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The Hobcast Book Show
195: The melody of great writing - with Nigel Stewart
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It's been an odd week here at The Hobcast Book Show. Rebecca and I have been watching the BBC's new smash-hit cosy crime series, Ludwig, starring David Mitchell. Nothing unusual in that you might say, but each episode has multiple aerial shots of the centre of Cambridge, where the stories are set. Each time they pop up, I exclaim, "there's my church!". I'm referring to Great St Mary's, where I was head chorister back in the early 80s. It reminds me of one of the happiest periods of my life. So why am I mentioning it now? Well, our guest this week, Nigel Stewart was also a chorister in the rather grander setting of Hereford Cathedral. Unlike me, he carried on with his passion for making and writing music. He's also a novelist, with five books released to date, including Colouring In, The Road Home, and Justinian's Daughters. How much do music and writing overlap? Listen to this fascinating interview to find out.
Also this week, Adrian and Rebecca react to the claim by Sir Ian Rankin that crime novels are becoming too long, and should be capped at 300 pages. Is that realistic?
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Colouring-Nigel-Stewart/dp/1912677067
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Road-Home-Nigel-Stewart/dp/1739501217
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Justinians-Daughters-Nigel-Stewart/dp/173916525X
https://www.thetimes.com/article/2a5a03a7-af9d-4b2f-ba4a-b6c29bc8eb84?shareToken=1c45daea137b5399b42bd662d66c1fe4
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194: The power of tropes - with Jennifer Hilt
01:36:13|We'd be the first to admit that when we hear the word "trope", we give it negative connotations. It might be a British thing, but a trope is often equated to a cliche - something to be shunned and avoided. But our guest this week, bestselling author Jennifer Hilt, believes that authors should embrace tropes and lean into them as much as possible. She argues that all celebrated literature is full of tropes, and that they are the foundation stones of great storytelling. Jennifer, known colloquially as "The Trope Lady", explains her philosophy in her book, The Trope Thesaurus. Jennifer says she was initially slow to recognise the importance and power of tropes, but once she'd made that realisation, she couldn't enjoy a favourite book or film without spotting them. She hopes that authors will also see their importance, and lean into and twist tropes to strengthen their work.Also this week, Adrian and Rebecca reflect on their trip to London for the inaugural gathering of the new Indie Press Network, and ask if publishing is ready to cope with some new EU legislation that will significantly complicate printing books in future.Jennifer Hilt, USA Today Bestselling Author of Non-fiction and Urban Fantasyhttps://www.amazon.co.uk/Trope-Thesaurus-Jennifer-Hilt/dp/B09PHG395P
193: Coming of age as an author - with Jon McBrine
01:26:12|We're linking up with the U.S again this week to meet YA author Jon McBrine. Joining us from his home near Dallas, Texas, Jon shares his journey from graphic designer, illustrator and comic book aficionado to author. His first YA superhero adventure, Unsecret Identity was published last year, and introduces Eric Icarus, a 14-year-old with the ability to fly. You'd think that would be a gift, but for Eric it's the last thing he needs, drawing unwanted attention to him at a time of acute teenage sensitivity. As Jon explains, he wanted to use the superhero genre to explore the themes teenagers face as they prepare for the wider world.Also this week, we discuss Pan Macmillan's withdrawal from X (formerly Twitter), and Adrian reveals details of a big writing project he's just been commissioned to deliver in 2025.https://jonmcbrine.com/https://www.amazon.co.uk/Unsecret-Identity-Eric-Icarus-Book-ebook/dp/B0CJTK86Z5
192: Launching your author brand - with Roger Corke
01:29:43|You've written the book, and found a publisher. But how do you find your readers? Our guest this week, Roger Corke, has taken a meticulous approach to building the promotion around his debut thriller, Deadly Protocol. With a successful career as a documentary maker and investigative journalist, Roger used his research skills to discover how best to promote his novel. Drawing on the advice and experience of a range of established authors, he has explored all avenues in creating a buzz around the book - building an extensive blog and podcast tour, tracking down elusive book reviewers from the print media, and creating a wide range of video content for various social media platforms. As Roger tells us in this wide-ranging interview, the onus is on authors to build their own audience, even if they have a supportive publisher. Roger also explains how a chance conversation with a British scientist led to the plot of the novel - who would benefit from the death of a scientist on the verge of curing cancer?Also this week, Adrian and Rebecca support a new initiative to connect BookTok stars with authors and publishers, and they reflect on how they coped when they lost WiFi for four days. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Deadly-Protocol-Roger-Corke-ebook/dp/B0DFYBLBQ3
191: The second act - with Jamie West
