Alyssa’s Book Club is a simple podcast recorded in my little apartment featuring various guests/friends, where we provide in-depth book recommendations while discussing each book we read together! The casual and homey atmosphere makes this podcast series a fun but relaxed experience for listeners who want to wind down and not have to focus too hard. Discussions will be intentionally curated so that readers can follow along without having to read the books we’re discussing if they don’t want to. Each episode will include a discussion (with as few spoilers as possible) of the book we previously read, as well as a brief summary of the book that will be featured next, for listeners who want to keep up with our reading.
I used music at the beginning for a fun start, followed by a page flipping sound effect as a transition (which is also used at the end, as well). In the background is a softer audio of a home environment, featuring the nostalgic sound of cicadas in the distance, to hopefully give a more intimate and calm feeling throughout. Recording vocal audio was tricky since I don’t have any formal equipment, but I managed with just my computer (and I even roped my friend into giving a very brief appearance in the podcast). Balancing the audio volumes was also a tricky endeavor.
Audio Credits:
- “Funny Children Reggae (short ver.)” by AudioCoffee licensed by CC BY-NC 4.0.
- “Flipping book pages #2.MP3” by SoundsForHim licensed by CC0 1.0.
- “passby w_grunt and cicadas.wav” by patchen licensed by CC BY 4.0.
- “Alyssa’s Book Club Narration” by Alyssa Mitchinson licensed by CC BY-NC 4.0.
Photo Credits:
- “Bookshelves filled with various books in a library.” by atelierbyvineeth … licensed by Unsplash.
Hi Alyssa! I really like the concept of this podcast. With the hustle and bustle of everyday life, it’s nice to have a relaxing listen to a book talk that doesn’t require a lot of effort to hop into. The tone of this, and your and your friend’s soft voiceovers, reminds me of the old SNL skit “Delicious Dish,” a parody of some NPR talk shows. The page flips sounded like you were opening your books to start talking about what you’d read, and the ambient sounds under your voiceover filled what could have been an empty void in the sound. I think this would definitely attract the working adult crowd, particularly women, who might be too busy with life to commit to reading a specific book for a book club but still want to participate in one anyway, in a long-form format, rather than the short-form of BookTok or Bookstagram. Depending on the books discussed, this could reach a broader audience, from young adults to seniors. I’m not sure whether you’re focusing on one genre, but expanding your reading selections could help you reach a larger audience for your podcast.
My biggest suggestion would be to lower the volume of the page flips and try to raise the volume of your voices. Listening with my headphones, the page flips were a bit jarring, and while your voices were loud enough for me to hear, I felt I was straining a bit (which could be a good thing and what you were going for to force the reader to focus more!). I know you said you struggled with both of these things in the editing, and I think with the proper equipment, you would have been able to get a better sound in your voiceover (I used my headset for mine, and I know it’s not the best, so I completely understand!).
Hi Alyssa,
I enjoyed the beginning of your podcast intro followed by the sound of the page flips. The page flips add a nice touch to the intro and make it sound like you are going through the actual book as the podcast is progressing. You did a great job transitioning into and delivering your voiceover. This podcast concept would definitely have a specific audience for book lovers and those who want to feel like they are a part of a book club depending on the genre of books you decide to read and discuss. Great job!
Hi Alyssa!
What a great idea for your podcast. The choice of the page-flip sound was a great addition and it worked well to seamlessly transition from music to narration. My biggest note is that the background cicada audio was a bit distracting. Upon first listen it made the narration sound a bit fuzzy. I think this sound would work well in the background if you raised the volume of the narration recording a bit!
The opening song is very upbeat and it does a great job of setting the tone. Additionally, I loved your inclusion of a guest. Very creative. Great job!