Questions for Principal Siuntres

**JimmyF1982** · 09-04-2008, 03:16 PM

howdy John, i've listened to various podcast with you and read the interview with lord retail when he talked to you and IIRC the other interviews were about your interests and non podcast related questions. i was wondering if i could ask a couple of podcast/word balloon related questions. however, if you decide to keep the mystique up i completely understand. i was listening to the bendis tapes part 2 today and just had a few questions pop into my head about all the work you put into these podcasts.

in no particular order:

1. when interviewing your subject how much conversation is actually taped versus how much is actually heard? i know the bendis tapes run hours in podcast form but are also edited down before posted.

2. which do you prefer more, asking your subject questions that you've prepared or do you like the bendis tape format where board members come up with the questions and you kinda play off them?

3. what is the process of getting a podcast online? how much time passes between the day of the interview and the day you upload the podcast online?

4. how long does it take to edit an interview?

5. i'm sure you contact people all the time for interviews but how often do people contact you for an interview?

i'm sure there are more but i'm blanking right now. it'd be very interesting to learn some insight on what you do. i have about a forty five minute drive into and home from work, and during work i have a two hour supply run that gives me lots of time to listen to various things, and every morning i turn my computer on to see if there is a new word balloon to download and listen to at some point during my daily drives.

thanks in advance if you decide to answer these. keep up the excellent work. very much looking forward to the bendis tapes part 3 tomorrow morning.

jimmyf

**sonnylarue** · 09-04-2008, 04:20 PM

1. usually 99%. The only things I regularly edit out are UHMS, AHHS stutters etc. that ends up getting rid of 1-3 minutes.

However if a creator realizes they've said something they shouldn't have , like mentioning a book they know their publisher would rather stay un-announced, I've removed that segement. I'm not here to get someone in trouble with their publisher.

2. both are fine. I work from a list of books, or subject i want to hit , and let the conversation flow in whatever direction it does.

3. it depends. if i'm sitting on a hot news story I have turned an interbview around and posted in the same night.

or like right now, I have 2 interviews that have been "in the can" for a few weeks. I do usually try to turn one around within 4 days of tapping it, but aug-sept has been very busy.

my day job sometimes can turn into overtime hours, and that can contribute to taking a lot longer to finish a podcast.

4. usually it takes 2 hours to edit a 1 hr interview , because i'm going through it slowly to make it flows smoother. i also always have to eq, filter, and amplify the guest's channel which can take 15-20 minutes.

5. lots of creators do e-mail me about their books. my only caveat is i have to like the book to want to talk about it, so I ask unknowns and newbies to send me their stuff first, and I'll decide whether I want to do a show or not.

at cons roaming around artist alley, i try to do a few more small press books before having read the finished product, , and some creators have followed up to ask for full blown interviews.

some have been on longer and others I've turned down, explaining they got a spotlight on a con show , but frankly I didn't like the book after reading it.

harsh? maybe. but this is what I do, instead of "reviews" .

I do also tell those who don't get on for a full show to feel free to send me any other books they do in the future , because I might like their next project.

**JimmyF1982** · 09-04-2008, 04:29 PM

first and foremost, thanks very much for taking the time to read and answer my questions. you're a good man, sir.

as i stated i was listening to bendis tapes part 2 today and just got to thinking about how much hard work these probably are, being that it's not your day job. i'm sure they don't seem like work because you're doing something you love and get to talk to intersting folks whom i'm sure you have great respect for.

i continue to look forward to future episodes and will continue to do my part to spread the word about the show among my friends, both comic fans and non comic fans.

thanks again
jimmyf

**sonnylarue** · 09-04-2008, 04:41 PM

thanks jimmy

**chazbot** · 09-04-2008, 06:35 PM

What's it take to get Flash Thomspon suspended one of these days?

**hamgmt** · 09-04-2008, 11:27 PM

hi john!

how did you come to get such a loose, anything goes format in certain interviews? jeez, i could listen to you and fraction do huston and orson welles all day, but at what point in wordballoon history(or was it from the start) did you go "hmm, i'll leave all this stuff in!"? i just imagine some other podcaster who interviewed creators at home hearing your interviews, and going, "shit, you mean i could've left all that in?" ha.

my other question was, what talk topic do you do in your radio job, and is there anywhere online we can listen to that work as well? you have a very likable approach in the podcast, so if your other stuff is similar, i bet i'd enjoy hearing some of that too.

keep up the good work!

-bob

**sonnylarue** · 09-05-2008, 12:59 PM

Originally Posted by hamgmt

hi john!

how did you come to get such a loose, anything goes format in certain interviews? jeez, i could listen to you and fraction do huston and orson welles all day, but at what point in wordballoon history(or was it from the start) did you go "hmm, i'll leave all this stuff in!"? i just imagine some other podcaster who interviewed creators at home hearing your interviews, and going, "shit, you mean i could've left all that in?" ha.

my other question was, what talk topic do you do in your radio job, and is there anywhere online we can listen to that work as well? you have a very likable approach in the podcast, so if your other stuff is similar, i bet i'd enjoy hearing some of that too.

keep up the good work!

-bob

thanks bob,

my current radio gig is making commercials.

i did spend a good portion of my radio career in sports talk, but haven't been doing that since 2006. i'm hoping doing word balloon will eventually lead me back to doing talk radio.

learning how to interview has been a trial and error journey for most of my broadcast career.

that, and frankly when watching con panels, I always liked to hear what TV film music etc influences various creators.

what do they get out of the pop culture they consume?

**Jeffery Longmont** · 09-08-2008, 06:42 PM

So when are you going to pitch a book or pluck an artist from the board and do a webcomic or something? I mean, a guy doesn't talk about comics as long as you without coming up with a few ideas. And hey, if you are afraid it'll turn out to be a stinker and you'll look silly, use a pseudonym. I've heard you shy away from admitting you have some ideas on the podcast before...

**rufusTfirefly** · 09-09-2008, 04:56 PM

Originally Posted by sonnylarue

i did spend a good portion of my radio career in sports talk, but haven't been doing that since 2006. i'm hoping doing word balloon will eventually lead me back to doing talk radio.

I hear WSCR is looking for a morning guy...

Sorry...

**sonnylarue** · 09-09-2008, 05:32 PM

Originally Posted by rufusTfirefly

I hear WSCR is looking for a morning guy...

Sorry...

i'm not offended by the truth

the current WSCR Boss used to run ESPN 1000 when I was at the score, and was never a fan of mine . So that's unlikely.

plus after 15 years of sports, i'd prefer to do news or entertainment talk.

i have enough airchecks of me talking sports.