Working
Episodes
Announcing Slow Burn: Becoming Justice Gorsuch
13 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
In the 11th season of Slow Burn, host Susan Matthews traces the rise of Neil Gorsuch, from his formative years as a young conservative through his nom...
Supercommunicators | 2. How to Communicate Without Words
18 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Why is it that we can tell someone “I’m totally fine!” and they instantly know we’re not? Gestures, facial expressions, tone of voice, and oth...
Supercommunicators | 1. How to Talk to Anyone
18 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Why are some people able to talk with just about anyone—about almost anything? One answer may lie in the questions we ask—and how deeply we ask th...
Supercommunicators | 2. How to Communicate Without Words
18 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Why is it that we can tell someone “I’m totally fine!” and they instantly know we’re not? Gestures, facial expressions, tone of voice, and oth...
Supercommunicators | 1. How to Talk to Anyone
18 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Why are some people able to talk with just about anyone—about almost anything? One answer may lie in the questions we ask—and how deeply we ask th...
A Working Farewell and What We’ve Learned
08 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, hosts June Thomas, Isaac Butler, and Ronald Young Jr. reflect on the best tips, tools, and words of wisdom from the past four years of Work...
Working Overtime: Saying Goodbye
05 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
On this, the final episode of Working Overtime, hosts Ronald Young Jr. and June Thomas share some last bits of advice on how best to leave a job! Rona...
An Artist’s Guide to ADHD and Getting Stuff Done
01 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Ronald Young Jr. talks to Andy J. Pizza, an illustrator and creator of children’s books who’s also the host of the Creative Pep Ta...
How a Big Band Leader and Composer Wrangles All the Moving Parts
25 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Isaac Butler talks to composer and bandleader Darcy James Argue, who fronts the 18-piece big band jazz group Secret Society. In the in...
Working Overtime: Transitioning From One Project to the Next
22 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
On this week's episode of Working Overtime, hosts Ronald Young Jr. and June Thomas get into the weeds on in-between time and pivoting from one job to ...
The Founder of a Life-Changing Writers’ Retreat
18 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host June Thomas talks to author and poet Judith Barrington about her knack for memoir writing and about a retreat called Flight of the Min...
Smart Money Podcast: How to Navigate Income Swings in a Creative Career
15 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
It's an off-week for Working Overtime, so we're presenting a special bonus episode from the Smart Money podcast! Smart Money features real-world advic...
Smart Money Podcast: How to Navigate Income Swings in a Creative Career
15 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
It's an off-week for Working Overtime, so we're presenting a special bonus episode from the Smart Money podcast! Smart Money features real-world advic...
How a TV Writer Keeps the Ideas Coming
11 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Ronald Young Jr. talks to Mike Gauyo, a TV writer and creator whose credits include the beloved series Insecure and Ginny and Georgia....
Working Overtime: Surviving the Book Release Process
08 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
June Thomas recently published her book A Place of Our Own: Six Places That Shaped Queer Women’s Culture, and on this episode of Working Overtime co...
How a Stand Up Comedian’s Sense of Humor Evolves
04 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Isaac Butler talks to Dina Hashem, a stand-up comedian and writer for The Daily Show whose recent special is called Dark Little Whispe...
Writing the Two-Author Novel
28 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Host June Thomas speaks with authors Rachel Dodes and Lauren Mechling about their new novel, The Memo and their collaborative writing process. The pan...
Working Overtime: Revisiting Your Resolutions
25 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
It's halfway through the year, and hosts June Thomas and Isaac Butler are putting themselves back under the microscope to see which of their New Year'...
A Newspaper Comic That Shows a Changing America
21 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Ronald Young Jr. talks to Darrin Bell, creator of the syndicated newspaper comic strip Candorville. In the interview, Darrin explains ...
An Author’s Mission to Make Her Readers Belly Laugh
14 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Isaac Butler talks to Sally Franson, the author of two novels: A Lady’s Guide to Selling Out and the brand new release Big in Sweden...
