Reviews

Interesting and creepy. Episodes are short and sometimes the ad/content mix is 50/50. But I found the storytelling worth the as annoyance.

The podcast is a great slow burn. It keeps you guessing from episode to episode. The only downside is the amount of ads BUT if they need that much of the episode to be ads, I’m thankful it’s at the beginning and end instead of breaking up the story in the episode since episodes are short. The audio is also not great with headphones. There’s rumbling in the background from time to time, probably to enhance suspense, but when that’s happening I can barely hear what’s being said and I can’t turn up volume without blasting my ears off. Overall, content = great.

I love the series. After coming back to this a year later and listening to 40 episodes in 3 days, it has been immensely enjoyable! The episodes feel like a little treat that I just can’t get enough of. There’s thankfully no ads half way through that would ruin the enjoyment and thrill that these bring. Thank you so much for this amazing podcast!

Short epis with a ton of ads front and back...wouldn't mind if the epis were longer. Ruins the experience.

To many ads in the beginning other than enjoy it

Love the show, it has some incredible pacing.

Too many ads and I feel like the plot got lost for a while which is stopping me from giving this 5 stars. I am interested though in the story and it seems like we’re back on track to the plot moving forward.

The Cellar Letters is an impressively unsettling slow-burn horror podcast. You can’t help but feel as helpless as Nate, the main character who is going Through It all the time. I hope he catches a break soon! I love how the plot acts as a kind of framing device for little short horror stories as Nate reads the letters in his basement while the overarching plot is also developing. It’s a very creative set up and I can’t wait for more to come out soon! And a note about the ads: yeah, there are ads. The amount and placement of ads on Rusty Quill shows are decided by Rusty Quill. Please consider this before paying attention to or giving out one star reviews that have nothing to do with the quality of work an independent creator is putting out. You can skip ads if you really must, or personally I sometimes adjust the playback speed to make them go by faster while hopefully still giving the creator the little bit of ad revenue they get from listeners letting the ads play. Have some patience and stop trying to tank someone’s reviews over something they can’t control.

Excellent writing, but 4 minutes of ads for a 10 minute episode is unbearable. It’s become a trend with Rusty Quill stuff.

A classic horror fiction set-up, although if you're expecting something terrifying every minute, this isn't it - it's a slow burn. Whilst the pacing dips a little in the middle (for reasons I won't spoil), in recent episodes it's fast developing into a gripping story. Also, I do appreciate it when someone actually starts to reveal what's going on, I've listened to too many podcasts where the realisation 'you don't know where this is going, do you?' has slowly dawned. Just beware the early-season jump scares!

Literally half the episode length is ads. The same annoying ads over and over since the episodes are only 10ish minutes long. The main guy is infuriating. Once Steve is gone, it drags. Giving up at 36. Every episode is him listening to static and not putting anything together. I am not convinced this story even goes anywhere. Disappointed.

I love these voice actors and I bet you Steve is hott with 2 ts 😎 I love the story so far, great references, fun and upbeat, but also spooky and suspenseful. I really appreciate how they mesh the humor and horror to give it that extra flavor flave 🔥well worth the listen! Thank you!!

Oh young one. Tapes have two sides. Side A and side B. Beware of John. Or find out why you can talk to him and him only. Pls don’t let anything happen to Bella. Animals seem to always get the short end of the stick. Can’t wait to hear more of what you find. Oh one more thing. You know you are the baby the Doula was talking about, don’t you.

Love this show and I’m still giving it 5 stars but… one thing happens per episode. If we’re lucky. Come on man, I know it’s suspenseful pacing but everyone’s noticing it and sometimes the artistic display and tone is not worth slowing the story so significantly. (Also please stop making the character so awful in his relationship with John, like I’m sure John’s actually a bad guy or smth but please don’t make the character so annoyingly and exceedingly unlikable due to his lack of self awareness and control (I know it’s realistic given the situation he’s in and his past, but g-d it’s so frustrating to listen to and makes me hate the character which is a problem in a one character show))

I’m really enjoying this podcast. You know what I’m not enjoying? Half of every episode being ads. Literally half of some of these. Each of the eps could be an hour and then the ads would be normal but GOOD LORD. I know there’s a patreon but I can’t subscribe to 10 patreons to listen to podcasts. I would subscribe to a RUSTY QUILL patreon to listen to ALL the shows ad free but this is out of hand. I don’t even mind ads in podcasts normally, but this is literally 3+ minutes of ads up front and a minute of ads after for 10 minute episodes. And they’re SO LOUD compared to the episodes. I feel like I’m doing the podcast version of cable TV. It also absolutely destroys the ambiance and flow of the podcast. Very sad.

