Writer's Routine

Nicola Gill's debut novel is 'The Neighbours'. It tells the story of Ginny and Cassie, two unlikely friends who are thrown together when they both reach rock-bottom. It's a funny story of friendship, love and adventure. We talk about how Nicola got that first idea, how she crafted her day to make sure she got it down properly, and why she got to work incredibly early to make that happen.Also, we chat about what her day-job taught her about writing, in creativity and efficiency. We talk about genre, how much she thinks about the voice she writes in, and whether she could switch genre and keep her passion for story-telling.If you fancy, please do support us at patreon.com/writersroutine, and drop us a review on Apple Podcasts!@writerspodwritersroutine.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Neil Lancaster has published 2 'Tom Novak' books. His most recent is 'Going Rogue', which sees Tom up against a wave of far-right terrorism.Neil has an advantage in writing crime thrillers - he was in the Army, then worked in the Met Police for 25 years. We talk about how he took all the knowledge from his career, and made them into thrilling, page-turning stories, that are accurate... but also allow for the fantasy of fiction. We also chat about the stuff every book and TV show gets wrong about the police-force, and the hill that he's willing to die on in that respect.We also chat about how he structures his day, why he's fine having to crack out the words but tries not to over-write, and we learn about the advice he got that helped his first novel get published.If you enjoy the show, please do support us on patreon.com/writersroutine, and leave a review on Apple Podcasts.@writerspodwritersroutine.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Lorna Cook's new novel is 'The Forbidden Promise'. It's a dual-narrative, set in two timelines. In 1940, Constance finds a crashed Spitfire in the Scottish Highlands and must keep the pilot safe, against her families wishes. In 2020, Kate arrives in a Scottish B&B, and discovers a house with a dark history that has some connection to Constance.We talk about why she writes dual-narrative, and why it's taken her a while to learn the tricks of writing it. Also, we chat about why she loves the edit, and how water-tight her writing day has to be in a house full of chaotic kids.If you can, please do support the show over at patreon.com/writersroutine.@writerspodwritersroutine.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Russ Thomas has just published his debut, 'Firewatching'. It's a police procedural. It stars DS Adam Tyler, on the hunt for a serial arsonist around Sheffield. It grew from a short-story Russ had been writing over 20 years, changing and turning along the way. We talk about the key moments in that process, what advice he was given from teachers, and how different characters would suddenly snap the story to life, and take it in a different direction.We chat about his time working in a bookshop, learning the secrets about what stories sold better than others, and why they did. We also talk about his love for the city of Sheffield, and why he wanted to give something back to it by writing the story.Remember, you can get 20% off Scrivener, by using the code ROUTINE at literatureandlatte.com.Also, please do support us at patreon.com/writersroutine.@writerspodwritersroutine.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Lucienne Boyce is a jack of all writing trades. She's published non-fiction, historical fiction, and is mid-way through writing a biography. She's just published the 3rd 'Dan Foster Mystery Book', called 'Death Makes No Distinction', a novel set in 18th century London all about the Bow Street Runners. We talk about why she loves writing in the past, how she makes it authentic, and how thoroughly she plots a story before she'll tell it.We also talk about the non-fiction books she writes, mostly on the history of Bristol, the city she loves and lives in, and the suffragette movement. She's in the middle of writing a biography, and we chat about the process, planning and research involved in that - why does she spend so much time investigating someone else's life?She gives us some fantastic book recommendations too - The Artists Way by Julia Cameron, Writing Historical Fiction by Emma Darwin, and Story by Robert McGhee.Remember to make the most of our Scrivener offer, and use the code ROUTINE to get 20% off the brilliant writing software at literatureandlatte.com.