so you wanna guest on podcasts?

(part 1)

I turn 50 on Halloween this year and wanted to set a possible but challenging goal for myself and settled on this one:

50 podcast interviews in 2025.

To clarify, because people keep asking me, I want to BE INTERVIEWED on 50 different podcasts, not conduct 50 interviews on my own podcast (I don’t have a podcast).

Why 50 podcast interviews? Several reasons. I have something to say. A lot of somethings. I want to get my words and work in front of people outside my smallish circle. And I want to chat with cool people about stuff we care about.

So how is my quest going?

The good news: I’ve done 20 interviews as of today (April 30). The not-so-good news: I have 1 scheduled in May, 1 in June, but that’s it. I’ve got to get back to pitching!

So, how does this work? How do I get people to say, “YES PLEASE BE ON MY PODCAST”?

Well, I admit: I cheated a little. And, by cheated, I mean I’ve been on quite a few podcasts in the past, so I started by asking all of those people first. And a lot of them said yes.

But I did also reach out to a lot of new people (and got approached by some podcast hosts as well when I shared my quest on social media).

HERE’S MY #1 TIP: listen to at least 1 episode of the podcast before you pitch, and preferably 2-3. (and then mention those episodes when you pitch)

AND MY #2 TIP: tell them what’s in it for them. The biggest thing you have to offer is telling aaallll your people to download and listen to the episode.

In Part 2 of this series, I’ll copy and paste an exact pitch I sent to a podcast host. And I’ll share tips for finding podcasts to be on. And I’ll answer your questions.

Here are three of the podcasts I was on in January. They’re all very different, but all of them focus on deconstruction/leaving toxic religion.

If this is something you’d like to talk about on podcasts, definitely download and listen to them.

Hello Deconstructionists with Maggie Harrigan: we talked about making time for creativity. I love Maggie and this was such a fun episode.

Beyond the Surface with Sam Sellers: Sam dubbed me “the Heretical Poet” and I love her for it. Such a great convo!!

Divorcing Religion with Janice Selbie: from missionary to heretic—that’s me! We dove deep into my divorce and my husband’s infidelity “on the field.”

Let me know in the comments if you download/listen to one of them!

What questions would you like me to answer in Part 2?