your website. Webstreaming audio content provides recordable metrics that assist in establishing ROI and sponsor related data.

An alternate aggregating service for audio podcast is Youtube, which has better metrics to track user data. It also happens to be where the masses go to find video and audio content. Case in point: Ozzy’s new album is available on Youtube (not actual music videos but rather a still image of album art) and I have yet to see an actual music video of the new material.

Just because you have a podcast doesn’t mean anyone will listen to it. Use social media to build a community and share podcast links. It’s perfectly fine to leak/tweet that you’re working on an upcoming podcast featuring (fill in the blank). Promoting your podcast on Facebook and Twitter is a bit tricky because no one wants to be spammed on social media sites. But if you maintain a running conversation with your fans/audience then there’s a bit of anticipation when the podcast is released.

Train your listening audience to expect your podcasts every Thursday at 4 p.m. (or what every time you see fit). The point is to ritualize the experience and present a casual contract with your listeners. Also, a routine scheduled podcast may actually grab the attention of the podcast deities at iTunes and they may actually feature your podcast in the directory.

User interface:

Most users will use iTunes to access your podcast. Make sure you provide the necessary titles, descriptions and other details to help listeners access your podcast.

If not on iTunes, users will find your podcast on your website. If you have a separate podcast page, make sure to promote it on the landing page. A podcast page works best when it provides users quick access. Set up the podcast page like a table of contents. List of podcasts on the podcast page with headline, deck (or brief 10-word description), byline (host, co-host, or featured guest), date and “listen to” feature. Users can listen to the webstreaming content or download the audio podcast.

Should you do an audio or video podcast?

Here are a few thing to consider before you start:

People will remember:

  • 10% of what they read
  • 20% of what they hear
  • 50% of what they see and hear

(Link: Is Web video really effective?)

I’m not sure about the accuracy of those numbers, but here is another thing to consider: who is producing the content? Video takes a lot longer to produce than audio, and there are a lot more variables to video capture (like what’s in the background, natural lighting, audio, etc.)

An audio podcast — providing there is good audio capturing technique — is relatively easy to produce on a regular basis. Using a good digital recorder and mic, you can capture audio relatively quickly, download it to a laptop, edit it using various audio software, export it as a MP3 file and upload it to a Web server for online distribution.

367,000 podcast downloads

This morning I checked the podcast stats. The total downloads for 2009 (12 months) and the total downloads for 2010 (five months) are almost dead even — over 367,000 total podcast downloads to date. Heading into June, all podcasts feature paid sponsors.

350,000 downloads in 17 months

As of this morning, total downloads for this year are set to eclipse total downloads of last year.

Also, the last two months of podcasts feature paid sponsors — thanks to a great sales team.

I’ll write more about what gear I use to produce a podcast in an upcoming post.

Coffeehouse Junkie Podcast – Episode 014

This episode features an essay titled “The Hunger.” Listen to episode 14 here.

Coffeehouse Junkie Podcast – Episode 013

This episode was recorded the week after the River Arts District studio stroll weekend. It features an essay about writing titled “The Field.” Also, I read two poems, “Dead Italians” by Jennifer L. Knox and “asunder” by Craig Arnold. Listen to episode 13 here: http://www.coffeehousejunkie.com/podcast.html

yes, a bag of skittles melted on my keyboard…

[link]

Coffeehouse Junkie Podcast: An excerpt from Gregory Orr’s essay “Four Temperaments and the Forms of Poetry” will be read on today’s podcast plus an short poem.

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the sixth Coffeehouse Junkie Podcast… a poem from the book Calenture and a poem from patricia smith will be read on this podcast episode…

// presented a brief workshop on podcasting. what it is. how it works.