Far right: Creative Screenwriting senior editor Jeff Goldsmith, during one of the magazine's Los Angeles screenings.

The rise of full-time amateur podcasting (and subsequent podcasting "rockstars") is a fascinating thing indeed; perhaps even more interesting to me, though, is in how traditional organizations have recently started using podcasting as a supplement to what they were already doing, not as an end unto itself. And as far as that's concerned, I have to admit that one of my favorite podcasts out there these days is one produced by Creative Screenwriting magazine; hosted and moderated by senior editor Jeff Goldsmith, the interviews are in fact a simple audio version of something they've been doing for a long time, a series of private screenings they host in the Los Angeles area that feature long-form talks and audience Q&As with that movie's writer(s) afterward. It's such a smart thing for them to do, I think, since the content already exists for an entirely different reason; all they're really doing is releasing stuff they already own, and doing so nearly for free (seriously, a podcast only needs to cost pennies to operate if you want, for those who don't know), generating a ton of new fans online who would've normally otherwise never come by (like, say, me).

Anyway, their latest Q&A is easily the best one they've put up yet (or at least in the year I've been listening); it's with Drew Goddard, not only one of the staff writers of JJ Abrams' Lost but also the screenwriter of his recent monster-movie hit Cloverfield (as well as a previous writer of another of Abrams' shows, the spy thriller Alias). Ah, but that's not what makes Goddard's interview so interesting; turns out that he's not only a member of the "Abrams Mafia" but also a veteran of the "Whedon Army," being one of the more popular writers of the old TV hits Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel. Goldsmith takes advantage of the pedigree here, turning in a 90-minute talk that covers each of these steps of Goddard's career, with Goddard being very frank about such issues as insanely devoted fans, and the pressures they inspire in those writers to be as good as they possibly can be with every single episode. Listening to it, it made me realize that there's a whole new ethos emerging out of Hollywood these days among its youngest generation, regarding not only their craft but also what the relationship should be between creators and their audience; like I said, it's a really fascinating talk, and I encourage you to check it out if you get a chance.

Anyway, here's a link to Creative Screenwriting's podcast channel over at iTunes; and here's the web version, for those who would like to manually listen to select episodes instead. Oh, and here's a direct link to the Goddard MP3 I've been talking about, for those who would like to listen to it right this second. Keep up the good work, Jeff and everyone else at CS!