Catherine Gray is an award-winning journalist who has written for The Guardian, Stylist, The Telegraph, Grazia, and many more. She's published 4 non-fiction books, which have sold over a million copies and been translated into 9 languages.

She's best known for her book, 'The Unexpected Joy of Being Sober', which takes you through the benefits of going alcohol-free, and how it can positively impact your creativity.

Her debut novel is 'Versions of a Girl'. It's a classic sliding doors story, which tells the tale of Fern, whose mother is a former ballet dancer and formidable social climber, while her father is a layabout who lives hand to mouth in Californian motels. When Fern is 14 she needs to chose who she is living with... and we follow both of those narratives. It's the ultimate nature v nurture questions - do we become who we are because of our parents, or in spite of them?

We talk about avoiding stereotypes when writing characters, also why working as a journalist has helped her write on cue, and why it's vital to be critical of your own work.

This week's episode is sponsored by Faber Academy's 'Writing a Novel' course. Submissions for their October 24 programme finish on the 15th and 16th September. Be quick, and find out more at faberacademy.com/writing-a-novel

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This week's guest is J.M. Hall, who has worked as a playwright, a primary school teacher, and is now a published novelist.

Through lockdown he wrote 'A Spoonful of Murder', as a way to deal with a traumatic family situation, that was published in 2021. He's gone on to publish, 'A Brush with Death', and his most recent book 'A Clock Stopped Dead'. They tell the story of Pat, Liz and Thelma, retired teachers who turn to sleuthing.

We talk about how, after recently retiring, Jonathan's routine has changed, also what he needed to have when designing his ideal writing space, and why he insists on writing long-hand... and is frankly bemused by people who don't.

You can hear how working as a primary school teacher helped him refine storytelling, whether writing without a view of publication affected the process, and what authors your kids should be reading.

This episode is sponsored by Faber Academy. Their flagship, 'Writing a Novel' course is taking applicants for its new course starting in october. Find out more at faberacademy.com/writing-a-novel

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Jonny Sweet won the 'Best Newcomer' Prize at the 2009 Edinburgh Festival Fringe, created a sketch group with 'The Inbetweeners' Simon Bird and Joe Thomas, and appeared in many TV Comedies, including 'Chickens' and 'Him and Her'. He wrote the movie 'Wicked Little Letters' starring Olivia Colman, which was released this year.

He has also just published one of the most acclaimed novels of the year. 'The Kellerby Code' tells the story of Edward, living in a world he can't afford and to which he doesn't belong. Getting by doing odd jobs for friends, he falls in love with one of them, and after a little act of kindness in the group takes a sinister turn, it unleashes the unspeakable brutality at Edward's core.

We talk about why he's been lying to people about the plot, and how the writing process changes depending on what he's working on. You can hear how much he thinks like a director when writing, and why he prefers not to hear himself think.

This novel has been highly recommended by some of the best authors around, and we discuss how he deals with such praise.

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Mary Adkins is the author of critically acclaimed novels, 'Palm Beach', 'When You Read This', and 'Privilege'. She has used her experience of writing, publishing and also teaching, to become a writing coach. Her 'Book Incubator' programme looks to help you on the difficult journey to publishing. It uses how creative you are, how outgoing you are, and what your day is like, to plan the perfect method for your writing, and helps you write, revise and pitch your novel.

We talk about why she sets up her writing space to make her think she's playing, not writing. Also how she discovered she's a morning person, and how she uses music to change her place and space. You can also hear the best tips and tricks she's learned as a writing mentor, including how to get to know your character, what to do with an initial idea, and why people find it so hard switching between writing and editing.

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Colette Dartford's debut, 'Learning to Speak American', was shortlisted for an Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award. She followed up this success with her second, 'An Unsuitable Marriage', was a Kindle bestseller for 18 months.

For her new novel she's made an interesting decision. In August, she'll self-publish, 'The Mortification of Grace Wheeler'. She's done this to have more creative control over publishing, marketing and pricing, and is almost doing it as a one-book experiment. She gets deep into the reasons why she has done this, and there's some fantastic advice to help you make a similar choice.

