Episodes
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Rachel and Simon speak to the novelist and non-fiction writer Dani Shapiro. Dani is the author of 11 books; her memoirs include "Slow Motion", "Devotion", "Still Writing" and "Hourglass". "Inheritance", about the secret that had been hidden from Dani by her parents for more than 50 years, was a bestseller. Dani has also written novels including "Black & White", "Family History" and "Signal Fires"; the latter was named a best book of 2022 by NPR, Time magazine and the Washington Post, among others. Alongside writing, Dani hosts a podcast, "Family Secrets", and teaches writing workshops around the world. We spoke to Dani about her celebrated early memoir, "Slow Motion", about moving between fiction and writing about her own life, and about "Inheritance", an investigation into her parentage.
We've also made another update for those who support the podcast on the crowdfunding site Patreon. We’ve added 40 new pages of material to the package of successful article pitches that goes to anyone who supports the show with $5 per month or more, including new pitches to the New York Times, the Washington Post and the BBC. This means the whole compendium now runs to a whopping 160 pages. And we’re excited to announce that for people who contribute $10/month we’re now releasing bonus mini-episodes. If you’d like to know what these will sound like, there’s a sample episode with Lee Child that you can listen to for free on our Patreon now. Thanks to the help of our sponsors, Scrivener, the first ten new signs-ups at $10/month will additionally receive a lifelong license to Scrivener worth £55/$59.99. This specialist word-processing software helps you organise long writing projects such as novels, academic papers and even scripts. But we only have ten to give out so, if you’re interested, please check it out as soon as you can. Other Patreon rewards include signed copies of our podcast book (see below) and the opportunity to take part in a monthly call with the two of us to workshop your own pitches and writing projects.
A new edition of “Always Take Notes: Advice From Some Of The World’s Greatest Writers” - a book drawing on our podcast interviews - is available now. The updated version now includes insights from over 100 past guests on the podcast, with new contributions from Harlan Coben, Victoria Hislop, Lee Child, Megan Nolan, Jhumpa Lahiri, Philippa Gregory, Jo Nesbø, Paul Theroux, Hisham Matar and Bettany Hughes. You can order it via Amazon or Waterstones.
You can find us online at alwaystakenotes.com, on Twitter @takenotesalways and on Instagram @alwaystakenotes. Always Take Notes is presented by Simon Akam and Rachel Lloyd, and produced by Artemis Irvine. Our music is by Jessica Dannheisser and our logo was designed by James Edgar.
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Simon and Rachel speak with Joshi Herrmann, the founder of local journalism startup Mill Media. Joshi founded The Mill, a newsletter covering Greater Manchester, as a one-man band in June 2020. The company now has staff writers and editors across six British cities: Manchester, Glasgow, Birmingham, Liverpool, Sheffield and London. Mill Media is known for deeply reported long reads and its paid newsletter model; it is read by more than 150,000 email subscribers. The company has received investment from figures including Sir Mark Thompson, chief executive of CNN and a former BBC director-general. Joshi was formerly editor-in-chief of Tab Media, and he has reported for the Times, the Telegraph, the Guardian and the London Evening Standard. We spoke to Joshi about working at the Standard, his stints at the Tab, and his current venture, which is looking to reinvent local journalism.
We have recently also overhauled our offer for those who support the podcast on the crowdfunding site Patreon. Our central reward is a - now greatly expanded - sheaf of successful journalistic pitches, which we've solicited from friends of Always Take Notes. In the package we now have successful pitches to, among others, the New York Times, the Guardian, the New Yorker, the Financial Times, the Economist, the London Review of Books, Vanity Fair, Outside magazine, the Spectator, the Sunday Times, Esquire, Granta, the Literary Review, Prospect, Bloomberg Businessweek and GQ. Anyone who supports the show with $5 per month or more will receive the full compendium. Other rewards include signed copies of our podcast book (see below) and the opportunity to take part in a monthly call with the two of us to workshop your own pitches and writing projects.
A new edition of “Always Take Notes: Advice From Some Of The World’s Greatest Writers” - a book drawing on our podcast interviews - is available now. The updated version now includes insights from over 100 past guests on the podcast, with new contributions from Harlan Coben, Victoria Hislop, Lee Child, Megan Nolan, Jhumpa Lahiri, Philippa Gregory, Jo Nesbø, Paul Theroux, Hisham Matar and Bettany Hughes. You can order it via Amazon or Waterstones.
