To…Boldly…Go…
Stepping out of my “Mr. Producer” shoes and putting on my “voice talent” hat (gotta love those moderately mixed metaphors), I tried something new at the HHX (A.K.A. Health Hacks) podcast this week.
I don’t normally work from a script, but extemporize on a theme I’ve been contemplating for a while. This week I basically used my bit from earlier this week on “The Secret” as a script. You may have read that article here at this site.
I noticed that I sounded very different when reading. I made a real effort not to sound “flat” as reading often does. So instead I sounded “affected” — kind of faux-stentorian with a Captain Kirk kind of abrupt, jerky verbal lope.
On YouTube, Ira Glass has a great set of talks on podcasting. He talks at length about how terribly unnatural he was on air for many years. This gives me hope!
My other big gripe — I hate it when others so this — is that when I was quoting text, I slipped into a sarcastic tone of voice. Real professional, that. Maybe I can do punditry for FOX.
On the subject of recycling blog posts as podcast segments, it never would’ve occurred to me to do it, until I realized that many podcasters I respect (and a few I produce!) do this all the time. It still seems a bit weird, but then again, the audiences are not 100% the same, and there is something to be said for “working smarter, not harder.” I actually did the blog post as a dry run for the segment, because I wanted to take the time to really articulate my thoughts as clearly as possible.
I think that despite a “snack culture” where a million little projects like podcasts, blog posts, Tweets, etc. are churned out and many otherwise rational people are saying that “editing is dead”, there is still real value in doing a thoughtful post-mortem on what we put out for the world. It isn’t just an exercise in navel-gazing to evaluate the HOW of self-presentation.
So, new media types, do you recycle your content? How do you feel about your voice/presentation? Most importantly, do you look back at your work, or only ahead?
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I tend to look ahead, but I’m usually aware of what I (and others) have done. We all have a few pet theories we like to bandy about whenever possible.
I see nothing wrong with using blog material in a podcast or vice versa, as long as each instance expands the conversation. Instead of recycling, why not reconsider, or clarify, or debate?
Different media for different purposes…
My philosophy, thin as it is: all life is a stream and that stream only goes in one direction, and the best I can do is move things forward.
Can’t wait to hear it, though. : )