The art of writing and performing for the ear
When thoughtful writing and great acting come together, something new and mysterious is created. We don't talk about how to blend writing and performing nearly enough.
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Hi storytellers –
If you’re new to Sound Judgment, you may not know that I started this newsletter and the podcast of the same name two years ago to answer a question that’s rarely addressed and almost never taught, but should be: What does it take to become a beloved radio or podcast host? (Since then, Sound Judgment has evolved into what it is today: a platform-agnostic craft newsletter that now answers the question, “What does it take to become a beloved storyteller, in audio and beyond?”)
I bring up my original obsession with the question of “hostiness” because of an experience I had this week. I’ve been working as a story editor on a project I can’t yet name publicly. We had a quick-turn deadline to get a trailer out the door. The producer’s concept is intriguing, the setting and characters evocative. Together, we tweaked the original trailer script to add intrigue and emotion, and to give it more of a cliffhanger effect.
Then the producer voiced a draft of the script for the sound designer. When I listened, I was lit up! I got that feeling you have when words on a page come alive in exactly the way you intended. You can see, hear, and feel the story and the setting as if you’re there. It takes something that was two-dimensional and transforms into something so three-dimensional, so real, that you can almost touch it.
After she tracked the narration, I asked a few voice actors to record some of the characters’ lines.
When my producer heard the tape, she got the same jolt of feeling that I’d had. She responded to one actor in particular. “Oh my goodness, it’s like Kevin is inside my head,” she emailed. “His intonation is exactly how I would imagine these lines being said!”
I’d had a vague idea that this voiceover artist — whom I had thought was an amateur — had perhaps a little bit of acting in his background. I thought I could hear it in the dynamism and richness of his voice in normal conversation. Was I ever in for a surprise! After complimenting him on his performance, I learned, in fact, that he’d debuted on Broadway at the age of 13 — more than 40 years ago.
It takes training, skill, intuition, empathy, and daring to embody someone else’s words.
But those words have to be skillfully woven in the first place.
In the audio world, we barely give any time or training to writing for the ear. We do ourselves, our teams, and our students a disservice. The best audio storytellers understand that their words are meant to be both heard and felt, and they’re willing to develop the intuition to hear when their words work and when they don’t, and to revise until they do.
An audio scriptwriter is similar to a screenwriter or playwright: We may start our work alone, but we cannot finish it there. Our words mean little without a good performer making them solid and alive in the world. This is ensemble work; we need each other. Many a great podcast or radio feature has failed because of a mediocre host. Many a great host or voice actor has fallen flat because of a script written for the page, not for all five senses (or six) and for the heart.
I haven’t yet developed a workshop on writing for the ear, because we all learn differently how to do it. There are hacks — writing short sentences, for instance (10 words or less!) and avoiding complex sentence construction. But the truth is that the skill of writing for the ear is the ability to listen deeply for nuance, pacing, pauses, emotion, and tone of voice. It is the ability to read your work out loud and, hearing it back in your head, to discern whether the words conjure up the world you’re attempting to build. When they don’t, it helps to dispassionately look for what’s missing, what’s discordant, and what is shaping the listener’s emotional experience from beat to beat. Then, to alter the script, subtly or structurally until your intentions, words, and feelings are in alignment. And then — then! — to convey character, setting, motivation, and background to a host or voice actor, and coach them to achieve it.
When it works, I feel a jolt of energy, as if wires have come together to create a spark. My producer summed it up perfectly when she wrote that our voice actor seemed to be inside her head. He translated into being not simply the intellectual meaning of the words, but the totality of the character, the situation, and the emotion. It’s a conjuring act done in service of the audience and the story.
I would guess that this is part of the drug, a part of the reason why so many of us fall in love with audio storytelling, both the consumption and the making of it.
Another concept closely related to writing for the ear is your “sound vision,” — knowing how you want your story to sound to your audience and making it happen. For some great examples of sound visions brought to life and the work it takes to get there, listen to the Sound Judgment episodes Emotional Bravery on Last Day with Stephanie Wittels Wachs (Lemonada) and The Host Defines the Brand with John Barth (Marketplace, Reveal, PRX, The Middle). For a tip straight from Broadway that will help you read a script without sounding like you’re reading, listen to Finding Your Voice with Laura Joyce Davis. (Shelter in Place.)