You can find us online at alwaystakenotes.com, on Twitter @takenotesalways and on Instagram @alwaystakenotes. Always Take Notes is presented by Simon Akam and Rachel Lloyd, and produced by Artemis Irvine. Our music is by Jessica Dannheisser and our logo was designed by James Edgar.
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Missing episodes?
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Rachel and Simon speak with the novelist Nnedi Okorafor. Nnedi is a prolific writer of science fiction and fantasy for adults, young adults and children; her best-known titles include the "Binti" trilogy, "Lagoon", the "Nsibidi Script" series and "Who Fears Death". Nnedi has won the Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature as well as the Hugo, Nebula, World Fantasy, Locus and Lodestar awards. Several of her books are currently being adapted for TV. We spoke to Nnedi about the hospital stay that led her to start writing, breaking into the worlds of science fiction and fantasy, and her latest novel, "Death of the Author".
We have recently also overhauled our offer for those who support the podcast on the crowdfunding site Patreon. Our central reward is a - now greatly expanded - sheaf of successful journalistic pitches, which we've solicited from friends of Always Take Notes. In the package we now have successful pitches to, among others, the New York Times, the Guardian, the New Yorker, the Financial Times, the Economist, the London Review of Books, Vanity Fair, Outside magazine, the Spectator, the Sunday Times, Esquire, Granta, the Literary Review, Prospect, Bloomberg Businessweek and GQ. Anyone who supports the show with $5 per month or more will receive the full compendium. Other rewards include signed copies of our podcast book (see below) and the opportunity to take part in a monthly call with the two of us to workshop your own pitches and writing projects.
A new edition of “Always Take Notes: Advice From Some Of The World’s Greatest Writers” - a book drawing on our podcast interviews - is available now. The updated version now includes insights from over 100 past guests on the podcast, with new contributions from Harlan Coben, Victoria Hislop, Lee Child, Megan Nolan, Jhumpa Lahiri, Philippa Gregory, Jo Nesbø, Paul Theroux, Hisham Matar and Bettany Hughes. You can order it via Amazon or Waterstones.
You can find us online at alwaystakenotes.com, on Twitter @takenotesalways and on Instagram @alwaystakenotes. Always Take Notes is presented by Simon Akam and Rachel Lloyd, and produced by Artemis Irvine. Our music is by Jessica Dannheisser and our logo was designed by James Edgar.
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Simon and Rachel speak to the novelist Ben Okri. Born in Minna, Nigeria, Ben came to England as a child. He attended school in London before returning to Africa with his parents on the eve of the Nigerian Civil War. He came once more to the UK in 1978 and studied at Essex University. Two years later he published his first novel "Flowers and Shadows". A second, "The Landscapes Within", appeared two years afterwards, before two collections of short stories in 1986 and 1988. In 1991 his novel "The Famished Road" won the Booker Prize, the first time a black writer received that award. Ben's subsequent work includes the novel "Astonishing the Gods" (chosen by the BBC in 2019 as "one of the 100 novels that has shaped our world"), the epic poem "Mental Fight" and the play "The Outsider". We spoke to Ben about his early life in Nigeria and Britain, winning the Booker Prize, and his latest novel, "Madame Sosostris & the Festival for the Broken-Hearted".
We have recently also overhauled our offer for those who support the podcast on the crowdfunding site Patreon. Our central reward is a - now greatly expanded - sheaf of successful journalistic pitches, which we've solicited from friends of Always Take Notes. In the package we now have successful pitches to, among others, the New York Times, the Guardian, the New Yorker, the Financial Times, the Economist, the London Review of Books, Vanity Fair, Outside magazine, the Spectator, the Sunday Times, Esquire, Granta, the Literary Review, Prospect, Bloomberg Businessweek and GQ. Anyone who supports the show with $5 per month or more will receive the full compendium. Other rewards include signed copies of our podcast book (see below) and the opportunity to take part in a monthly call with the two of us to workshop your own pitches and writing projects.
