Author's Afterword

Charlie and Samantha Sotto Yambao (Water Moon) discuss her UK debut - yay! - exploring the concepts of fate and choice, the process of evolving the romance, and, we catch up on the lives of Sam's dogs. A transcript is available on my site General references: Ticket link for the podcast live events Sam joined me to discuss The Beginning of Always in episode 50 Sam joined me to discuss Before Ever After, Love and Gravity, and A Dream of Trees in episode 5 Books mentioned by name or extensively: David and Leigh Eddings: The Belgariad J R R Tolkien: Return Of The King Samantha Sotto: Before Ever After Samantha Sotto: Love And Gravity Samantha Sotto: A Dream Of Trees Samantha Sotto Yambao: Water Moon Release details: recorded 11th February 2025; published 9th June 2025 Where to find Sam online: Website || Facebook || Instagram Where to find Charlie online: Website || Instagram || TikTok Discussions 03:38 This being Sam's UK debut; how it came about 07:32 The inspirations - Ninenzaka in Kyoto 10:28 Expanding on the pawnshop concept in terms of Water Moon's look at fate and choice 12:56 Sam's interest in putting science and fantasy and magical realism together 15:07 Neutrinos! 17:24 When in the process do you research? 19:01 Creating Hana 23:05 Writing about the loss of mothers 25:40 The romance in terms of when Keishin was included 31:19 The bad guys of the book 34:05 All about the ending and Sam's choices 37:17 Charlie brings in Death of the Author 41:06 Doctor Who references 42:19 What's next? 43:03 Asking about Sam's dogs who have made appearances in our previous episodes

Charlie and Amy Jordan (The Dark Hours) discuss the Irish police force, the Garda, in the 1990s, particularly where it involves sexism. They also discuss the effects on a relationship of being a member of the police, and the way trauma can influence extreme actions. A transcript is available on my site General references: The New York Times review (paywall) Books mentioned by name or extensively: Amy Jordan: The Dark Hours Release details: recorded 14th January 2025; published 12th May 2025 Where to find Amy online: Instagram Where to find Charlie online: Website || Twitter || Instagram || TikTok Discussions 01:31 The inspiration 03:19 Writing Julia and exploring the effects of what she's been through 09:21 Exploring trauma and its effects 14:22 The pacing 18:49 More about how Amy included Julia's husband and what he goes through as a result of her career, which includes talking about people Amy knows 23:26 Where Julia says, "Call me Julia" 25:22 The misogyny and the Garda in general in the 1990s 32:36 Brendon and his Morse Code 35:08 Creating the fictional villages, and Amy's spooky story of a real house 38:33 Minor details of book 2, including where Amy will take Julia and Philip's relationship

Charlie and Amy Engel (I Did It For You) discuss her literary thriller wherein the killer did it but it isn't that simple, wherein both the victim's and killer's families are given empathy, and wherein the sister of the victim and the brother of the killer start a romance. Please note that whilst there are no references to detailed violence, this episode looks at various issues surrounding murder cases. A transcript is available on my site General references: It was indeed Elmore Leonard who said, "You take out the parts that people skip when they're reading". This link has more information. Books mentioned by name or extensively: Amy Engel: The Familiar Dark Amy Engel: I Did It For You Release details: recorded 17th December 2024; published 28th April 2025 Where to find Amy online: Website || Twitter || Instagram || Facebook Where to find Charlie online: Website || Twitter || Instagram || TikTok Discussions 01:15 The inspiration - location and character 02:37 Creating Greer 04:50 Creating Ludlow and the well-drawn townspeople 07:53 How Amy works with secrets and reveals 09:24 How was it writing Greer in terms of her being an unreliable narrator? 11:10 The different extra narratives 12:33 Roy, the killer's, difference, his potential neurodivergence, and the importance of looking at this 15:41 Did you ever consider not having Roy 'do' it? 17:33 The grief in the book, including a look at the different sets of parents 19:46 Including Dean and humanising the family of the murderer 22:30 Amy tells us more about how her career in law influenced her writing 24:35 The slower pacing, which isn't so usual for a thriller, and how Amy categorises her novels. We then move on to what Amy added to the novel in editing 27:59 Amy's thought process and planning in regards to the bad guy (different person to the killer) 34:03 Amy deciding to end Greer and Dean's romance 36:29 Where Greer and Dean may end up, separately, beyond the pages of the book. We then move on to Greer's parents in the same vein 39:03 What Amy is writing and planning now