Working Overtime: How to Ease Back into Work After Losing a Loved One
11 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Hosts Ronald Young Jr. and Isaac Butler delve into coping with emotional trauma and the challenge of returning to work afterward. Following a death in...
How to Photograph a Hardcore Punk Show
07 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host June Thomas talks to Jim Saah, a photographer who documented D.C.’s legendary hardcore punk scene in the 1980’s and 90’s. In the...
How One of the Best Podcast Sound Designers Executes a Vision
30 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Ronald Young Jr. talks to John DeLore, a podcast editor and sound designer who’s been in the industry since its heyday. He’s produ...
Working Overtime: How to Get Back into Books
27 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
For this week’s episode of Working Overtime, hosts Ronald Young Jr and Isaac Butler are joined by writer Elisa Gabbert for a discussion of reading a...
A New Kind of “Live Documentary” Honors the Temporary
23 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Isaac Butler talks to Sam Green, a documentary filmmaker who has pioneered a new kind of performance called “live documentary,” wh...
How a Colonial Williamsburg Actor Humanizes History
16 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, guest-host Kristen Meinzer talks to Stephen Seals, an actor and historical interpreter at Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia. In the intervi...
Working Overtime: Storing and Revisiting Your Old Ideas
13 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
For this week’s episode of Working Overtime, hosts June Thomas and Ronald Young Jr dive into the work of PKM (Personal Knowledge Management) and the...
A Master Class in Character Description
09 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Ronald Young Jr. talks to writer Emma Copley Eisenberg about her new novel Housemates, which features a burgeoning friendship between ...
Working Overtime: Money Advice for Freelancers
06 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week on Working Overtime, host Isaac Butler talks to AJ Ayers, a personal finance expert who specializes in helping creative people manage their ...
A Broadway Hit That Defies Genre
02 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Isaac Butler talks to Justin Peck, a dancer and choreographer who helped create the hit Broadway show Illinoise, which is based on a c...
Working Overtime: When Life Gets in the Way
30 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
For this week’s episode of Working Overtime, hosts June Thomas and Ronald Young Jr, unpack how to deal with life’s unexpected challenges and their...
A Classic Opera Gets an Overdue Update
26 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host June Thomas talks to Francesca Zambello, artistic director of the Washington National Opera. In the interview, Francesca discusses the...
A Much-Needed History of Queer Women’s Spaces
19 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Ronald Young Jr. talks to June Thomas about her new book A Place of Our Own: Six Spaces That Shaped Queer Women’s Culture. In the in...
Working Overtime: Keeping the Faith
16 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
For this week’s episode of Working Overtime, hosts June Thomas and Isaac Butler are joined by author Justin Taylor, to discuss the process behind hi...
The Evolution of One of Scotland’s Best Indie Bands
12 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Isaac Butler talks to Tracyanne Campbell, lead singer of the Scottish indie band Camera Obscura. In the interview, Tracyanne discusses...
Writer Anne Lamott’s Difficult Personal Truths
05 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host June Thomas talks to the prolific writer Anne Lamott, whose latest book is called Somehow: Thoughts on Love. In the interview, Anne di...
Working Overtime: Staying Accountable To Yourself
02 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
For this week’s episode of Working Overtime, hosts June Thomas and Isaac Butler, chew over accountability and how to stay disciplined while working ...
Interviews That Get to the Point
28 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Ronald Young Jr. talks to Anna Sale, host of the podcast Death, Sex & Money, which recently joined Slate after a brief hiatus. In the ...
How Fact-Checking Can Improve Your Fiction
21 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Isaac Butler talks to novelist Julia Hannafin and ecologist Adam Rosenblatt. In the interview, they discuss Julia’s new novel Cascad...