A new edition of “Always Take Notes: Advice From Some Of The World’s Greatest Writers” - a book drawing on our podcast interviews - is available now. The updated version now includes insights from over 100 past guests on the podcast, with new contributions from Harlan Coben, Victoria Hislop, Lee Child, Megan Nolan, Jhumpa Lahiri, Philippa Gregory, Jo Nesbø, Paul Theroux, Hisham Matar and Bettany Hughes. You can order it via Amazon or Waterstones.
You can find us online at alwaystakenotes.com, on Twitter @takenotesalways and on Instagram @alwaystakenotes. Always Take Notes is presented by Simon Akam and Rachel Lloyd, and produced by Artemis Irvine. Our music is by Jessica Dannheisser and our logo was designed by James Edgar.
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Rachel and Simon speak to the author and academic Clair Wills. She is the Regius Professor of English Literature at the University of Cambridge and the author of several non-fiction books. "That Neutral Island: A History of Ireland During the Second World War", published in 2007, won the PEN Hessell-Tiltman History Prize; "Lovers and Strangers: An Immigrant History of Post-War Britain" (2017) won the Irish Times International Non-Fiction Book of the Year and was shortlisted for the Orwell Prize. Her latest book, "Missing Persons, Or My Grandmother's Secrets" (2024), won Non-Fiction Book of the Year at the Irish Book Awards. We spoke to Clair about combining an academic career with writing for a broad audience, her insider/outsider perspective on Irish culture, and writing about her family and Ireland's Mother and Baby Homes in "Missing Persons".
We have recently also overhauled our offer for those who support the podcast on the crowdfunding site Patreon. Our central reward is a - now greatly expanded - sheaf of successful journalistic pitches, which we've solicited from friends of Always Take Notes. In the package we now have successful pitches to, among others, the New York Times, the Guardian, the New Yorker, the Financial Times, the Economist, the London Review of Books, Vanity Fair, Outside magazine, the Spectator, the Sunday Times, Esquire, Granta, the Literary Review, Prospect, Bloomberg Businessweek and GQ. Anyone who supports the show with $5 per month or more will receive the full compendium. Other rewards include signed copies of our podcast book (see below) and the opportunity to take part in a monthly call with the two of us to workshop your own pitches and writing projects.
A new edition of “Always Take Notes: Advice From Some Of The World’s Greatest Writers” - a book drawing on our podcast interviews - is available now. The updated version now includes insights from over 100 past guests on the podcast, with new contributions from Harlan Coben, Victoria Hislop, Lee Child, Megan Nolan, Jhumpa Lahiri, Philippa Gregory, Jo Nesbø, Paul Theroux, Hisham Matar and Bettany Hughes. You can order it via Amazon or Waterstones.
You can find us online at alwaystakenotes.com, on Twitter @takenotesalways and on Instagram @alwaystakenotes. Always Take Notes is presented by Simon Akam and Rachel Lloyd, and produced by Artemis Irvine. Our music is by Jessica Dannheisser and our logo was designed by James Edgar.
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Simon and Rachel speak with the novelist Tim Winton. Widely considered one of the greatest living Australian writers, Tim has written 13 novels; his work has been translated into 28 languages. Since his first novel, "An Open Swimmer", won The Australian/Vogel Literary Award in 1981, he has also won the Miles Franklin Literary Award - the most prestigious prize for Australian writing - four times, for "Shallows", "Cloudstreet", "Dirt Music" and "Breath". Tim, who lives in Western Australia, has also twice been shortlisted for the Booker Prize for "The Riders" and "Dirt Music". We spoke to Tim about writing and publishing his debut book in his early 20s, his views on Australian literary culture, and about "Juice", his latest novel, set in a post-apocalyptic future ravaged by climate change.
We have recently also overhauled our offer for those who support the podcast on the crowdfunding site Patreon. Our central reward is a - now greatly expanded - sheaf of successful journalistic pitches, which we've solicited from friends of Always Take Notes. In the package we now have successful pitches to, among others, the New York Times, the Guardian, the New Yorker, the Financial Times, the Economist, the London Review of Books, Vanity Fair, Outside magazine, the Spectator, the Sunday Times, Esquire, Granta, the Literary Review, Prospect, Bloomberg Businessweek and GQ. Anyone who supports the show with $5 per month or more will receive the full compendium. Other rewards include signed copies of our podcast book (see below) and the opportunity to take part in a monthly call with the two of us to workshop your own pitches and writing projects.
