Writer's Routine

Sally Page's debut is 'The Keeper of Stories'. It's been extremely successful, tapping into book clubs across the country. It's about Janice, who is used to hearing other people's stories, until the elusive, mysterious Mrs B wants her to tell her own.Sally has done a lot, worked in a flower shop, started a fountain pen business, and hopes that a successful debut will let her write full-time forever. We talk about how prepared she is to write in this genre for a while, and how old manuscripts have her well prepared for the future. Also, why being signed and published means she's no longer doing it alone.You can hear why she's been surprised by the support of twitter, how she deals with crying while writing on trains, why she becomes obsessive over writing, and why she started research a year before actually writing.This week we are supported by Plottr. Get 10% off the software at go.plottr.com/routine.You can support the show on patreon.com/writersroutine@writerspodwritersroutine.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ava Glass has worked with spies and understands the mechanics of their job. She has taken all that experience and written 'The Chase'. It's the first in the 'Alias Emma' series, and tells the story of a brand new spy, tasked with transporting a wanted Russian target across London in less than a day. The book has already been Amazon's Book of the Month, and is optioned for TV.We talk about how the logistics of travelling quickly through a big city without being noticed became much clearer as she wrote. You can hear why a switch in timeframe saved the book for her, and why even though she wanted to treat it like a regular job, she had to mix things up.You can heard how she got to know her character through flashbacks, why she plotted it very tightly for adrenaline, and how the idea all came on a frantic plane-ride.Save 10% on writing software Plottr! Click here - go.plottr.com/routineSupport the show at patreon.com/writersroutine@writerspodwritersroutine.co Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, we chat to multi-million New York Times and Sunday Times bestseller, Gregg Hurwitz. He's written many screenplays, comic books, took charge of Batman, and is known for the 'Orphan X' series. The newest one, 'The Last Orphan', sees Evan Smoak, the Nowhere Man, on one last mission after he was taken from a group home as an orphan and trained as an assassin.We discuss how he made a plan at the start of his career, in order to make writing a regular job so it could last as long as possible. Also, you can hear how he's managed to get back to a state of pure writing, without any of the distractions that surround success. We chat about how even though he's written and published many books, he still gets stuck in the baggy middle like everyone else. Gregg runs through his extensive research, which has seen him jump from planes, train with Navy SEALS, and go under cover in mind control cults.Support the show at patreon.com/writersroutine@writerspodwritersroutine.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Georgina Moore has worked in PR and publishing throughout her career. She understands how books are sold, where they are place and what makes them commercial. She has just published her first novel, 'The Garnett Girls'. It tells the story of Rachel, Imogen and Sasha, struggling to escape their alienated family. It's set across the wild beaches of the Isle of Wight and the glamour of luxurious London. It asks whether children can ever escape the mistakes of their family.We discuss how to make sisters as characters that are similar, but also different and unique. You can hear how tough it is to realise some characters aren't as fully developed as others - how much do you need to change things and alter your plot to flesh them out more.We chat about her busy life in PR and how well that has set her up for a career as an author, and how she balances a social life with waking up early to write. She also reveals some embarrassment about what she has asked writers to do for publicity in the past, and why now she's an author herself, she's realised how much more pressure she must have placed on their time.Send over the best book you have read this year! Suggestions to writersroutine.com please.You can support the show at patreon.com/writersroutine@writerspodwritersroutine.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Tom Hindle published his successful debut, 'A Fatal Crossing', in 2022. It drew comparisons to Agatha Christie and propelled him to the list of mystery writers to watch. He's back with a second whodunnit, 'The Murder Game'. It tells the story of nine guests trapped in one house, when a murder mystery night goes wrong. We talk about how his writing life has changed since he packed in the full time job, and how he switches between writing for work and for pleasure. You can hear how he tries to be a plotter... but always ends up pantsing, what it was like meeting a major childhood hero, and how he solved the problem of getting two people in the same room at the same time.Thanks for sending over the best books you've read this year to writersroutine@gmail.com. This week's picks were:'Before You Knew My Name' by Jacqueline Bublitz, 'The Art of the Gathering' by Priya Parker, 'The Mandrake Company' series by Ruby Lionsdrake, and 'Garden of Lamentations' by Deborah Crombie. Thanks to Andrea, Kate and Cynthia for sending those over.You can support the show at patreon.com/writersroutine@writerspodwritersroutine.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Alison Stockham's new book is 'The Cuckoo Sister'. It tells the story of Maggie, who has a seemingly perfect life, only... she's cracking under the strain of it all. One day, when Maggie walks out on everything, her sister Rose is all too willing to step into her life.We talk about why she's half and half between planning and pantsing, also how she overcomes the doubt of good it is, and why every book is brilliant and awful at the same time.Alison works for the Cambridge Literary Festival, and has worked in documentaries for the BBC and Channel 4, and we discuss how much this experience set her up for writing novels. You can hear why reading aloud to her kids helped her understand pacing and structure, also what questions she asks herself to begin, and what to do when the computer screen stares back at you.We also run through your best books of the year so far.@writerspodwritersroutine.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hugh Montgomery is a someone who, if he wasn't so darned lovely, you'd probably have to envy quite a lot. He's a practicing clinician, a UK lead on climate change, he's written screen-plays, runs ultramarathons, learns a new skill a year, holds a world-record, and is now releasing his first full-novel.It's called 'Control' - a thriller set in the medical-world (write what you know) all about a bullying, over-bearing Doctor, and the way he treats colleagues, which comes back to haunt him. We talk about brooding over the idea for the story, escaping to France to write it, and where he thinks the story actually came from.As he manages to fit in so much into his day, we talk about where he finds the time and why he rations sleep. Also, we talk about why he learns a new skill every year, and how he believes it to be crucial to make time stop flying by.Also - you can hear a distinguished routine from history with Mason Currey, and grab his new book 'Daily Rituals: Women at Work' here - https://masoncurrey.com/If you can, please do support the show! - patreon.com/writersroutine@writerspodwritersroutine.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Eleanor Shearer's debut is the acclaimed, 'River Sing Me Home'. It follows Rachel, a slave set free in 1834, and now searching the Caribbean to find her children, stolen from her and sold to other plantations.We talk about why her ancestors look over her writing, also about the exhibition she attended which reminded her of the stories that she'd wanted to write about, and how post-memory affected her storytelling.You can hear why plotting for her is a very emotional thing, also why she likes to be surprised by structure, and how parking downhill is extremely helpful.Share the best book you've read so far this year! Let's start a (small-scale) book club, or more of a story sharing place at writersroutine.comYou can support the show at patreon.com/writersroutine@writerspodwriterspod.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Cailean Steed began writing short stories and audio dramas. She won the 2020 Pen to Print Audio Play Award, and decided to go back to school to learn how to tackle a full novel. They ended up taking an idea that had been brewing for years, moving it from a grand teenage story of assassins and conspiracy, and turning it into a thrilling tale of sisterly love. Their novel, 'Home', tells the story of Zoe, trying to rescue her sister from a cult they grew up in, and she managed to escape from.We talk about why Cailean had to swap their entire story around and how that affected each chapter. Also, how they get by dedicating just one day a week to writing. You can hear why Cailean is extremely interested in the way other people see the world, and how much they plotted two timelines, with the same characters, both written in the first person.You can support the show at patreon.com/writersroutine.@writerspodwritersroutine.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rosie Andrews' debut novel, 'The Leviathan' was first published last year to much acclaim. It has just come out in paperback. It tells the story of Thomas Treadwater, a soldier who holds a very deep, dark secret that is about to be let loose. It's set in 1643, and is a beguiling tale of murder, myth and mystery. It combines two of Rosie's loves: history and fantastical fiction.We talk about building her own writing space, but how really all she needs to work is alone time and quiet. You can hear how her process is constantly evolving - she's aware of where she's come from, and where she needs to be. You can hear how the only inspiration she needs is to get out of the house, and how he writing routine needs to be flexible but she has little trouble getting the words out when she needs to.You can support the show at patreon.com/writersroutine@writerspodwritersroutine.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.