Page One - The Writer's Podcast

As well as being a successful novelist, Imran Mahmood is a practising barrister with over 30 years' court experience. His first book, You Don't Know Me, was chosen by Simon Mayo as a BBC Radio 2 Book Club Choice for 2017 and longlisted for Theakston Crime Novel of the Year and for the CWA Gold Dagger award. It's currently being adapted for TV. His latest book, I Know What I Saw, is just out.We loved chatting with Imran about how he got into writing and how his day job as a criminal barrister helps shape his stories. We also stand back in awe as he tells us how he balances that day job, the writing, TV work and having a young family (while also reading about 5 books at once)!Links:Buy I Know What I Saw and Imran's other books hereFollow Imran on TwitterThe Page One Podcast is brought to you by Write Gear, creators of Page One - the Writer's Notebook. Learn more and order yours now: https://www.writegear.co.uk/page-oneFollow us on Twitter: @write_gearFollow us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/WriteGearUK/Follow us on Instagram: write_gear_uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Philip Gwynne Jones spent twenty years in the IT industry before realising he was congenitally unsuited to it, and now works as a writer, teacher and translator. He lives in Venice with his wife Caroline. His first novel, “The Venetian Game”, was a Waterstones Thriller of the Month and a Times Top 5 bestseller. “The Venetian Legacy”, the fifth in the Nathan Sutherland series, was published in April 2021.We loved chatting with Philip and hearing about how he accidentally became a bestselling author. We hear about how he manages to make Venice almost a character in its own right in his novels, and learn how his protagonist, Nathan Sutherland came about. We also chat about whether he is a planner or pantser, and ask whether he would ever write a novel set outside Venice.Links:Buy The Venetian Legacy and Philip's other booksVisit Philip's websiteFollow Philip on TwitterThe Page One Podcast is brought to you by Write Gear, creators of Page One - the Writer's Notebook. Learn more and order yours now: https://www.writegear.co.uk/page-oneFollow us on Twitter: @write_gearFollow us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/WriteGearUK/Follow us on Instagram: write_gear_uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

MJ Arlidge is a man of many talents, being a novelist, screenwriter and producer. Having started out as a storyliner for Eastenders on the BBC, he went on to work on celebrated British shows such as Monarch of the Glen and Silent Witness, before creating his own hit shows such as Mistresses and Cape Wrath. He came to the world of novels in his 40s, when Eeny Meeny was released to huge success. Its protagonist, DI Helen Grace has since featured in many more books, with the latest being the recently released Truth or Dare.It was great fun chatting with Matthew about his career, and hearing about the many differences between the TV and publishing world. We hear about how his experience in the TV world helped him pitch his first novel, and learn about the differences in getting notes in each industry (hint - there normally aren't three editors in one room in the publishing world!)Links:Buy Truth or Dare and Matthew's other booksFollow him on TwitterThe Page One Podcast is brought to you by Write Gear, creators of Page One - the Writer's Notebook. Learn more and order yours now: https://www.writegear.co.uk/page-oneFollow us on Twitter: @write_gearFollow us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/WriteGearUK/Follow us on Instagram: write_gear_uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Caroline Hulse is the author of Like a House on Fire and The Adults. All The Fun of the Fair is her latest novel which has just been released. Her books have been published in fourteen languages and optioned for television.We had great fun chatting with Caroline, hearing about how she moved from HR into writing, why she still works in an office (as an author!) and why she abandoned writing suspense novels for humour. We also get great advice about outrunning your fear as a writer, learn why she loves to plan meticulously, and even get some great board game recommendations from her!Links:Buy All The Fun of The Fair and Caroline's other booksVisit Caroline's websiteFollow Caroline on TwitterWatch our video panel Page One Sessions as we discuss writing with great authors: https://youtu.be/gmE6iCDYn-sThe Page One Podcast is brought to you by Write Gear, creators of Page One - the Writer's Notebook. Learn more and order yours now: https://www.writegear.co.uk/page-oneFollow us on Twitter: @write_gearFollow us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/WriteGearUK/Follow