The novel is about Grace, in a marriage with a much older man, whose son leaves for University. She becomes an empty-nester, and in a bid for excitement, is drawn into an affair with terrible consequences.

We talk about why she has stopped doing detailed summaries of characters, why all she needs to write is a quiet space and a laptop, and how much expert help she gets before sending the work off.

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Janice Hallett career started as a magazine editor, journalist and speech writer. Her first feature film, Retreat, starred Cillian Murphy, Thandiwe Newton and Jamie Bell. She's written speeches for the Home Office, the Cabinet Office and many others. Her frustration at getting screenplays adapted for TV and film prompted her to start writing novels. What a decision.

Her debut, 'The Appeal', has achieved phenomenal success. It's been shared widely online by book communities, sold lots of copies and was one of Sunday Times Crime Novels of 2021.

It's a murder-mystery set in a tight-knit village community staging an amateur dramatic production, and is all told through emails and messages. We discuss why she set a book in this novel way, and how her career as a screenwriter helped with that.

We talk about the moment she knew her book might be taking off, also why she works seven days a week, and how much she reverse-engineers a murder mystery. You can hear how she figured out who the killer was, how her characters mirror different parts of her personality, and about her newest novel, 'The Twyford Code'.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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Our special guest this week is Kate Storey. Under the name Lisa Timoney, she's published 3 books, 'Her Daughter's Secret', 'Her Mother's Lies' and 'His Secret Wife'... but a change of genre means a change of name.

Kate's back with book club fiction now, and has published, 'The Memory Library'. It's all about Sally Harrison, who has been building a library for 43 years. Every year she adds a new book to it, dedicated to her estranged daughter Ella who has fled to Australia... however, when disaster strikes, Ella must return home and fix their relationship. It's an ex-English teacher's dream novel, a book about books!

We discuss outlining, how much she knows what she's doing, without trying to limit the places her characters could take her. Also, we chat through how how she has learned as an author, and what she wants to change about the way she works.

You can hear why she finds pictures online to inspire her characters, what it's like to work with an editor, and how far the finished book is from her very first idea.

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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.

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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.

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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/

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Luca Veste is fully immersed in the fantastic writing community. He's blogged, he podcasts with 'Two Crime Writers and a Microphone', plays in the 'Fun Lovin' Crime Writers', co-founded the 'Locked In Festival' and has published many books. He's most known for the 'Murphy and Rossi' novels, and for writing across many genres.

His new one, 'You Never Said Goodbye', is about Sam Cooper who lost his Mum early in life, and then years later learns a secret from his Dad that changes everything. We talk about how it came from an idea Luca has sat on for a little while, also how he works with an editor, and what a year looks like in the life of a full-time author.

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Until very recently, Claire Frost worked full-time as a book reviewer for 'Fabulous'. After years reading and chatting to authors, she chose to work 4 days a week, and dedicate a whole day to writing.

She has published 3 books, 'Married at First Swipe', 'Living My Best Life', and her new book is, 'The One'. It's about Lottie Brown, who has finally found The One. Leo is everything she’s ever wanted – he’s handsome, kind, funny and totally gets her. Three months into their relationship, Lottie is in love and happier than ever before. When Leo tragically dies, Lottie learns more about the man she thought she knew, and starts to question whether Leo really was as perfect as he seemed.

We talk about the pressure of needing to get stuff done in a day, what she has learned from book reviewing, and the moment she finally knew she was a writer.

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Stacy Willingham has just published her debut novel, 'A Flicker in the Dark'. The novel follows Chloe Davis, whose world was torn apart at 12 years old when her father confessed to the murder of six teenage girls in their small Louisiana town. 20 years later, Chloe is a successful psychologist in Baton Rouge. But when a local girl disappears, she starts to unravel. The rights have been optioned by the actress Emma Stone, and it's currently being developed for HBO Max. We talk about how it feels to have so many writers dreams seem to be coming true.