Working Overtime: Collaborating Through Conflict
18 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
For this week’s episode of Working Overtime, hosts Ronald Young Jr. and Isaac Butler examine a listener’s question about tackling the stickiest as...
A Clarinetist Finds His Flow State
14 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Isaac Butler talks to Anthony McGill, principal clarinetist for the New York Philharmonic. In the interview, Anthony describes his wee...
How to Be Both a Critic and a Creator
07 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Ronald Young Jr. talks to Linda Holmes, host of NPR’s Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast and author of two novels: Evvie Drake Starts Ov...
Working Overtime: Creator Mode vs. Editor Mode
04 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
For this week’s episode of Working Overtime, hosts Ronald Young Jr. and Isaac Butler take on listener Bob’s question about how to shift your brain...
How a Magician Designs Original, Mind-Blowing Tricks
31 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, guest-host Kristen Meinzer talks to Joshua Jay, a world-class magician, storyteller, and author of multiple books about the history and cra...
How to Curate a Small Town Art Museum
24 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host June Thomas talks to Courtney Gilbert, curator of the Sun Valley Museum of Art in Ketchum, Idaho. In the interview, Courtney digs into...
Working Overtime: Finding Your Why
21 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
For this week’s episode of Working Overtime, the hosts Ronald Young Jr. and June Thomas, take out their microscopes and examine what gives them purp...
From Corporate Job to Broadway Playwright
17 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Ronald Young Jr. talks to Bekah Brunstetter, a TV writer and playwright whose most recent project is the new Broadway musical version ...
An Acting Coach’s Tips for Beginners and Experts
10 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Isaac Butler talks to Howard Fine, an acting teacher and coach who instructs both beginners and accomplished movie stars. In the inter...
Working Overtime: Getting Paid On Time
07 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
For this week’s episode of Working Overtime, the hosts Ronald Young Jr. and June Thomas talk money, finances, and getting paid as a freelancer in a ...
How to Make a “Fair” Crossword Puzzle
03 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host June Thomas talks to Anna Shechtman, a crossword puzzle creator whose new book is called The Riddles of the Sphinx: Inheriting the Fem...
How TV Host Carla Hall Stays Authentic On-Camera
25 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Ronald Young Jr. talks to chef and TV personality Carla Hall. In the interview, Carla talks about leaving her first career as an accou...
Working Overtime: Asking for Expert Advice
22 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
For this week’s episode of Working Overtime, the hosts June Thomas and Isaac Butler dissect The Yang Slinger author Jeff Pearlman’s recent prickly...
How to Write Every Day and Stick to It
18 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Isaac Butler talks to writer Amitava Kumar, whose latest novel is My Beloved Life. In the interview, Amitava discusses his habit of wr...
A Biography With Very High Stakes
11 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host June Thomas talks to writer Adam Sisman about his two biographies of the late spy novelist John le Carré. In the interview, Adam disc...
Working Overtime: Managing New Hires Better
08 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
For this week’s episode of Working Overtime, the hosts June Thomas and Isaac Butler respond to some recent listener mail. The first message is from ...
Malcolm X’s Story, Told Through Opera
04 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Isaac Butler talks to Anthony Davis, a Pulitzer Prize winning opera composer whose work includes the 1986 opera X: The Life and Times ...
How Children’s Book Ideas Begin
28 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host June Thomas talks to children’s book author and illustrator Mika Song, whose work includes the Norma and Belly series about two squi...
Working Overtime: Breaking Stubborn Habits
25 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
For this week’s episode of Working Overtime, hosts June Thomas and Isaac Butler examine their most habitual work routines and think of new ways to i...
The Sounds That Make a Movie
21 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Isaac Butler talks to the very in-demand sound designer Johnnie Burn, who has worked on multiple great and sonically rich films like N...
How to Portray a Hollywood Legend
14 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host June Thomas talks to Jason Isaacs, an actor known for roles like Lucien Malfoy in the Harry Potter film series and Georgy Zhukov in Th...
