If we shadows have offended, think but this; and all is mended that you have but slumbered here while these visions did appear and this weak and idle theme no more yielding but a dream.

So spoke Puck at the closing of William Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” What if the mischievous Robin Goodfellow was not just a figment of Shakespeare’s imagination? What if he were a guardian sent to watch over the young poet? Subscribe to “Chasing The Bard,” the dark fantasy podio novel, and take part in just such an adventure. Written and read by Philippa Ballantine, Chasing the Bard is an award nominated novel that wraps a young Will Shakespeare up in the land of the Fey. A world that belongs to the mystical Sive the Shining, her brother Auberon, the darkly powerful Mordant, and of course, Puck. 
 
The Fey are close to annihilation due to the seemingly unstoppable force of the Malaise; and the majestic Sive, daughter of Queen Anue, will stop at nothing to save her kind. She seeks out Shakespeare, a human born with the blood of the Fey, to help her…whether he wants to or not. Filled with complex characters, rich story lines, and the magic and art of the Fey, Chasing the Bard is an audio treat for any fantasy fan.
 
Ballantine, or Pip as she likes to be called, makes for a wonderful narrator. Her warm vocals breath life into the story, making it much more than just a novel. She brings the world of the Fey to life for her listeners. The story does contain some darker, more adult themes, and listener discretion is advised. If you’re a fan of fantasy, Fey, or even Will Shakespeare, I would give this one a listen. In fact, listen in even if you’re not. Pip’s writing is excellent, and you might find yourself enjoying it. And if not, well then you can just listen to her awesome Kiwi accent for forty minutes. 
 
Please visit the show’s website for more information and fun extras.

If you find that you haven’t had your fill of Pip’s stories, I do have some welcome news. Digital Magic, the sequel of Chasing the Bard, is now available for pre-order, and will be released in August 2008.

Strictly through word of mouth, The Moth Mainstage shows, and StorySlams drew large crowds of people eager to take part in the storytelling. Performed live without any notes, “The Moths” as they were dubbed, began telling their stories. Sometime later, The Moth Podcast was born. The Podcast releases one story a week from the thousands contained within its archives. The stories can range anywhere from five to fifteen minutes, and as they were all recorded at different times, the sound quality can vary. While some of the stories are fine for all ages, some do contain more adult language and themes. Parents thinking of sharing this one with their family, check the episode beforehand. Sometimes sad, often funny, and almost always moving, the stories contained within The Moth’s archives are a brilliant addition to your podcast feed.

The Moth also has several CDs containing compilations of their best stories for those listeners who can’t wait to hear more of the stories. Those can be found here, at The Moth Store.

The Moth’s website can be found here.

Religion has always been a touchy subject for some people. That’s why I believe that a certain amount of praise should be awarded to someone who can find a little fun in it all without being offensive. Someone like Brian Dalton, and his video podcast, Mr. Deity.

Somewhat in the vein of the short-lived NBC comedy, God, The Devil, and Bob, Mr. Deity is hilarious and light-hearted look at the world’s creator. While the show is based around religious ideals, it doesn’t preach to its viewers, and is a joy to watch whether you’re religious or not. In these four to five minute short films, we follow Mr. Deity in the trials and tribulations that come along with being the almighty. Joined by his assistant, Larry, Jesus, and his girlfriend, Lucy, (Lucifer) you never quite know what to expect. From creating light to the Mr. D’s stance on helping sports teams, this show brings it all, and it’s all brilliant.

You can check out the first two seasons of Mr. Deity over at Crackle.com.

Don’t let the name of this podcast fool you. Take a peek around the Nobody’s Listening Forums, and you’ll find out just how many people are enjoying this podcast.

Nobody’s Listening is a clean comedy podcast featuring funny, true-life stories. Hosted and Produced by James Kennison, NLCast is a great way to to start your day with laughter. James and his younger brother, David, started the show to share their crazy childhood stories, and invite others to share stories of their own.

Each episode starts off with a weekly update, news, and the featured story of the week. After that the reigns are turned over the the show’s fans, as they share their own funny/crazy/embarrassing stories through e-mail and voice mail messages. The episodes are released on a weekly basis, and run about an hour. Also, as previously mentioned, NLCast is clean, so it’s a great show for the entire family to enjoy.

The Nobody’s Listening website can be found here.

Andy is a Jailer. Randy is a Jailer too. Together the two of them form the crack team behind this hilarious podcast. Ever wonder what goes on behind cell doors? Get a first hand glimpse as these two regale their listeners with great stories about the daily life of a jailer. Although, the show doesn’t just stop there. Andy and Randy also bring a lot of other great discussions to the table. Whether it’s something they spotted in the news, or stories from their personal lives, you can rest assured that these two will have you laughing out loud.

The episodes can range anywhere from forty-five minutes to an hour, and are released on a weekly basis. It is, however, one that you might want to avoid for younger listeners. The topics are generally safe, but rarely the boys will let some language slip. I would say this is a great podcast for teens and up.

To satisfy all your 2G1B needs, stop by the show’s website, located here.

Wizard Rock is a phenomenon that is now widely spread within the Harry Potter community. Fans getting together to create music based on their favorite novels. There are so many Wizard Rock tunes available these days, that it can be hard to keep up with them all. Enter WZRD: Wizard Rock Radio.

WZRD is a radio-show styled podcast that brings you all the latest and greatest in Wizard Rock. Hosted by the lovely Amy and Jamie, WZRD brings a great mix of new tunes and old favorites. The show runs about thirty-five minutes long, so it’s easy to fit into a busy schedule, and it’s also family friendly. Which means that all your little Harry Potter fans can enjoy the music right along with you.

You can visit the show’s website here, or their My Space page here.

