The Mastermind Edition
The Mastermind Edition
Many creative brains working together are often far better than one.
Welcome to Sound Judgment, the newsletter that helps you become a better storyteller in audio and beyond. You may already know that I started Sound Judgment, the podcast, out of frustration. Around me were mountains of information about the business, mechanics, and marketing of podcasts. But what about how to make audio content worth listening to in the first place? I didn’t see much.
I’m thrilled to share that now, two years later, Sound Judgment is a finalist for a Signal Award. That’s an incredible honor, but now I truly need your help. With your votes, Sound Judgment has a chance to win a Listener’s Choice award, which in turn will help the podcast and this newsletter reach many more listeners and readers. We face stiff competition. Please take a quick moment now to vote for Sound Judgment. The deadline is October 17.
Your vote means the world to me.
Pitcher Pond, Lincolnville, Maine
Hi storytellers —
If you’ve been reading Sound Judgment for the last couple of months, you know I’ve been on a “walkabout,” as my friend and executive coach Jill Nykoliation likes to say. For almost two months, my husband and I traveled across the country from Colorado to Maine, living and working in a tiny trailer. Since mid-September, we’ve been living in a cabin on Pitcher Pond in midcoast Maine. We head home in a couple of days, crossing back to Colorado on a different route. The upshot: Everything is at “sixes and sevens,” as I recall characters saying in the British novels I liked reading as a kid. (Comment below if you still love The Chronicles of Narnia.)
I’m forging on anyway. A few days ago, I held my first mastermind for paying subscribers. We focused on driving questions, those big questions that give direction to our articles, stories, podcasts, films — to all of our creative work.
The curiosity and enthusiasm in this mastermind was palpable. For almost two hours, eight of us, ranging widely in geography and age (20s - 70s) shared experiences, ideas, and challenges. We listened to each other’s audio excerpts, asked probing questions and offered feedback. For a small group, it was surprisingly global: storytellers came from across the U.S., France, England and Morocco.
I want to share a few takeaways:
We are all hungry for a shared creative community and feedback. When Fulbright Scholar Viviana Prado-Núñez shared an excerpt of her as-yet-unpublished podcast episode about people from Latin-American countries migrating to Morocco, she said, “I work alone.” She just wanted someone to listen. Almost the same words came out of Whitney Archibald’s mouth as she shared the lead to a forthcoming episode of the Y Magazine podcast she hosts and produces for Brigham Young University.
Most storytellers, audio and otherwise, work alone. I’ve long believed we learn faster — often exponentially — in community. It’s more fun and far less lonely.Pitching ideas is daunting, no matter how experienced we are. I noticed many thoughtful faces as longtime producer Will Coley discussed the multiple rejections he received on his pitch for a story about social nudity. He’d almost lost hope when he decided to pitch Articles of Interest, an award-winning podcast about what we wear. When his pitch reached the desk of producer and host Avery Trufelman, the trajectory changed. She was intrigued, she said. But would he be willing to pursue a different angle? He was, and “Nudity” was born. Sometimes we need a different doorway into our subject — a different driving question, if you will.
I’ve been developing a new series on pitching featuring Will Coley, BBC supplier Dennis Funk of Written in Air, a senior producer at Radiolab, and more, coming this winter. (Consider purchasing a paid subscription to access most of it.)Sometimes our work dilemmas mirror and are shaped by those we’re facing in life. Anne Morgan has been producing the podcast If Anne Can for a few years. During that time, she moved from Singapore to Manchester, England, began caring for her ailing parents, and changed jobs. Now, she’s wrestling with whether to stop producing her show; keep the topic but change the format; or start something new altogether.
As our lives change, we become different people. If our creative work reflects who we are, how do we persist with a project designed by the person we used to be? Should we? (For a moving conversation about quitting a podcast, listen to The Dinner Sisters: Navigating a Breakout Opportunity—and Devastating Grief.)
This topic begs for a dedicated conversation. I may hold our next mastermind on navigating the intersections between our personal lives and our storytelling. Are you interested? Leave me a note in the comments!I spend so much time writing words on a page. This group wrenched me away from the visual and back into the emotion and power of human sound — in this case, music. Kevin plans to produce a program about great singers; Steven and his wife, Clara, released a series about the youth gospel choir that created the hit song “Oh Happy Day,” and Vivian’s work investigates the surprising influence of telenovelas on a Moroccan blues singer. It was a great reminder that there is music in the spoken word.
Become the interviewer you’ve always wanted to be.
Sign up for Mastering the Art of the Interview on Wednesday, November 6!* Learn 10 techniques for making interviews sing. This is for you if you’re a podcaster, writer, or producer in any medium. Paid subscribers get a 50% discount on this workshop, so consider upgrading now. (*Rescheduled from October 9. Paid subscribers will receive the discount code.)
🏆 Learn from the best
Read: I recently picked up the new book Say It Well by Terry Szuplat, one of President Obama’s speechwriters. Szuplat writes self-deprecatingly about his fear of public speaking before launching into hard-won lessons about speechwriting. This book is changing my approaches to speaking and podcasting. His discussion on appealing to values has given me a revelation about a story I’m reporting. I can’t stop thinking about Say It Well.
Listen: to Before We Go, a new podcast that follows the journey of Dr. Shoshana Ungerleider, an Oscar-nominated documentary filmmaker and founder of the nonprofit End Well, as she navigates the end of her father’s life. This podcast, which has wisdom for all of us, debuted at #25 on Apple (#1 in the documentary category). Dismissing the topic as too sad? Don’t. Ungerleider and her husband offer a hilarious description of Ungerleider’s late father at their wedding, proudly boasting about her accomplishments — most of which are complete fiction. Produced by Karen Given with Abby Williams and Madison Britt of Podcast Nation.
Get community support: AIR, the Association of Independents in Radio, is one of the best deals around for audio storytellers. 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. Organizational memberships, which include a minimum of two seats, start at $90 a year.
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 10% off 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.
Please note: Books mentioned in this newsletter link are affiliate links on Bookshop.org, which supports local, independent bookstores. Your purchases help support Sound Judgment.
Monèt Yarnell in her new community studio at the offices of Sell 207 in Belfast, Maine.
My personal Sound Judgment
I’m celebrating serendipity for about the thousandth time since starting our “voyage of discovery” in early August. By chance, I heard about Monèt Yarnell, a realtor in Belfast, Maine (population 7,000). She recently built a recording studio alongside a warm, inviting community space. A few days later, I discovered that my longtime colleague, freelance producer Tressa Versteeg, had chosen and configured the studio’s audio gear. Yesterday, I sat down in this beautiful studio and voice tracked an earlier Sound Judgment newsletter for you. It’ll be available soon. Thanks to Monèt for the generous use of your studio.
As always, it is a joy to be with you.
Elaine
Epilogue
“There are probably a number of ways to tell your story right, and someone else may be able to tell you whether or not you’ve found one of these ways.”
— Anne Lamott