Stacy worked full-time in marketing and copywriting before publishing novels and we discuss how writing snappy slogans has affected the way she tells stories. You can hear about her specifically designed writing space, also why she moves around for the second draft, and how other authors inspire what she writes.

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Nadine Matheson is busy. Busy, busy, busy. She works as a criminal lawyer, has found time to go back to school, and publish her debut novel, 'The Jigsaw Man'.

The book is a police procedural about Inspector Henley, tasked with finding the killer of bodies found along the River Thames in London. It's set in the area she grew up and we talk about why she wanted, and how she managed, to accurately portray her ends of the City.

We talk about how she gets inspiration from her work as a criminal lawyer, how comic books help her plot, and why she ended up back to school accidentally.

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This week we chat to Rudy Ruiz, about his new novel, 'The Resurrection of Fulgencio Ramirez'. Rudy has been a finalist for the International Latino Book Awards, and has written extensively about the Mexican/ US border.

The new book weaves that social activism into a novel, telling the story of a man seeking redemption and the American Dream in the face of a mystical family curse. We talk about where the idea came from, how Mexican songs helped shaped the story, and why culture and heritage plays such a big role in his writing.

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Ellen Alpsten has worked in TV, as a producer and presenter, she's won short story competitions, teaches creative writing, and has just published her second book, 'The Tsarina's Daughter'. It's based on Catherine the 1st of Russia's daughter, Elizabeth.

We talk about research, how she knows want to look into next, and how she blends historical fact with fiction. Also you can hear how getting published completely changed the way she writes, and get inspired by her publication story.

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Harriet Kline is an award-winning short story writer. 'Ghost' won the Hissac short story competition, 'Chest of Drawers', the London Magazine short story competition. Her work has been published online, in magazines and played out on BBC Radio.

Her debut novel is 'This Shining Life'. It's all about Ruth, who loses her husband Rich, and sets out on a mission with her son Ollie to solve puzzles he left for them, in a bid to discover the meaning of life. It's funny, beautiful and about love and loss.

It was inspired by the sad death of a friend, which oddly made her feel more alive than ever, and also her work as a registrar, where she is surrounded by life and death all day.

We talk about how she tried to find the meaning of life while writing the story, also why it started out as many short stories, and about the monster that gets her to work in the morning.

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After writing around 7 books and getting many rejections or near-misses, Alina Khawaja finally has a published novel. It's called 'Maya's Laws of Love', and tells the story of Maya on her way to Pakistan for an arranged marriage she hopes will end with love. Only, after a disastrous journey, she begins to wonder if Mr. Right might actually be someone else she meets along the way.

Alina is well read and decorated, with a degree in English, History and Creative Writing, and a Masters in Literatures of Modernity, and all the time whilst studying, she's been writing. She's been carrying on in the face of rejections, reading to get better, and cracking out stories. You can hear how she dealt with rejections and near-misses, and why she thinks this novel finally got her published. Also, at a time when self-publishing has never been easier or more successful, we talk about why Alina was desperate to follow the traditional route.

You can hear about her outlining process and whether that's likely to change, also why she tries to avoid tangents, and how she's trying to make her work stand out in busy bookshelves.

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Paul Bradley Carr has spent his career as a journalist uncovering the dark side of Silicon Valley. He's reported on it for The Guardian, The Daily Telegraph, Private Eye, and many more. He founded NSFWCorp in Las Vegas, and hosted the nightly NSFWLive radio show. Now he's taken that experience to pen his first work of fiction, '1414 Degrees'.

It's not Paul's first published book. He's written memoirs 'The Upgrade', 'Bringing Nothing to the Party', Sober is my New Drunk', and 'We'll Always Have the Flamingo', which document his life travelling around the world, living in hotels and getting sober.

'1414 Degrees' is a murder mystery set in Silicon Valley, with Lou McCarthy investigating someone murdering billionaires.

We talk about why he leaves everything late, how he became a memoirist, what writing columns taught him about telling stories, and how much he knows about where the story is heading.

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This week, we're joined by Anna Kent, with her sort-of-debut novel, 'The House of Whispers'.

