Page One - The Writer's Podcast

Stuart MacBride is the Sunday Times No.1 bestselling author of the Logan McRae and Ash Henderson novels. He’s also published standalones, novellas, and short stories, as well as a slightly twisted children’s picture book for slightly twisted children. His latest book, This House of Burning Bones, is out now.Despite some technical difficulties (explained at the start!) we enjoyed chatting with Stuart and hearing about how he loves the thrill of the blank page and how every story starts with him writing the cover copy for the novel. We also chat about true crime and the danger of sensationalising it, as well as whether he prefers writing long-running series or standalones.Links:Buy Stuart's books nowVisit Stuart's websiteSupport us on Patreon and get great benefits!: https://www.patreon.com/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 FacebookFollow us on InstagramFollow us on BlueskyFollow us on Threads

Watch this episode as a full video interview on our YouTube channelAndrew Hunter Murray is a writer, broadcaster and comedian. He co-hosts the award-winning podcast No Such Thing As A Fish, which has received 500 million downloads and toured the world. He also writes jokes and journalism for Private Eye magazine, hosts the Eye's podcast Page 94, presents BBC Radio 4’s Friday night comedy The Naked Week, and spent 14 years writing BBC2’s QI.His first novel, The Last Day, was a Sunday Times Top 10 bestseller, and one of the top 10 fiction debuts of 2020; his second, The Sanctuary, was a Waterstones Thriller of the Month; and his third, A Beginner’s Guide to Breaking and Entering, was shortlisted for the Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize for comic literature.We had a great time speaking with Andrew all about how he got into writing for TV and Private Eye, and how that differs from writing fiction. We also discuss why his first two books were more speculative, with the latest being more humorous. Plus, we strangle a few metaphors along the way...Links:Buy Andrew's books nowFollow Andrew on BlueskySupport us on Patreon and get great benefits!: https://www.patreon.com/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 FacebookFollow us on InstagramFollow us on BlueskyFollow us on Threads

Julian Simpson is a London-based writer and director known for his work across film, TV, and audio, including on Spooks, Hustle, Hotel Babylon, New Tricks, and Doctor Who. He’s also the co-founder of Storypunk and the creator of acclaimed audio dramas like The Lovecraft Investigations. He is currently running a Kickstarter for the next chapter of The Lovecraft Investigations, focusing on 20th Century occultist, Aleister Crowley.We had great fun chatting with Julian and hearing about how he first got started in TV and film, as well as hearing about the project he very nearly made with a huge Hollywood star. He tells us why he moved to audio, and how he came up with the idea for the acclaimed Lovecraft Investigations series, and the future plans for that series.Links:Back The Lovecraft Investigations on KickstarterFollow Julian on BlueskyVisit Julian's websiteSupport us on Patreon and get great benefits!: https://www.patreon.com/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 FacebookFollow us on InstagramFollow us on BlueskyFollow us on Threads

Watch this episode as a full video interview on YouTubeElif Shafak is an award-winning British-Turkish novelist and storyteller, whose 21 books—translated into 58 languages—include The Island of Missing Trees, 10 Minutes 38 Seconds in this Strange World, and The Forty Rules of Love. A fellow and Vice President of the Royal Society of Literature, she holds a PhD in political science, has taught at Oxford University, and is a celebrated voice for women's rights, LGBTQ+ rights, and freedom of expression. Her latest book, There Are Rivers in the Sky, is out in paperback now.We loved speaking with Elif and hearing about how and why she moved from writing in Turkish to English, and how she found the transition. We also speak about censorship, including the need to not self-censor as you write, and how she uses her writing to explore important and topical themes.Links:Buy Elif's books nowFollow Elif on InstagramVisit Elif's websiteSupport us on Patreon and get great benefits!: https://www.patreon.com/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 FacebookFollow us on InstagramFollow us on BlueskyFollow us on Threads

Robert is the author of The Tainted Cup, The Divine Cities trilogy and The Founders Trilogy. A Drop of Corruption, the sequel to The Tainted Cup, is out now. His work has received the Edgar Award, the Shirley Jackson Award, and the Phillip K. Dick Citation of Excellence, and he has been shortlisted for the World Fantasy, British Fantasy, and Locus Awards. He also dug a very good french drain in his backyard back in 2019.We had a great chat with Robert, hearing about why he moved into writing fantasy after early award success with other genres, and why he believes it is a framework for any kind of story you want to tell. We also hear why he now plans his novels rather than pantsing as he did before, and we talk about the importance of finding the heart of the story before you start writing.Links:Buy Robert's books nowFollow Robert on BlueskyVisit Robert's websiteSupport us on Patreon and get great benefits!: https://www.patreon.com/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 FacebookFollow us on InstagramFollow us on BlueskyFollow us on ThreadsBuy Tariq's new book, The Midnight King!

On this episode of Drafting Notes, we talk about the importance of research: how it can spur ideas, how to go about it with difficult topics, what to include (and not include) in your writing and much more! And once you have all your notes, how do you organise them?Drafting Notes is a new series of podcast episodes in which one award-winning writer (Tariq) and one hopefully soon-to-be-published writer (Marco) discuss various writing issues as they occur to them! Drafting Notes episodes are available at least three months early if you join our Patreon - check it out and get this and other great benefits!: https://www.patreon.com/ukpageonehttps://www.patreon.com/ukpageone

Frances White is the Sunday Times bestselling author of Voyage of the Damned, a queer fantasy murder mystery at sea. A Nottingham resident, Frances is a creative writing graduate from Royal Holloway University of London. When not writing, Frances can be found sewing nerdy costumes or researching obscure historical facts. We loved speaking to Frances and hearing about how Voyage of the Damned came to be, and why she thinks it has found such success. We also talk about the importance of queer representation in books, and what it's like to develop a loyal band of fans as an author.Links:Buy Voyage of the Damned nowFollow Frances on InstagramVisit Frances' websiteBuy a ticket for Tariq's book launch of the Midnight KingSupport us on Patreon and get great benefits!: https://www.patreon.com/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 FacebookFollow us on InstagramFollow us on BlueskyFollow us on Threads

On this episode, we are talking about how to deal with those days that every writer has when you just aren't feeling it. What do you do if you are doubting what you've written? Push through or stubbornly try and fix it? We offer our thoughts and possible solutions - some more serious than others!Drafting Notes is a new series of podcast episodes in which one award-winning writer (Tariq) and one hopefully soon-to-be-published writer (Marco) discuss various writing issues as they occur to them! Drafting Notes and Page One - The Writer's Podcast are 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 Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/ukpageone.bsky.socialFollow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ukPageOneFollow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ukpageone/Follow us on Threads: https://www.threads.net/@ukpageone

David Hewson’s novels have been translated worldwide, from Italian to Japanese, with his debut, Semana Santa, filmed with Mira Sorvino. His work spans Italy, Spain, Denmark, and Amsterdam, including the Nic Costa series in Rome, the Pieter Vos books in Amsterdam, and his adaptations of The Killing in Copenhagen. A former journalist for The Times and The Sunday Times, he turned to fiction full-time in 2005. His latest book, When the Germans Come, is out now.We had a great chat with David, hearing how he began his career in journalism before moving into the world of fiction. We talk about all the different types of novels he has written, from historical to contemporary crime, as well his adaptations of series such as The Killing. We also chat about how he approaches writing his historical fiction, and why enjoys writing for audio as well.Links:Buy David's books nowFollow David on BlueskyVisit David's websitePre-Order The Midnight King by Tariq!