The Monthly Magpie August 2023

Hi everyone!

I got a little off track (again...whoops) this month because I took an actual vacation with my friends, and I got a little side gig I’ve been working on. My vacation was a week that was incredibly necessary, and now I feel refreshed to jump into the rest of summer. This Monthly Magpie will be slightly journal-like as I once again, try to get myself back into the swing of what I want to be doing here. Honestly, maybe next year I should take July off…I'll try to remember that.

Summer Listenin’ - Journal 2.5

Does your listening change over the summer? I think I’m listening less as I have more time to spend with The Other and time for a few vacations. I’m super lucky that my friends I was in Asheville with understand when I take my morning coffee with a podcast instead of them. While I got to catch up on a few short episodes, I did not listen as intensely as I usually do. There was no chance to have my marathon day like I do when I’m in the swing of the school year months. We did, however, play seven hours of Arkham Horror across two days…

As an update to my listening, I find myself wanting to listen to podcasts that have rounded themselves out well. A great story, good production, and that extra kick of that thing. I’ve been hooked on The Retrievals but am honestly disappointed that it will be only a few episodes long. A podcast like that brings you in, in such an intense way. Do you have a podcast that’s had you in a vice grip, that has you refreshing until you get the next episode? Let me know.

Review This Month

I wrote a lot this month, just not a ton of review content. Switching to Journals during a vacation month maybe wasn't the best of moves. Still, one review is better than none.

Academy

An audio drama that I definitely had opinions on. Read my review for more.

Build In Public Updates

I started Magpie on a whim a few years ago. I got some interest and support, especially from Greatpods and here I am, still chugging along and figuring out how to fit myself into the podcasting world and media world in general.

Here are some stats:

I currently have 127 people receiving this newsletter.

In July I had 1,600 views on the website total (this was a substantial increase)

My most popular review in July was Scamanda, beating out Archetypes

I try to read into my stats to hopefully up my numbers in a way that lets me reach out to more people about podcasts. Especially since I'm seeing Nobody Should Believe Me getting hits as I backlinked to that review in my Scamanda Review. I want to create balance with big and little podcasts, and just show people what's going on in the world of podcasts. I think it's overwhelming for people who are just starting to listen. Hopefully more people find me, as I'm here to help!

Recommendation Corner

This month, I didn’t want to give you podcast recommendations since my listening has been wonky. Instead, I'm going to shout out other newsletters that I love. They will give you different perspectives on some of the same podcasts I review, and also give you an incredible range of podcasts between the two of them. Go check them out!

Podstack from Devin Andandre

The End from Evo Terra


Thank you! Remember to subscribe if you haven't, and keep listening.