Researching the Podcast
It has long been a passion of mine to create collaborative artistic projects like podcasts, videos, and theatre productions. This year, a small contingent of the Learning Center is producing a new podcast to provide assistance to learners. We researched many different topics for our first podcast, ranging from grammar to presenting advice. We decided that we wanted to interview a few adults about a topic that was prevalent at the time, college essay writing. My group members compiled a list of questions and got the script ready.
Recording the Podcast
Thanks to one of our group members, we had access to microphone equipment and editing software. Over a week, the group recorded with two college essay advisors at Skyline and two students, myself and another senior. Last minute, we realized that we needed an introduction and conclusion, so we recorded those as well.
Editing the Podcast
After recording was complete, one of our group members carefully cut the 30 minutes of recorded conversation down to 13 minutes. We wanted to be succinct and careful about listener retention. Too many pauses or filler words would not be helpful for anyone looking for advice or help. Also, we retained the original long-form version, just in case the cuts made the podcast too clunky.
Publishing the Podcast
Though we were not able to publish the podcast before our goal of the Early Action deadline, the district gave us permission to publish shortly after November 1. Our group hopes that the podcast will help writers that stumble across it and that they take something away, whether they are writing college essays or not. Spotify was an excellent platform to publish on, and did not require payment. You can find the published podcast here. Our next one will be published shortly!
Reflections
There were a lot of roadblocks for this collaborative project, but like every other collaborative project, it eventually worked out in the end. I would encourage anyone who wants to, to engage in creating collaborative art and speech. It helps us to work together and hear each other’s opinions. It helps us to resolve conflicts and figure out how to best address everyone’s ideas. Whether you are a leader or a follower, collaborative creations are fulfilling and challenging, with just the right amount of fun thrown in.
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