What are some of your favorite podcast episodes, radio features, or limited series (fiction and nonfiction) where the blend between the writing and the narration and performing works perfectly? Let’s create a list! Recommend them in the comments or restacks (yes, you can include your own work).
For paid subscribers: Join me for a pop-up live session on writing and performing for the ear on Wednesday, September 18, 1:00-2:00 p.m. EST. We’ll work with prompts to write some narrative (or use our own works in progress). Those who wish to will read their work out loud and get constructive feedback. This is the first live session for paid subscribers to Sound Judgment. If you’re not yet a paid subscriber, consider joining! (To join, RSVP to me by replying to this newsletter. RSVP no later than Tuesday at noon EST.)
The industry is a mess. But production studios and networks are still taking pitches. Learn what they want.
Coming up soon for paid subscribers: I’m working hard on a series of interviews with production studio and network executives who will spill the beans about what kinds of pitches they’re accepting, how to pitch them, what works and what mistakes to avoid. A live Q&A about pitching is in the works.
In addition, paid subscribers get access to discounts on classes, book discussions, and upcoming subscriber-only chats and the soon-to-be-released Grand Master List of Storytelling Resources. I know it’s not easy to subscribe to every newsletter you’d like to. But if you’ve been finding value in Sound Judgment, join our community!
🏆 Learn from the best
Get community support: I’ve said this before here, but AIR, the Association of Independents in Radio, is one of the best deals around for audio storytellers, whether you have years of experience or you’re just starting out. I’m biased (I’m on the board) but I belonged to AIR for years before my service. Benefits include a myriad of discounted and free trainings on all things audio, including the business side; the opportunity to list yourself in the AIR talent directory; an active Slack group and listserv; a weekly newsletter; announcements of job and freelance opportunities and much more. An annual professional membership is $100; students can join for $45.
AIR is offering Sound Judgment readers a free three-month trial! Use code SOUNDJUDGMENT at checkout for three months free (for new members only).
Already an AIR member? Get a 10% discount off of your renewal with the code SOUNDJUDGMENT10. (Free trial members, use SOUNDJUDGMENT10 to join for 1 year at the discount after your free trial ends.)
For more information on AIR and to join, visit airmedia.org/join.
Read: If, like me, you are captured by the scene-building we can do in audio, you’ll like the latest Nieman Storyboard column by longtime feature writer and instructor Jacqui Banaszynski, “On seeing, listening, and writing past the surface.” (I love her almost throwaway mention of missing the late, great James Earl Jones. In a column about listening, it’s a note of perfection.)
Read: Perhaps you heard about the $100 million deal that Wondery struck with Jason and Travis Kelce for their podcast New Heights? Or the $80 million deal it cut with Dax Shepard for Armchair Expert? Defector’s Alex Sujong Laughlin has a lot to say about these “jaw-dropping” deals in an industry that’s been shedding great talent like my cat does on the best furniture. Her story, “For Wondery And SiriusXM, Spending Big Isn’t The Same As Thinking Big,” has been inciting a lot of discussion. Read it and let the Sound Judgment community know your thoughts and questions in the comments.
Grab an opportunity: Podglomerate is hiring. The award-winning podcast services firm The Podglomerate is growing its marketing team as they continue to expand their portfolio of high-profile, award-winning podcast clients (which have included NPR, PBS, Netflix, Freakonomics Radio, Harvard, Stanford, and many more). They're looking for a creative spirit with a passion for audio and audience growth. If that sounds like you or someone you know, be sure to apply to their Marketing Manager position today.
Study: Join the Sound Judgment workshop waitlist! I’ll be scheduling new workshop sessions on storytelling strategies, guesting, interviewing and more just as soon as I know the next destination on our nomadic journey in a tiny trailer. Be the first to know.
I’ll be back with a Try This in Your Studio next issue, along with Sound Judgment Kudos and my own personal Sound Judgment. Thanks for bearing with me as I juggle interviews for the pitch series with publishing all of the regular sections of this newsletter.
Finally, a huge thank you to new readers Chris Bomba and Jake Williams for subscribing and for responding to my invitation to introduce yourselves! I love hearing from Sound Judgment readers, so if you subscribed a while ago but haven’t introduced yourself, email me about what you do, what work is fulfilling you right now, and any challenges you’re facing.
As always, it is a joy to be with you.
Elaine
Epilogue
“Every scene you will ever act begins in the middle, and it is up to you, the actor, to provide what comes before.”
— Michael Shurtleff