See Anna Kent, is also Annabel Kantaria, who has already published 4 books. This is her first as Anna Kent. It's domestic noir, so treads the line between eerie psychological thriller, and chilling whodunnits at home. We talk about how she learned to write genre, and what she pays attention to when structuring the novel, also how she knows when to carry on writing.

'The House of Whispers' tells the story of Grace and Abi, friends who parted ways at Uni. Then Grace returns into Abi's life... and they slip back into the comforts of each other's lethal charm and company.

You can hear how she got published, about the contest she entered, and the meeting with a publisher that changed her life.

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Sarah Alderson is busy. Busy, busy, busy. So busy, she takes a break from her writing job to write the novels she loves. Sarah works as a screenwriter in LA for S.W.A.T on CBS, and finds tiny slithers of time to get books down. In the past, this has led her to getting a draft done in 10 days.

She's written YA, psychological thrillers, her novel 'The Weekend Away' has been adapted for Netflix, published romance stories under a pseudonym, and her new novel 'The Stalker', is out now. It's about newlyweds Liam and Laura, honeymooning on a secluded island, who realise quickly... they aren't as alone as they thought.

We talk about the quotes that help her carry on, also why she escaped the world to start her writing career, and why she's become strategic in her plotting in order to get stuff done quickly. You can hear about life in a bustling, competitive L.A writer's room, why she started planning after 10 novels of pantsing, and why she's begun saying no.

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Our first guest of 2022 is Rosanna Amaka. Her debut novel is 'The Book of Echoes', which tells the story of 16 year old Michael, always in trouble, who falls in love with Ngozi, a young Nigerian immigrant. It was shortlisted for The Author's Club First Novel award, also the RSL Christopher Bland Prize, and the HWA Debut Crown Award.

It's a story Rosanna has tried to get published for 20 years, and she reveals the secrets to how it finally happened.

We talk about the creative buzz of the area she wrote the novel in, and how that affected things, also how the story drove her to write on, and why it's told through the eyes of the spirit of an African Slave.

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For our last episode of the year, we chat to psychological thriller debutant Alice Hunter. Her book is 'The Serial Killer's Wife', and tells the story of Beth Hardcastle, whose perfect marriage is obliterated when the police show up and report her husband Tom is missing.

Alice worked in prisons, part of a team offering rehabilitation courses to in-mates, often those who'd committed violent crimes. That, and her psychology degree, offered her vast experience to write the book. We talk about how conversations with in-mates wives prompted the idea for the book, and then how she streamlined the idea and worked on character.

You can hear about Alice's working day, her chaotic work-space, and how lockdown affected her enthusiasm to write.

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This week, we're joined by Joanne Harris MBE. She became phenomenally successful over 20 years ago for her novel 'Chocolat', which became an Oscar nominated movie starring Johnny Depp and Juliette Binoche.

Her new one is called 'A Narrow Door', it tells the story of the first headmistress at a traditional school who discovers a body in the grounds. It's billed as 'magical realism', we discuss how much she considers genre while she's writing.

She's best known for her novel, 'Chocolat', which changed everything. It let her leave work, write full time, but added an anxiety around work she'd never known before.

We talk about the classic acting text that really helps her get into characters, what she needs to know before she starts writing, and how she uses scent to get into the story.

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This week, Ken Follett shares his writer's routine. He's one of the UK's most successful authors, selling over 170 million books across 80 countries. He has a staff of over 20 working on all aspects of book selling, so he can concentrate on book writing.

We talk about whether that puts pressure on his writing, knowing he has staff relying on him for a salary. Also, what his writing routine of a year looks like, and why his outline is the most important thing he works on.

Ken's made a career publishing thick historical novels, 'The Pillars of the Earth' from the 'Kingsbridge' series sold bucket-loads, got him critical acclaim, and spawned a TV series. His new novel is 'Never', about events that could lead to WW3.

We talk about research, planning, sentences, keeping things simple and how he starts.

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This week's guest is Helen Paris. She's worked in performing arts, writing, performing and directing, for 2 decades, and has just published her debut novel, 'The Lost Property'. It's all about Dot, who strives to reunite lost property with their owners.

