Podcast Spotlight: Outer Rim Reads
Last updated on February 4th, 2021
Welcome to Outer Rim Reads, where nerd culture is celebrated. Host and longtime Star Wars fan Andrew Geha is here to guide listeners through some of his favorite Star Wars novels. Seasons walk chapter by chapter through canonical and expanded universe stories like Star Wars: Thrawn and Master & Apprentice. Each episode covers just a few chapters, so Geha and his guests can have deep discussions about their readings. If you are short on time, you can catch Geha’s chapter summary at the top of each episode. For those with an hour to spare, settle in and immerse yourself in these stories every other Tuesday. This podcast is for those who have read the novels they cover or for those interested in learning more about the Star Wars universe. The best part is each episode is spoiler free! If you want to follow along with Geha’s reading schedule, check out @OuterRimReadPod on Twitter to join in on the fun.
We were fortunate to talk with Andrew Geha about his podcast Outer Rim Reads, how he differentiates from other podcasts, and his future plans in podcasting. See below for our full Q&A.
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DISCOVER PODS: How’d you get into podcasting?
GEHA: A couple of years ago I started talking with a group of friends about different Star Wars books, and we would discuss the ones we’d read with each other. I joked around with them about starting a podcast just to have a chance to keep talking about the different novels, and they told me I should seriously go ahead with the idea. I’d been listening to a couple of different literary podcasts already and thought of how much fun it would be to do a similar kind of show but about Star Wars, so I took the idea and decided to run with it. My housemate at the time co-hosts his own show, so I sat down with him and talked about the different steps to kick it off with. A few months of research and preparation later, Outer Rim Reads turned from a joke with some friends into a reality!
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DISCOVER PODS: In your own words, why should listeners tune in to Outer Rim Reads?
GEHA: This is one of the central questions I wrestled with in my preparation for the show, months before I even recorded the first episode. I needed to find a way for Outer Rim Reads to be unique, a reason to set it apart from the hundreds of Star Wars podcasts already out there.
I’d found that a lot of Star Wars literature podcasts covered entire books in one episode, reviewing whole novels at a time. But I couldn’t really find any that moved at a chapter-by-chapter pace, which is a style I’d come to love from other non-Star Wars shows I’d been listening to.
I decided that would be the niche the show could fill: to offer listeners a chance to walk through Star Wars novels with me and my guests, chapter-by-chapter, and to create a rich, immersive experience for them with each story. Then we’d be able to take our time with the material, to look at themes and characters as they progressed in a story step-by-step.
DISCOVER PODS: What kind of feedback have you heard from your listeners?
GEHA: I’ve been really encouraged by the feedback after my first season. Many listeners said they loved the “reader’s pace” and “book club” feel of the show, and how that format gives them a chance to really soak in the material discussed.
The listener’s have also given really positive feedback on the different guests I’ve had on the podcast. They’ve enjoyed how the guests and I can bounce ideas back and forth instead of me being the only one talking about the material. It really creates a “discussion” atmosphere.
One listener spoke highly of the immersive nature of the show, where walking through each chapter in depth almost transports them to that world, as if they’re a part of the story too. I really loved that response!
DISCOVER PODS: Describe your recording set up? What equipment are you using?
GEHA: Honestly I just record at my desk. I’ve got a Samson Q2U microphone and an adjustable mic stand that clamps to the desk, and that’s it! I used to record in a music library early in 2020, but COVID changed that.
DISCOVER PODS: What’s the biggest challenge you face as an indie podcaster?
GEHA: Marketing the podcast continues to be the biggest challenge for me. The fact that Star Wars is so popular is both a blessing and a curse: the audience exists for what I talk about on the show, but there are hundreds of other shows already well-established in the community. So I try to walk the line of being respectful to the content creators already out there while also trying to promote what I do. Especially when my team consists of just me and my Editor, creating a solid footprint in the community can be difficult at times!
DISCOVER PODS: Where do you want to take your podcast?
GEHA: I would love for Outer Rim Reads to become the first podcast that comes to mind when a Star Wars fan is thinking about a new way to take a deeper step into the literature, or even if they’re looking for a place to start. I can’t think of many things I’d want more than to be the place to go if someone wants an immersive Star Wars book experience.
DISCOVER PODS: What other podcasts are you listening to now?
GEHA: I listen to a bunch of different shows: Potterless, Join the Party, The Daily, Isle of Faces, Meddling Adults, HORSE, Wannabe Jedi Podcast, Stories by Darksaber Light, The Lamp-post Listener, A Larger View of the Force: A Star Wars Podcast, and Star Wars: In a Galaxy are all the ones I listen to regularly. I should really track how many hours I listen a week!
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DISCOVER PODS: Anything else you’d like to add?
GEHA: I try to gear the show for fans at all stages, whether they’re casually engaging with Star Wars or if they consider themselves a superfan. I keep it spoiler-free and walk through each book as if it’s my first time doing so with the listeners. So I just want everyone to know that all it takes to enjoy Outer Rim Reads is the curiosity to take a step, big or small, into the world of Star Wars books!
Even if someone doesn’t know much about a person like Thrawn or Qui-Gon Jinn, I think the pacing, depth, and humor my guests and I bring to the show can meet each listener where they’re at.
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