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Welcome to 2024, fans of audio fiction! I hope we're ready for this. 😬And I hope you're ready for more complete audio fiction, because I've 16 shows to tell you about!

But before I do that, I want to give a huge and giant thanks to Brad Hudson and Philip Thorne. They're the latest lovers of audio fiction who've become Individual Supporters of The End. My appreciation, Brad and Philip. May you inspire others to spend less than $0.50 per issue ($25 bucks a year) and sign up themselves.

And thanks to Sarah, who suggested the "cliffhanger" designation be added to season finales that warrant it. You'll see two shows with that designation in this issue.

I'm running late, so I'm keeping this preamble short. Let's get into it, shall we?

Well, that was 2023, folks. I'm working up an article that covers the state of completed audio fiction from this year, but it probably won't post until after 2024 begins, giving some stragglers a chance to get their completed shows submitted. So if you know a creator that needs a nudge—nudge 'em!

This week is another massive issue. So if you're reading this on Gmail, it'll likely truncate. To be safe and not miss anything, read it in a browser and you'll see all the things in all four sections: Featured Recommendations, Recently Completed Series, Recent Season Finales, New Seasons Coming Soon, and our newest section ICYMI..., the place where we announce some recent additions that aren't so recently completed.

Let's get into it, shall we?

- Evo

Ho, ho, Holy Night! This issue is bursting at the seams! That's partly because I got a wave of Christmas-specific shows I needed to highlight right now. But it's also because the submissions have been pouring in! There's a very good chance your email client will truncate this puppy, so you may want to view this one in a web browser so you don't miss anything.

To help, I've added a new section to the end (heh) of the newsletter I call "ICYMI," and I'll use it to announce shows I've recently added to our database that weren't completed all that recently. That puts the focus on 'newly completed/finale'd/coming soon shows, but also gives some love to the gracious creators who are helping fill out backlog. (Though I'm partially ignoring that today, bumping all the Xmas-related shows to the top!)

Oh, and if you think this issue is Christmas-heavy: it is! 'Tis the season, after all.

Let's get into it, shall we?

- Evo

This is a jam-packed issue, so I won't take much of your time here in the preamble.

But I do want to give a huge shoutout to Flloyd Kennedy for becoming our latest Individual Supporter! She's also a creative, so check out Am I Old Yet, which is rumored to be starting up with a new season rather soon.

Because what I do with The End is so niche, support from individuals like Flloyd (and you!) are the primary source of revenue that allows me to keep this newsletter and website going. Last year was pretty rotten for many in the podcasting industry, including my strategic podcast consultancy.

But I genuinely love the work I do at The End. If you love it too, please consider becoming a supporter. It's less per year than you pay for some of your streaming services in a single month, and you probably listen to more than you watch, right? So please, if you can, in the spirit of the holidays or whatever, throw a little Xmas cheer our way by becoming a Supporter of The End.

Let's get into it, shall we?

- Evo

While it may be the Xmas season, it was 80º F at my house yesterday, making it a little hard to get into the Christmas spirit. But I do have one season-specific show in a Featured spot today. I hope to have at least one more by the time Xmas rolls around, but I'm waiting on a creator to give me an advanced copy.

Speaking of gift receiving, the only gift I want this year is for you to become an Individual Supporter of The End. It's less than the price ceiling on your white elephant gift exchange, and no one can steal it from me. So please, if you can, consider supporting The End.

Let's get into it, shall we?

- Evo

A lot of audio dramas are slated to end in December, so enjoy this relatively short issue. Before I get to the titles, I have three quick things for you (well, those of you who read this bit):

1. It's gift-giving season, and all I want for Xmas is for you to become an Individual Supporter of The End. I could use a little holiday cheer in my stocking.
2. Podcast Addict users will be delighted to know that a one-click link has been added to every show detail page on our site. Click through and see!
3. We're slowly adding recommendations to our show details pages. They aren't algorithmic. They come straight from the creator/show runner. That's nice!

That's it. Let's get into it, shall we?

- Evo

I'm writing this from the frozen tundra known as Oklahoma, where I'm visiting some family for the Feast! A Happy Thanksgiving to those who celebrate. A somber National Day of Mourning to those in the States who recognize the alternate name and intent. And happy Thursday to everyone else. Except those of you who opened this on the other side of the International Date Line. Happy Friday to you. And now I'm confusing myself. Oh, my 10-year old niece, Sadie, assembled the cover image. Didn't she do a great job?`

Speaking of giving thanks, I need to give a huge thanks to my latest Individual Supporters, Kier Zhou and Joanne Phillips! They both heard my plea for assistance last week and responded in kind. Many thanks, Kier and Joanne. Your support will help keep things rolling right along here at The End HQ. For the rest of you lot who haven't yet chipped in your $24.99 for an entire year—now's a good time to become an Individual Supporter of The End. Please?

Oh, and we're like 10 people away from reaching 1,900 subscribers, which is hella cool. Do me a favor and forward this to someone you know who should also be subscribed?

Plenty of shows to cover this week, and I need seconds of this home cooking. Let's get into it, shall we?

- Evo

I just pushed another massive update to the website that made the show pages and newsletter pages easier on the eyes and much quicker for you to listen. But you won't see any of that in the newsletter, because email formatting is very limited. So, if you haven't poked around on the website, do that. Here's the link to this page on the website. You're gonna love it.

Once again I come at you hat in hand, asking for you to support The End, assuming you get value from the service we provide. We're in the process of transferring over all the assets from our acquisition of Podvibes, which is spiking our costs. Your $24.99 for an entire year goes a long way in helping to offset those costs, and to keep my wife from demanding I get a real job. So... please?

Let's get into it, shall we?

- Evo

In case you missed the news, The End has acquired Podvibes, a podcast-centric Mastodon instance that over-indexes on audio fiction fans and creators. The original maintainer, Nathan Lunsford—himself an audio fiction creator, deserves all the credit for launching the instance as Twitter was becoming Xitter (pronounce the X as "sh") and a wave of people where looking for alternatives. Now that it's in our hands, we'll continue his good work and re-double our efforts to make our small section of the Fediverse a welcome, inviting, and vibrant space for audio fiction creators and fans alike. So go ahead and create your personal account on Podvibes. It's free!

But this acquisition means more costs for me and us here at The End. I'm personally committed to delivering as much free stuff as I can to fans of audio fiction, but that means we need your support to do all of these things—with much more coming! So if you look forward to each issue of The End, please consider becoming an Individual Supporter. Just like Wayne J Parker did this week. Thanks, Wayne!

Or, if you're a fiction podcast producer and want to keep this valuable resource going, you can become a Supporting Creative Shop, just like Dumb Dragons Productions did this week. Thanks, Russ! They make their debut appearance in this week's issue.

So color me excited. And busy! Now—let's get into it, shall we?

Since I'm based in Phoenix, I'm contractually obligated to feel bad for our team losing. But then again, I've never been a baseball fan. I'll live!

But you know what would help me live? You (yes, you!) deciding today is the day to become an Individual Supporter of The End. Teeny-tiny contributions from those who love this newsletter, website, and podcast help keep things running. And as we keep building out new features, our costs—actual money costs, not just time investments—start to add up. Quickly. Your small contribution will keep this service free for a long, long time.

So pretty please, with a cherry (or a cherry pie, I'm easy) on top, become a supporter of The End.

Let's get into it, shall we?

- Evo

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