us on Instagram: write_gear_uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this special episode, we talk with all three of the nominees for the 2021 Desmond Elliott Prize, the showcase award for debut authors from the National Centre for Writing.First up, we talk with AK Blakemore, author of The Manningtree Witches, a brilliant literary historical fiction novel set in England in 1643. AK is the author of two full-length collections of poetry: Humbert Summer (Eyewear, 2015) and Fondue (Offord Road Books, 2018), which was awarded the 2019 Ledbury Forte Prize for Best Second Collection. She has also translated the work of Sichuanese poet Yu Yoyo (My Tenantless Body, Poetry Translation Centre, 2019). Her poetry and prose writing has been widely published and anthologised, appearing in the The London Review of Books, Poetry, Poetry Review and The White Review, among others.Then we chat with Rebecca Watson, author of the incredible little scratch, an experimental literary novel told in immediate first person. Rebecca is one of The Observer‘s 10 best debut novelists of 2021. Her work has been published in the TLS, The Guardian, Granta and elsewhere. In 2018, she was shortlisted for the White Review Short Story Prize. She works part-time as Assistant Arts Editor at the Financial Times and lives in London.Finally, we speak with Eley Williams, author of The Liar's Dictionary, a dual timeline literary novel revolving around false entries in dictionaries. Eley lectures at Royal Holloway, University of London. Her short story collection Attrib. and Other Stories (Influx Press) won the James Tait Black Prize and the Republic of Consciousness Prize. The Liar’s Dictionary is her debut novel.Links:Read about the Desmond Elliott PrizeBuy The Manningtree WitchesBuy little scratchBuy The Liar's DictionaryWatch our video panel Page One Sessions as we discuss writing with great authors: https://youtu.be/gmE6iCDYn-sThe Page One Podcast is brought to you by Write Gear, creators of Page One - the Writer's Notebook. Learn more and order yours now: https://www.writegear.co.uk/page-oneFollow us on Twitter: @write_gearFollow us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/WriteGearUK/Follow us on Instagram: write_gear_uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nina Allan has won the British Science Fiction Award, the Novella Award, the Kitschies Red Tentacle and France’s Grand Prix de L’Imaginaire. Her first published piece of fiction appeared in a magazine called Dark Horizons in 2002. Since then, her stories have featured in numerous magazines and anthologies including The Year’s Best Science Fiction, Best Horror of the Year and The Mammoth Book of Best British Crime. Her latest book, The Good Neighbours, is released on 10 June 2021.We loved talking to Nina about her lifelong love of speculative fiction, including science fiction, the gothic, weird fiction and good old fashioned ghost stories and why she is particularly interested in work that tests the boundaries of genre: playing with philosophical ideas, savouring language, and experimenting with form. We talked about how SFF and horror cons can be a great place for budding writers to make connections, and hear about her rather unique redrafting process!Links:Buy The Good Neigbours and Nina's other books now!Visit Nina's websiteCymera Festival 2021Watch our video panel Page One Sessions as we discuss writing with great authors: https://youtu.be/gmE6iCDYn-sThe Page One Podcast is brought to you by Write Gear, creators of Page One - the Writer's Notebook. Learn more and order yours now: https://www.writegear.co.uk/page-oneFollow us on Twitter: @write_gearFollow us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/WriteGearUK/Follow us on Instagram: write_gear_uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Holly Seddon is the bestselling author of books such as Try Not to Breathe, Don't Close Your Eyes, and her latest, The Hit List. In between writing these great books, she also manages to host a great writing podcast (a great one to listen to alongside this one...!) called Honest Authors, which looks at the realities of life as a published author.We had great fun chatting with Holly, hearing about how she found and was picked up by her agent in the space of a lunchtime (!), how she swapped agents, and discussing the ups and downs of being a published author. We also hear why she now always plans her stories and find out how she continues to find great ideas and characters for her books.Links:Buy The Hit List now!Visit Holly's websiteFollow Holly on TwitterListen to the Honest Authors podcastWatch our video panel Page One Sessions as we discuss writing with great authors: https://youtu.be/gmE6iCDYn-sThe Page One Podcast