Are Spotify and YouTube listening to podcast creators? NYC meetup, Amelia, Crowley and Sugdens live, Love In The Dark and more

Issue 301 of The Fiction Podcast Weekly is brought to you by The Antiquarium of Sinister Happenings And Odd Goings On.

The Antiquarium of Sinister Happenings And Odd Goings On! Award-winning, immersive horror anthology featuring Mike Flanagan, Kate Siegel, Devon Sawa, Sara Paxton, Jocelin Donahue, and your favorite performers from the genre space. Decipher secret codes, smell along with a scratch’n’ sniff episode, and more! Available wherever you get podcasts.

News, Roundups, and Announcements

• It’s not often that Podnews publishes an extra breaking news bulletin, but when they do, it’s worthwhile. The Spotify for Creators blog says, “To help celebrate growth, plays will be presented as incremental milestones instead of precise figures, beginning once an episode hits 50K plays.” Podnews adds, “The actual definition of a play remains undocumented by Spotify - and by YouTube; but we do know that they are worked out very differently to Apple Podcasts plays. None of the statistics from Apple, Spotify's app, or YouTube are certified under the IAB Podcast Measurement Guidelines.”

• In other metrics news: See, Hear: Launching YouTube Charts for top U.S. podcasts, by Steve McLendon. “Every Wednesday, the Weekly Top Podcast Shows chart is updated with podcast shows ranked by watchtime.” I didn’t care until they said, “ranked by watchtime.” Let’s hope other areas of the industry will find ways to make listens/plays/watchtime more transparent across the board.

• ICYMI (I did): BBC Sounds international closure postponed, by James Cridland

• Acast survived a phishing attack. If you receive an email from Alexandra Fuller, change your password, block that cow and send the message to spam. No offense, cows.

• The Fiction Podcast Weekly is trying out Bluesky, along with other experiments. Will it last? Is social media worth the effort? Follow us to find out!

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Creator Resources

• Nick Douglas is arranging another Audio Drama Meetup in New York City. Saturday, May 31, 2pm-5pm. This one’s an outdoor picnic, so pack wisely. Remember, everybody’s free to wear sunscreen.

• The Podcast Show is coming up, May 21-22: if there are any fiction-relevant events, let us know.

• All Hear, The Everything List for Audio Opportunities, has published their May issue. Go get ‘em, Tiger!

• Arielle’s Podcast Internship Arielle Nissenblatt has adapted a high school podcasting syllabus for a general audience, with templates, videos, and more.

• Audio Drama Sound Design: Create Engaging Stories, by Matthew Boudreau for 11th Hour Audio

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Opportunities

• Casting Call: Afraid seeks talent in Los Angeles, CA and Las Vegas, NV.

• NYC public high school students, The Bell’s Summer Youth Podcast Academy is still taking applications. The organization appears to be journalism-focused, but the skills are transferable, right? Deadline: Sunday, May 18th at 11:59pm ET.

• Oak Spring Interdisciplinary Residencies: 2- or 5-week opportunities for international artists, emphasising support for diverse forms of artistic expression. Deadline: 31st May.

• Aesthetica Podcast Lounge - a call out for international submissions for Aesthetica Short Film Festival’s Podcast Lounge, an immersive storytelling experience. Deadline: 30 June.

• Talia Augustidis’ In The Dark wants you, Philly! In The Dark Call Out for Local Pieces on LOVE for Philadelphia Event. Details in the May 2025 edition of All Hear. Deadline is 26th May. It’s nice when people emphasize the “love” part of Philadelphia, instead of the “throwing batteries at Santa Claus” story AGAIN. I mean, come on.

Milestones & Debuts

• The Amelia Project still has tickets for sale, for the matinee performance of The Amelia Project Live at Theatreship! May 31.

• Invaded. Spence has a plan worked out for every apocalyptic scenario. When there is an alien invasion, his girlfriend, Frankie, and his best pal, Doug, rush to join him in their survival hideout. But when Spence doesn’t show up…

• Call to the Dark. Dingane, a freshly unemployed 20-something in the northern suburbs of Cape Town, receives a box in the mail that his late father kept. He sets out to catalogue the box's contents, but quickly gets more than he bargained for.

• Fool & Scholar livestreamed on Patreon, all the way from Tokyo!

• CrowleyTime and Victoriocity Live! Thursday, May 29, in person, or with a live stream ticket.

Keep sharing good stories.

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