Page One - The Writer's Podcast

Sunyi Dean is a biracial autistic author who was born in Texas, grew up in Hong Kong, and now resides in North England. She writes speculative fiction with a weird slant, and has both too many books and too many children. In her spare time, she can be found hiking, weight lifting, wild-swimming, and dying in jiu-jitsu. She also founded and co-hosts the Publishing Rodeo Podcast with fellow Tor author, Scott Drakeford. Sunyi’s debut novel, THE BOOK EATERS, launched Aug 2022 and was an instant #2 Sunday Times Bestseller.We had a great time chatting with Sunyi and hearing about her difficult journey to being published and talking about some of the difficulties that even published authors can face. We also chat about her own podcast, which is another must-listen (alongside this one of course!) for any writer.Links:Buy The Book Eaters nowFollow Sunyi on Twitter/XVisit Sunyi's websiteListen to The Publishing Rodeo PodcastBuy tickets for talks hosted by Tariq and Marco at this year's Bloody Scotland on 16 September 2023:Tariq's event - High Seas, High Stakes: Will Dean, Amy McCulloch and Catherine CooperMarco's event - Deadly Deceptions: Gilly MacMillan, Stig Abell, Katherine FaulknerPage One - The Writer's 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 TwitterFollow us on FacebookFollow us on InstagramFollow us on MastodonFollow us on BlueskyFollow us on Threads Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Alexander Darwin is an author living near Boston with his wife and three daughters. Outside of writing, he teaches and trains martial arts (Brazilian Jiu Jitsu). He’s inspired by old-school Hong Kong action flicks, jRPGs, underdog stories and bibimbap bowls. Outside of writing fiction, Alexander has written for publications such as Rolling Stone Magazine, Jiu Jitsu Style and SF Signal. His latest piece, The Lost Diary of Anthony Bourdain, was a featured piece in Rolling Stone’s January 2022 Issue. His debut novel, Combat Codes, is out now.We had a great chat with Alex, hearing about how he got started thanks to the SPFBO (Self-Published Fantasy Blog Off), and how he made a success of self-publishing. We also talk about the transition to trad publishing and discuss what aspects of self-publishing he misses now he has made the change. Plus, we discuss whether Star Wars is a fantasy movie...Links:Buy Combat Codes nowFollow Alex on TwitterVisit Alex's websiteBuy tickets for talks hosted by Tariq and Marco at this year's Bloody Scotland:Tariq's event - High Seas, High Stakes: Will Dean, Amy McCulloch and Catherine CooperMarco's event - Deadly Deceptions: Gilly MacMillan, Stig Abell, Katherine FaulknerPage One - The Writer's 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 TwitterFollow us on FacebookFollow us on InstagramFollow us on MastodonFollow us on BlueskyFollow us on Threads: @ukpageone Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Edwards writes psychological thrillers about scary things happening to ordinary people. He has sold more than four million copies of his books and topped the bestseller lists numerous times since his first solo novel was published in 2013. His latest book, Keep Her Secret, is out now.We had a great time chatting with Mark and hearing about his long journey to amazing success, including his moves back and forth between self-publishing and traditional publishing, and the pros and cons of both. We also talked about the importance of persistence with your writing even when nothing is happening, and chat about how publishing attitudes differ in the US and the UK.Links:Buy Keep Her Secret and Mark's other books nowFollow Mark on Twitter/XVisit Mark's websiteBuy tickets for talks hosted by Tariq and Marco at this year's Bloody Scotland:Tariq's event - High Seas, High Stakes: Will Dean, Amy McCulloch and Catherine CooperMarco's event - Deadly Deceptions: Gilly MacMillan, Stig Abell, Katherine FaulknerPage One - The Writer's 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 TwitterFollow us on FacebookFollow us on InstagramFollow us on MastodonFollow us on BlueskyFollow us on Threads: @ukpageone Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Lauren Beukes, a brilliant author, returns to talk about multiverses, the impact of AI on writers, and the growing South African literary scene. They discuss her latest book 'Bridge', the popularity of multiversal stories, and her thoughts on 'The Shining Girls' TV show. They also touch on living in alternate realities, the challenges of writing, African futurism, and the impact of AI on the industry.

Bestselling author Dean Koontz discusses his writing career, including how he started in sci-fi and shifted to suspense thrillers and horror. He shares insights into his writing process, famous twists, and why he chose his publisher. The podcast also explores the importance of structure in writing, inspiration behind singularity-themed novels, and the joy of experimenting with different genres. Other topics include choosing publishers, revising books, enjoying TV shows and movies, and maintaining artistic freedom.