is brought to you by Write Gear, creators of Page One - the Writer's Notebook. Learn more and order yours now: https://www.writegear.co.uk/page-oneFollow us on Twitter: @write_gearFollow us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/WriteGearUK/Follow us on Instagram: write_gear_uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nikki Smith studied English Literature at the University of Birmingham and went on to forge a career in finance; working for companies including a city bank and a trampoline park. She’d always wanted to write, and prompted by someone she hadn’t seen since school contacting her to ask if she’d ever done anything with her writing, signed up for a Curtis Brown creative writing course in 2017. She went on to win a short story competition and mentorship by the author Amanda Reynolds before being accepted for representation by Sophie Lambert at C+W. Her debut novel, ALL IN HER HEAD, went on submission in January 2019 and she accepted a pre-empt offer for a two book deal by Orion ten days later. LOOK WHAT YOU MADE ME DO is her second novel and out now.We had a great chat with Nikki about how she managed to swap accountancy for writing, and how the day job helped instill a discipline which has proven useful in writing. We also hear about her new novel, and chat about first and third person perspectives, and whether there can ever be too much "head-jumping" in first person novels.Links:Buy Look What You Made Me Do now!Visit Nikki's websiteFollow her on TwitterCheck out the Curtis Brown Creative Writing coursesWatch our video panel Page One Sessions as we discuss writing with great authors: https://youtu.be/gmE6iCDYn-sThe Page One Podcast is brought to you by Write Gear, creators of Page One - the Writer's Notebook. Learn more and order yours now: https://www.writegear.co.uk/page-oneFollow us on Twitter: @write_gearFollow us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/WriteGearUK/Follow us on Instagram: write_gear_uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

David Nicholls is the award-winning author of books such as Starter for Ten, Us, One Day and, most recently, Sweet Sorrow. He has also won awards for his screenwriting, from his contributions to Cold Feet to the adaptations of both his own books such as Starter for Ten and One Day and the likes of Patrick Melrose and Great Expectations.We loved chatting with David about how he got his start in his writing career, moving from an actor to a screenwriter to, eventually, a novelist, and then back to screenwriting. We discuss the differences between the two formats, and why the feedback on screenwriting is often harsher than in prose writing. We also talk about how to adapt a book to film, and hear about what he is working on next.Links:Buy David's books now!Follow David on TwitterWatch Patrick Melrose on NOW TVWatch our video panel Page One Sessions as we discuss writing with great authors: https://youtu.be/gmE6iCDYn-sThe Page One Podcast is brought to you by Write Gear, creators of Page One - the Writer's Notebook. Learn more and order yours now: https://www.writegear.co.uk/page-oneFollow us on Twitter: @write_gearFollow us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/WriteGearUK/Follow us on Instagram: write_gear_uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Helen O'Hara is best known for her work at Empire magazine, where she is currently editor-at-large and features regularly on their renowned podcast. She has also been published regularly in newspapers such at The Guardian and The Telegraph, and has written a number of books, the most recent of which is Women vs Hollywood.We had great fun chatting with Helen about her career and hear how she landed the job at Empire, what she learned on the job about writing reviews, and why she wanted to write Women vs Hollywood now. We hear why editing can be the best way to learn about writing, chat about why men get an easier time in Hollywood than women, and discuss ways people can get started in film reviewing. We also get her take on Zack Snyder's Justice League - which then leads to a long and rambling discussion at the end of the podcast about Marvel v DC...Links:Buy Women vs Hollywood now!Follow Helen on TwitterListen to the Empire PodcastCapital Crime New Voices competitionWatch our video panel Page One Sessions as we discuss writing with great authors: https://youtu.be/gmE6iCDYn-sThe Page One Podcast is brought to you by Write Gear, creators of Page One - the Writer's Notebook. Learn more and order yours now: https://www.writegear.co.uk/page-oneFollow us on Twitter: @write_gearFollow us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/WriteGearUK/Follow us on Instagram: write_gear_uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.