Do you love historical fiction? I have to admit to being a sucker for a different time and place – and both are on offer in Mary-Lou Stephens’ latest novel, The Hobart Hotel. In this episode, Mary-Lou discusses her unique approach to research and the challenges of writing about Uruguay in the 1940s, as well as why she loves writing historical fiction so much.

00:00 Welcome
06:03 Writers in the Wild
10:08 Writing tip: Find balance in your creative life
13:15 WIN!: The Secret Lives of Murderers’ Wives by Elizabeth Arnott
15:07 Word of the week: ’Patalous’
15:45 Writer in residence: Mary-Lou Stephens
17:19 Describing The Hobart Hotel
19:16 Inspiration and research
20:57 The dual timeline process
22:36 Capturing the Uruguay wartime vibe
27:24 Why Historical Fiction?
30:32 Mary-Lou’s ‘slow travel’ writing life
34:40 Writing while traveling
37:17 Memoir and meditation
43:10 What’s next?
44:58 Promoting her books
46:07 Final thoughts

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OMG, I adored Katie Hoskins’ debut novel, When the Party’s Over! In so many ways, it’s the PERFECT book – nailing structure and narrative to tell a nuanced and contemporary story. In this episode, Katie talks about the path that took her from beginner to a two-book Pan Macmillan deal, including the AWC courses that helped her hone her structure, subplot, distinct voices and more.

00:00 Welcome
09:33 Writing tip: Don’t avoid the tough scenes
11:43 WIN!: When Lemons Give You Life by Anna Johnston
14:12 Word of the week: ’Imprimatur’
14:45 Writer in residence: Katie Hoskins
16:12 Plot and inspiration for When the Party’s Over
20:23 Dreaming of being an author
21:16 From journalism to fiction
22:58 AWC courses that sparked the shift
25:01 Writing her novel
26:22 The usefulness of workshopping
27:11 Nailing story structure
29:57 Balancing subplot arcs
33:01 Distinct voices
36:06 Landing the book deal
39:30 Advice for aspiring writers
42:29 Final thoughts

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Connect with Valerie and listeners in the podcast community on Facebook
Visit WritersCentre.com.au | ValerieKhoo.com

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Australian bestselling crime author Sarah Barrie has a dozen books to her name, with her latest standalone thriller Dark Sanctuary, exploring the nuanced world of mental health support, prisons and more. In this episode, Sarah shares the serendipitous inspiration for this novel, the research process and POV choices she made, as well as turning back the clock to give insights into her equally serendipitous start into the world of writing!

00:00 Welcome
07:35 Writing tip: Put your writing out there!
10:20 WIN!: The Couples Retreat by Mercedes Mercier
13:06 Word of the week: ’Crepuscular’
13:38 Writer in residence: Sarah Barrie
14:49 Dark Sanctuary overview
15:46 Inspiration and themes
17:59 Three POV structure
19:11 Podcast character angle
20:49 Setting and research
21:45 Prisons – psychology and programs
24:34 Research and the findings
25:30 Writing the detective character
27:47 Editing and deadlines
28:20 Farm life writing
30:07 Mental health themes
32:59 Sarah’s origin story
34:56 Publishing breakthrough
38:50 Advice for writers
40:16 What’s next?
41:29 Final thoughts

Read the show notes

Connect with Valerie and listeners in the podcast community on Facebook
Visit WritersCentre.com.au | ValerieKhoo.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.