It all came from a spell of unusual research she undertook at the London Transport Lost Property Office, the characters she met there, and their poetic conversations.

We discuss memories, how the characters drove the story, and why she had to escape from her routine through lockdown.

To support the show, head to patreon.com/writersroutine.

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This week we're chatting to Steve Cavanagh. He's won the CWA Gold Dagger Award, the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year, has published many Sunday Times Top 10 Bestsellers, and his new book has just been named as one of the Best Crime and Thriller Books of the Year by Waterstones.

It's called 'The Devil's Advocate', and is the newest Eddie Flynn book. Telling the story of Andy Dubois, sent up for a killing Alabama, and the lawyer who tries to get him free. He talks about the jaw-dropping statistic which gave him the idea for the book.

We discuss his ideal writing day and why he's not quite managed it yet, also how he's always trying to learn and grow, why he's tried to be a plotter but always returns to his pantsing routes, and what makes crime authors different from each other.

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Lucy Foley joined us back at the start of 2020... pre-pandemic!

She spoke about her 2nd mystery thriller, 'The Guest List'. It's set at a dream wedding, on a remote island, where someone gets killed and everyone has a motive. We talk about the fundamentals you need to include in writing whodunnits, and how to flip the tradition on its head.

It comes after the huge success of her first whodunnit, 'The Hunting Party'. It was also set on an island, and we chat about where she got that idea from, why she likes the idea of locking her characters away, and how she brought such stunning scenery to life using just her words.

Also, Lucy once wrote historical thrillers and we learn why she made the switch of genre, AND she used to work in publishing as an editor, so we chat about what that taught her about which books sell and why.

Lucy's writing day is fairly chaotic and decadent, working furiously in the morning before popping to the cinema in the afternoon. It works for her, and she's fantastic at describing it.

This is just the routine, but please do scroll back in your feed and listen to her full episode when you get a chance - it's a belter.

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Samuel Burr has worked as a TV executive, creating shows like 'The Secret Life of 4 Year Olds', 'Eight Go Rallying', and 'The Secret Life of Cleaners'. Many years ago he worked on a documentary in a retirement home, now it's given him the basis for his debut novel.

'The Fellowship of Puzzlemakers' looks at Clayton Sumper, an enigma who was abandoned at birth on the steps of the puzzlemakers, ending up being raised by some of the sharpest minds in the country. The hope is that he's learned from them, as to discover the secrets of who he is and who he can be, he needs to crack one last puzzle.

We talk about the details of writing such a tricksy book, matching chapter names to crossword answers, and how getting deep into those details impacted his ability to be creative. You can hear why he works towards a final sentence, also why he uses the pomodoro technique, and how he gets ideas by spying on strangers.

We discuss his time at the Faber Academy, how working in TV has influenced his storytelling in novels, and you can hear about the business of writing - what does an advance mean? What happens if you get a big deal? How do you get paid?

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Xanthi Barker has published novelettes and short stories, penned columns and articles, and has just released her debut book, 'Will This House Last Forever'.

It's a memoir of her time with her dying father, the poet Sebastian Barker. She is also the granddaughter of George Barker and the cult novelist, Elizabeth Smart. We discuss whether because of her highly and successfully creative family, she was destined to be a writer.

Her relationship with her father was troubled, and we talk about whether his view of the world passed down to her. Also, you can hear how she planned such a personal book, how her writing routine has changed dramatically in the last year, and why her flatmate is a hero.

Get the book here - https://amzn.to/3qaqx1w

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For this week's Random Routine, we chat to Rob Hart, who came on back in 2019 to talk about 'The Warehouse'.

'The Warehouse' is in the mold of 'Farenheit 451' and '1984', and focuses on one big business that suffocates all others, and the stories of 3 people who work there. Because of this, his characterisation needs to be truly believable and authentic, we talk about this struggle and how he became his characters in writing. It's also his first proper foray into standalone novels, having made his way with the 'Ash McKenna' series.

