I don’t really talk about podcasts here but since I listen to them every day, I thought I should do a roundup. The last time I talked about what I was listening to was in February 2017, so this is almost 2 year’s worth of Things I Want to Say. I’m hoping it doesn’t get very long, but given how much I can talk (and by extension, write), I’m not holding my breath.

Anyway, I’m listening to podcasts on the Overdrive app, so I don’t have links to these (and also, I think everyone listens on the apps anyway) but you can just search for the podcast titles and you’ll be able to find them.

What I’m Listening To

These are podcasts that are in my feed right now and I recommend them all.

• The British History Podcast: This is one of the two podcasts that I started listening to after the trip to England (guess I’m recovering my love of British culture?). It’s a recap of British culture from before the Roman invasion to… I’m not actually caught up yet so I’m not sure. I never studied British history so this is pretty interesting.
• The History of English Podcast: The other podcast that I started listening to after the trip. I don’t quite know why, but I thought that it would be interesting to learn about the history of the English language and the English people. This one starts a bit further back and covers the history of languages that influenced English. It’s a nice way to pick up tidbits of information regarding the origin of words!
• Stuff You Missed in History Class: This podcasts covers the parts of history that isn’t commonly well-known. I normally skip the ending because listener mail doesn’t interest me, but I do like some of the topics that they talk about it. Personally, I like the way the previous hosts covered topics better, so I enjoy it when they have ‘classics’ episodes that go back a few years.
• Dressed: This podcast is about the history of fashion. I don’t really listen to all the episodes, since fashion isn’t a huge interests, but some episodes talk about how fashion influences/was influenced by various issues which is interesting.
• Dark Histories: This history podcast focuses more on the darker side of histories – crimes, possibly haunted places, etc. It sounds weird, but I like having this podcast on as background while working. The podcast covers a recap of the topic and then you get to hear the host talk about his opinions. I like it because he doesn’t mix fact with his opinions.
• Happy Face: This is a true crime podcast that isn’t quite like the others. It’s about the Happy Face killer, but instead of focusing on the murderer, the podcast focuses on his daughter, Melissa, and how his crimes has affected her and her family. It’s less a recap of the crimes and more of a journey of Melissa working through her emotions about being the daughter of a serial killer.
• The Indicator: This is a daily podcast (every weekday) about the state of the economy. Each podcast is pretty short and they cover a range of topics, from updates about Brexit to the Lifetime Value Score. They even had a summer reading list about fun economic books, which is totally up my alley.
• Planet Money: Planet Money is the ‘parent’ podcast of The Indicator and it’s also a podcast about the economy. It’s a light-hearted take about various issues, such as how Magic: The Gathering deflated a bubble about their cards, the economic issues related to A Christmas Carol, and why food is so expensive in stadiums.
• Freakonomics: By one of the authors of the books, this podcast looks at different topics where economics plays a role. If you liked the books, you’ll like this too.
• Reply All: A podcast about the internet. Love the various topics they cover – one of my favourite episodes is the series about the Indian scam call center.
• In Our Time: A podcast by the BBC where various people talk about ideas. Topics covered include Shakespeare, the planet Venus, and the Poor Laws. I love it for the range of topics covered.
• The Golf Podcast: I haven’t played for the whole year, but I want to get back and this podcast is going to remind me that I have to eventually start practicing again. I really like their enthusiasm for golf and I’m hoping to pick up tips (I know they give them out, but I don’t really remember them)
• The Internet of Things Podcast: This is another podcast where I listen to the front part (for the news) and then sometimes skip the interview section. If you’re looking to keep up to date about what’s going on in the Internet of Things, this is what you should listen to.
• The Self Publishing Show: This is one of the few self-publishing podcasts that I still listen to. They used to be the Self Publishing Formula, but it’s basically two writers at various stages of their publishing career talking (sometimes with guests) about various issues in publishing.
• The Creative Penn Podcast: Joanna Penn is an indie author that writes both fiction and non-fiction. I admit, I don’t always finish the interviews (especially if the topics don’t interest me), but I really enjoy her opening section where she talks about her opinions on various self-publishing topics and gives updates on her writing.
• Science Fiction & Fantasy Marketing podcast: I started listening to this because I write in the genre. Some episodes are useful but some I skip.
• Dis-Order: This is a podcast about every single animated Disney film ever. Each episode is very long and but the hosts are very fun to listen to and this is another one of the podcasts I like to listen to while working. Episodes drop sporadically.
• The Disney Story Origins Podcast: This podcast (also with very long episodes – is this a characteristic of Disney podcasts?) takes a Disney movie and compares it to the original story. I knew the stories were different, but sometimes, I didn’t realise how different.
• The Dream: This is a podcast about MLMs and it is so good. The hosts take apart the history of MLMs, look at why people join them, and even join one! In particular, I found the episodes about the history of MLMs to be particularly eye-opening. I think the podcast is ending soon.
• Fictional: A podcast retelling various fiction stories. I know that you can just read the stories, but I do like the way this podcast retells things.
• Myth and Legends: From the same creator of the Fictional podcast, this is a podcast that retells myths from around the world.

