The week in Internet. Useful resources for creative professionals.
I’m heading to the Podcast Movement Conference this weekend in Ft. Worth, Texas, and in the spirit of last-minute productivity, I wanted to share something I learned recently to make your podcast more accessible and more prominent to visitors.
Kristen Fischer (@KristenFischer) is an independent copywriter, author, and journalist living and working at the Jersey Shore. Following a stint as a cub reporter, she turned to freelance writing, making efforts to diversify her professional practice along the way.
A proponent of freelancing and professional issues around independent creatives, Kristen co-hosts Freelance Radio and has written When Talent Isn’t Enough, a business guide for creative professionals.
Our conversation covers writing tactics, the relationships between designers and writers, and how Kristen balances client work with authoring books. We also discuss the emotional trials of freelancing and some of the mistakes made and drama faced in her earlier years. Catch up with Kristen via her site, KristenFischer.com
When Talent Isn’t Enough by Kristen Fischer
John Lee Dumas (@JohnLeeDumas) & Kate Erickson (@KateLErickson) are the duo behind Entrepreneur on Fire, a daily podcast about business, life, and success. Working closely and dedicating themselves to systematic behaviour, John and Kate have built a massively successful business around their podcasts and blogging community.
This conversation discusses their individual workflows and systems, how they manage virtual assistants, and how working from home requires discipline and systems.
Check out their podcasts, blogs, communities, and courses over at EntrepreneurOnFire.com
Taylor Mathis (@taylor_mathis) is a food photographer turned entrepreneur based in Charlotte, NC. Taylor has built an online following in the food photography industry, and authored several books. Lately, he’s turned to online entrepreneurship and helping fellow photographers earn steady income through his new venture and podcast of the same name, Business of Creatives.
This conversation covers his origins in photography, the challenges of shooting food, and how he transitioned into different business areas as a creative pro.
Check out Taylor on his sites, Photographing Food , Taylor Takes a Taste, and Business of Creatives, as well as his book, The Southern Tailgating Cookbook.
I’ve been hosting The Busy Creator Podcast for over a year now, and the endeavor has allowed me to connect to 40+ amazing creative pros across a number of creative sectors. In recent weeks, numerous folks have approached me with the simple question “What do I need to start a podcast?” With growing interest not only in listening, but in hosting a podcast, I think it useful that I share some tips on getting started.
The important thing to note is that I am by no means an expert in creating a world-famous show, earning millions of dollars, building a full-fledged media company, or becoming a speaker/author/entrepreneur on the back of my humble podcast. Those things have indeed happened to Podcasters over the years — for example, Keith and The Girl, Entrepreneur on Fire, Grammar Girl/QD Now, or Chris Hardwick, respectively, but not for me [yet]. I have, however, started two podcasts on my own, without a team of sound engineers or web designers, and those early steps aren’t nearly as intimidating as you might think.
John Lee Dumas, the host and founder of the aforementioned Entrepreneur on Fire, has built a million-dollar business on the strength of his podcasts, including a private membership site, Podcasters’ Paradise. The motto of Paradise is simple: “Create → Grow → Monetize“. To borrow some equally succinct language, let’s dig a bit deeper into the “Create” stage and break it down further into “Plan → Record → Publish.”
Todd Henry (@ToddHenry) is an author, speaker, workshop leader, and creative consultant who has written two books on practices observed in successful creative professionals, and tactics for being prolific, brilliant, and healthy. He regularly speaks and consults with companies about how to develop practices and systems for success. In addition, he’s been writing and podcasting since 2005 on his website, Accidental Creative. Read more about Todd on his personal site.
For this particular discussion, we were slightly pressed for time, so to augment our chat, above is a video of Todd speaking at Creative Mornings in Cincinnati in November 2013.
Will Hudson (@WillHudson) is the Co-Founder and Director of It’s Nice That, a publishing company that champions creativity across the world of art & design. Together with Prescott, he discusses how It’s Nice That began as an art school project and grew into a publishing empire cum creative agency in London. We also hear about Will’s productivity habits, and how he manages the assault of so much email.
Ashley Milne-Tyte (@ashleymilnetyte) is a journalist, radio producer, and podcaster living in New York City. Together they discuss the daily grind of journalists and the process for recording and editing audio segments for radio and podcasts. We hear Ashley’s workflow and habits, and her plans to improve productivity as spring approaches.
You can catch up with Ashley on her site, AshleyMilneTyte.com, or through her podcast, TheBroadExperience.com
Niki Brown (@NikiBrown) & Liz Andrade (@LizAndrade) are the design duo behind The Pagebreak Podcast. Niki & Liz are both solo designers, working independently. Together we discuss tools of the job, the state of web design and text editors, and how they got started in podcasting.
Somehow, the topic of cats failed to come up, but we’re all cat owners.
Joel Duggan (@JoelDuggan) is an illustrator & cartoonist based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. In addition to his web comics and illustration commissions, he co-hosts several podcasts. We spoke a bit about his training in art and illustration, his current workflow, and his podcasting endeavors.
Ladies and Gentleman of the Internet, I present to you episode 1 of The Busy Creator Podcast!
In this inaugural episode, I chat with Charles Penn, music producer and audio engineer. Our discussion meanders and covers topics as diverse as microphones, audio software and sound manipulation, and even some backup strategy. It’s the first episode so we’re still figuring out some sound. Thanks for joining in the fun.