I like it when people say hi! (Knock knock)

Ever want to eat steak on a steakout? Be serious...I am being serious. Creepy, scary and hilarious. Solid sound design and good voice acting keep you enthralled - don't go in the basement!

Great dialogue and very creative. Not to mention the addition of Harlan Guthrie who is one of my favorite creators. Five stars all the way, but we need Steve back!

As an entomologist, I feel attacked and dismayed at the attitude towards entomologists and insects in this show. 3/5 stars but only because it’s been improving recently. All jokes aside though, here’s my serious review: I can have a hard time finding podcasts I like, but this one definitely is one of those. The pacing tends to vary a bit, but I don’t mind that. While progression through the main plot has slowed quite a bit recently, it doesn’t feel like the story is going nowhere. It seems like we’re getting more background information and context for what’s going on, like we’re building up to something. It’s really got me hooked. 5/5 stars

I jumped into this podcast rather recently after seeing it on the RQ website. I was a little skeptical at the very beginning, but very quickly got hooked on the found-footage style, the dynamic between Nate and Steve, and the sound design. I am always a sucker for plotlines that start very cliche and then go in a completely different direction. Listening and re-listening continues to be a joy, and I am on the edge of my seat in anticipation of the next season. Amazing job!

I can’t stop listening to this! Got a recommendation on The Magnus Archives and have been spending little time with my earbuds out!

I really enjoy this podcast! However, episodes after the break seem to be so quiet that I can barely hear them at safe volume levels. I’d really appreciate it if the sound levels could be raised a tad. Thanks for the spooky fun!

Awesome podcast! Can’t wait for more!

Then you have come to the right place! ***FIRST REVIEW WHEN THIS WAS MY FAVORITE PODCAST: The hardest part is the WAIT…Only because I want to hear the rest so badly. I love Spooky/Eerie Horror Fiction Podcasts. I found this from the LIKEWISE APP that tells you great Podcast recommendations. If someone is looking for this Genre, I ALWAYS recommend The Cellar Letters ! CURRENT REVIEW: THIS had so much promise. I wonder if the Podcaster writes as he goes but isn’t quite sure where it’s going. I HATE to write this. As an avid listener of Fiction Podcasts this is what I want: A Show that comes out on the same day that is at least 20-30 min. 2 weeks apart is the longest it can possibly go or we forget what happened in the last episode. Don’t worry about making the Show go for a year ! Make a fabulous show even if it’s 8 episodes every 2 weeks and it’s done. It’s better to have Short and Fantastic than long and drawn out. The 10 min episodes are maddening after waiting for at the least 2 weeks. I feel like it should be “Remastered, Put Season 1 in 3 episodes. Do the same with S2 & S3. There hasn’t been an episode now for months but I had no idea S3 was over. S1 was 5 star. It got a little slower in S2 which I’d give a 4 star. S3 didn’t go anywhere. I’ll give it a 3 star only because I knew the character. If a new episode comes out I will have to listen to the last episode to remind myself what happened. Even MORE CURRENT: I LOVE THIS SHOW. The slow burn is driving me crazy (I guess that’s the point) Now I have a new way to listen. I wait until there’s at least 5 episodes - that means coming to check every 2-3 months. This way I can listen to a story with continuity for 30+ minutes. Right now, I’m left on a cliffhanger. If this could just come out every 2 weeks and be at least 20 minutes I’d be in my glory. 5 Stars for the Show, 5 Stars for Anxiety but 1 star for 8 or 9 min episodes.