By Jason A. Wilkinson
Making stories has led me to want to build a place for them, too.
That’s the starting point for Dream Burrow Sleep Stories, my first iOS app. It’s still in development, but it represents a direction I want to take as a creator: continuing the podcast while giving the stories room to reach people beyond Spotify.
I enjoy building things. With Dream Burrow, I get to bring that interest together with the storytelling I’m already doing. I can think about the whole experience, from the way someone arrives to the moment the audio begins.
An idea that grew from the work
Dream Burrow didn’t begin with one particular listener request or a frustration someone asked me to fix. It grew out of my own thinking about where this work could go next.
I believe there’s room for the kind of dedicated sleep-story experience I want to make. That’s my belief as a creator, and something I need to test through the work. Building my first iOS app gives me a way to put that idea into practice. It also means making choices about the experience around the stories, rather than only the audio itself.
The podcast remains part of that picture. It gives people a place to listen now, and I intend to keep publishing there. Developing an app gives me another way to present the stories and an opportunity to reach a larger audience over time. It gives listeners another choice, too. Someone who enjoys listening on Spotify can stay there, while someone who wants a dedicated home for these stories would have that option.
Building the experience around the story
The experience I’m imagining is peaceful scenery, a story you want to hear, and a direct path into the audio. Inside the app, I want to move straight into an audiobook-style journey without the podcast-host introduction.
That changes how I think about the beginning. The surroundings in the app can help introduce the mood, while the story takes over once the listener presses play. That’s a different kind of creative work for me to take on alongside making the audio.
It’s a chance to make the visual setting and the storytelling feel connected. For me, that’s one of the interesting parts of building something of my own: I can work on how the pieces fit together, as well as on each individual story.
Giving the production more room to grow
I want Dream Burrow to go hand in hand with better story production. My plans include a narrator and distinct voices for the characters.
I’m interested in what that structure allows me to create. Characters can have a clearer presence within a narrated journey, and a series gives me more room to develop their world over time. Rotating between series would let me keep creating fresh material while returning to settings listeners may want to revisit.
My ambition is fresh content daily, with new stories supporting both the app and the podcast. I’m treating that as a production goal rather than announcing a guaranteed daily schedule at launch.
The challenge is keeping the production consistent while making the stories better. A daily goal affects the whole process: writing new material, developing the narration and characters, and getting each story ready to publish. I need to build a way of working that supports that pace. I want the quality to improve as the collection grows, so the goal has to make sense for the work I can actually deliver.
Keeping free listeners in the picture
As I work through the business side, one point matters to me: free listeners should still receive stories made with care.
I’m planning free and member content, and I want both to have the same standard of quality. Some access may come later for free listeners. The details are still being worked through, but I don’t want free stories treated as an afterthought.
The existing catalog is intended to be shared between the podcast and the app. Their subscriptions will be separate. That means I need to explain access clearly as the app gets closer to release, so listeners can understand their choices without making assumptions about what carries over.
A few questions about the project
Why make an app when the podcast already exists?
I want to develop as a creator, reach beyond Spotify, and build a dedicated experience around the stories. I also enjoy the process of building something new.
Is Dream Burrow ready to download?
Not yet. It’s my first iOS app, and it’s still in development.
Will this change the attention you give the podcast?
My intention is for the production work to benefit both. I plan to continue publishing on Spotify and creating new stories across the podcast and the app.
The next part of the work
There’s still plenty to build and work out. For now, Dream Burrow gives me a clear direction: develop the stories further, create a dedicated home for them, and keep making work for the people who listen.
You can hear the starting point in Adult Sleep Stories and listen to the podcast on Spotify.
I’m looking forward to seeing how the idea develops as I keep building.