Working Overtime: Harnessing All Five Senses
11 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
For this week’s episode of Working Overtime, hosts June Thomas and Isaac Butler expand their world by exploring the senses we often neglect. Isaac r...
Drawing Strangers to Build Empathy
07 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, guest-host Ronald Young Jr. talks to Wendy MacNaughton, an artist whose work can be found in many places, including the bestselling cookboo...
Our New Year's Resolutions for 2024
31 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, working hosts June Thomas and Isaac Butler share their goals for the year ahead and devise strategies to help each other accomplish them. T...
Working Overtime: Lightening Your Workload
28 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
For this week’s episode of Working Overtime, hosts June Thomas and Isaac Butler discuss the value of finding people who can help take work off your ...
Encore: The Flawless Indie Pop of The Beths
24 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, we revisit host Isaac Butler's conversation with Liz Stokes and Jon Pearce, who make up half of the New Zealand indie rock band The Beths. ...
How An Artist Navigates the Health-Care System
17 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Isaac Butler is joined by actor, writer, director Erik Jensen for a frank conversation about his recent cancer diagnosis and the chall...
How An Artist Navigates the Health-Care System
17 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Isaac Butler is joined by actor, writer, director Erik Jensen for a frank conversation about his recent cancer diagnosis and the chall...
Working Overtime: Be Good to Your Body
14 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
For this week’s episode of Working Overtime, hosts June Thomas and Isaac Butler discuss the need to keep good health as a creative person. Both June...
Where a Crime Writer’s Ideas Come From
10 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host June Thomas talks to Val McDermid, a prolific crime novelist whose books have sold millions of copies worldwide. Val has even been dub...
How Typography Can Tell Stories
03 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, guest-host Keisha “TK” Dutes talks to graphic designer, writer, and educator Gail Anderson, who specializes in the art of typography. I...
Working Overtime: The Benefits of "Anchor Jobs"
30 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
For this week’s episode of Working Overtime, hosts Nate Chinen and Isaac Butler are joined by Jaime Green, author of The Possibility of Life, for a ...
Reality TV That Helps People Feel Seen
26 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host June Thomas talks to casting director and producer Logan Clark, whose credits include reality TV series like American Idol, The Masked...
A Nicolas Cage Social Satire For the Books
19 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Isaac Butler talks to Kristoffer Borgli, the writer and director (and editor!) behind the new movie Dream Scenario, starring Nicolas C...
Working Overtime: Escape Your Creative Comfort Zone
16 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
For this week’s episode of Working Overtime, hosts Nate Chinen and Isaac Butler explore the refractive nature of switching mediums. Like a light thr...
Home Staging With a Pop of Color
12 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, guest-host Kristen Meinzer talks to Nikki Watson, a home staging expert who founded The Design Quad, one of the biggest home staging compan...
A Choreographer's Systems for Creativity
05 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Isaac Butler talks to Raja Feather Kelly, a choreographer and director who works both on Broadway and with his dance-theatre-media com...
Working Overtime: Freelance Work's Boom and Bust Cycle
02 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
For this week’s episode of Working Overtime, a listener grapples with the complicated problem of having too much success as a freelancer. Balancing ...
Writing Bestsellers With Anderson Cooper
29 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host June Thomas talks to Katherine Howe, a writer of both historical fiction and nonfiction books. In the interview, Katherine starts by d...
Obituaries That Tell the Truth
22 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, guest-host Kristen Meinzer talks to Margalit Fox, a longtime writer of obituaries for the New York Times and now a full-time writer of nonf...
Working Overtime: Finding the Confidence to Create
19 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
For this week’s episode of Working Overtime, hosts Isaac Butler and June Thomas discuss confidence and what it took for them to feel self-assured in...
Shakespeare Acting at Its Best
15 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Isaac Butler talks to Patrick Page, a broadway performer whose current one-man show All the Devils Are Here digs into the complex psyc...
