Welcome to the next in the Podcast Showcase series, where we share podcasts with you in the words of the podcasters themselves. This time, we talk to The White Vault
Sum up your podcast in three sentences
Explore the far reaches of the world’s horrors on The White Vault. Hear the collected records of teams sent to the remote corners of the Earth, and uncover a larger conspiracy wrapped in sinister cult organizations, ancient archaeological sites, and human sacrifices. These stories incorporate real-life archaeological practices and theories with monstrous horrors surrounding their origin, and showcases endangered animals and languages.
Who is your ideal listener? Who loves your show?
Our listeners are people who enjoy travel, or the idea of travel. Many of us have been unable to leave our home states or countries over the last few years and our stories are little adventures that let you feel what it’s like to go to Sweden, Svalbard, or Patagonia… albeit with some archaeological mysteries and monsters in the mix.
Our listeners range in age, but we have a surprisingly large number of women in their 50s and 60s who enjoy a good mystery and listen on the go.
Even though our primary shows are horror, jump scares aren’t as fun in audio form, so it’s more of an intellectual horror. The kind that stays with you long after you’ve turned the show off.
What made you start this podcast?
Kaitlin and I were working on a sci-fi audio drama when we took a trip to Iceland. It was a surprise trip during the winter because flights were cheap that season, and despite living in Florida at the time, we’re a cold-weather people.
During the trip, roads closed behind us due to snow and ice and we remained ever-ahead of the storm by just a few minutes. This extremely memorable journey left an impression with Kaitlin, who has an MST in Archaeological Sciences and shared an idea with me for an archaeology-based story that involved the weather as one of the primary antagonists.
I was sold, and six month later we released the first episode.
What have you learned about your subject thanks to this podcast?
I have learned quite a bit about world history, nature, various sciences, cultures, and languages. I’ve been introduced to so many new people from around the world, many of whom I’ve become friends with. I’ve gotten a lot better at sound design and editing. I’ve traveled to some incredible places to record authentic audio, and collaborated with studios on every continent except Antarctica.
I have a stronger sense of just how interconnected our world actually is – the shared human experience. I’ve also learned how to curse in over a dozen languages, two of which are endangered.
What has your experience of podcasting been? What do you love / hate about the process?
I think the hardest thing about what we do is maintaining our schedule. We release something new every two weeks, which means a lot on my end as I’m the producer, director, editor, and sound designer. Kaitlin also has a great deal of promotion she does on a weekly basis in addition to her writing as we attempt to maintain six different shows with extremely different audiences.
As frustrating as it can be at times to grow a community, I think the gratifying part is interacting with our fans. We have a fabulous discord of enthusiastic listeners who make every day a bit easier, and we also sometimes get fan (e)mail or the odd note about how something we introduced to them in our podcast became an important part of their lives. More than a few people have traveled to various locations featured on the show, because of the show, and a few of our listeners have even taken up scientific pursuits.
On a day-to-day level, I really enjoy editing and sound design. Building a world from scratch in audio is a lot like drawing, and though I have no talent for visual art, it brings me real joy to bring a dynamic scene to life with voices, sounds, and on occasion music. Hearing that finishing touch, hearing the scene pop for the first time and transition from “people recording in a closet” to “adventurers being chased by a polar bear in the snow” is absolutely the best part.
If someone wants to start listening to your podcast, which episode would you recommend they start with? Why?
Our stories are chronological, so we recommend starting at episode one every time. Otherwise, it would be a bit confusing.
Which other podcasts do you love listening to?
I’ve been listening to the final season of the British comedy podcast Wooden Overcoats. It’s a delightful story about a small village with two rival undertakers and it’s a laugh-out-loud riot. They have a great writer and an extremely talented cast.
I’ve also been going back through We’re Alive, which is a zombie adventure podcast. I’ll freely admit that I’m not really a zombie fan but the human elements of this show, combined with the production value, put it in a class of its own. And to my knowledge it’s also one of the longest-running audio dramas produced at this extremely high level of quality.
Lastly, I’m catching up on Old Gods of Appalachia, which is a narrative fiction podcast that has REALLY creative horrors, all set within the Appalachian region, told by locals. I can’t recommend them enough. It’s like listening to campfire stories but with a cohesive narrative that runs for multiple seasons.
All three of the above shows are also made by independent creators.
If people want to find you online, where can they do so?
Please find our show on:
- www.TheWhiteVault.com or look up “The White Vault” wherever you find podcasts.
- @whitevault on Twitter
- @whitevault on Instagram
- facebook.com/WhiteVaultPodcast
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Image credit: Peter Neumann