@writerspodwritersroutine.compatreon.com/writersroutine Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nell Pattison's debut thriller is 'The Silent House', which tells the story of a crime happening in a full house, and no-one has a clue how. It stars Paige Northwood, as a British Sign Language interpreter called in to help the police. Nell herself is a BSL interpreter - they say write what you know - and we talk about how she had the initial story idea, why it took a while to brew in her mind, and how it's inspired by real life.We also chat about the novels she's finished but never published, why a switch of genre helped that to finally happen and how getting editorial feedback was such a relief to her. Also, as Nell is a teacher we talk about how that affects the way she tells stories, and how she's learning to fix her niggles in earlier drafts.Remember, you can get 20% off the fantastic writing software 'Scrivener' by using the code ROUTINE when you checkout at literatureandlatte.com.And, please do support us at patreon.com/writersroutine if you can!@writerspodwritersroutine.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sam Lloyd has written sci-fi and fantasy before, but when he got the idea for 'The Memory Wood' he knew it had to be a thriller. It tells the story of Elissa, who is kidnapped from school and locked away in the woods, and Elijah who finds her, but won't tell a soul. It's a blend of two ideas - one he had while killing time at his son's school, the other was of Elijah... a character that wouldn't go away, and whose story he had to tell.We talk about how much he plans every day, why he has such a tight timeframe to work in, and how he's trying to improve his productivity.Also, we hear about new book releases for Nikki Smith's 'All In Her Head', and Trevor Wood's 'The Man on the Street'.AND you can get 20% off Scrivener, by using the code ROUTINE when you checkout at literatureandlatte.com.patreon.com/writersroutine@writerspodwritersroutine.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Eleni Kyriacou is a journalist and editor, and has worked on stories for national newspapers and magazines. Her debut novel 'She Came to Stay' tells the story of Dina who leaves Cyprus for London in search of a better life. They're taken around by Bebba, a strange character with a secret past, and is absorbed by grimy 1950's Soho. It's a murder-mystery with an edge.She was selected as part of the 'Future Bookshelf' open submissions programme which helps find unpublished authors from under-represented backgrounds.We talk about why her main character changed half-way through, and what she aims to do each time she finishes a chapter. We hear how much she knows about her story, what she wants to do the next day, and why index cards are an important part of that. Also, we talk about how she plans a day, a week and even a years worth of writing.Also, I mention Hannah Vincent's new book 'She-Clown and Other Stories', and why it's publication has been affected by the current crisis. She's made a fantastic video about her writing process, check it out here - https://twitter.com/hannahvincent22?lang=enIf you can, please do support the show at patreon.com/writersroutine.@writerspodwritersroutine.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Louise Hare's debut novel, 'This Lovely City', tells the story of Lawrie Matthews. A jazz musician fresh of the Empire Windrush, takes rooms in a tiny South London house, and immediately discovers a tragedy which threatens to tear the city apart.We talk about why this idea grew from a short-story, which she couldn't quite put down, also why she took on a Masters in Creative Writing, and what was special about this story that got her published, when some books before had failed.Also, Louise recently made the semi-leap to writing full-time, and we talk about how that's affected her working day, and how much she hopes to get done.I know we're in uncertain times, but if you can afford to help us out on Patreon, we'd really appreciate that right now - patreon.com/writersroutine.@writerspodwritersroutine.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rory Clements has just released the 4th book in his 'Tom Wilde' series. It's a historical mystery called 'Hitler's Secret', in which Tom is enlisted to carry a valuable document out of Germany. If it is uncovered, it threatens to destabilise the Nazi party - and Tom must decide whether it's his duty to find out more. He's also written the 'John Shakespeare' stories too - more historical fiction set further back in time.We talk about how he accurately writes about life in World War 2, and what responsibility he has to be truthful to the way people really were back then. Also, we chat about why he's slowly trained himself to work at night, and how much tennis and escaping to the country affects the way he tells stories.We chat about his writing day, how much he knows about the story before he sits down to write, and what being a journalist taught him about keeping the readers onside.If you've enjoyed the show, please do review us on Apple Podcasts, pledge whatever you can over at patreon.com/writersroutine, and follow us on Twitter.@writerspodwritersroutine.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.