Set in the farmlands of Whatcom County, Hilde Festerling’s fictional barnyard gothic podcast, The Goat American Novel, comes to its conclusion in October of 2025, nearly two years after the release of its first episode.
The podcast has featured a cast of over 20 voice actors ranging in age from 10 to 77 and is produced in the style of an old-time radioplay with music and creative sound effects.
After writing the script in 2022 and completing a successful Kickstarter in 2023 to support development and production, Hilde began recording in 2024 and has produced 24 episodes which tell the story of a goat herd’s misadventures with the supernatural.
When her nanny-goat and kids barely survived their birthing on a cold March morning, Hilde discovered a story that was too big to stay on the page. Along with the goats, the resulting audio drama stars a twerking alpaca, a karaoke-queen farmer, and two very determined barnyard ghosts.
“Producing the podcast has been such a delight and an enormous learning curve,” says Hilde. “So many of my family members contribute to the podcast—my adult siblings, my children, my nieces and nephews, my ex-husband, my dad, my friends, and my girlfriend are my writer’s room, my cast, and my musicians.”
Hilde, who teaches theater with Bellingham Arts Academy for Youth and is a regular featured performer at the Bellingham Story Hour, has found an exciting challenge in the podcast format because of the ways it brings together elements of theater, storytelling, music, and dramatic writing to create an immersive soundscape for listeners.
Along with sharing the podcast on streaming services, Hilde recently premiered a live version of the show to bring an audience at Village Books a behind-the-scenes view of the radio-play experience.
Her intent has been to produce something appealing and entertaining for all ages so that different generations can listen together. Hilde: “This podcast is made for families and by a family—and it’s about a family, though that last one is a goat family.”
The Goat American Novel podcast is free to listen to and available on all podcast streaming platforms. Listen to the trailer here.
