I personally wouldn't use Audacity for recording. I find it great for editing but for recording, it constantly crashes. I'd also be REALLY sure if you want to do this. It eats time. Time you could use for writing, editing, or just generally learning the craft. A good rule is that however long you record for, the editing will take 3-5x that. But if you're serious about doing it, Levelator is good for balancing issues and a lot of people like to record in their closet. I wrote a really detailed post on my site if you're interested:
The Podcasting Route