Overheard a podcast editor say they script 90% of their raw audio

I was at a coffee shop last Wednesday and a woman next to me was explaining how her team scripts nearly every word of their interview podcasts before recording. She said they leave maybe 10% room for natural tangents but the structure is locked in. That stuck with me because I always assumed podcasts relied on organic conversation. I tried it on my last two episodes and the editing time dropped from 4 hours to under 1.5 hours. It feels less spontaneous but the pacing is way better now. Has anyone else found a middle ground between scripting too much and flying blind?

2 comments

2 Comments

blakem131mo ago

I get where you're coming from but I kinda disagree. Scripting that much kills the realness for me. I like when people stumble over their words or go off on weird tangents, makes it feel like actual people talking instead of a polished product.

margaret3041mo ago

Kills the realness" is a good way to put it @blakem13, though I guess my realness was mostly me sighing into the mic for three hours. My compromise is to script the first 5 minutes to get the train on the tracks and then just let it derail naturally from there.