Do you need a sound library to make an audio drama? No. No, you don't. You can get away with making your own special effects. It might not be exactly what you want. But it has a few advantages:
- You get to decide what the sound is, rather than settling for what's available
- You don't have to search for a sound for hours
- You own it
Will it be perfect? Maybe. But for a daily or homebrewed audio drama, sometimes, good enough sounds can work when you're in a rush. When you get yourself a budget and have the money to pay for a sound designer, you can afford to be picky. Until then, constraints are your sound design's best friend!
Introducing Part 6 of 13 parts in my Between the Pauses mini-series that explores my thoughts while making my first audio drama: PAUSE for Dramatic Effect! If you're interested in the complete first season of Pause for Dramatic Effect, you can download and listen to it for free at PAUSEforDramaticEffect.com or wherever you find your podcasts.
I would love for you to tell me how you think the story of Pause for Dramatic Effect turned out by giving it a rating and review or sending a Boost using one of the latest Podcast 2.0 apps, which you can find at Podcasting2.org. If you don't have a Podcast 2.0 app, I would highly recommend Podcastguru.io or Truefans.fm to get all the new podcast features you didn't know you were missing!
Meanwhile, I'm now the founder of a new podcasting education and technology company called Oncetold. If you're ready to tell your story and start your own podcast, then you need Oncetold at oncetold.com.
PAUSE for Dramatic Effect bonus episode #06 was originally published by Gagglepod on November 21st, 2019. Copyright © 2025. PAUSE for Dramatic Effect, Gagglepod, and Oncetold. All Rights Reserved.