Thinking about a change to the structure of the podcast.

Games Discussion Ars Magica
1

I'm pondering if I should move the blog up to the next cost bracket, so I pen and papered my stats. I thought people might find them interesting if they are planning their own blog. (PS: I'll tell you how I do it, if you want). My blog takes about twice as long as published length to make, but I'm practised at audiobooks: for newbies it'd take longer.

I'm glad I didn't go with my first title, which was "Five Minutes in Mythic Europe". It's still a format I like, but I really like longform. That being said, the posts that get the most hits on the blog are the single-page inforgraphic ones. They are eaiser for people to share on twitter/facebook, I suppose.

Minutes of material per month, not including news/admin posts. My podcast plan allows me 50 minutes a month, but I can preload on short months.
2016
M: 36:14
J: 26:52
J: 12:55
(Season break for Librivox anniversary. I have not done seasons since.)
A: 8:27
S: 50:47
O: 37:36
N: 1:11:43
D: 50:10
2017
J: 49:01
F 47:16
M 36:30
A 50:49
M 1:15:55
J 1:25:53
J 36:22
A 1:33:48
S 1:38:55 (2 episodes recorded so far, and I know the Cornwall one will be big too, because it's Lyonesse).

Total 14:29:02

I think the reason I'm going over is that my blog now has a structure where the first week of the month is a tale from Lord Dunsany, and the last week is a bit of Cornish folklore I'm assembling into a gazette. Also, I keep accidentally letting material loose early and then topping up the blog from my pre-recorded episodes.

I either need to cut down (back under the 50 minutes) or step it up, but I'm not ready to decide yet. I think the new structure works, in the sense that the workflow of it is easier and the final product (a book of Dunsany stories with annotations and a Cornish web supplement) are good things.

The odd thing is the podcast is more popular than the blog. It's averaging about 125 downloads per episode at the moment. I'm not sure how big the crossover between GFF listeners and this group is. I think I may have some people who play in Spanish or French who tune in, but who talk about the game on other forums. I don't currently pay for stats, so I'm not really sure of the breakdown.

I'll need to decide by the end of September. My October Dunsany Episode is 75 minutes long, so I can't host it without either upgrading my plan or cutting it in halves.

Thoughts are welcome, but basically I want other people to start podcasting,m so I thought I'd show you what you can get done for $5 a month. If people want me to write a primer for how I work on it, I'm happy to do that.

2

I'm a subscriber to the podcast and enjoy it very much. I rarely visit the blog. Not because I don't like it. The podcast is easier to consume while commuting or doing other activities, such as updating Project: Redcap.

3

I prefer short (less than 30 minute) episodes, and I only listen on the web page. These two items are somewhat related.

4

I'm subscribed and get the podcast on my phone. I rarely visit the website because of that.
I like the longer episodes as I'll listen on my way back from work.

5

I listen to the podcast in the car. My drive to work is only 15 minutes or so, but I still enjoy 15-30 minutes of episode, since nobody else is around my work til later anyway. That said, as long as you keep talking, I'll keep listening. My favorite episodes are actually the ones where you talk about concepts and interpretations... and the very first episode is one I listen to for fun about once a month.

6

I listen to several podcasts, including yours, and I follow 0 blogs.

When I actually sit to read something, the pile of books takes priority, whereas podcasts I can listen while doing something else like waking the dog or washing the dishes. Audiobooks are good for that as well, but they don't work for certain kinds of books.