More Podcast Tips + Podcast: Adulting n D Foster Writes 4 Kids

Whew! It’s my second week of “real podcasting” (see about Podcast #1 h-e-r-e) and I’m so busy trying to learn that I haven’t time to work on my novels. After all, they’re what brought me to blogging and now the endeavor of converting blog posts into sound episodes.

Any creative person without a superstar agent has to wear many hats to create work while also promoting themselves, yet no one has more than 24 hours in a day.

Those constraints in mind, below is new stuff about podcasting I’ve learned and bits I neglected to mention last time. Maybe what I’ve learned (including what not to do) can help you (or at least help anyone appreciate what goes into these things). If you have advice or anything to add, please let us all know within the comments.

• Video versions of the podcasts: Youtube versions by different services are in last week’s post. When I have time, I’ll use the remaining freebie credits at the apps to produce videos sized for Twitter, Instagram, and the like.
• Monetizing Part 1: Thank you, thank you, everyone who watched and subscribed! Mwah! Mwah! Mwah! to each and every one of you because I reached the minimum of 50 views needed for Anchor to submit advertisements that I can start to insert and earn from.
• Monetizing Part 2: Anchor’s feature that they’ll let you start making money from their ads on your show after you get 50 listens is definitely more doable than other social media platforms (like WordPress and Youtube) that require zillions before you see a penny. However, try as I might, Anchor’s sign-up form keeps bouncing back to me, saying that my account is already being used! I sent Anchor emails, Tweets, Facebook messages, and am still getting the run around. They have online chat, which the first time I tried getting on, I waited an hour, and then got cut off! (Note Since Publishing This Post & Then Hearing Back From Anchor: they fixed it — will let you know when they send me ads to record.)
• Facebook: I changed my banner on my business page there. Canva does a better job with making text look crisp than when I try adding text via my iMac’s Photos app.
• Anchor Part 1: hopefully I won’t forget, as I did last week, to tag them (they ask podcasters to do that) when I share this to Twitter. Dunno if good will come if it, but one can dare to dream…
• Anchor Part 2: why can’t I open some of my drafts on my iMac, which is a million times easier to edit on than my iPad and iPhone?
• Tagging: which reminds me, I guess I should tag anyone (besides guests here, who I already tag) who I link to or mention in posts? Have you done that?
• Platforms: yah! Anchor has me on 7 platforms so far — but wait, some of them aren’t working or don’t list Happiness Between Tails in their search list — argh! That’s yet another thing I’ve been experiencing much aggravation with, trying to straighten out via emails. etc. And I’m in Apple Podcasts, so why aren’t I in Overcast? And ooooh, far far worst — one platform is showing my drafts that I’ve yet to finish and publish!!! (Note Since Publishing This Post & Then Hearing Back From Anchor: yah! I’m on Overcast. Am hoping soon the other platform will stop showing my drafts…) 
• Automated voices: I forgot to mention, if you want to hear each of them, the boy voice reads the address that’s within the last podcast that includes Willow Croft.
• Podcasting WordPress into Anchor: for how to do that, see my earlier post — I forgot to add that one is allowed only one podcast per blog, which is why I started a separate blog. It’s one that’s only for me to see, even though technically Anchor needs it to be designated “public,” so I can experiment with how podcasts sound before I actually publish them.
• Sound: besides having the separate blog I noted above, when I’m revising a blog post to make it relevant to listeners, it’s useful to preview it through my word processor’s audio narrator as well. Using trial and error, you can figure out how to improve the pacing, etc., using different punctuation and spelling.
• Promotion: it’s not easy figuring out who and how to tell people. For me, part of that has to do with this show being my “classroom” for when I do one for my novels. That means that this one isn’t as polished, so I don’t want to invite criticism from people who won’t understand that. The people who “get it” are more often fellow bloggers and writers.

There you go — if you have any questions or answers, I’m all ears (and eyes).

How’s your week been? Listen to any good podcasts or read any good novels?