A New Kind of Cozy British Mystery
08 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host June Thomas talks to Suk Pannu, creator and writer of Mrs. Sidhu Investigates, a British radio drama that became a TV series that’s ...
Working Overtime: How to Absorb Art More Deeply
05 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
For this week’s episode of Working Overtime, hosts Nate Chinen and June Thomas spotlight an idea from Rick Rubin’s latest book, The Creative Act: ...
A Crime Novel That Reinvents the Crime Novel
01 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, Isaac talks to author and returning guest Jonathan Lethem! In the interview, Jonathan discusses his brand new book, Brooklyn Crime Novel, w...
Meet an Artist Who Writes Comics About Jazz
24 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Nate Chinen talks with Dave Chisholm, a jazz trumpeter who writes graphic novels about jazz musicians. His previous publications inclu...
Working Overtime: Creating Like a Child
21 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
For this week’s episode of Working Overtime, hosts Nate Chinen and June Thomas press pause on adulthood and explore the creative spirit of childhood...
How a Professional Pen Expert Makes a Living
17 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host June Thomas talks to writer and podcaster Brad Dowdy, who makes his living as a pen and stationary enthusiast. In the interview, Brad ...
What an Executive Producer for Film and TV Actually Does
10 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
NOTE: This interview was recorded before the SAG-AFTRA strike. This week, host Isaac Butler talks to Marian Macgowan, a long-time film and TV produce...
Working Overtime: Learning From Bad Art
07 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
For this week’s episode of Working Overtime, hosts June Thomas and Isaac Butler acknowledge the painful fact that most art is in fact pretty bad. Ye...
How Harry Styles’ Trombonist Deals With Gigantic Crowds
03 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, guest-host Nate Chinen talks to Kalia Vandever, a trombonist and bandleader who recently performed alongside Harry Styles in the U.S. and E...
How an Author and a Translator Collaborate
27 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host June Thomas is joined by Latin American writer Carlos Fonseca, the author of multiple critically acclaimed novels, as well as the much...
Working Overtime: Why Artists Should Attend Festivals
24 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
For this week’s episode of Working Overtime, hosts June Thomas and Isaac Butler reflect on their times at different arts festivals. Being around lik...
A Novelist on Genre Blending and Sucking Blood
20 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
For this week’s episode of Working, host Isaac Butler interviews author Daniel Hornsby on his new novel Sucker and his creative process. The author ...
The New Hamilton Actor Makes the Role His Own
13 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, guest-host Nate Chinen talks to Miguel Cervantes, the actor currently playing Alexander Hamilton on Broadway. In the interview, Miguel expl...
Working Overtime: Vacation Like a Pro
10 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
For this week’s episode of Working Overtime, hosts June Thomas and Isaac Butler dive into all the ways creatives should relax and vacation. Whether ...
A Radical Comic Strip, Reimagined for Audio
06 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host June Thomas talks to writer Madeleine George, who recently adapted the classic Alison Bechdel comic Dykes to Watch Out For into an aud...
A Succession Actor on Playing Unlikeable Characters
30 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host Isaac Butler talks to actor Arian Moayed, who played Stewy on the hit HBO series Succession and more recently played Torvald Helmer in...
Working Overtime: The Life of Creative Work After Death
27 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
For this week’s episode of Working Overtime, hosts June Thomas and Isaac Butler are joined by Lincoln Michel author of The Body Scout, for a deep di...
A Grammy-Winning Jazz Composer Trusts Her Enthusiasm
23 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, guest-host Nate Chinen talks to Maria Schneider, winner of multiple Grammy Awards for her big band jazz compositions, including the song “...
A TV Critic Pivots to Exposing Hollywood Abuses
16 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, host June Thomas talks to journalist Maureen Ryan, author of the book Burn It Down: Power, Complicity, and a Call for Change in Hollywood. ...