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February 9th, 2007 | Posted in Podcasting 3 Comments »
If you’ve ever listened to the Diggnation podcast, TWIT (This Week in Tech), Buzz Out Loud, the WordPress podcast, or other popular podcasts, one thing they have in common is co-hosting. And this is the new direction we’re taking with the Tech Writer Voices podcast.
Until now, Tech Writer Voices has largely been a podcast of interviews. But now we will switch to the co-host style and be more conversational. The focus of the podcast will not be dedicated to one single topic, but instead cover a variety of topics related to technical communciation, and the style will flow conversationally between me and the new co-host, Heidi Hansen. We also plan to limit the podcast to 15-20 minutes.
I’m excited about the new format. We’re also going to try to increase the audio quality by doing a technique described in Podcasting Hacks as the “double ender.” Each person records on their own computers, and then the tracks are layered (rather than just recording straight from Skype, which results in a loss of quality).
One reason I think Heidi will make a good co-host is because she’s very well-read. She’s always posting summaries and recommendations of journal articles, books, and other content she has read. I have never actually met her — she lives in Seattle and is part of the Puget Sound Chapter. Heidi is also a triathlete.
If you haven’t gotten into podcasting yet, but you spend time driving in your car each day or working out, then you are a prime candidate to get into podcasting. We should post the first co-hosted podcast sometime next week. Look for it.
Congratulations on your new format. I will be downloading it as soon as it’s available. How did you select Heidi as your co-host? Just curious.
She wrote me a few months ago suggesting a change in format, esp. based on some info from the management SIG. It took me a while to get organized and ready to try a new direction. She offered to co-host. I am really interested to see how it works.
By the way, how do you and Scott coordinate your audio? Have you ever tried the double-ender technique I mentioned (about both recording on each other’s computers, and then layering the audio tracks in sync)? If you have any tips about the co-host format, let me know.
We usually coordinate our audio by recording separately in Odeo and mixing the results with Audacity. This week we used Skype to record but we’re probably going to be experimenting with the “double ender” technique that you mentioned.
As for tips on the co-host format, it’s definitely better to keep it conversational and focus on your talking points. Scott and I just finished our first “real time” podcast and we do have the tendency to keep talking. Try to keep it within your planned time allotment. Just be natural and keep the conversation interesting. Isn’t that what blogging is all about?