Start with a format you can repeat

Most story podcasts stall not because the stories are weak, but because the plan behind them is too grand. If every episode needs a new decision — different length, different structure, different music — you will run out of energy by episode four. Choose a shape you can produce in a single evening, then keep it for at least a season.

Useful formats for community groups, small businesses and writers include:

• One story per episode, told in 12–20 minutes, with a short reflection at the end
• Two voices, one theme: a host and a guest, with a fixed set of questions
• Story plus craft: the tale first, then five minutes on how it was made
• Serialised memoir or local history, with each episode ending on a small cliffhanger

Write your format in one sentence and stick it above your desk. For example: “Every episode, one person tells a true story from their life in under fifteen minutes, followed by two minutes on what it taught them.” That sentence settles a hundred later arguments.

Set up recording so it stops being a decision

Good podcast sound is less about expensive gear and more about removing choices. Decide once where you record, what you record onto, and how the microphones are placed — then repeat it every time.

• One microphone per person. A dynamic USB or XLR mic, placed 15–20cm from the mouth, slightly off-axis to soften plosives
• The same quiet room every session. Soft furnishings, a rug, bookshelves and closed curtains do more than any plugin
• Record to WAV at 48kHz, 24-bit. Leave the MP3 compression for the final export
• Headphones on, always. They catch hums, rattles and a guest sitting too far back
• Record thirty seconds of room tone before anyone speaks. It gives your editing software something to work with

Before you press record, put phones on airplane mode, close the windows, and ask everyone to stay still for the first few seconds. Afterwards, back the files up to a second drive or cloud folder before you do anything else. Losing a good interview to a dead laptop is a lesson nobody needs twice.

Create an episode template and a run sheet

A run sheet is a one-page plan with timings. It keeps you calm in the edit and stops episodes drifting to ninety minutes because nobody knew where the ending was.

• Cold open (30–60 seconds): the most arresting line from the story, no introduction
• Intro (20–30 seconds): who you are and what this episode holds
• Story (10–18 minutes): the main body, uninterrupted where possible
• Reflection (1–3 minutes): what it meant, what changed
• Outro and credit (30 seconds): one clear call to action, one thank you

Use the same file naming pattern for every episode, such as 2025-04-12-ep014-margarets-market. Keep separate folders for raw recordings, edited audio, artwork and show notes. Ten minutes of housekeeping now saves hours of hunting later.

Edit with restraint

New podcasters usually over-edit and under-listen. Work in three passes instead of trying to perfect everything at once.

• Pass one — structure. Cut whole sections that do not serve the story. Be brave here
• Pass two — tidying. Remove long pauses, false starts, repeated phrases and distracting mouth noise
• Pass three — polish. Light noise reduction, gentle level balancing, and a consistent loudness

Aim for around -16 LUFS for a stereo podcast, or -19 LUFS for mono, with a true peak no higher than -1 dBTP. Export as MP3 at 128–192 kbps mono for speech. Always listen on a phone speaker as well as headphones; that is how most of your audience will hear it.

Batch your work and publish on a rhythm

Consistency beats frequency. A fortnightly episode that always arrives is worth more than a weekly show that vanishes after a month. Record two or three episodes in one session, then edit them across the following weeks.

Keep a small bank of finished episodes — two or three in reserve — so illness, holidays or a busy work period never break the schedule. Schedule releases in advance, and write your show notes from the same template each time. If you can, involve one other person: a co-host, a reader, or someone who checks the final file. A second pair of ears catches things you have stopped hearing.

Look after the storytelling itself

Production is the scaffolding; the story is the building. Whatever your format, keep these craft fundamentals close.

• Give the teller a want. A story needs someone who desires something and meets resistance
• Anchor scenes in specifics. The rain on a particular Tuesday, the price of the ticket, the colour of the door
• Show change. Something must be different by the end — even subtly
• Land the ending on an image or a line, not a summary or a moral

Simple, repeatable production protects the thing that matters: people telling true stories well, and listeners who trust that a new episode will always be waiting.