Audio · Podcast

Solo podcast

RecommendedFull pipeline with auto-clipping

Riverside records studio quality, Descript edits with the transcript, Castmagic produces show notes + clips, Opus auto-clips for shorts.

AUDIOBEGINNERBeginnerFrom $55/mo
The stack
Riverside
Recording

Local-track recording = no internet wobble. Auto noise removal.

$15/mo Standard · $24/mo ProAlts: Descript
Descript
Editing

Edit the transcript, the audio follows. Strip 'um's in two clicks.

$16/mo Creator · $30/mo ProAlts: Riverside
Castmagic
Show notes + posts

Drop the audio, get titles, show notes, timestamps, social posts back in 5 minutes.

$23/mo Lite · $59/mo Pro
Opus Clip
Shorts pipeline

Long episode → 6–10 short clips with viral scores and captions.

Free · $19/mo Starter · $59/mo ProAlts: Castmagic
Real monthly cost
small
$55/mo
1 episode / week
  • riverside$15
  • descript$16
  • castmagic$23
  • opus-clip$0 free
medium
$87/mo
2 / week + clips
  • riverside$15
  • descript$16
  • castmagic$23
  • opus-clip$19
  • + misc$14
heavy
$210/mo
Daily, multi-show
  • riverside$24
  • descript$30
  • castmagic$59
  • opus-clip$59
  • + hosting$38
Workflow
  1. 1
    RecordRiverside

    Riverside, 60-min target. Track-locally, magic edit later.

  2. 2
    Edit by transcriptDescript

    Descript: strip filler words, tighten beats. ~30 min for an hour.

  3. 3
    Notes + postsCastmagic

    Castmagic generates titles, show notes, X thread, LinkedIn post.

    Prompt · Show notes prompt (for Castmagic custom template or Claude fallback)
    Episode transcript:
    """
    {{paste transcript}}
    """
    
    Output (in this order, ready to publish):
    
    1. **Title** — 5 to 8 words, specific noun first, no clickbait. Three options.
    2. **Subtitle** — one sentence, the single most useful takeaway.
    3. **Show notes** (220 to 280 words):
       - 1-paragraph hook (no "in this episode")
       - 5 bulleted timestamps with topic and the specific moment
       - 1 paragraph "what you'll get" with concrete outcomes
    4. **3 quote cards** — under 240 chars each, verbatim from transcript, attribution-ready.
    5. **X thread** — 5 to 7 posts, hook first, link at the end.
    6. **LinkedIn post** — 180 words, first line is the hook, 1 to 2 hashtags.
    
    No emojis. No em dashes.
  4. 4
    Auto-clipOpus Clip

    Opus picks the 6 best moments, captions them, exports vertical.

  5. 5
    PublishCastmagic

    Upload audio to your host, video to YT, clips to TikTok/Reels.

What it produced
Solo founder, 4 months in

1,200 listeners/episode, 24 sponsor inbounds from clips alone. Total weekly time: 3.5 hours from record to publish.

Common pitfalls
Episode length drifts

Without a guest, 60 min stretches to 90. Force a hard outline; cut to 35–45.

Clip captions wrong

Always re-check Opus captions; one mis-spelled name kills shareability.

Other ways to do Solo podcast
Curated by @ryan-c
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