Meet Elaine Appleton Grant | Podcast Coach and Public Speaker

We had the good fortune of connecting with Elaine Appleton Grant and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Elaine, let’s start by talking about what inspires you?
I run a business training podcasters and producing branded podcasts for mission-driven organizations. But I started my career as a magazine writer and editor, and I am inspired by fantastic storytelling in many forms — books, essays, films, theater and speeches. The fundamental combination of rules, flights of fancy, and hard work that combine to create amazing stories are the same no matter the platform. Recently, I’ve been inspired by Dan Rather’s newsletter, “Steady,” Nadia Bolz-Weber’s newsletter, “The Corners,” an essay about using quotes by Susan Orlean, a New Yorker article about opera singer Davóne Tines, and the work of my friend Becky Migas, who is growing an incredible community of women in sustainability. I’m inspired by great storytellers of all kinds and by grass-roots activists fighting climate change and systemic racism.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Podcast Allies specializes in serving mission-driven individuals and organizations who believe in the power of storytelling. What sets us apart from other production and training companies is that we emphasize editorial strategy and storytelling skills without stinting on production quality. I’m a lifelong journalist who spent 15 years working as a magazine editor and writer before moving into public radio, which had been a dream for a long time. I transferred print writing skills to the air and served as a reporter, producer and fill-in host at three different public radio stations. I’m a New England transplant — I moved from an antique farmhouse in the New Hampshire wilderness to Denver in 2012 to run Colorado Matters, Colorado Public Radio’s flagship interview show. What makes Podcast Allies unique comes from this background; we love serving people who strive to produce public-radio quality podcasts, whether it’s our production clients or our students. I’m really proud that we launched our five-part course, Podcast Liftoff, this January. The course is designed to help people take their podcast from idea to launch and beyond, and it comes from all the experience I had before launching Podcast Allies in 2019 and the experiences we’ve had since then with clients like the Environmental Defense Fund and the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Growing a business is never easy. We’re doing it without investors, using profits to invest in services and grow our expertise. One of the toughest things about this is the desire to accelerate more quickly than we can as a bootstrapped company. I produced my first podcasts several years ago (Platform Americas for The Biennial of the Americas in 2016, and Hard Call, for the University of Colorado Center for Bioethics and Humanities in 2018) when the industry was still small. Today, there are well over two million podcasts on Apple Podcasts. As a result, it’s much harder for listeners to discover great shows, especially independent podcasts. It also means there are more competitors jumping into the market. It’s more important than ever for us to differentiate ourselves and find good organic ways to share our story and our talents.

I’m also proud that our clients work for causes I believe in — fighting climate change, supporting children’s health, and improving our understanding of life and death issues in medical ethics, for example. We try to live our values internally, too. For instance, I believe in paying our contractors well (not the norm in the audio industry, sadly) and supporting work-life balance in a profession that thrives on overwork. Last year, we also decided to adopt literacy as our primary charitable cause (literacy is at the heart of what we do) by supporting efforts like those of Storytime Crafts, which provides free books to families and schools in need.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?

My favorite place in Denver has always been the Denver Botanic Gardens — I got married there in September of 2021 and it was glorious! (Also, if you need photos of your own wedding or brand photos during your trip to Denver, check out Kalen Jesse Photography, Denver’s finest.)

It may be obvious, but the Tattered Cover is a great bookstore to hang out in; I especially like the author events at the Colfax location.

We live in Castle Rock and just had a good margarita at La Loma (http://lalomamexican.com/); the almost 360-degree view of the mountains is to die for.

If you’re here at the right time, look up TEDx Cherry Creek Women — I was fortunate enough to do a TEDx talk with this group a couple of years ago. I volunteered recently. They do a dynamite job introducing a wide variety of thought-provoking ideas to the Denver community, especially to entrepreneurial women. It’s run by state rep Dafna Michaelson Jenet, who is a force to be reckoned with—and a dear friend.

Depending on the time of year, I’d also go hiking at Guanella Pass (Bailey’s the closest town). I love seeing the sheep at Waterton Canyon. Hiking at Deer Creek Canyon and South Valley Park, which are near each other, is also breathtaking. Go snowshoeing at Brainerd Lake.

I haven’t done this for a while (COVID) but I used to love dancing at The Denver Turnverein on Colfax. It doesn’t matter whether you’re an amateur or an expert.

Go see shows at The Clocktower Cabaret when Covid allows! (My favorite: Kari Knutson’s one-woman show, “Ain’t Never Met a Stranger.”)

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Kari Knutson, counselor and public speaker, Knutson Speaks. The most awesome friend and role model a creative entrepreneur could have.

And my new husband, Cortland Wolfe. The love of my life (we got married during the pandemic, in September 2021).

Website: www.podcastallies.com

Instagram: elaineagrant

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/appletongrant/

Twitter: elaineagrant

Facebook: elaineagrant

Other: Watch my TEDx talk — The Tulsa Race Massacre: Why We Don’t Understand Racism https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0C7fSKYFHlY Get your podcast off the ground by taking a class! https://podcastallies.com/podcast-liftoff-overview

Image Credits
First two photos (me in dark coat wearing headphone and me with holding a mic, walking with my former business partner, Lindsey O”Connor) — Kalen Jesse Photography Last photo, I’m wearing a pink shirt and have a name tag on — photographer Sophia Benedetto