A new edition of “Always Take Notes: Advice From Some Of The World’s Greatest Writers” - a book drawing on our podcast interviews - is available now. The updated version now includes insights from over 100 past guests on the podcast, with new contributions from Harlan Coben, Victoria Hislop, Lee Child, Megan Nolan, Jhumpa Lahiri, Philippa Gregory, Jo Nesbø, Paul Theroux, Hisham Matar and Bettany Hughes. You can order it via Amazon or Waterstones.
You can find us online at alwaystakenotes.com, on Twitter @takenotesalways and on Instagram @alwaystakenotes. Always Take Notes is presented by Simon Akam and Rachel Lloyd, and produced by Artemis Irvine. Our music is by Jessica Dannheisser and our logo was designed by James Edgar.
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Rachel and Simon speak with the journalist and author Hannah Barnes. Hannah worked at the BBC for 15 years, specialising in investigative journalism for both television and radio. Prior to joining the "Newsnight" team in 2016, she was a daily editor on the "Today" programme on Radio 4. In 2023 Hannah published "Time to Think: The Inside Story of the Collapse of the Tavistock's Gender Service for Children"; the book was quoted in parliament, became a Sunday Times bestseller and was shortlisted for the Orwell Prize for Political Writing and the Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction. In 2024 she joined the New Statesman as an associate editor and writer. We spoke to Hannah about "Time to Think", her work at the BBC and her current role.
A new edition of “Always Take Notes: Advice From Some Of The World’s Greatest Writers” - a book drawing on our podcast interviews - is available now. The updated version now includes insights from over 100 past guests on the podcast, with new contributions from Harlan Coben, Victoria Hislop, Lee Child, Megan Nolan, Jhumpa Lahiri, Philippa Gregory, Jo Nesbø, Paul Theroux, Hisham Matar and Bettany Hughes. You can order it via Amazon or Waterstones.
You can find us online at alwaystakenotes.com, on Twitter @takenotesalways and on Instagram @alwaystakenotes. Our crowdfunding page is patreon.com/alwaystakenotes. Always Take Notes is presented by Simon Akam and Rachel Lloyd, and produced by Artemis Irvine. Our music is by Jessica Dannheisser and our logo was designed by James Edgar.
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Simon and Rachel speak with journalist and author Michael Lewis. Michael grew up in New Orleans and in the 1980s he worked on Wall Street. His first book "Liar's Poker" (1989) relates his experience at the investment bank Salomon Brothers. His subsequent books include "Moneyball" (2003), ostensibly about baseball but also about the way markets value people, "The Blind Side" (2006) about a black teenager taken in by a white evangelical family who becomes an American football player, and "Flash Boys" (2014) about the legal - but questionable - practice of high-frequency trading. Michael's writing has also appeared in Vanity Fair, the New Republic, and Bloomberg. We spoke to Michael about moving from finance to writing, his subsequent books, and his most recent project, "Going Infinite", on the rise and fall of crypto entrepreneur Sam Bankman-Fried.
A new edition of “Always Take Notes: Advice From Some Of The World’s Greatest Writers” - a book drawing on our podcast interviews - is available now. The updated version now includes insights from over 100 past guests on the podcast, with new contributions from Harlan Coben, Victoria Hislop, Lee Child, Megan Nolan, Jhumpa Lahiri, Philippa Gregory, Jo Nesbø, Paul Theroux, Hisham Matar and Bettany Hughes. You can order it via Amazon or Waterstones.
You can find us online at alwaystakenotes.com, on Twitter @takenotesalways and on Instagram @alwaystakenotes. Our crowdfunding page is patreon.com/alwaystakenotes. Always Take Notes is presented by Simon Akam and Rachel Lloyd, and produced by Artemis Irvine. Our music is by Jessica Dannheisser and our logo was designed by James Edgar.