Alasdair Beckett-King is a man of many talents - an award-winning comedian, video game writer and now also author of children's books, he has a very funny YouTube channel, has appeared on numerous TV shows and his debut novel, Montgomery BonBon: Murder at the Museum was published in February 2023.We had a great time speaking with Alasdair about his career, hearing how he got into stand-up and why the pandemic helped him break out as a comedy star. We also chat about his love of point and click video games and hear about how he began to write for those, as well as hearing about what led to his debut novel, Murder at the Museum. He tells us all about the different challenges for writing in these different formats, and also displays his wide knowledge of the whodunnit genre!Links:Buy Murder at the Museum now!Visit Alasdair's websiteFollow Alasdair on TwitterOut now - a new video podcast from Page One featuring all the latest writing news - Page One Extra! For all episodes be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel, search for Page One Extra on your favourite podcast app, or follow this link: https://linktr.ee/ukpageonePage One - The Writer's 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 TwitterFollow us on FacebookFollow us on InstagramFollow us on MastodonFollow us on BlueskyFollow us on Threads: @ukpageone Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Award-winning novelist and screenwriter Fflur Dafydd discusses switching between screen and novel writing, challenges of adapting her own work, and the differences in writing for Welsh and English markets. She shares her writing journey, frustrations of London-centric literary world, and joys of transforming Welsh stories to English while balancing multiple writing projects.

Graeme Macrae Burnet is the author of the Booker shortlisted His Bloody Project, Booker longlisted Case Study, The Disappearance of Adèle Bedeau and The Accident on the A35.He is currently working on his next novel, which will complete the Gorski trilogy, featuring his French detective, Georges Gorski.We had a really fascinating and fun chat with Graeme, hearing about how it took until he was 46 to publish his first novel and the huge impact being shortlisted for the Booker prize for His Bloody Project changed the course of his writing career. We also talk about his love of playing with form and why his novels all have a "meta" element in some way, as well as hearing how the words don't always flow easily, and how he deals with that.Links:Buy Graeme's booksVisit Graeme's websiteFollow Graeme on TwitterOut now - a new video podcast from Page One featuring all the latest writing news - Page One Extra! For all episodes be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel, search for Page One Extra on your favourite podcast app, or follow this link: https://linktr.ee/ukpageonePage One - The Writer's 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 TwitterFollow us on FacebookFollow us on InstagramFollow us on MastodonFollow us on BlueskyFollow us on Threads: @ukpageone Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Veronica Henry started her writing career in radio television, writing for shows such as The Archers, Heartbeat and Holby City, before she decided to try her hand at writing novels. It worked out pretty well - she is now a bestselling author who has written over twenty novels. Her latest novel, Thirty Days in Paris, is out now.We had a fun chat with Veronica, hearing how she made her start in the creative world doing sound effects for TV shows, and becoming a script editor on the legendary British soap, Crossroads. She tells us why she made the move from TV to writing novels, how she deals with notes and suggestions from others, and why deadlines are helpful to her writing.Link:Buy Veronica's books nowVisit Veronica's websiteFollow Veronica on TwitterOut now - a new video podcast from Page One featuring all the latest writing news - Page One Extra! For all episodes be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel, search for Page One Extra on your favourite podcast app, or follow this link: https://linktr.ee/ukpageonePage One - The Writer's 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 TwitterFollow us on FacebookFollow us on InstagramFollow us on MastodonFollow us on BlueskyFollow us on Threads: @ukpageone Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Heidi Swain is a Sunday Times Bestselling Author who writes commercial fiction for Simon and Schuster. She has three series set in fictitious Wynbridge, Nightingale Square and Wynmouth and writes two titles a year – a summer and a Christmas book. She also writes short stories and non-fiction for magazines and is represented by Amanda Preston.We had great fun talking with Heidi and hearing how she was picked up by a publisher before ever having an agent, why she sometimes enjoys writing longhand, and what it felt like to be recognised by her peers when she won the Popular Romantic Fiction Award with her novel, A Christmas Celebration, for the Romantic Novelists' Association's (RNA) annual Romantic Novel Awards for 2023.Links:Buy Heidi's books hereFollow Heidi on TwitterOut now - a new video podcast from Page One featuring all the latest writing news - Page One Extra! For all episodes be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel, search for Page One Extra on your favourite podcast app, or follow this link: https://linktr.ee/ukpageonePage One - The Writer's 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 TwitterFollow us on FacebookFollow us on InstagramFollow us on MastodonFollow us on BlueskyFollow us on Threads: @ukpageone Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.