WFIU will debut Reader’s Radar, a literary podcast hosted and produced by WFIU arts reporter Shayne Laughter, on July 18.
Each half-hour episode will include an interview with an editor of an Indiana-based literary magazine about the publication’s history, editing process, mission and more. Then, Laughter will read one recently published short story from that magazine.
The pilot episode will feature Purdue University-based journal, “Sycamore Review.”
Laughter, who has a background in broadcast journalism, voice acting and fiction writing, was working on stories for the Café Indiana program in 2016 when she started thinking about a literary podcast.
At the time, a popular American radio program, “The Radio Reader,” went off air after nearly 50 years. It featured host Dick Estell reading a recently-released book to listeners.
“For a lot of our listeners, that left a huge hole in their lives, because they loved having stories read to them," Laughter said.
Laughter said she began researching literary journals and saw the literature presented on radio, podcasts and television primarily revolved around books.
She said what makes “Reader’s Radar” different is that it focuses on short prose fiction from literary journals, and also features readings by a trained voice actor.
The podcast will be available on Indiana Public Radio. This format allows for flexibility with regards to content, language and time.