The first full episode dropped in August 2019, and you can listen in by scrolling back in your podcast feed.

If you can, please do support the show over at patreon.com/writersroutine.

If you want to buy the book, please use this link! - https://amzn.to/32yhXKL

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This week we're joined by Joe Thomas. He's just released the 4th in his 'Sao Paulo Quartet', with 'Paradise City', 'Gringa', 'Playboy' and the new one 'Brazilian Psycho'.

He grew up in Hackney, before spending 10 years in Sao Paulo, and being inspired to tell its story. It mixes fiction, true crime, historical fact, and high literature, in an utterly compelling style.

We talk about how his routine has changed since having a child, where he likes to escape to write, how perfect his first draft is, and how editing has changed over 10 years of writing novels.

You can get a copy of 'Brazilian Psycho' here - https://amzn.to/2ZOVUDV

You can support the show here - https://amzn.to/2ZshCNp

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This week's random routine, our bitesize chunk of inspiration, comes from Trent Dalton who came on the show back in 2019.

Not many authors have debut success like Trent Dalton. His book 'Boy Swallows Universe' won the 'Debut Fiction Prize' and 'Book of the Year' at the Australian Indie Awards, and went straight into the top 10, selling over 100,000 copies. It's a semi-autobiographical story about all Eli, in Brisbane in 1983, muddling through family life, trying to not be coaxed into drug-dealing, and having to save his mum from prison. The book has since sold many, many copies, more accolades, and even be turned into a play.

He's also written 'All Our Shimmering Skies', about a gravedigger's daughter, Molly Hook.

Listen to the full episode by following the show and scanning back in your podcast feed.

You can get a copy of his work here - https://amzn.to/317dxz9

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Zen Cho is a multi-award nominated and winning author. She's published 3 novels and many short stories, and is back with her first ghost story... although that's not what she thought it'd be at the start.

It's called 'Black Water Sister', and all came from one word she read in the dictionary. It's based on ancient Malaysian folklore, and Zen has taken great joy in playing with old language, and presenting it in a ghostly manner.

We talk about switching genre, and how having a baby helped with that, also about how much she knows what's coming next, and how she divides things up being a full-time lawyer, and part-time writer.

You can get a copy of the book here - https://amzn.to/3aRpDOl

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Along with Dan Gillespie-Sells, from The Feeling, Tom MacRae wrote the hit musical 'Everybody's Talking About Jamie'. It follows Jamie New who is determined to wear a dress to his school prom night. It's based on a a real story, explored in a BBC documentary. The musical is now a film, also written by Tom, which you can watch on Amazon Prime now.

In this bitesize chunk, you can hear about his writing routine in the sun, how exercise gives him space to think, and why weekends are sacred.

You can listen to the full episode from 2019, by flicking back in your podcast feed.

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This week, we chat to Claire Allan. Her new book is 'Ask No Questions', a psychological thriller about Ingrid Devlin, on the search to find the truth of her best friend's disappearance 25 years ago.

Claire started her career as a journalist, has written women's fiction under the name Freya Kennedy', and is back with a brand new psych thriller. She's written almost 20 books across different genres.

We talk about how switching genre changes style and method of plotting and planning, also about her routine of the year, and how she feels when time is tight... and the idea isn't there.

You can get a copy of 'Ask No Questions' here - https://amzn.to/3j0yx0o

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It's a BOOKSHOP DAY SPECIAL. Bookshop Day is on Saturday 9th October, and Books Are My Bag are encouraging you to spend time in your local bookshop, be it big or small.

This week, we're chatting to children's author Piers Torday. He's published 7 books, they've been translated into 14 languages, he's won the Guardian Children's Fiction Prize, and been nominated for the CILIP Carnegie Medal.

His new book is 'The Wild Before'. It's a prequel to 'The Last Wild' trilogy, and tells the story of Little Hare who must round up all the other animals to help save the world. It's about climate change, standing up for your beliefs and working together.

We talk about the differences in writing for kids and adults, also about copying and being inspired, about planning, plotting and rhythm, and what bookshops mean to him.

