Tutorial

This tutorial will guide you through creating your first blog and podcast with Django Cast.

Your First Blog

After completing the Installation, let’s create your first blog.

Creating a Blog

  1. Access the Wagtail Admin

    Navigate to http://localhost:8000/cms/ and log in with your credentials.

  2. Navigate to Pages

    Click on “Pages” in the sidebar. You’ll see the page tree with your site’s root.

  3. Add a Blog

    • Click “Add child page” next to the root page

    • Select “Blog” from the page type options

    • Fill in the required fields:

      • Title: Your blog’s name (e.g., “My Tech Blog”)

      • Slug: URL-friendly version (e.g., “tech-blog”)

      • Author: Your name

      • Email: Contact email

      • Description: Brief description of your blog

  4. Configure Blog Settings

    • Comments enabled: Choose whether this blog permits comments

    • Template base dir: Choose a built-in theme (bootstrap4 or plain)

  5. Publish

    • Click “Publish” to make your blog live

    • Your blog is now accessible at http://localhost:8000/tech-blog/

Creating Your First Post

  1. Navigate to Your Blog

    In the page tree, find your blog and click on it.

  2. Add a Post

    • Click “Add child page”

    • Select “Post” from the page type options

  3. Fill in Post Details

    • Title: Your post title

    • Slug: URL slug (auto-generated from title)

    • Categories: Select or create categories

    • Tags: Add relevant tags

  4. Add Content

    The body field has two sections:

    Overview Section

    Brief summary that appears on the blog index page

    Detail Section

    Full article content that appears on the post page

    For each section, you can add:

    • Paragraph: Rich text content, including h2, h3, and h4 headings

    • Image: Single responsive image

    • Gallery: Multiple images with lightbox

    • Code: Syntax-highlighted code blocks

    • Video: Embedded video files

    • Audio: Embedded audio with player

    • Embed: External content (YouTube, etc.)

    django-cast no longer provides a standalone Heading block. Add headings inside a Paragraph block with Wagtail’s rich-text heading controls so the document level is explicit.

  5. Add Media

    To add an image:

    • Click the “+” button in a content section

    • Choose “Image”

    • Upload or select an existing image

    • Add alt text for accessibility

  6. Preview and Publish

    • Use “Preview” to see how your post looks

    • Click “Publish” when ready

    • Your post is now live!

Your First Podcast

Django Cast makes it easy to create a podcast with full iTunes support.

Creating a Podcast

  1. Add a Podcast Page

    • From the root page, click “Add child page”

    • Select “Podcast” from page types

  2. Configure Podcast Settings

    Basic Information:

    • Title: Your podcast name

    • Slug: URL slug for the podcast

    • Author: Podcast host name

    • Email: Contact email

    • Description: Podcast description

    iTunes Settings:

    • iTunes Artwork: Upload 3000x3000px image

  3. Publish Your Podcast

    Click “Publish” to create your podcast page.

Creating Your First Episode

  1. Navigate to Your Podcast

    Find your podcast in the page tree.

  2. Add an Episode

    • Click “Add child page”

    • Select “Episode” from page types

  3. Episode Details

    • Title: Episode title

    • Podcast Audio: Upload your audio file; drafts may omit it, but publishing requires it

    • Keywords: Episode-specific keywords

    • Explicit: Episode content rating: - Yes: Mark the episode as explicit - No: Mark the episode as not explicit - Clean: Mark an edited or censored version as clean

    • Block: Check to prevent iTunes distribution

  4. Add Show Notes

    Use the body field to add:

    • Episode description (overview)

    • Detailed show notes (detail)

    • Links and resources

    • Embedded images or code

  5. Upload Audio

    • Click “Choose audio” in Podcast Audio field

    • Upload your audio file (MP3, M4A, OGG, or OPUS)

    • The system will automatically extract duration

    • Each audio object can have multiple files in different formats

  6. Add Chapters (Optional)

    After publishing, you can add chapter marks:

    • Go to Settings → Audio in admin

    • Find your audio file

    • Add chapter marks with timestamps

  7. Publish Episode

    • Review all settings

    • Click “Publish”

    • Episode appears on podcast page and in RSS feed

RSS Feed Setup

Your podcast RSS feeds are generated from the podcast slug for each audio format. For a podcast whose slug is my-podcast, the URLs are:

  • MP3 Feed: /my-podcast/feed/podcast/mp3/rss.xml

  • M4A Feed: /my-podcast/feed/podcast/m4a/rss.xml

  • OGG Feed: /my-podcast/feed/podcast/oga/rss.xml

  • OPUS Feed: /my-podcast/feed/podcast/opus/rss.xml

Each feed contains episodes with audio files in the corresponding format. Submit your preferred feed URL to podcast directories like Apple Podcasts, Spotify, etc.

Working with Media

Images

  • Supported formats: JPEG, PNG, AVIF, WebP

  • Automatic optimization: Responsive images using picture element

  • Organization: Create collections for better management

Galleries

  1. Click “+” and select “Gallery”

  2. Select multiple images

  3. Choose layout:

    • Default: Web component with client-side lightbox

    • HTMX: Server-side rendered lightbox

Audio

  • Formats: Upload in any format, provide multiple for compatibility

  • Player: Podlove Web Player with chapters and speed control

  • Transcripts: Add VTT or JSON transcripts for accessibility

Video

  • Upload: Browser-compatible formats (MP4, WebM)

  • No conversion: Upload videos in formats browsers can play

  • Embedding: Use video block in content

Tips and Tricks

Content Organization

  • Categories: Use for major topic areas

  • Tags: Use for specific topics

Theme Customization

  • Choose from the built-in themes (bootstrap4 and plain)

  • Install new themes via PyPI

  • Select theme in blog’s “Template base dir” setting

Next Steps