"Windy City Shadows" A Chronicles of Darkness Podcast Proposal

Folks who've been coming to my blog for a while have likely come across several of the little audio dramas I've been putting together over on the Azukail Games YouTube channel (which you should subscribe to, if you haven't). However, there have been a couple of folks out there who have asked why I don't take these shorter pieces, and expand them into full-length audio dramas, or even into a full season of audio dramas of a podcast.

And that's what I want to talk about today... because I would love to do that very thing. But I'm going to need you all to actually make it happen.

Blood and glamour make the word go round.

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Windy City Shadows: A Proposal

This is not the first time I've talked about this potential project, but the video I made on the subject didn't give quite enough details for some folks to get a handle on what I'm trying to do. So I thought I'd take this week's Table Talk entry to expand on the idea as it stands right now, and to see whether it's something folks would be interested in if I put in the effort to make it happen.

As I said in the video, the idea behind Windy City Shadows is that it would be an audio drama podcast set in the world of the Chronicles of Darkness. Each season will tell a different story set in a different sphere (ideally), with characters and plot points from previous seasons being expanded on as the story bounces from one group of monsters to another... this will, at least partially, be decided on the votes from the audience.

Where I would like to start this project off is with season one, which I'm tentatively titling Grim Promises, is in the realm of Changeling: The Lost. This story features Shepherd Black, a beast who has gotten out of the games between the seasonal courts, and settled down running a little shop on the south side of Chicago. His old life comes crashing back when a face from his past calls in a favor... a favor he owes that he can't turn away. Shepherd, whether he wants to or not, must once again don the mantle he wore as Black Shuck, the Teeth of the Fall Court and the Paladin of Shadows, and go on one, last hunt before he can be left in peace.

This season will tie together a lot of the elements that have been laid down in previous audio dramas on the Azukail Games YouTube channel, including a reappearance by the character of Lucius Frakes, as well as possible roles for Wolfe, Amy Prism, and others. The person bringing us this tale, and acting as the host of the show, would be Mr. Nowhere, who I recently used to deliver an Emotional Weather Report over on my Rumble channel The Literary Mercenary.

Where I go from that first season is anyone's guess. While I would like to finish the story of Johnny Hammer and the Six Gun Saint (the Geist/Mage crossover I've been adding to for a little while now), I could also move over to Vampire after that first season, as well. Werewolf is an option, too. And, of course, there's nothing saying I can't do multiple seasons in the same sphere if folks decide they want more changeling after all.

Practicalities of The Podcast

As I said in the first video, getting a podcast off the ground is no easy task. There's the writing, casting, recording, editing, and then making sure that it gets put up on all the various platforms out there for folks to consume it... it's a lot of a lot, especially when you need to make sure the scripts fit together into a single, cohesive narrative by the end of the season.

So if this is something you're interested in making a reality, there are a few things you can do to make it happen!

First, please subscribe to the Azukail Games YouTube channel, and help us get it monetized! We have over the 500 subscribers we need, but we just rounded the 1,000 hour mark of watched content, and we need to hit the 3,000 hour mark in order for YouTube to share any of the ad revenue we generate with us. Hitting that goal would be a huge sign of audience interest, and it would help persuade my publisher to greenlight this show, even if it will also appear on Spotify and other platforms, too.

Second, please share this article around so that other folks can get wind of this project, and we can build a groundswell of interest in it. Because I'll be very honest with you, dear readers, this would be a massive undertaking, and it's going to take a not-insignificant amount of eyeballs to help make it into a reality.

Third, please leave comments below about what level of interest you have, and what you'd be willing to do to help support the show. Will you tune-in to listen? Will you share the episodes around on your social media to help boost the signal? Or would you be willing to pitch in on a Patreon in order to help me pay my bills while I work on making new episodes?

The more numbers I can get regarding this, the better I'll be able to judge how interested folks are. Because I've been chewing over this idea for a while, and I would love to make it happen, but I don't want to spend that much time, energy, and cat herding making something that nobody's interested in. So speak up, and make your voice heard!

EDIT: Because there appears to be some confusion on the subject, this is not a casting call for voice actors, nor am I looking for people to help me edit or work on post-production. I have access to all the cast, writers, etc., that I would need to make the show at present. I am just trying to find the audience to listen, because to make a show like this worth the time, energy, and effort, we need people tuning in to listen, or donating to help us pay bills to keep making more episodes.

What's Next on Table Talk?

That's it for this installment of Table Talk! What would you like to see next? I'm listening for your comments and votes!

For more of my work, check out my Vocal archives, as well as the YouTube channel for Azukail Games. Or, to check out books like my sword and sorcery novel Crier's Knife, my dystopian sci-fi thriller Old Soldiers, or my recent short story collection The Rejects, head over to My Amazon Author Page!

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