I accepted an invitation to be a guest on the Jack and John podcast. Oh my, I didn’t expect that, even though I asked for it. I couldn’t refuse this from a fellow writer friend, John Walker, head of our local writers group. I had sent John my request to be a guest, and surprise: he wrote back with an invite.
It all started with a mentoring session with Chad Allen, CEO of BookCamp. Chad answered my question about how differently to market Bill’s books –– now that they have been in print for one to three years. Chad suggested I could be a guest on a podcast. I resisted that option. But he asked if I knew someone who has a podcast. Well yes, the Jack and John podcast: Adventures in Faith. We left it at that.
Why I hesitated? Two reasons and both have to do with voice. I used to speak in public and lead Bible studies, but that’s in the past. Also, my voice is now weak.
So I thought the least I could do is send an email to John and ask. He would probably not take me up on the offer and I’d be off the hook. But his reply was not only positive, he said it was “great” and gave me some dates to consider. I chose one, and found out I would have to go to Mooresville for the recording session. I don’t drive on Interstates anymore, and Becky and Paul would be out of town on that date. Perhaps that was my way out. But I asked a couple in our Sunday school class, Glenn and Pam, and they agreed. After I told them to let me know if anything else comes up, Pam said it would be on their calendar and nothing would prevent them from driving Bill and me to the podcast recording. Okay, here we go.
Getting ready began with forming questions for John and Jack to ask me. The object of the guest appearance dealt with promoting Bill’s books and podcast. So I wrote questions about how the process of publication took place and then introduced the four books. I sent the questions to John, and he replied this would be a “template” –– meaning they would add their own. Uh oh.
When Glenn, Bill, and I arrived at the church for the recording, I found out it would also be available on YouTube. Visual was not what I expected, but my outfit was appropriate. Their added questions centered mostly on my caregiving and our conversion experiences. At least I could connect listeners with my memoir as a caregiver, and the testimonies for both Bill and me did not throw me off. I had heard Bill tell his conversion experience many times –– that God called him to preach before he was saved at Indian Springs Campmeeting.
Preparation helped me feel comfortable with my answers and their questions. After listening to the recording, I had only one complaint. The tone of my voice is a monotone. No spark. In case you want to hear the podcast, it will be released on Saturday 15 April at 9 PM. How you get there is to open any server for podcasts and look for Jack and John podcast.
I close with a quote from Todd Henry in his book Daily Creative. “Put yourself in situations where you are a little nervous about your ability to perform…. Without challenge, you will begin to feel stuck.” So I said yes to being a guest on a podcast.
Ann Coker 