As the show’s popularity grew, so did the show itself. Best Week Ever has now spawned Best Night Ever, available on-line or as a video podcast. Running three to four minutes an episode, the BNE video podcast features one of the show’s many comedic panelists going over highlights from popular television shows that air each night. From Dancing With The Stars to Lost, they’ve got all their bases covered. The show also provides fans with a lot of fun extras like bloopers and extra footage. Generally the show is fairly clean, but viewers also need to remember that it’s from VH1 and not entirely suited for younger viewers. I would reccommend this one for teens and up.

Check out the shows website here, so you can start having the Best Night Ever!

In the finale of the television show’s fifthseason, Buffy Summers sacrificed her life to save her younger sister, not to mention the entire world. In the premiere of the sixth season, we join Buffy’s closest friends as they use powerful magic resurrect her three months later. The premise of BBTLis to discover what happened that summer after Buffy’s death, to find the untold stories and share them with the world.

The team behind BBTLstrives to keep their production as close to the original as possible. Each of the twelveseason one episodes run about forty-five minutes and have everything from their own personal theme music, generously provided by the band Beatnik Turtle, to commercial breaks and end credits. The similarities to Whedon’s Buffy don’t end there either. BBTL’s episodes are written by a fantastic team of writers who work their hardest to bring the characters back to life, staying true to their personalities and the show’s unique dialogue. The storylines are an excellent blend of the light-hearted and dramatic, and begin to shed some light on a few of the show’s more secondary characters. Explaining the motivation behind working on such a project, writer Emma Rawlinsaid, “Joss’ work made me want to be a writer, and it gaveme a lot of strength and escapism during a difficult time of my life. So I guess it’s my way of putting something back.”

The Between the Lines Studiosboasts a crew of over one hundred, and with members located all around the world, the show truly is an international effort. Effort seems to be the key term in a project like this one. Something of this magnitude is never easy to assemble, and BBTL wouldn’t be a reality without the hard work of its crew members.

After each of the episodes have been written, the scripts are sent out to the actors, who summon their characters to bring the episode to life. Most of the dialogue is recorded alone, but if the episode calls for a large group scene, the producers gather all the actors together in a group chat through the use of the internet calling site, Skype. This allows all the actors to hear and play off of each other, which can help make the scene that much better.

Once all the dialogue has been recorded, then the editing process begins. Nick Edwards, who is not only one of the editors on the show but also the voice of popular character, Spike, said that nearly an hour of editing is required for one minute of finished dialogue. “Double that for complex stuff with FXor more than three voices.” After the files are cleaned up to remove any background noise, then the editors go through the process of picking the best of each of the actor’s takes and arranging the timing. Then websites like The Freesound Projecthelp the editors find the things they need for special effects. Clay Robeson, who along withplaying Angel, is another of the crew’s editors, said that he finds the sound effects the most difficult portion of the editing process. “I’m nearly obsessive compulsive with the effects sounds, and I’ll hunt for an hour for the right one second “whoosh” for a spell for Willow.” After all the finishing touches are added, the episode is then released online.

When episode one of BBTL debuted, it had around a thousand subscribers through iTunes, now at episode ten, the number is over three thousand. The reactions from listeners havebeen overwhelmingly positive. Time after time, fans havesent in praise and thanks for bringing Buffy back. Tabitha Grace Smith, the show’s producer, mentions one fan in particular. “We have one listener, Josh, who emailed at a particularly stressful time for all of us. Josh is 26, has severe cerebral palsy and is a huge Buffy fan… I can’t tell you how many times his emails brought tears to my eyes, because we can bring something special to Josh. Even if all this work was just for him, I’d be satisfied and happy, because in the end we really wanted to bring this amazing world back to the people who love it.”

It’s not just the fans that are raving about the show either; BBTLwas recently bestowed with the Best Audio Drama Award from the 2008 Podcast Peer Awards. Smithwas also awarded with the Exceptional Podcasteraward for her work with BBTL and several others.

When asked about her favorite part of working on BBTL, Associate Producer, KimButler, said, “I love the people, getting to know them and finding great friends…I really enjoy the acting quite a bit, and I like putting together the cool sound effects, but really it’s the people. Oh wait, I’m supposed to say the fame and fortune, right?” Like the majority of podcasts, Buffy: Between the Lines is available completely free of charge. Which means that the cast and crew devote countless hours of their free time for nothing more than the satisfaction of being a part of such an amazing show. Much like the television show that came before it, BBTLis unique and leads one to wonder, what is it about this show that inspires such devotion from fans? Smith had this to say. “When you havea show that captures your soul, mind, and heart like Buffy has mine – you feel like you need to be a part of it, to give back to it, to engage in it. That’s the kind of heartbeat I have for Buffy Between The Lines. I’ve experienced so many emotions and insights from this one television show, that I feel the need to tell more stories to other people in it.”

The show’s first season is nearing its end, and the cast and crew are already hard at work on season two, which will bridge the gap between seasons two and three of the television show. That’s not all the Between the Lines Studios has to offer either. After completing season two of Buffy: Between the Lines, they will begin work on Angel: Between the Lines, searching out the untold stories from the Buffy spin-off series, Angel. Also in the planning stages, Firefly: Between the Lines and SugarShock: Between the Lines, both based off of other Joss Whedonprojects. With this bevy of projects, and the continued support from its fans, it looks as if Between the Lines Studios has quite a few more stories to tell.

Light-hearted and family friendly, the MannersCast is a great podcast with a little something for everyone. Episodes are generally released every other week, but don’t have an exact schedule. The running time is usually around forty minutes, but with the fast-paced discussions, you’ll swear that it’s over too quickly.

Visit the show’s website here.