Charlie and Nydia Hetherington (Sycorax) discuss the witch Shakespeare's Prospero hates so much and Nydia's reimagining slash prequel to The Tempest. This involves conversation about chronic illness, attitudes to women in regards to the occult, and on a seemingly unrelated subject, the tendency of pirates to leave problematic people on isolated islands. A transcript is available on my site General references: W H Auden: The Sea And The Mirror Books mentioned by name or extensively: Libby Colman: Trixie - The Childhood Of Sycorax, Witch Of Algiers Margaret Atwood: Hag-Seed Marina Warner: Indigo Nydia Hetherington: A Girl Made Of Air Nydia Hetherington: Sycorax Tad Williams: Caliban's Hour William Shakespeare: The Tempest Release details: recorded 4th December 2024; published 14th April 2025 Where to find Nydia online: Website || Instagram Where to find Charlie online: Website || Instagram || TikTok Discussions 01:20 The initial inspirations - theatre and Nydia's chronic condition 10:23 Research and inspirations in regards to other adaptations 12:58 More on Nydia's dedication to Shakespearean writing 13:58 Disability and women being witches put together 20:01 The good women in the book, Yemma and Zari 24:11 Including Barbarossa the pirate and the way pirates left criminals isolated 28:26 Afalkey the Beautiful and charming men 30:05 The role the Crow plays 32:48 What Nydia is writing at the moment 34:30 Nydia's William Blake novel she mentioned earlier

Charlie and Gill Paul (Scandalous Women) discuss Jackie Collins, Jacqueline Susann, and the way the 1960s publishing industry treated women. A transcript is available on my site General references: My other episodes with Gill are 42 and 86 The Love Machine (movie) Some of Richard Osman's words on the subject can be found here Once Upon A Time In America Lady Boss trailer Mad Men Feud: Capote Vs His Swans Cold Blooded: The Clutter Family Murders I spoke to Èric Chacour in episode 115 The three books with a Mira in them were Eliza Chan's Fathomfolk, Èric Chacour's What I Know About You, and Rebecca Yarros' Fourth Wing Books mentioned by name or extensively: Dale Carnegie: How To Win Friends And Influence People Gill Paul: Another Woman's Husband Gill Paul: The Second Marriage (Jackie And Maria) Gill Paul: A Beautiful Rival Gill Paul: Scandalous Women Helen Gurley Brown: Sex And The Single Girl Ian McEwan: On Chesil Beach Jackie Collins: The World Is Full Of Married Men Jacqueline Susann: Valley Of The Dolls Jacqueline Susann: The Love Machine Letty Cottin Pogrebin: How To Make It In A Man's World Truman Capote: In Cold Blood Buy the books: UK || USA Release details: recorded 11th October 2024; published 24th March 2025 Where to find Gill online: Website || Twitter || Facebook || Instagram || TikTok Where to find Charlie online: Website || Twitter || Instagram || TikTok Discussions 01:23 Why these women and why now? 03:02 More about Jacqueline Susann and Jackie Collins 04:15 Jacqueline Susann's screen work 05:58 On Gill's having Jacqueline Susann and Jackie Collins meet and support each other 09:06 The murder of Sharon Tate 10:29 Jacqueline's illness and bargaining with God 14:22 About Jackie Collins' marriages 17:28 Creating the fictional character, Nancy 20:55 More on Nancy in regards to the historical misogyny 26:19 Gill's fictional Truman Capote interview and the real stories including the facts behind Capote's In Cold Blood 31:06 Jacqueline Susann's keeping up to date with booksellers' lives 33:31 Nancy's relationships with Stephen and George 35:52 The Cousin, Louise, the drugs and trafficking 37:18 Gill's writing style and how it aligns with Scandalous Women 39:28 Including a small nod to A Beautiful Rival and how Gill includes these in her books in general 41:45 What Gill is writing now Disclosure: If you buy books linked to my site, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops

Charlie and C J Wray (The Excitements) discuss the WW2 women her book about fun-loving nonagenarians is based on and her views on modern and historical adoption as an adoptee herself. We also discuss the Peter Jones (John Lewis) department store, using Morse Code, and Diamond Doris, a jewel-thief who got away with quite a bit. Please note there are a couple of mild swear words in this episode. Please also note we talk of the First Aid Nursing Yeomanry which is commonly shortened to FANY. A transcript is available on my site Tickets to my live show of Friday 4th April can be bought here Sign up to the Author's Afterword newsletter here General references: William Ernest Henley's Invictus poem Long Lost Family The Yoga teacher Chris mentions is Dorothea Barron. It isn't the same lady Charlie mentions, and unfortunately Charlie has been unable to find out who that was. Books mentioned by name or extensively: C J Wray: The Excitements C J Wray: Bad Influence Christian Lamb (with Chris): Beyond The Sea, A Wren At War Don Marquis: Archy and Mehitabel Pam and Jean Owtram (with Chris): Codebreaking Sisters Stella Knightley: The Girl Behind The Mask Stella Knightley: The Girl Behind The Fan Stella Knightley: The Girl Behind The Curtain W E Fairbairn's book: Hands Off! Self Defense For Women And Girls Buy the books: UK || USA Release details: recorded 26th September 2024; published 10th March 2025 Where to find Chris online: Website (as C J Wray) || Website (Chrissie Manby) || Instagram Where to find Charlie online: Website || Twitter || Instagram || TikTok Discussions 02:05 About Pat and Jean Owtram, the two sisters who inspired The Excitements 04:04 About the inspiration for Penny's stealing, Diamond Doris 07:25 Using the Peter Jones department store 09:05 All about Archie 10:20 Toujours gai! 11:43 How Chris went about the writing itself 14:13 The Invictus poem and Fairbairn book 16:53 Chris' use of Morse Code 19:16 Davinia and Sister Eugenia, and we then move on to Arlene 22:52 Chris talks about adoptions both historical and modern and her views on it as an adoptee herself 28:20 Did Chris consider having Penny and Josephine defeat the gunman? 29:03 Frank's choice not to send Penny back to into the field 31:59 About Chris' next book, Bad Influence 34:51 Chris once wrote a 90,000 page book in 2 months! Disclosure: If you buy books linked to my site, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops

Charlie is joined by Alex Hay, Lucy Barker, Stacey Thomas, and a wonderful audience at Goldfinch Books in Alton. You want a writing deep dive? You've got it! Please note that this episode has a whispered swear word in it - we were all adults! The next live event will be at P&G Wells in Winchester on Friday 4th April. Tickets are available here If you can't click the link, go to pgwells.co.uk Full show notes and a transcript to follow shortly. The video of the main conversation is on YouTube here

Charlie and Maggie Brookes (The Prisoner's Wife) discuss her stunning story which was inspired by a real happening - a woman who hid in plain sight as a British soldier in a prisoner of war camp. A transcript is available on my site General references: Maggie's previous episode with me is episode 92 Now The War Is Over Time Watch All Our Working Lives The Sphinx, Maggie's poem version of The Prisoner's Wife Colditz The party episode with Maggie is Milestone 01 (also with Elizabeth Fremantle, Gill Paul, and Amanda Geard) Books mentioned by name or extensively: Charlotte Brontë: Jane Eyre Maggie Brookes: The Prisoner's Wife Maggie Brookes-Butt: Wish John Nichol and Tony Rennell: The Last Escape Buy the books: UK || USA Release details: recorded 23rd September 2024; published 24th February 2025 Where to find Maggie online: Website || Twitter || Instagram Where to find Charlie online: Website || Twitter || Instagram || TikTok Discussions 01:29 The inspiration - a woman who hid as a man in a Nazi prisoner of war camp and how real it might be 09:49 How Maggie's work as a BBC producer helped her write The Prisoner's Wife 11:49 How the book started as a poem and then Maggie's journey to Czechia to do research into the Long March 20:19 The inspiration of Maggie's father, a prisoner of war who never spoke about his experience 26:58 What Maggie cut from the novel 28:52 Izzy's character development, language progression, and 'Algernon Cousins' 34:38 Adding in Bill's chapters later 36:53 Ralph and his fate being left open 41:24 Scotty's character and his sacrifice 43:28 The real Rosa Rauchbach and her lover 44:32 What are you writing now? Photo credit: Lyn Gregory Disclosure: If you buy books linked to my site, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops

Charlie and Éric Chacour (What I Know About You) discuss Egypt in the 1970s for the Levantine community and LGBT people, the famous French-Egyptian singer Dalida, Romeo and Juliet, Éric's use of the second person, and author and translator working together on writing that had been in place for 15 years. A transcript is available on my site General references: Dalida's Helwa ya Baladi Books mentioned by name or extensively: Éric Chacour: What I Know About You Buy the books: UK || USA Release details: recorded 20th September 2024; published 10th February 2025 Where to find Éric online: Facebook || Instagram Where to find Charlie online: Website || Twitter || Instagram || TikTok Discussions 02:09 Éric's initial inspiration, Romeo and Juliet, for What I Know About You (he'd been writing the book for years) 05:18 The writing itself, including the use of the second person (Charlie has pointed out Éric's dedication to syllables and language) and the translation 10:31 The political backdrop, the use of it, and the decades chosen 13:29 The time period in terms of the LGBT community and Tarek's choices in that context 14:55 Entangled protons and love 16:25 Could Tarek have stayed with his family? 18:24 More on reader's interpretations and reactions 20:53 Nesrine and Mira and their importance 26:35 The servant, Fatheya 29:16 Talking of the impossibility of another point of view and the ending 31:20 Éric tells us why he included Vivienne 33:11 More about theatrical inspirations, and then we get on to how Éric wanted to be a songwriter 37:44 Dalida 39:22 Should we blame the grandmother? 41:54 Reality and fiction in terms of Rafik's narrative owing much to imagination and interpretation 45:41 What's next? Photo credit: Justine Latour Disclosure: If you buy books linked to my site, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops

Charlie and Edward Carey (Edith Holler) talk at length about the arts and the theatre in the context of his book and in general. They also talk about Norwich as Edward's book is his love letter to the city. Please note there is a mild swear word in this episode. A transcript is available on my site General references: Edward's previous episode on this podcast is number 52 Wikipedia's article on Norwich Robert Louis Stevenson's essay on toy theatres is called A Penny Plain And Twopence Coloured and is available on Project Gutenberg The downloadable theatre on Edward's website (scroll down, on the left) Luigi Pirandello's Six Characters In Search Of An Author My episode with Melissa Fu is number 59 Books mentioned by name or extensively: Edward Carey: Edith Holler Gaston Le Roux: The Phantom Of The Opera Jeanette Winterson: The Passion Julian Of Norwich: Revelations Of Divine Love Robert Louis Stevenson: Memories And Portraits Xavier de Maistre: Voyage Around My Room Buy the books: UK || USA Release details: recorded 2nd September 2024; published 27th January 2025 Where to find Edward online: Website || Twitter || Facebook || Instagram Where to find Charlie online: Website || Twitter || Instagram || TikTok Discussions 01:29 The starting point of Edith Holler - lockdown, not being able to go to the theatre, and Brexit. We then move on to the fictional missing children in the book 05:22 Norwich as both a location and inspiration 12:01 Further notes on creating Edith herself, and then we discuss interpretations 18:41 More on the drawings and card theatre 21:05 The other characters 25:10 The Iron Curtain that separates theatre crew and theatre goers 29:01 The language of the novel 30:37 Was there something in particular that lead to you setting the book in the Edwardian period? 33:23 Being in Edith's head 34:27 Beetle Spread! 38:30 Did you ever consider having Edith leave the theatre? 39:20 The undercrofts and the importance of moving the story underground. We then continue on to discuss further theatrical influences on both the novel and ourselves 47:12 The photograph of a woman at the very end of the book 48:59 Edward explains why he won't tell us about what he's currently working on Photo credit: Elizabeth McCracken Disclosure: If you buy books linked to my site, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops

For live show tickets, click here Charlie and Chloe C Peñaranda (The Stars Are Dying) discuss the incident wherein her heroine stabs the hero, getting around her hero's ability to run amok via deus ex machina, and becoming a hybrid author after success as a self-published writer. Please note there are brief mentions of abuse in this episode. A transcript is available on my site General references: Chloe's TikTok Books mentioned by name or extensively: Chloe C Peñaranda: An Heir Comes To Rise Chloe C Peñaranda: A Throne From The Ashes Chloe C Peñaranda: A Sword From The Embers Chloe C Peñaranda: The Stars An Dying Chloe C Peñaranda: The Night Is Defying Sarah J Maas: A Court Of Thorns And Roses Buy the books: UK || USA Release details: recorded 24th October 2024; published 13th January 2025 Where to find Chloe online: Website || Facebook || Instagram || TikTok Where to find Charlie online: Website || Twitter || Instagram || TikTok Discussions 01:36 Was romantasy the genre you'd been waiting for? 02:55 The initial thought for The Stars Are Dying - Greek myths and Chloe's series An Heir Comes To Rise, and we talk about potential spin-off series 06:34 Why Chloe chose the second iteration of Nyte and Astraea's relationship to focus on instead of the first 08:04 On having a general direction or goal in mind for The Stars Are Dying 08:49 Creating Astraea and Nyte 10:26 Using a slow burn romance 11:45 Getting around the potential deus ex machina of Nyte's powers 13:07 Deciding when to give readers answers as to Astraea's mental state and so on 14:33 The inclusion of amnesia and abuse 15:44 The Libertatum 17:55 The planning before putting pen to paper 19:21 Discussing Astrea's stabbing of Nyte 20:53 Slight notes on the crossover between The Stars Are Dying and An Heir Comes To Rise 23:54 On Cassia's role 25:06 Drystan 25:38 About The Night Is Defying 27:06 How fans of An Heir Comes To Rise have responded to The Stars Are Dying 28:38 Being, now, a hybrid author 30:13 How the traditional publishing deal came about 32:19 On getting a house and garden for her dogs following the publishing deal 33:37 Ideas Chloe is considering for her next work Photo credit: Caroline Anne Disclosure: If you buy books linked to my site, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops

Charlie and Eliza Chan (Fathomfolk) discuss many questions of immigration in both reality and her fantasy fiction, the different mythological creatures she used and decisions in regards to location inspiration, and Fathomfolk's controversial ending. Please note there is a spoiler in this episode for N K Jemisin's The Fifth Season. For live show tickets, click here. A transcript is available on my site General references: The Witcher Jessica Jones The Untamed Books mentioned by name or extensively: Eliza Chan: Fathomfolk Eliza Chan: Tideborn N K Jemisin: The Fifth Season R F Kuang: Babel Rhonda Parrish (ed.): Sirens Buy the books: UK || USA Release details: recorded 14th August 2024; published 23rd December 2024 Where to find Eliza online: Website || Instagram Where to find Charlie online: Website || Twitter || Instagram || TikTok Discussions 02:25 The initial inspirations 04:34 More about the topic of immigration 06:57 World building and the world outside of Tiankawi 09:05 Creating Mira, Nami, and Cordelia 14:56 Having started with one narrative and changing it to three 17:44 Using different countries' mythologies, originally planning to set Fathomfolk in a British city, and the possibility of historical settings 25:25 Kai's significance and his relationship with Mira 28:59 Writing and pacing 31:23 Eliza's 'use' of The Drawbacks and the response to the book 37:06 The Onseon engine 39:20 Dragon pearls 42:25 The themes of motherhood and friendship 46:18 The use of gods 49:46 The controversial ending! 51:25 Book two, Tideborn 52:23 Harbour Of Hungry Ghosts 53:52 The game of Wulan Photo credit: Sandi Hodkinson Disclosure: If you buy books linked to my site, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops

First live show details Guests: Alex Hay (The Queen Of Fives; The Housekeepers), Stacey Thomas (The Revels), Lucy Barker (The Other Side Of Mrs Wood) Date: Wednesday 26th February Location: Goldfinch Books, Alton, Hampshire Ticket link: https://bit.ly/3Das5kn Accessibility: Both the shop itself and the toilets are accessible.