01:27:52|We welcome back author and theatre-automation expert Jamie West to The Hobcast Book Show again this week. Jamie has just published his second novel, Murder at the Matinee, which reacquaints us with playwright and amateur sleuth Bertie Carroll, and glories in the setting of London's West End Theatreland in the 1930s. Bertie is intrigued when a newspaper advert predicts a death in Act 3 of a play in which there are no deaths expected. When a body is duly discovered, Bertie himself is not above suspicion. In this wide-ranging interview, Jamie explains how he's taken inspiration from promoting theatre shows to his book marketing, and how he now believes that authors would help themselves by taking time to build interest in their work long before publication date.Also this week, with distribution outlets for independent publishers becoming more challenging to find in the UK, how are they coping? And Adrian and Rebecca discuss the importance of fact-checking everything before a book goes to print.Jamie West Authorhttps://www.amazon.co.uk/Murder-Matinee-golden-age-theatrical-Thorogood-ebook/dp/B0CYT7WQC5
190: Writing that tricky second series - with J. M. Simpson
01:33:18|It's always lovely to catch up with our guests on The Hobcast Book Show. We first spoke to author J.M. Simpson on episode #103, and eighty-seven episodes later she's back to discuss how Jo has developed her existing Castleby series, but how she's also poised to launch a new crime series based in the Highlands of Scotland and a mountain rescue team that operates there. We discuss how Jo's established audience has influenced the direction of her work, and we look at the challenges of balancing a busy day-to-day life with the demands of being an indie author.Also this week, Adrian and Rebecca run through the newly published Top 10 list of Kindle authors in the UK. Six on the list are crime authors, and three have been guests on this podcast! J.M. Simpson | Author of drama and suspense novels (jmsimpsonauthor.co.uk)Buy the Castleby series by J.M. Simpson here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sea-State-Castleby-Book-1-ebook/dp/B09L6W5XJL
189: Born to teach - and write - with James Murphy
01:42:10|We're heading back to Belfast for the second time in three episodes of The Hobcast Book Show to meet author James Murphy. James is the author of the Terror Trilogy crime series which follow the adventures of Mark Shaw, who inherits Farset Investigations based in the Falls Road. As James tells us, he draws heavily on his memories of growing up in the West Belfast area. His new series will be published by Spellbound next year. James is also a creative writing tutor, both in Belfast and at Liverpool's Edge Hill University. Remarkably, he became a head teacher at the age of just 28, and as he tells us, that challenging role has given him plenty of insights that feed his fiction. James has also presented his own crime podcast, as well as a weekly radio show, Crime Scene. This is a fascinating conversation.Also this week, we answer a question posed by listener Hannah Bainbridge - should authors aid AI narration systems by offering clearer emotional prompts in their fiction? You perhaps won't be surprised by Adrian and Rebecca's reaction...https://www.jamesmurphywriter.org/https://www.amazon.co.uk/stores/James-Murphy/author/B07W5JBWGK
188: Submarines and sci-fi - with Valeriya Salt
01:19:34|One half of The Hobcast Book Show team is a submarine obsessive. So imagine Adrian's delight when he learned that our guest this week, Russian author Valeriya Salt, shares that passion. Her debut novel, Dive Beyond Eternity, is a sci-fi adventure partly set on a German wartime Type 23 U-Boat which is discovered undamaged on the floor of the North Sea fifty years after the war ends. It's an intriguing premise, as the sub contains secret Nazi technology that threatens the future of the world. As Valeriya explains, her interest in submarines runs in the family - her mother served in Russia's Black Sea fleet. But how has Valeriya dealt with the challenges of writing a novel in English, her second language?Also this week, we report on more efforts by the Society of Authors to hold the mega-tech companies to account over the use of copyrighted material in AI systems, and we celebrate the success of fellow UK indie publishers, Blue Moose Books.https://www.amazon.co.uk/Dive-Beyond-Eternity-Sci-fi-Thriller-ebook/dp/B0CB78M7NM
187: The secrets within; exploring domestic noir - with Alison Irving
01:23:13|Just long would you be prepared to endure a difficult marriage? How many years of mind games could you take? That's the dilemma facing Laura in Alison Irving's debut novel, Casual Cruelties, which was published by Bloodhound Books last year. As Alison is keen to stress to us from her home near Belfast, she is not writing from personal experience, but she did conduct extensive research in creating the world of her characters. Her second novel, Her Best Friend's Husband has just been published, and again it delves into the hidden darkness that can be masked by the outward trappings of a happy marriage and family life. As Alison tells us, she's so fulfilled by her writing experiences that she's chosen to change direction in her life - from a physiotherapist working in palliative care in a hospice - to writing full time.Also this week, Adrian and Rebecca discuss the revelations within a chart celebrating the 50th anniversary of The Sunday Times bestseller list. Which books spent most time in the top 10? The answers are quite surprising, and for fiction fans, not that encouraging!https://www.amazon.co.uk/Casual-Cruelties-nail-biting-domestic-suspense-breathtaking-ebook/dp/B0CHMNHBRLhttps://www.amazon.co.uk/Her-Best-Friends-Husband-nail-biting-ebook/dp/B0D6RMNLP6