You can get a copy of Piers' book here - https://amzn.to/3ApAd9v

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Bella Osborne has had a busy year. In the last 3 months, she's had 2 different books out with 2 different publishers.

'The Promise of Summer' is a romance novel with Avon. 'The Library' is a bookclub read with Aria. We try to talk about both of those, but it's mainly about the former.

All in, Bella has published 9 books. 'The Promise of Summer' is about Ruby and Curtis, trying to reunite a engagement ring with its owner, and find love along the way. We talk about how these two characters wouldn't go away, so she ahd to tell a part of their story, and leave them on a bench waiting for her to come back again.

You can hear why her family hates NaNoWriMo, about her post-it note obsession, why her work day revolves around cats, and about the best types of tea.

You can get a copy of 'The Promise of Summer' here - https://amzn.to/2Yh1dep and 'The Library' here - https://amzn.to/39TN8pI

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Alex Michaelides is the only ever UK debut writer to go straight in at number 1 on the New York Times Bestseller list. His novel, 'The Silent Patient', was the 2nd bestselling novel on Amazon in 2019, they named it their 'thriller of the year'.

He's followed it up with 'The Maidens', about an exclusive set of students at a University under the influence of a sinister Professor, and a murder he knows more about than he lets on.

We discuss his screenwriting career in Hollywood, why that didn't work, how he moved on with it and discovered he was a novelist, not a dramatist. Also, how mediation helps him write, why he gives up the booze to tell stories, and how he got published when he moved back to the UK.

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Caz Frear was launched to debut success after winning the 'Richard and Judy Search for a Bestseller' competition. Her novel, 'Sweet Little Lies', won the prize and found the bestselling status they searched for. What happens next? How do you follow up on debut success?

Caz discusses how she dealt with that writing her 2nd and 3rd novels, and why she's constantly looking to make her day better and improve how she works. We talk about the tech problems she attempts to deal with, how the process has changed after being a number of books down, and how she deals with the pressures of being an author that needs to do everything.

Her new novel is 'Five Bad Deeds', which tells the story of Ellen Walsh, a teacher, mother, wife, and all round good citizen, who discovers she has done something incredibly bad... but has no idea what.

You can hear about why she's changed her work-day to go easy on herself, how he stays creative while doing the admin, and how she's changed her mindset of working.

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Paul Rudnick is an acclaimed Hollywood scriptwriter. He's worked on 'Addams Family Values', 'The Stepford Wives' and the 'Sister Act' movies. Now, he's just published his 3rd novel, 'Playing the Palace'. It's about a New York event planner who falls in love with England's gay Crown Prince, Edgar. It's a satirical look at romance stories and Royal life.

We talk about writing for movies, working with improvising actors, changing things on set and coming up with at least 10 jokes for every line.

Also, he talks about why life revolves around the writing, and his writing revolves around his life, in a syncopated way. Paul discusses his very private writing space that he is very protective of, and what happened after he had his initial idea for the story.

You can get a copy here - https://amzn.to/3gYsqsF

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A few years ago, Bridget Collins came on the show to talk us through her novel, 'The Binding'. It was a huge, genre-defying success, and she's gone on to publish 'The Betrayals' to equal acclaim.

Before then, Bridget published 7 Young Adult books, a few plays, and she's beavering away on her 3rd book right now.

Here's a little snippet from our chat, as Bridget runs us through her writing space and working day. Scan back in your podcast feed to hear the full episode.

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Christina Sweeney-Baird works as a lawyer. It's a busy full-on job, working all hours under the sun, and she had barely any time to write. Until a life-changing moment changed everything, and forced to her sit up, to sit down and write.

'The End of Men' is her debut novel. It tells the story of a pandemic that wipes out 90% of the male population. We talk about the idea, how she developed it, planned it, and at one point had to cut 30 characters from it. We also chat what it was like writing and editing a story about a pandemic, during a pandemic, and how she figures out the confusing aspects of genre and gets to the heart of the story.

You can get a copy of the book here - https://amzn.to/2Y047UF

Support the show at Patreon.com/writersroutine.

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