Mike Shackle returns to the podcast to celebrate Until The Last, the final part of his epic fantasy series The Last War. We’ve been following Mike’s journey since he was inspired by our first Joe Abercrombie episode to pick up the pen and start writing again, through to his deal with Gollancz, and now to conclude the series. Mike tells us how he’s only just getting started. And the Two Marks discuss Mr Stay’s launch party and how it all nearly went horribly wrong... Our novel Back To Reality is out now bestsellerexperiment.com/backtoreality
Sarai Walker’s debut novel Dietland was smash hit and made into an AMC TV series, and now she returns with The Cherry Robbers, a twisted, dark gothic novel. Sarai tells us how the novel was inspired by real people and history and how she loves writing fiction that is subversive but “wrapped in a pretty package”. And the Two Marks discuss Mr Stay’s book launch and his unboxing videos, and how to haggle the best deal from a publisher. Please note: there’s no video of the Two Marks on Youtube this week due to broadband issues, but there is video with Sarai’s interview. Our novel Back To Reality is out now bestsellerexperiment.com/backtoreality
Between 1998 and 2016 David Lee Stone wrote fantasy and YA books for some of the biggest publishers in the world. David discovered the hard way that a big author advance is not always a good thing. David tells us about the dark side of the dream in an incredibly honest and eye-opening interview. But he’s back and on his own terms with his own publisher and The Vanquish Trilogy, and he proves that persistence pays off and that there is always hope. Our novel Back To Reality is out now bestsellerexperiment.com/backtoreality
Lizzy Barber’s critically acclaimed debut novel My Name is Anna won the Daily Mail First Novel competition, and her latest thriller Out of Her Depth is a Richard and Judy book club selection. Lizzy's journey has taken her from winning a Disney writing competition when she was ten, to the Royal Shakespeare Company, to one of the must-read books of the summer. And Mr Stay takes delivery of his new book and gives it a sniff. Our novel Back To Reality is out now bestsellerexperiment.com/backtoreality
Patricia Gibney has sold over 2 million copies of her Detective Lottie Parker books, and readers worldwide love her stories, but her career started at a very tough time in her life. Patricia left her job of thirty years and was able to work through grief and reignite her love of writing through journaling and drawing. And, post-interview, the Two Marks discuss being brave enough to ask stupid questions. Which they’re both very good at. Our novel Back To Reality is out now bestsellerexperiment.com/backtoreality
Joanne Harris returns to the podcast with her gripping page-turning thriller A Narrow Door. Joanne answers our listener questions, tells us the importance of human interaction to her writing, why she doesn’t see a distinction between plotting and pantsing, and why ideas are like planets in a solar system. And the Two Marks discuss a chicken-writer analogy that has to be heard to be believed... Our novel Back To Reality is out now bestsellerexperiment.com/backtoreality
Ian Skewis’s debut novel A Murder of Crows became a no.1 bestseller and was long listed for the Guardian’s Not the Booker Prize. Ian tells us how it all began with a traumatic incident from his childhood, how he developed the story in different media for many years before writing the novel. Please note that suicide is discussed in our interview with Ian. If you don’t to hear about that, please skip the first seven minutes of our conversation. Our novel Back To Reality is out now bestsellerexperiment.com/backtoreality
We welcome the wonderful Angela Marsons back to the podcast. Angela is the multi-million bestselling author of the DI Kim Stone series. And she’s back with Six Graves, the 16th book in the series. Despite her mega sales (five million and counting) and a 12-book contract, Angela tells us why she doesn’t take a single book for granted, and why every one she starts feels like the first. She also answers our listener questions and the two Marks discuss the pros and cons of being prolific. Our novel Back To Reality is out now bestsellerexperiment.com/backtoreality
Ian W Sainsbury is the award-winning author of the Jimmy Blue series of thrillers. Ian has just started editing the fourth book in the series and he was kind enough to let us get a sneak peek at his editing process. He fires up ProWriting Aid and shares his screen with us as he gets forensic with his edit. Our novel Back To Reality is out now bestsellerexperiment.com/backtoreality
Louise Hare’s debut This Lovely City was shortlisted for the RSL Ondaatje Prize and Louise was selected for the Observer’s top 10 best debut novelists. She returns with Miss Aldridge Regrets, a murder mystery set aboard the Queen Mary in 1936. Louise discusses how she built the novel up from a short story, and how creating her own routine has helped her hit targets, deadlines and finish her books. “It’s hard to find the discipline when you’ve got all the time in the world…” And the two Marks discuss reader surveys, sleeping habits and what speed people listen back to the podcast at! Our novel Back To Reality is out now bestsellerexperiment.com/backtoreality