Horror podcast explained

A horror podcast is a podcast that covers fiction, non-fiction, or reviews of the horror genre generally.

History

Horror podcasts are typically created and run by volunteers in their free time.^[1] As some podcasts such as Archive 81 and The Deep Vault have grown they have been able to attract advertisers.^[2] The world's longest running, active horror podcast is WithoutYourHead.com which has been going since August 2006 as a semi-regular weekly series with celebrity interviews.^[3] Horror podcasts have featured in the Parsec Awards, and in 2013 The NoSleep Podcast won the award for "Best New Speculative Fiction Podcaster/Team" while in 2014 a story from Pseudopod won the award for "Best Speculative Fiction Story: Small Cast (Short Form)" and We're Alive won "Best Speculative Fiction Audio Drama (Long Form)".^{[4] [5]}

Reception

Horror fiction is the most popular type of audio drama podcast and drives much of the growth and interest in the medium. Horror Fiction podcasting continues to grow rapidly attracting mainstream success with some shows reaching very large audiences. As of July 2020, popular podcast The Magnus Archives recently achieved 4 million monthly downloads and signed with major talent agency WME.^[6] We're Alive achieved 200 million lifetime downloads as of 10 April 2020.

Amongst responses to the 2020 Audio Verse Awards, horror was the second-favourite genre of fiction podcast. With notable podcasts The White Vault receiving 14 awards, The Magnus Archives receiving 9 awards, and Old Gods of Appalachia receiving 6.^[7]

Notable examples

• Alice Isn't Dead
• The Black Tapes
• The Call of the Void
• Lore
• The Magnus Archives
• The NoSleep Podcast
• Pseudopod
• Rabbits
• Tanis
• Welcome to Night Vale
• We're Alive
• The White Vault

See also

• Horror fiction
• Horror film
• Psychological horror
• List of horror fiction writers
• List of horror podcasts

Further reading

• Hancock. Danielle. 1 October 2016. Welcome to Welcome to Night Vale: First steps in exploring the horror podcast. Horror Studies. 7. 2. 219–234. 10.1386/host.7.2.219_1.
• Hancock. Danielle. McMurtry. Leslie. 'Cycles upon cycles, stories upon stories': contemporary audio media and podcast horror's new frights. Palgrave Communications. 1 August 2017. 3. 17075. 10.1057/palcomms.2017.75. free.

External links

• Discussion panel on horror podcasting, recorded at PodUK 2020

Notes and References

1. News: 20 February 2015. Inside the Insomnia-Inducing World of Horror Podcasting. WIRED. Condé Nast. live. 28 December 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20180729012939/https://www.wired.com/2015/02/geeks-guide-horror-podcasting/. 29 July 2018.
2. News: Locke. Charley. 24 August 2016. Fiction Podcasts Are Finally a Thing! Thank You, Sci-Fi and Horror. WIRED. Condé Nast. live. 28 December 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20201111215943/https://www.wired.com/2016/08/found-footage-fiction-podcasts/. 11 November 2020.
3. Web site: Without Your Head.
4. Web site: 3 September 2013. 2013 Parsec Awards Winners & Finalists. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20200918011405/http://www.parsecawards.com/past-awards/2013-parsec-awards-finalists/. 18 September 2020. 28 December 2016. Parsec Awards.
5. Web site: 2014. 2014 Parsec Awards Winners & Finalists. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20200430031342/http://www.parsecawards.com/past-awards/2014-parsec-awards-winners-finalists/. 30 April 2020. 28 December 2016. Parsec Awards.
6. Web site: Rusty Quill signs with WME. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20201022054704/https://www.thepodcastradio.co.uk/post/rusty-quill-signs-with-wme. 22 October 2020. 4 August 2020. Podcast Radio. 23 July 2020.
7. Web site: 2020 Winners. 29 March 2021. The Audio Verse Awards.