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Rachel and Simon speak with the literary agent Clare Alexander. For the first portion of her career she worked in publishing, starting out in 1973 in the rights department at Penguin; after stints at Hamish Hamilton and Viking she became editor-in-chief of Macmillan and Picador. Clare published first novels by Helen Dunmore, Alex Garland, Amitav Ghosh, Haruki Murakami and Donna Tartt. In 1995, while at Viking, she was the editor of the winners of the Booker Prize, the Orange Prize (now the Women's Prize) and the Whitbread Award (the erstwhile Costa Book Awards) - the first editor ever to achieve this hat-trick. In 1998 Clare became a literary agent. Her client list includes Diana Evans, Helen Fielding, Armando Iannucci, Nicholas Shakespeare, Rory Stewart and Colin Thubron. We spoke to Clare about her early career as an editor, becoming an agent in the late 1990s, and working with authors including Pat Barker, Mark Haddon and Sebastian Faulks.
A new edition of “Always Take Notes: Advice From Some Of The World’s Greatest Writers” - a book drawing on our podcast interviews - is available now. The updated version now includes insights from over 100 past guests on the podcast, with new contributions from Harlan Coben, Victoria Hislop, Lee Child, Megan Nolan, Jhumpa Lahiri, Philippa Gregory, Jo Nesbø, Paul Theroux, Hisham Matar and Bettany Hughes. You can order it via Amazon or Waterstones.
You can find us online at alwaystakenotes.com, on Twitter @takenotesalways and on Instagram @alwaystakenotes. Our crowdfunding page is patreon.com/alwaystakenotes. Always Take Notes is presented by Simon Akam and Rachel Lloyd, and produced by Artemis Irvine. Our music is by Jessica Dannheisser and our logo was designed by James Edgar.
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Simon and Rachel speak to the author and lawyer Philippe Sands. He is the author of books including "East West Street", which won the Baillie Gifford prize in 2016 and the British Book Awards Non-Fiction Book of the Year in 2017, and "The Ratline" in 2020. His latest book is "The Last Colony" (2022). Philippe's work has been translated into more than 30 languages. In parallel to his writing career, Philippe is Professor of the Public Understanding of Law at University College London and a practising barrister at 11 Kings Bench Walk. He frequently appears as counsel before the International Court of Justice and other international courts and tribunals. We spoke to Philippe about combining international law and writing, blending history and memoir in "East West Street", and about representing - and writing about - the Chagos islanders.
A new edition of “Always Take Notes: Advice From Some Of The World’s Greatest Writers” - a book drawing on our podcast interviews - is available now. The updated version now includes insights from over 100 past guests on the podcast, with new contributions from Harlan Coben, Victoria Hislop, Lee Child, Megan Nolan, Jhumpa Lahiri, Philippa Gregory, Jo Nesbø, Paul Theroux, Hisham Matar and Bettany Hughes. You can order it via Amazon or Waterstones.
You can find us online at alwaystakenotes.com, on Twitter @takenotesalways and on Instagram @alwaystakenotes. Our crowdfunding page is patreon.com/alwaystakenotes. Always Take Notes is presented by Simon Akam and Rachel Lloyd, and produced by Artemis Irvine. Our music is by Jessica Dannheisser and our logo was designed by James Edgar.
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Rachel and Simon speak to the journalist and author Reni Eddo-Lodge. She started blogging and writing journalism while a student; one post, published in 2014 and called “Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People about Race” eventually led to a book of the same name in 2017. The book won the Jhalak Prize as well as a British Book Award for Narrative Non-Fiction. In 2020, amid the Black Lives Matter demonstrations, “Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People about Race” topped Britain's bestseller list; Reni became the first black British author to achieve that. Elsewhere she has written for the New York Times and Vogue, among other publications. We spoke to Reni about starting out in journalism, writing “Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People about Race” and the experience of its success.
A new edition of “Always Take Notes: Advice From Some Of The World’s Greatest Writers” - a book drawing on our podcast interviews - is available now. The updated version now includes insights from over 100 past guests on the podcast, with new contributions from Harlan Coben, Victoria Hislop, Lee Child, Megan Nolan, Jhumpa Lahiri, Philippa Gregory, Jo Nesbø, Paul Theroux, Hisham Matar and Bettany Hughes. You can order it via Amazon or Waterstones.
