Past Due with Ana Marie Cox and Open Mike Eagle
Ana Marie Cox and Open Mike Eagle explore what it takes to survive as a creative today. From juggling side gigs to redefining success, we dive into the real stories behind making a living when one job just isn’t enough
Episodes
December 10, 2025 • 51 mins
Writer, comedian, and director Joey Clift joins us to talk about making the work that matters, especially when the world doesn’t make it easy. From Paw Patrol to Peabody nominations to his new animated short POW, Joey opens up about the long road to representation, what it means to build a career without a “big break,” and why doing it the right way isn’t always the fastest—or easiest—path.
Watch POW: https://www.youtube.com/watch...
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December 3, 2025 • 54 mins
Award-winning author Mary Robinette Kowal joins us to talk about building a creative ecosystem that actually fits your brain. From viral cat videos to Patreon-powered writing sessions, she shares exactly how she budgets, hires, monetizes, and prioritizes joy across multiple income streams, and how being honest about what you don’t want might be the key to building the career you do want.
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November 26, 2025 • 60 mins
Healthcare analyst and ACA expert Charles Gaba joins us to explain what freelancers, artists, and anyone with unpredictable income really need to know about this year’s open enrollment. We cover rising premiums, the danger of auto-renewals, and how to avoid surprise tax bills or lost subsidies. Whether you're switching plans or signing up for the first time, this episode breaks down what the ACA does—and doesn’t—offer the creative ...
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November 19, 2025 • 60 mins
Bestselling sci-fi author John Scalzi joins us for a conversation about creative longevity, pragmatic optimism, and why the goal isn’t to stay hot, it’s to keep going. We talk about building a sustainable career with your partner, the myth of the one big break, and how generosity, structure, and a little chaos can power a life in the arts. Plus: what journalism teaches you about rejection and why it’s okay to not be the next big th...
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November 12, 2025 • 54 mins
Journalist and 404 Media co-founder Jason Koebler joins us to talk about what it takes to build an independent newsroom. From the cost of defamation insurance to the weight of mailing your own merch, we get into the invisible math of staying scrappy without burning out—and the true cost of reader-supported journalism.
Get more at patreon.com/pastdue
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November 5, 2025 • 74 mins
Broadcaster and podcast pioneer Jesse Thorn joins us to talk about building something sustainable without selling out. From his early days of mailing CD-Rs to NPR stations to running Maximum Fun as a listener-supported network, Jesse shares the emotional and economic math behind 20 years of independent success. We get into what it means to build trust with an audience, how community gets harder in a platform-driven world, and why “...
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October 29, 2025 • 62 mins
Wrestler and podcaster Colt Cabana joins Ana and Mike to talk about building a life in wrestling. From getting fired by WWE to becoming a blueprint for sustainable DIY success, Colt breaks down the real economics of creative work—merch tables, mattress money, and all—and why betting on yourself might be the best decision you ever make.
Hear the full interview at patreon.com/pastdue
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October 22, 2025 • 58 mins
Comedian and podcaster Babs Gray joins us to talk about staying creative in the long middle—the part where the dream hasn’t died, but it hasn’t fully arrived either. We get into the quiet power of community, the joy of weird little projects, and why success isn’t always loud. From survival jobs to self-trust, Babs reminds us that showing up for your work, even when no one’s watching, might be one of the most important things you ca...
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October 15, 2025 • 66 mins
Comedian and actor Will Hines joins Ana and Mike to talk about trading a salary for freedom, and why time might be the only currency that really matters. From leaving a corporate job at 33 to building an improv school from the ground up, we get into the real economics of creative work: how to manage taxes, protect your energy, and figure out what’s worth outsourcing (and what’s not).
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October 8, 2025 • 64 mins
Actor and comedian Jacquis Neal joins us to talk about the strange space between doing good work and still feeling like you haven’t arrived. From voiceover gigs to the long-haul hustle, we explore what it means to trust the process when the results don’t always look like what you imagined.
Want more? On the bonus episode, Jacquis opens up about the thing he keeps doing—whether or not anyone’s watching. Subscribe at patreon.com/p...
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October 1, 2025 • 55 mins
Comedian River Butcher joins us for a conversation about what happens when the gigs stop coming—and the world doesn’t end. We talk about the fear of slowing down, and how gratitude, perspective, and a working fridge might just be the real signs of success.
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September 24, 2025 • 62 mins
Writer and video essayist Michael Burns joins us to talk about what happens when the platform you helped build stops serving the work and starts serving itself. After Wisecrack, he set out to make something smaller, stranger, and more his own. We get into the emotional cost of reinvention, the illusion of creative security, and why doing it yourself might be harder… but also the only honest way left.
Get more at patereon.com/pas...
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September 17, 2025 • 55 mins
Ana and Mike compare notes from the road: Ana’s on assignment in small-town Maine chasing a political story she believes in, and Mike’s in between tour legs, chasing rent. They get into the economics of chasing meaning when the math doesn’t make sense, the disappearing budgets of real journalism, and why a DIY ethos is both a burden and a blessing.
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September 10, 2025 • 40 mins
Comedian and actor Ron Funches joins us for a deeply funny and unexpectedly honest conversation about the strange economics of creative work. We talk about surviving on joy, staying positive when nothing’s going right, and why failure is sometimes part of the paycheck. Originally recorded in 2022 for Mike’s podcast "Secret Skin."
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September 3, 2025 • 68 mins
Comedian Chris Gethard joins us to talk about walking away from the version of success he spent years chasing, and why that might be the reason he's still standing. We get into the grief of giving up the big dream, the joy of making weird stuff for the people who get it, and the radical act of building a career that actually fits your life.
We’ve got more with Chris Gethard on patreon.com/pastdue - In this week’s bonus episode, Ch...
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August 27, 2025 • 54 mins
Adult performer and podcaster Siri Dahl joins us to talk about the emotional and economic realities of sex work in an era that calls itself creator-friendly, but still censors, exploits, and erases. We talk about the myth that OnlyFans is easy money, the rising pressure to be everywhere at once, and what it means to be both the product and the platform.
Bonus episode on Patreon: patreon.com/pastdue
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August 20, 2025 • 56 mins
Musician and writer Rhett Miller joins us to talk about staying creative in an industry that keeps changing. From fronting the Old 97’s to writing children’s books, Rhett opens up about the financial rollercoaster of life on the road, the loneliness of independence, and the challenge of keeping faith in your work when the world stops clapping.
There's even more waiting for you on our Patreon. In this week’s bonus segment, Rhett ...
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August 13, 2025 • 70 mins
Ana and Mike get real about what creative work actually looks like behind the scenes, breaking down the economics of touring, Substack’s Nazi problem, how platforms trap creators, audiences, and the psychology of performing.
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August 6, 2025 • 62 mins
Podcast host and producer Jody Avirgan joins us to talk about walking away from big platforms like ESPN and NPR, and what it takes to build something sustainable on your own terms. We get into the pressure to grow, the trap of prestige, and the trade-offs between stability, scale, and creative freedom. In the end, rethinking success might be the real win.
Hear the full episode and more at https://patreon.com/pastdue
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July 30, 2025 • 60 mins
Video essayist Ian Danskin joins us to talk about the exhausting economics of doing thoughtful work online—and what it means when your most meaningful content can’t pay the bills. From burnout to bad faith backlash, Ian opens up about what it takes to keep going when attention is currency... and you're broke.
Bonus episodes + extras: https://patreon.com/pastdue
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