Charlie and Elaine Chiew (The Light Between Us) discuss early 20th century Singaporean photography and its influences on Elaine's novel in depth, which involves looking at social issues and the history of the qipao. We also dive into the time travel aspects and the use of Chinese spirit-mediums. A transcript is available on my site General references: The Lake House (2006) Il Mare (2000) The Young Companion magazine In The Mood For Love Books mentioned by name or extensively: Constance Turnbull: A History Of Singapore Elaine Chiew: The Heartsick Diaspora Elaine Chiew: The Light Between Us Elaine Chiew (ed.): Cooked Up! Kevin Kwan: Crazy Rich Asians Terence Heng: Of Gods, Gifts and Ghosts Spiritual Places in Urban Spaces Viet Thanh Nguyen: The Sympathizer Buy the books: UK || USA Release details: recorded 23rd July 2024; published 9th December 2024 Where to find Elaine online: Website || Twitter || Instagram Where to find Charlie online: Website || Twitter || Instagram || TikTok Discussions 00:02:04 About Elaine's research into early 20th century Singaporean photographs and bringing voices that haven't had a say in fiction to the fore 00:10:28 How important is The Light Between Us's Tian Wei compared to Charlie [the character]? 00:14:48 Working out the time travel and including Charlie's family 00:21:04 How Elaine's career in the creative arts influenced the book, and how women in Singapore used their agency when being photographed 00:35:38 Looking at the smaller moments of war and the lead up to war. Also Elaine's inclusion of the Ghee Hin Kong Si 00:40:19 Aiko's creation and importance in the book 00:47:17 Elaine's writing style and use of punctuation which fascinated our host! 00:52:14 The use of the tangki and all that involved 01:00:59 Brief notes on what Elaine is writing now Disclosure: If you buy books linked to my site, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops

Charlie and Emma Cowell (The Island Love Song) discuss the Greek island of Hydra, reactions from readers in regards to IVF and polyamory plot threads, early onset dementia, and the Parthenon sculptures. A transcript is available on my site General references: Leonard Cohen's Bird On A Wire The photo of the lady in shadow that Emma took The Pirate Bar, Hydra Books mentioned by name or extensively: Emma Cowell: One Last Letter From Greece Emma Cowell: The House In The Olive Grove Emma Cowell: The Island Love Song Emma Cowell: Under The Lemon Tree Buy the books: UK || USA Release details: recorded 9th July 2024; published 25th November 2024 Where to find Emma online: Website || Twitter || Facebook || Instagram Where to find Charlie online: Website || Twitter || Instagram || TikTok Discussions 02:20 The inspiration - the Greek island of Hydra 04:10 The conflict in the book, siblings, and how being on an island makes it more dramatic 06:04 The island as a character 07:41 Why it was important to explore sisterhood and non-chosen family 13:40 Writing Georgia in all her chaos and character progression 18:24 Ella and having to live with your ex having wrote a song about you 20:18 Emma tells us about the songs in the book (they exist!) and her musical background 24:32 Leonard Cohen's influence in terms of Hydra, and Hydra's lack of technology 27:51 Emma's use of the island of Dokos and writing about researching Greek food at The Pirate Bar 34:29 Emma discusses IVF journeys, parenthood, and readers who contact her to thank her for the way she includes fertility and romantic issues. We then move on to a time in Greece where there were very problematic adoptions 40:00 The concept of twin flames 42:32 Emma's inclusion of early onset dementia 48:27 Why Emma set her 'present day' storyline in 2016 - student days and mobile phone usage 51:15 Emma's thoughts on returning the Elgin marbles/Parthenon sculptures 54:05 What's next - the book to be named Under The Lemon Tree. This morphs into a longer conversation about how Emma writes and plots 58:52 What Emma cut from The Island Love Song Disclosure: If you buy books linked to my site, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops

Charlie and Susan Muaddi Darraj (Behind You Is The Sea) discuss the Palestinian Christian community, her immigrant characters and their children, how she used the current conflict in her stories, and the segregation of the working class in Baltimore, Maryland. Please note this episode mentions domestic violence. A transcript is available on my site Books mentioned by name or extensively: Lawrence T Brown: The Black Butterfly Susan Muaddi Darraj: Farah Rocks Fifth Grade Susan Muaddi Darraj: Farah Rocks Summer Break Susan Muaddi Darraj: Farah Rocks New Beginnings Susan Muaddi Darraj: Farah Rocks Florida Susan Muaddi Darraj: Behind You Is The Sea Buy the books: UK || USA Release details: recorded 25th June 2024; published 11th November 2024 Where to find Susan online: Website || Twitter || Instagram Where to find Charlie online: Website || Twitter || Instagram || TikTok Discussions 01:49 The initial inspiration for Behind You Is The Sea - Susan's character, Marcus Salameh 05:01 How poetry runs in Susan's family 07:21 The focus on women and women's worth 09:15 Susan's choices in making most of her characters people from one family 10:36 The story Hashtag - including stories of domestic violence and murder - and how the West would see it 16:13 How Susan doesn't want to be 'nice' to her characters 18:37 The different generations and how they relate to one another, and then we move on to discuss a spin-off novel that Susan is writing 23:55 Where the title, Behind You Is The Sea, came from 26:16 How Palestinian Muslims and Palestinian Christians live peacefully together in Palestine 31:13 Segregation in Baltimore 35:53 The way Susan included the current Arab-Israeli conflict in the book 37:35 What's next - Susan's current works in progress, including her work for children Disclosure: If you buy books linked to my site, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops

Charlie and Louise Morrish discuss the extensive efforts the latter went to in order to be published, the networking she did prior to that, and how she's giving back to the writing community. Please note there is a very mild swear word at the end of this episode. A transcript is available on my site General references: Goldfinch Books Owner Gary is Gary Clark of The Interland series Books mentioned by name or extensively: Louise Morrish: Operation Moonlight Louise Morrish: Women Of War The Writer's And Artists' Yearbook Buy the books: UK || USA Release details: recorded 17th July 2024; published 4th November 2024 Where to find Louise online: Website || Twitter || Instagram Where to find Charlie online: Website || Twitter || Instagram || TikTok Discussions 01:11 The early days of Louise's writing and the Faber Academy course 03:54 The importance of networking with others 05:32 Struggling to get anywhere, submitting to the Penguin Random House First Novel Competition, and winning 12:27 Persevering in the face of rejection 14:30 Class, and, then, novels in the drawer 17:53 The process Louise used when submitting to all the agents and talking about shyness and gaining confidence 27:16 More on the writing groups Louise runs and 'giving back' 31:52 About Louise's books, Operation Moonlight, and Women Of War 37:07 Being a librarian and seeing your own books in the libraries Disclosure: If you buy books linked to my site, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops

Charlie and Mark Stay (The Witches Of Woodville) discuss writing humour into wartime, using period-correct language as well as slang, why community is important and how much we've lost over the decades, and the metric ton of projects he has on the go. Please note there are various uses of very minor curse words. A transcript is available on my site General references: The Bestseller Experiment Claire Burgess' YouTube video about jam roly polyThe Fortean Times Mark's newsletter The Witches Of Woodville website I spoke to Jacquie Bloese in episode 101 I spoke to Lucy Barker in episode 96 A Canterbury Tale (Powell and Pressburger) Went The Day Well Threads The Day After When The Wind Blows Chernobyl The Last Of Us The transcript for Scriptnotes episode 403 Ben Aaronovitch's episode on The Bestseller Experiment Unwelcome Nautilus Books mentioned by name or extensively: Becky Brown: Blitz Spirit C K McDonnell: The Stranger Times Constance Miles: Mrs Miles's Diary Dennis Knight: Harvest Of Messerschmitts Mark Stay: The Crow Folk Mark Stay: Babes In The Wood Mark Stay: The Ghost Of Ivy Barn Mark Stay: The Holly King Mark Stay: The Corn Bride Mark Stay: The End Of Magic Mark Stay: The End Of Dragons Mark Stay and Mark Oliver: Back To Reality Nella Last: Nella Last's War Buy the books: UK || USA Release details: recorded 19th June 2024; published 28th October 2024 Where to find Mark online: Website || Twitter || Facebook || Instagram || TikTok Where to find Charlie online: Website || Twitter || Instagram || TikTok Discussions 02:25 Where the series might go in terms of number of books 03:14 Jam roly poly, getting bell ringing correct, and the forthcoming inclusion of the Morris Dancers in a pivotal role 05:34 The very first beginnings of the Witches of Woodville series 10:05 All about Faye and her relative immaturity 13:10 Widening the scope beyond humour to be more serious 16:02 Creating Miss Charlotte and Mrs Teach 18:10 Does Mark have future plots in mind? 18:49 The characters of the community of Woodville, starting with a question about the librarian 22:45 On Bertie's Battle of Britain diary 26:35 The language in the books - repetitions, and old-fashioned phrases 30:34 Mark's inclusion of the work of German artist, Hannah Höch 32:57 Grief as a theme 36:39 Miss Charlotte's sight and not wanting to make people invincible 41:19 Mark's use of real people in the series, and where you might find pieces of himself in his work. Mark also talks about how we've lost a sense of community 48:05 Mark's time co-hosting The Bestseller Experiment Podcast, why he moved on, and the various projects he's planning 53:54 More about Mark's current film project Disclosure: If you buy books linked to my site, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops

Charlie and Jessica Bull (Miss Austen Investigates) discuss Jane Austen! The mysteries in her books, what and how she read, her likely views on slavery, her forgotten brother, the proposals of marriage she received (there were many!), and her life in her birthplace of Steventon. A transcript is available on my site General references: Charlie said she'd find info on the yew tree, here's Jessica Bull's Instagram reel on St Nicholas' Church Books mentioned by name or extensively: Ann Radcliffe: The Mysteries Of Udolpho Charlotte Lennox: The Female Quixote Claire Tomalin: Jane Austen: A Life Daniel Livesay: Children Of Uncertain Fortune Deirdre Le Faye (ed.) Jane Austen's Letters Frances Burney: Camilla Frances Burney: Cecelia James Edward Austen-Leigh: A Memoir Of Jane Austen Jane Austen: Sense And Sensibility Jane Austen: Pride And Prejudice Jane Austen: Northanger Abbey Jane Austen: Sanditon Jessica Bull: Miss Austen Investigates (The Hapless Milliner) Jessica Bull: Miss Austen Investigates: A Fortune Most Fatal Lucy Worsley: Jane Austen At Home Henry James: Tom Jones Margaret Edgeworth: Belinda Matthew Gregory Lewis: The Monk PD James: Death Comes To Pemberley Buy the books: UK || USA Release details: recorded 29th April 2024; published 14th October 2024 Where to find Jessica online: Twitter || Instagram || TikTok Where to find Charlie online: Website || Twitter || Instagram || TikTok Discussions 02:35 Jessica's love of and study of Jane Austen 05:30 Expanding on Jessica's statement that a lot of Austen involves mystery 10:45 Were you ever worried about how people might view your Jane Austen, her silliness? 17:15 The importance of including, in the novel, what Jane Austen was reading 21:11 Where Cowper, Austen's favourite poet, comes into it, and we begin to discuss Austen's views of slavery and abolition, and Jessica's response to such 27:04 The price of books in those days! 28:51 We discuss a ton about Steventon, Austen's birth place - Jessica's recreation of the house and our own visits to the location 32:57 Talking about the other family members, including Anna and, particularly, George and what we know about him 39:34 About the people Jessica had to cut from the book and how she's going to go forward in terms of including people later in the series 41:52 All about Jessica's fictional letters and the allusions to the real ones 45:22 What Jessica believes about Austen and Tom Lefroy's relationship and Austen's love live in general 49:53 Changing real events to suit the novel, as well as Austen's agency, and locations 53:20 Jessica's time in Hampshire, seeing Chawton and how it inspired her 54:57 About book 2, A Fortune Most Fatal, and the fraudster Princess Caraboo 58:04 Brief notes on how many books may be in the series Photo credit: Cassie Burac Disclosure: If you buy books linked to my site, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops