How Starting a Podcast Saved My Writing Life

By Eva Langston

A few years after my MFA graduation, a few of my former classmates got book deals. I was excited for them (of course I was!), but I was also filled with fear and shame. I felt like I was falling behind.  My god, I thought, why had I not yet published a book? 

I’d already written a few drawer novels, but now I buckled down and produced something decent enough to get an agent, although he and I ended up parting ways a year later. 

After that came many, many years of writing manuscripts, querying them, and getting rejected. In 2022, with my ninth manuscript, I signed with my second agent and thought, okay, this is it. Finally, I’d have a published book to my name. But when the novel went out on submission, it was rejected by every editor who received it. 

I’d been writing and revising a new novel, so we went on submission with that. When, a year later, that second novel died on submission, a little piece of me died, too. 

I spent a week lying on the floor during what was usually my writing time, staring at the ceiling. I was yet again filled with fear and shame, and I struggled to find the motivation to write something new. Give another year or two of my life and another chunk of my soul to write yet another novel that wouldn’t sell? 

Since trying to write was making me anxious, I shifted focus to something I’d been wanting to do for a long time: starting my own podcast. This was a creative project I could release into the world whenever and however I liked. Having that sense of control felt good and necessary. 

And so I recorded interviews, figured out how to audio-edit, and launched my podcast: The Long Road to Publishing with Eva Langston. I won’t use the term “overnight success,” but quickly I was getting over a thousand listens per month, and it wasn’t long before the show was named “One of the Best Podcasts About the Publishing Business” by Aspiring Author.

On The Long Road to Publishing I chat with authors who have spent years in the query trenches, weathered hundreds of rejections, pivoted to different genres or modes of publishing, and experienced setbacks I didn’t even know were possible. And many of my guests have had at least one manuscript go on submission and not sell.

So often, when we see a book in the bookstore, or an author on Instagram unboxing their hardcovers, that’s only the tip of the iceberg. Underneath, most books contain a hidden story of detours, frustrations, and years of toil. And that’s the part I bring to light on my show. 

For example, Lindsey Goldstein had communication issues with her agent that led to their eventual breakup. Rebecca Thorne and Vanessa Riley spent years pursuing traditional publishing before finding success with self-publishing (which then made the Big 5 come knocking at their doors!). After parting ways with her agent, Robyn Ryle decided to write the stories she wanted to write, even though she thought no one would want them… She ended up publishing her story collection with a brand-new small press and receiving a starred Kirkus review. And Darien Gee and Wendy Tokunaga discuss getting dropped by their agents after their books didn’t perform well and starting new and exciting chapters in their writing careers.  

And, of course, I have to highlight bestselling author Evelyn Skye. Like me, she spent years getting rejected in the query trenches. Like me, she finally signed with an agent only to spend more years getting rejected by editors. When her third book died on submission, she felt like giving up, but her writer friends encouraged her to keep going. Evelyn’s next manuscript ended up being her debut novel and a New York Times bestseller. In 2025, she published her tenth novel. 

Recently, my third novel died on submission, but I didn’t fall into a pit of despair this time. Because this time I have The Long Road to Publishing. I can commiserate with the author friends I’ve made through the podcast and feel supported by the writing community I’m actively building. I’m so proud of what I’ve created: a show that provides a real service to writers. I also keep thinking what a wild, detour-filled saga I’ll have for my listeners once I finally get a book deal. (Not that I think getting a book deal is the happily-ever-after ending. As many of my guests have taught me, the road to publishing doesn’t get any less bumpy after you publish your first book.) 

I’ve also learned that making art, music, crafts, or other creative projects can often help with your writing. Creating The Long Road to Publishing was exactly what I needed to get back into a writing groove. Having the podcast as a simultaneous project has helped me loosen my expectations for the outcome of my novels so I can find joy in the writing process itself. It’s also provided an answer to the question of why I don’t yet have a published book: because this is an incredibly difficult and unpredictable industry! 

Funny that a show about how hard it is to write and publish can be so encouraging and empowering, but it is, both for me and for my listeners. Funny, too, is this: I’m fifteen years out from my MFA program, and I still don’t have a published book, but I’ve never been happier with my writing life.

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Eva Langston received her MFA from the University of New Orleans and is represented by Ali Lake of O’Connor Literary. She is a writing instructor and the creator/host of the podcast The Long Road to Publishing, which was recently named one of the best podcasts about the writing business. Eva lives in Maryland with her husband and two children, and her writing resources newsletter on Substack has over 7,000 followers. 

https://www.instagram.com/evalangston/

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https://evalangston.substack.com

Tags: featured, women writers

Category: How To and Tips