🎙️ Creative Advice from an Award-Winning Podcast Showrunner

Presented by Chief Swag Officer

🍿 The Battle with Popcorn Brain

Our brains used to be a stove. Simmering. Focused. Making something worth serving. Now? It’s popcorn. Constantly popping, sizzling, bouncing from one notification to the next. And nothing sticks to the pan.

Social media didn’t invent distraction, but it industrialized it. For podcasters, that’s dangerous territory. Because while social platforms reward speed and noise, podcasting rewards presence and depth. You can’t craft a meaningful episode in scroll-time. You have to slow down.

When the world begs you to sprint, practice staying put. Let your ideas simmer. Let them be more meal, less snack.

🎙️ Signal Flow: Derek L. John

Industry game changers and valiant minds share their wisdom, adversities, and paths to innovation.

Derek L. John is an award-winning journalist, editor, and showrunner currently developing new podcasts for Wondery. Before that, he was executive producer of narrative podcasts at Slate, where he oversaw Slow Burn (Apple and Ambies Podcast of the Year), Decoder Ring (NYT Best Podcasts), How To! with Charles Duhigg, and ICYMI among others. Based in New York and now Chicago, he previously worked at WNYC, WBEZ, and filed stories for NPR and Marketplace. He was a longtime staffer at Studio 360 and a regular contributor to Radiolab’s More Perfect, Freakonomics Radio, Invisibilia, The New Yorker Radio Hour, Death, Sex & Money, ESPN’s 30 for 30, and Audible Originals. He holds a Master's in Journalism from NYU, where he later taught a graduate course. He has received numerous honors, including a Peabody, Gracie, and Murrow Award, but his proudest achievement was getting Tom Hanks to hum the theme to 2001: A Space Odyssey on tape.

Being independent means no health insurance, but also more freedom. I love the ability to jump into defined, meaningful projects and then move on to the next. I enjoy the mix. Each show, each team, brings something new.

As a showrunner, I think of myself as the final line of quality. I guide everything: scripts, sound design, mixes, host direction. The buck stops with me. It’s pressure, but I like it.

Of course, I’ve had my share of “oh no” moments. Once a last-minute change unmuted a track that should’ve stayed silent. I skipped a final quality check, and sure enough, my host called the next morning after the episode went live. It happens. But I’ll never forget the advice from an early boss: “CYA: cover your ass.”

Mentoring is a big part of what keeps me energized. I had amazing mentors early on, and I love helping others avoid the pitfalls I fell into. Everyone likes to be asked for their expertise, it brings energy to the work.

Podcasting takes a lot out of you creatively, so when I need to recharge, I step away. I play pickup basketball. I hang with my kids. I watch cartoons without analyzing every music cue. Getting out of the audio world helps me come back fresh.

I also try to keep joy at the center of the work. When I lead teams, I say, “If we’re not having fun, we’re doing it wrong.” Sometimes we’ll pause and ask: What’s the best piece of tape you heard this week? It brings us back to why we do this.

Weekly shows—what people call “always-on” podcasts—bring their own creative challenge. They’re intense, but they impose a kind of creative constraint that I enjoy. It’s about pushing the envelope while still hitting your deadline. It’s a discipline that makes you sharper.

I love the possibility and energy of starting projects. But I also love finishing, polishing every crossfade, making it all sing. The hard part is the messy middle. That’s where things get murky. That’s where most of the work happens.

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I’m proud of launching shows like ICYMI at Slate, and of the teams I’ve built and supported. When it works, it’s magic. When it doesn’t, you learn.

One thing I sometimes wonder: should I have gone for being a host? I’ve done reporting and been on-mic, but I mostly stayed behind the scenes. I love helping other people shine. But maybe there’s still time to try.

The best advice I ever got? Go the extra mile. Ask one more question. Talk to one more source. Spend the extra hour. That’s usually where the good stuff lives.

I haven’t worked on a true crime show yet, but I’m about to. It’s new territory, and I love that. I enjoy solving new puzzles.

Creative energy isn’t infinite. So much of my job is keeping the team motivated. Reminding people: We get to do this. This is fun. This is meaningful. This is storytelling at its best.

And maybe someday, I’ll take a swing at hosting. But for now, I’m pretty happy in the sandbox—building stories, refining sound, helping others bring their best to the mic.

🎙️ Podcast of the Week: Rumble Strip

If you like your stories quiet, thoughtful, and full of soul, Rumble Strip is a must-listen. Created by Erica Heilman, this Vermont-based podcast captures the beauty and complexity of ordinary life through conversations that feel anything but ordinary. It’s intimate, deeply human storytelling. Sometimes funny, sometimes heartbreaking, always unforgettable.

🥾 Further Exploration: Beat Your Podcast Creative Block

Every podcaster faces creative blocks. Hubhopper offers ten practical tactics to overcome these hurdles, from changing your environment to brainstorming new ideas, helping you keep your content fresh and engaging.

ICYMI:

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