Episodes
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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
NautilusBooks 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 WarBuy 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 projectDisclosure: If you buy books linked to my site, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops
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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' ChurchBooks 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 PemberleyBuy 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 seriesPhoto 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
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Missing episodes?
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Charlie and Nikki Marmery (Lilith) discuss her epic tale that looks from the start of the Genesis story all the way to our present day, showing how the biblical stories did away with an all-important goddess for women - Yahweh's wife - and the consequences that has had. There is discussion, too, on the Gnostic gospels, various mythologies, and environmentalism.
A transcript is available on my site
General references:
Jeremiah 7:18 says: "The children gather wood, the fathers kindle fire, and the women knead dough, to make cakes for the queen of heaven, and they pour out drink offerings to other gods."
About Asherah poles, which Charlie notes, there are many references in the Bible. One such is Deuteronomy 16:21: "Do not set up any wooden Asherah pole beside the altar you build to the Lord your God."
Jennifer Saint's episode where she mentions Sarah Clegg is is 95
The quote from St Paul Nikki includes is from 1 Timothy 2:12Books mentioned by name or extensively:
Francesca Stavrakopoulou: God: An Anatomy
John Milton: Paradise Lost
Nikki Marmery: On Wilder Seas
Nikki Marmery: Lilith
Sarah Clegg: Women's Lore
The BibleBuy the books: UK || USA
Release details: recorded 18th April 2024; published 23rd September 2024
Where to find Nikki online: Website || Twitter || Facebook || Instagram || TikTok
Where to find Charlie online: Website || Twitter || Instagram || TikTok
Discussions
00:01:36 The inspiration - the way the goddess Asherah, god's wife, was taken out of tradition, and the icons that have survived through time
00:04:23 Is there a way Asherah might've been able to continue as a worshipped goddess longer than she did?
00:10:13 All about Nikki's character of Lilith and how the original faiths saw men and women as equal
00:18:25 Nikki's employment of other myths and religions, how they they interacted, and the origins of now-Christian symbols
00:24:49 Nikki's inclusion of Ereskigal, goddess of the Underworld in Sumerian mythology
00:28:41 Nikki's effective dismissal of Heaven and her historical and Biblical reasoning
00:34:23 The environmental aspect of the book
00:37:12 How Nikki's Eden and the events therein are just a small part of the wider world, and, also, Noah's Ark in this context
00:42:50 Nikki's Biblical language. We then move on to her character of Samael specifically
00:48:41 The varied inclusions of Jezebel and Salome
00:53:04 Nikki's depiction of Jesus and using the Gnostic gospels
00:59:51 Nikki's religious background
01:02:07 Brief notes on what Nikki's planning to write nextDisclosure: If you buy books linked to my site, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops
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Charlie and Natalie Jenner (Every Time We Say Goodbye) discuss the war years and 1950s Italian film industry and the Vatican's authority over it, changing working practices after being accused of discrimination, and including still-living celebrities in your book.
A transcript is available on my site
General references:
I talked to Natalie about her previous book, Bloomsbury Girls, in episode 65
Day For Night
Quo Vadis
Umanità
Nine
Summertime
Three Coins In The Fountain
Roman Holiday
A similar quote of Kurt Vonnegut's is "Readers should have such complete understanding of what is going on, where and why, that they could finish the story themselves, should cockroaches eat the last few pages."