You can find us online at alwaystakenotes.com, on Twitter @takenotesalways and on Instagram @alwaystakenotes. Our crowdfunding page is patreon.com/alwaystakenotes. Always Take Notes is presented by Simon Akam and Rachel Lloyd, and produced by Artemis Irvine. Our music is by Jessica Dannheisser and our logo was designed by James Edgar. -
For the 200th episode of Always Take Notes Simon and Rachel speak with the novelist Frederick Forsyth. He began his career in the Royal Air Force in 1956, before leaving to pursue journalism. Frederick worked for Reuters, the BBC, and as a freelancer; part of his early career was spent covering French affairs, including the attempted assassination of Charles de Gaulle. That provided the inspiration for "The Day of the Jackal", his first novel, which was published in 1971. Frederick's subsequent thrillers include "The Odessa File", "The Dogs of War," "The Fourth Protocol" and "The Fist of God", and he has sold over 70 million books worldwide. He also had extensive involvement with MI6 - the British overseas intelligence agency - starting in the 1960s. Many of Frederick's works have been adapted for the screen, including a new TV version of "The Day of the Jackal", which premiered in 2024. We spoke to Frederick about his career as a foreign correspondent, turning to fiction with "The Day of the Jackal", and his relationship with the intelligence services.
A new edition of “Always Take Notes: Advice From Some Of The World’s Greatest Writers” - a book drawing on our podcast interviews - is available now. The updated version now includes insights from over 100 past guests on the podcast, with new contributions from Harlan Coben, Victoria Hislop, Lee Child, Megan Nolan, Jhumpa Lahiri, Philippa Gregory, Jo Nesbø, Paul Theroux, Hisham Matar and Bettany Hughes. You can order it via Amazon or Waterstones.
You can find us online at alwaystakenotes.com, on Twitter @takenotesalways and on Instagram @alwaystakenotes. Our crowdfunding page is patreon.com/alwaystakenotes. Always Take Notes is presented by Simon Akam and Rachel Lloyd, and produced by Artemis Irvine. Our music is by Jessica Dannheisser and our logo was designed by James Edgar.
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Rachel and Simon speak with the novelist Paula Hawkins. Born and brought up in Zimbabwe, Paula moved to London in 1989. She worked as a journalist for 15 years, reporting on business and personal finance. Her first book, "The Money Goddess", a financial guide for women, was released in 2006. She turned to fiction in 2009, publishing "Confessions of a Reluctant Recessionista" under a pseudonym, Amy Silver. Several Silver books followed until Paula published "The Girl on the Train", a thriller, in 2015. The book became a worldwide hit, selling more than 23 million copies, and was adapted into a film starring Emily Blunt. Paula's subsequent thrillers, "Into the Water" and "A Slow Fire Burning", were also instant bestsellers. We spoke to Paula about moving from financial journalism to writing fiction, experiencing huge global success with "The Girl on the Train", and her latest novel, "The Blue Hour".
A new edition of “Always Take Notes: Advice From Some Of The World’s Greatest Writers” - a book drawing on our podcast interviews - is available now. The updated version now includes insights from over 100 past guests on the podcast, with new contributions from Harlan Coben, Victoria Hislop, Lee Child, Megan Nolan, Jhumpa Lahiri, Philippa Gregory, Jo Nesbø, Paul Theroux, Hisham Matar and Bettany Hughes. You can order it via Amazon or Waterstones.
You can find us online at alwaystakenotes.com, on Twitter @takenotesalways and on Instagram @alwaystakenotes. Our crowdfunding page is patreon.com/alwaystakenotes. Always Take Notes is presented by Simon Akam and Rachel Lloyd, and produced by Artemis Irvine. Our music is by Jessica Dannheisser and our logo was designed by James Edgar.
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Simon and Rachel speak to Richard Dawkins, an evolutionary biologist and bestselling science writer. His first book, "The Selfish Gene", published in 1976, has sold over a million copies and been translated into more than 25 languages. Other titles include "The Ancestor’s Tale", "The Blind Watchmaker" and "The God Delusion". The latter book, published in 2006, espoused the criticism of religion for which Richard is well known. From 1995 to 2008 he was the Charles Simonyi Professor of the Public Understanding of Science at Oxford University, and he has also written two volumes of memoir. We spoke with Richard about moving from research science to writing books for a general audience, his breakout with "The Selfish Gene" in the 1970s, and his latest title, "The Genetic Book of the Dead".
