Writer's Routine

Mark Ellis started work as a lawyer, then ran his own business, and is now 5 books into his own crime series. It's all about Detective Frank Merlin, who investigates crimes during World War 2, a time in which committing crimes was relatively easy. His new book is 'Dead in the Water', which looks at how a mangled body found in the Thames and a missing piece of art are connected. We talk about how much he plans long-term for his characters, why he overwrites his first draft and how he goes about cutting it down. You can hear how he gets ideas for Frank's adventures, and why sometimes it's easier to let the characters take care of things themselves.You can support the show at patreon.com/writersroutine@writerspodwritersroutine.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jessica Payne had 3 failed attempts at getting published. It took a genre switch to finally get her book out there and on the shelves. Her debut is 'Make Me Disappear', about a woman so desperate to escape her sociopathic boyfriend, she's prepared to go to extreme lengths to get away.We talk about why she was so determined to get published, also how she balances a hectic work-life where her husband works 90 hour weeks, while she looks after her toddler and manages to write novels. You can hear how she got to know her characters, and how she keeps her creative time sacred.Jessica also hosts the #MomsWritersClub on Twitter, with lots of excellent writing and publication advice.You can support the show at patreon.com/writersroutine@writerspodwritersroutine.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Scott Kershaw has had an interesting route to being published. Leaving school with few qualifications, he signed up as a mature student in college. Whilst there, his work was spotted by the Head of Writing at Hull University, and despite having no A Levels or even filling in a UCAS application, he was offered a place and graduated with a First Class Degree in Creative Writing.It's all led to his debut, 'The Game'. It follows five strangers from across the globe who receive a warning that their most loved person is in danger, and the only way to save them is to play... the game. We discuss how he worked on the idea with his agent, also how he's managed to write in between renovating a house, and how music changes his writing mood.PLUS, you can hear the first full chapter of 'The Game' audiobook at the end of the show.Support us at patreon.com/writersroutine@writerspodwritersroutine.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dervla McTiernan was an Irish lawyer for 12 years. After the global financial crash, she moved to Australia and became a crime-writer. After a short-story was nominated for a prestigious prize, her debut 'The Ruin' achieved great success, and she's become a runaway bestseller.Her new novel, 'The Murder Rule', looks at The Innocence Project, which looks to exonerate wrongly convicted criminals. Only this book turns it on its head when a woman doesn't want to save a man on death row... but bury him.We talk about her extremely thoroughly planned writing days, how she's always looking to grow and change as a writer. You can hear how new editing tricks, how she gets to know her characters, and exactly how hard it is to take on a novel.You can support the show at patreon.com/writersroutine.@writerspodwritersroutine.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Joanna Cannon's debut novel, 'The Trouble with Goats and Sheep' was an instant hit and became a Sunday Times Bestseller. She wrote it in very early mornings and in her lunch break, working in her car in an NHS car park, in between shifts as a Doctor. Becoming a writer is the third act of a busy life, Joanna left school at fifteen, worked as a barmaid, kennel maid and pizza delivery girl before qualifying as a Doctor in her forties. Now, she's a full-time author. Her new book, 'A Tidy Ending', about Linda, Strange Terry and Rebecca who used to live in the house before them. It's a character driven story, and Joanna loves learning about these characters as she goes. Jo knows the last line of a story when she starts and very little else.We talk about her ludicrously early starts, why she hands in an almost perfect draft, why theme is the most important thing, and how procrastinating is sometimes more important than actual writing.You can support the show at patreon.com/writersroutine@writerspodwritersroutine.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Gracie Hart is a saga novelist, her stories focus on a family's troubles through history. She loves writing of the late-Victorian era, and immerses herself in the place and time that she's looking at.Her new novel, out in paperback, is 'The Baker's Girl'. It tells the story of Meg who needs to keep her family together. Her mum is ill, her sister in school, and she is the breadwinner... and indeed, the breadmaker. She finds a job with Ted Lund in the local bakery, and in the face of his mismanagement and mistreatment, has to turn the failing business, and her family around.We talk about what writing saga fiction means to her, also what her fans expect from a Gracie Hart story. You can hear how the idea came from her own family's business and an idea off the telly, and why her first drafts need to be near on perfect.You can support the show at patreon.com/writersroutine@writerspodwritersroutine.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Laure Van Rensburg has been highly acclaimed with short stories, been published in magazines, and her debut, 'Nothing But Us', is out now.It tells the story of Steven and Ellie, a professor and a student, on a romantic getaway to an isolated New York cabin. It's meant to be the perfect getaway, but he's not who he says he is... and neither is she. We talk about why she's set it in a part of America she's never been to, confounding most debut practice by writing what she doesn't know. Also you can hear how Laure writes around her full-time job, how she's learned to be a plotter and why spreadsheets have really helped with that.You can support the show on patreon.com/writersroutine.@writerspodwritersoutine.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sara Blaedel is Denmark's 'Queen of Crime'. 3 million copies have been sold in Denmark alone. The country has under 6 million people living in it. She's published 25 books, and is best known for her Detective Louise Rick stories. The new one is 'A Harmless Lie', in which Louise has to rush back from holiday in Thailand, after a panicked phone call from her father. Her brother has attempted suicide, and everything is entangled in his estranged wife, and a girl who went missing a decade before.We discuss her organised and thorough work-day, also how much she thinks about an international audience when she writes in Danish, and why she returns to write about murders for a living, which can be hugely emotionally draining.You can support the show at patreon.com/writersroutine.@writerspodwritersroutine.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Philippa East's debut, 'Little White Lies', was nominated for a CWA New Blood Dagger Award in 2020, one of the highest prizes in crime fiction. She works as a clinical psychologist, using inspiration from her work to write thrillers. Her new one, 'Safe and Sound', was inspired by a documentary she saw. It tells the story of Sarah Jones - pretty, charismatic, and full of life, who is found dead in her home. The strange thing is... she's been lying there for 10 months. We talk about what she did after having the first idea, how did she turn a true story from a documentary into her own novel, also how the names in the novel really matter, and how she finally knew the novel was done. Philippa is big into learning the craft. She vociferously reads writing books, talks to other authors and listens to this show. We chat about how consciously she makes the improvements that she learns about along the way.You can support the show at patreon.com/writersroutine@writerspodwritersroutine.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Danny Wallace is an ideas-man and a doer. He's started his own kindness cult, tracked down all his long-lost friends, and spent a whole year saying yes to everything. Danny has published adult books, kids books, and has a new one out, 'The Luckiest Kid in the World'.It's all about a boy who is determined to be the most average child ever, and that very fact makes him extremely unusual. We talk about the having the idea and what he needs to know before he starts writing, also where he sometimes escapes to write and how he explored the pandemic for kids. You can hear how having children has affected his writers routine, where he writes now, and why he needs the radio on to tell stories.He runs a website called Assembly, and a podcast called Manatomy, which is a place for modern men. Also, hosts a weekly show on Radio X, and we discuss how he decides where ideas go. Are they a work of fiction, non-fiction, a podcast idea, or something to talk about on his radio show?You can read more about Danny here - https://dannywallace.com/Please do support the show at patreon.com/writersroutine.@writerspodwritersroutine.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.