What I’ve Stopped Listening To

There are two subcategories in this. Most of the podcasts in the first subcategory are ones that I would recommend, it’s just that for one reason or the other, they are not releasing new episodes – maybe they’re on a break between seasons, maybe their story has ended, either way.

Part 1: Podcasts that stopped producing new episodes/are on hiatus

• Well Read: This is a podcast by two librarians, where they talk about what they’re reading and recommendations that they have. For some reason, book podcasts don’t really stick with me but this one did. Sadly, they’ve been on hiatus for quite some time – I’m hoping that they make a return in 2019!
• 74 Seconds: This podcast dissects the 74 second video about the death of Philando Castile and its aftermath. The podcast is over, but it’s an in-depth study about the case and talks about the various issues in it very well.
• Heaven’s Gate: The podcast has finished its run, but its a look at a mass suicide by a cult. The podcast talks to people who lost family members and the remaining members. A fascinating look into a cult.
• The Black tapes: This is a fiction podcast, where Alex Reagan follows a few unexplained mysteries. Each tape is supposed to be unconnected, but that isn’t quite the case. The podcast is supposed to be finished, but the ending was quite messy so I’m hoping that they’ll come back for a proper ending.
• The Last Movie: From the creators of Tanis, The Black Tapes, and Rabbits, this is a podcast set in the world of Tanis. Nic and MK look into a video that supposedly drives all who see it mad. You don’t have to listen to Tanis to make sense of it, but it helps if you’ve listened to it.
• Rabbits: Another fiction podcast, this one follows Carly Parker as she investigates the disappearance of her friend Yumiko. This leads her to a mysterious game known as Rabbits.
• Limetown: This podcast just finished season two. Season 1 was about a reporter looking into the mysterious disappearance of an entire town. Season 2 is a sequel, but it was so confusing – I didn’t really get what was going on and what role all these new characters had.
• The Magnus Archives: I’ve talked about it before but that was when I was still catching up. Now, I’m up to season 3 (which has finished) and waiting for season 4! It starts of as people in The Magnus Institute recording different statements, but like Tanis, all the stories are part of a larger one.
• Block Zero: This is a podcast about blockchain. They haven’t had a new episode since August, but the interviews are pretty interesting. I listened to this mostly because I wanted to keep up to date about one of the topics I studied.
• The Rocking Self Publishing Podcast: This was the first podcast I ever listened to, but I think the host moved on to something new. It was an interview-style podcast so the archives may be worth listening to.
• Rough Translation: Season one of this was fantastic – each episode followed stories from two very different countries to show how the same issue can be reflected in different ways. The one about the surrogate mother made me cry.

Part 2: Podcasts that I actually stopped listening to (but are ongoing)

• The Jordan Harbinger Show: The topics always sound interesting, but for some reason, I tend to lose interest halfway through. I know they have a fan base, so it’s probably just a personal thing.
• Seeking Tummus: I loved this podcast when I first found it – the hosts all read the same book and talk about it. But, I didn’t want to listen about books that I haven’t read so I stopped, intending to check in now and then to see if they covered a childhood classic I enjoyed. And then I forgot about it. Maybe I’ll restart in 2019.
• The Story Studio Podcast: I listened to this before they rebranded, but the new version didn’t really click with me so I’ve stopped it.
• Story Works Round Table: This is all about craft and I really shold be listening to it, but I haven’t been in a writing mood so I haven’t been listening.

What I Plan to Try

• Death in Ice Valley: A true crime series by BBC World Service and NRK. This is supposed to be an investigation into an unsolved mystery and it sounds pretty interesting.
• Broken Harts: The story about the Hart family was horrifying, especially when you hear about how messed up the family was. The idea of a podcast that looks into the tragedy is interesting, but I’m also a bit wary about whether this will be too invasive and/or disrespectful to the kids. So I’ll be listening to this one cautiously.

Okay, this was way, way longer than I expected. I didn’t think it would be so long (honestly), but I guess one episode every morning + listening at work means I can listen to quite a bit. This is literally every single podcast in my feed so next year’s post should be a lot shorter. Unless I changed things up a lot, which I don’t intend to do.