“Always Take Notes: Advice From Some Of The World’s Greatest Writers” - a book drawing on our podcast interviews - is published by Ithaka Press. You can order it via Amazon, Bookshop.org, Hatchards or Waterstones.
You can find us online at alwaystakenotes.com, on Twitter @takenotesalways and on Instagram @alwaystakenotes. Our crowdfunding page is patreon.com/alwaystakenotes. Always Take Notes is presented by Simon Akam and Rachel Lloyd, and produced by Artemis Irvine. Our music is by Jessica Dannheisser and our logo was designed by James Edgar.
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Rachel and Simon speak to Eleanor Moran, a television producer and novelist. Eleanor started her career at the BBC as a script editor before becoming an executive producer; she has worked on shows including "Watership Down", "The Girl Before" and "The Flatshare". She balances her work in television alongside writing fiction. Eleanor published her debut novel, "Stick Or Twist", in 2009, followed by five more under own name; in 2022 she began publishing domestic noir under the pseudonym Kate Ruby. "Tell Me Your Lies" was a Richard and Judy Book Club pick the same year and is currently being adapted for television. "Everything You Have", published in 2024, is already under option. We spoke to Eleanor about her work in television and film, her fiction, including her decision to publish some of it under a pseudonym, and the release of "Everything You Have".
“Always Take Notes: Advice From Some Of The World’s Greatest Writers” - a book drawing on our podcast interviews - is published by Ithaka Press. You can order it via Amazon, Bookshop.org, Hatchards or Waterstones.
You can find us online at alwaystakenotes.com, on Twitter @takenotesalways and on Instagram @alwaystakenotes. Our crowdfunding page is patreon.com/alwaystakenotes. Always Take Notes is presented by Simon Akam and Rachel Lloyd, and produced by Artemis Irvine. Our music is by Jessica Dannheisser and our logo was designed by James Edgar.
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Simon and Rachel speak to Robert Harris, the bestselling historical novelist. Robert worked as a journalist, and wrote several non-fiction books, before his first novel, "Fatherland", which imagines a world in which Germany won the Second World War, was published in 1992. He has subsequently written 15 other novels: including the Cicero Trilogy - "Imperium", "Lustrum" and "Dictator" - "Enigma", "An Officer and a Spy" - which won four prizes including the Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction - and "Munich". His work has been translated into 40 languages and nine of his books have been adapted for cinema and television. We spoke to Robert about moving from journalism to writing historical fiction, shifting from modern to ancient settings, and about his new novel, "Precipice".
“Always Take Notes: Advice From Some Of The World’s Greatest Writers” - a book drawing on our podcast interviews - is published by Ithaka Press. You can order it via Amazon, Bookshop.org, Hatchards or Waterstones.
You can find us online at alwaystakenotes.com, on Twitter @takenotesalways and on Instagram @alwaystakenotes. Our crowdfunding page is patreon.com/alwaystakenotes. Always Take Notes is presented by Simon Akam and Rachel Lloyd, and produced by Artemis Irvine. Our music is by Jessica Dannheisser and our logo was designed by James Edgar.
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Rachel and Simon speak to Carissa Broadbent, author of the "Crowns of Nyaxia" and "War of Lost Hearts" series. Before turning to writing, Carissa worked in marketing. Her early books were self-published and became a sensation on social media, particularly TikTok, where videos about her work attract millions of views. "The Serpent and the Wings of Night", the first book in the "Crowns of Nyaxia" series - a tale of "heart-wrenching romance, dark magic and bloodthirsty intrigue" - was a New York Times bestseller immediately after publication. We spoke to Carissa about the "romantasy" genre (combining elements of romance and fantasy), how she moved from self-publishing to a deal with a major publisher, and her latest book, "The Ashes & the Star-Cursed King".
“Always Take Notes: Advice From Some Of The World’s Greatest Writers” - a book drawing on our podcast interviews - is published by Ithaka Press. You can order it via Amazon, Bookshop.org, Hatchards or Waterstones.
