The Revolution Will Not Be Televised: Writing and Producing Audio-Fiction Podcasts

Catalog description

The goal of this course will be to start a creative revolution. By diving deep into the audio-fiction landscape, we will explore and put forth the ways in which student voices can be used to create the next generations of creative audio THE CURRICULUM 192 fiction and podcasting. Our goal will be to change the current landscape of podcasting and audio fiction while challenging it and breaking systemic barriers. In this course, students will learn to write and produce groundbreaking contemporary audio dramas and learn how to publish them. We will listen to works from venerable podcasts, such as Welcome to Night Vale, The Magnus Archives, Alice Isn't Dead, and many others. We will also listen to audio fiction from collectives, such as Mermaid Palace, and provocative companies, such as Dipsea, that explicitly address identity and sexuality to challenge the status quo. Also, we will create our own critical discourse for contemporary audio drama—analyzing writings and essays from the fields of screenwriting, sound art, contemporary music, and literature—to help understand and analyze the works that we are creating. Creators from Welcome to Night Vale, The Magnus Archives, and other production houses will join our discussions to talk about their stories and creative processes. Throughout the semester, students will make works and create their own podcasts. At the end of the semester, students will broadcast their works and also have the ability to learn how to pitch their ideas to networks. Fiction Workshop: Coming-of-Age Literature