I’ve had a few ideas already about possible research topics for this year, I really want to incorporate audio fiction into this as I feel there’s not nearly enough academic writing on the topic.
One thing I’ve been thinking about recently is how noise music can incorporate into narrative, and more specifically audio drama. In my own podcast I have used noise music as score and put it in the space as a way to generate a sense of mystery about a setting, these seemingly random, non-musical sounds sit in a space between diegetic and nondiegetic sound, it is purposefully made unclear if these sounds are actually in this space to create a sense of unease and to tell the listener that this setting is unusual.
Another idea I’ve only had today is to talk about oral history/storytelling and how it has lead to/relates to modern audio fiction podcasting, comparing the two and thinking about the effects that they both have on narrative and culture. Talking about how passing stories by word of mouth allows them to change and develop over time, the difference in allowing for expression through body language vs sound design. Both are similar in the sense that they are stories being told mainly through speech and no other medium yet both have different effects and associations and i would personally find that very interesting to explore.