You can find us online at alwaystakenotes.com, on Twitter @takenotesalways and on Instagram @alwaystakenotes. Our crowdfunding page is patreon.com/alwaystakenotes. Always Take Notes is presented by Simon Akam and Rachel Lloyd, and produced by Artemis Irvine. Our music is by Jessica Dannheisser and our logo was designed by James Edgar.
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Simon and Rachel speak to Kevin Barry, a novelist and short-story writer. Kevin is the author of four novels and three story collections. His awards include the IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, the Goldsmiths Prize, the Sunday Times EFG Short Story Award and the Rooney Prize for Irish Literature. His stories and essays have appeared in the New Yorker, Granta and elsewhere. His novel, "Night Boat to Tangier", was a number-one bestseller in Ireland, was longlisted for the Booker Prize and named one of the Top Ten Books of the Year by the New York Times. Kevin also works as a playwright and screenwriter. We spoke to him about forcing himself to become a novelist, writing short stories and screenplays, and about his latest book, "The Heart in Winter."
“Always Take Notes: Advice From Some Of The World’s Greatest Writers” - a book drawing on our podcast interviews - is published by Ithaka Press. You can order it via Amazon, Bookshop.org, Hatchards or Waterstones.
You can find us online at alwaystakenotes.com, on Twitter @takenotesalways and on Instagram @alwaystakenotes. Our crowdfunding page is patreon.com/alwaystakenotes. Always Take Notes is presented by Simon Akam and Rachel Lloyd, and produced by Artemis Irvine. Our music is by Jessica Dannheisser and our logo was designed by James Edgar.
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Rachel and Simon speak to Abi Morgan, a screenwriter and playwright. Abi earned her first professional stage credit in 1998 with "Skinned"; since then she has written plays including "Tender", "Fugee", "27" and "The Mistress Contract", which have been performed at the Hampstead Theatre, the National Theatre, the National Theatre of Scotland and the Royal Court. Her work for television includes "Birdsong", "The Split" and "Eric" (which stars Benedict Cumberbatch and is streaming on Netflix). Abi has also written and worked on several films, such as "Brick Lane", "Iron Lady", "Shame" and "Suffragette". Her first book, "This Is Not A Pity Memoir", was published in 2022. We spoke to Abi about breaking into the industry, working on biopics and book adaptations, and her latest TV show, "Eric".
“Always Take Notes: Advice From Some Of The World’s Greatest Writers” - a book drawing on our podcast interviews - is published by Ithaka Press. You can order it via Amazon, Bookshop.org, Hatchards or Waterstones.
You can find us online at alwaystakenotes.com, on Twitter @takenotesalways and on Instagram @alwaystakenotes. Our crowdfunding page is patreon.com/alwaystakenotes. Always Take Notes is presented by Simon Akam and Rachel Lloyd, and produced by Artemis Irvine. Our music is by Jessica Dannheisser and our logo was designed by James Edgar.
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Simon and Rachel speak to the novelist Harlan Coben. Harlan's suspense novels are published in 46 languages and have been number-one bestsellers in more than a dozen countries, with 80 million books in print worldwide. His Myron Bolitar series, centred on a basketball player turned agent, has earned the Edgar, Shamus and Anthony Awards. Several of his books have been developed into Netflix original series, including "Fool Me Once", "The Stranger", "The Innocent", "Gone for Good", "The Woods", "Stay Close" and "Hold Tight". "Shelter" was also adapted into an Amazon Prime series. We spoke to Harlan about his prolific career as a thriller writer, his extensive collaboration with Netflix, and his latest novel, "Think Twice".
“Always Take Notes: Advice From Some Of The World’s Greatest Writers” - a book drawing on our podcast interviews - is published by Ithaka Press. You can order it via Amazon, Bookshop.org, Hatchards or Waterstones.
You can find us online at alwaystakenotes.com, on Twitter @takenotesalways and on Instagram @alwaystakenotes. Our crowdfunding page is patreon.com/alwaystakenotes. Always Take Notes is presented by Simon Akam and Rachel Lloyd, and produced by Artemis Irvine. Our music is by Jessica Dannheisser and our logo was designed by James Edgar.
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