I talked to Liz Fenwick about the map girls in episode 100
Natalie's Instagram post on Ray Holland
The Prince Of Foxes
Natalie's episode on chapters 7-9 of Pride And Prejudice for the Rosenbach LibraryBooks mentioned by name or extensively:
Charles Dickens: Our Mutual Friend
Charles Dickens: A Tale Of Two Cities
Edward Bulwer-Lytton: The Last Days Of Pompeii
Henry James: The Portrait Of A Lady
Jane Austen: Pride And Prejudice
Jane Austen: Emma
Joe Klein: Primary Colors
Natalie Jenner: The Jane Austen Society
Natalie Jenner: Bloomsbury Girls
Natalie Jenner: Every Time We Say Goodbye
Natalie Jenner: Austen At Sea
Sophia Loren: Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow My Life
Zadie Smith: The Fraud
Zoe Wheddon: Jane Austen's Best FriendBuy the books: UK || USA
Release details: recorded 11th April 2024; published 9th September 2024
Where to find Natalie online: Website || Twitter || Instagram
Where to find Charlie online: Website || Twitter || Instagram || TikTok
Discussions
00:01:52 The different inspirations for the book - old films, Natalie's character Vivian from her previous book, Bloomsbury Girls, the WW2 refugees that lived at the Cinecittà movie studies and then used as extras (this turns into a longer discussion)
00:10:58 More about Cinecittà itself
00:13:08 The Vatican's past authority over the Italian film industry
00:17:59 How Natalie researches her books, and her love of Rome
00:29:30 John Lassiter, urgh!
00:34:20 The importance of Tabitha's story and how a reader's criticism changed how Natalie wrote
00:38:25 La Scolaretta and the stafetta - the young women messengers and assassins in WW2 Italy
00:44:45 Natalie's knowing, and the life of, Ray Holland, film-maker Jack Salvatori's son
00:52:28 Writing as characters celebrities who are still with us, with a focus on Sophia Loren
00:59:16 All about Natalie's forthcoming next book, Austen At Sea, which Charlie reckons will end up being her favourite of all Natalie's books
01:08:59 Natalie tells us why she likely won't write about Jane Austen herselfDisclosure: If you buy books linked to my site, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops
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The poll is here
Or, if your app does not show links: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/8TGVG9F -
Charlie and Matt Ottley (The Tree Of Ecstasy And Unbearable Sadness) discuss Matt's type I bipolar disorder and how it has influenced this, his latest book, and his life in general. As Matt is also a composer and illustrator and the book involves both, we also discuss in detail the creation of the music and artwork.
Please note that there are mentions of child sexual abuse and attempted suicide in this episode.
A transcript is available on my site
General references:
The Sound Of Picture Books on YouTube
Film trailer for The Tree Of Ecstasy And Unbearable Sadness
Tina Wilson set up the Lester PrizeBooks mentioned by name or extensively:
Matt Ottley: The Tree Of Ecstasy And Unbearable SadnessBuy the books: UK
Release details: recorded 16th April 2024; published 26th August 2024
Where to find Matt online: Website || Facebook || Instagram
Where to find Charlie online: Website || Twitter || Instagram || TikTok
Discussions
00:01:36 The whys of the book - why this story, why produce it in this way, why now (this turns into a larger discussion of Matt's bipolar disorder and how it affects him)
00:13:18 Matt's musical initiative for children, The Sound Of Picture Books
00:19:45 The artistic process of the book, the artwork
00:24:35 The image of the pregnant mother in water, Matt's painting of water in general, and the elephants
00:29:08 The animals in terms of metaphors of unreality, evolution, and mania
00:32:32 Where Matt started in illustration, music, and writing - the discussion revolves mostly around music - and also inspirations
00:42:01 All about the music - composing, recording, the orchestra, choir, and so on
00:52:01 [An extract of music from the score, courtesy of Matt]
00:58:34 Discussing the narration and narrator, Matt's wife, Tina Wilson
01:02:04 The book's text - starting point and so on
01:04:38 Matt tells us about his childhood, family, and experience of bipolar growing up
01:09:34 What's next? (A variety of projects are discussed.)Photo credit: Tina Wilson
Disclosure: If you buy books linked to my site, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops
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Charlie and Kate Weston (You May Now Kill The Bride) discuss her hilarious comedy thriller wherein a group of friends go on a hen do, one of them is murdered, but they don't stop going to hen dos...
Please note there is some swearing in this episode.
A transcript is available on my site
General references:
Below DeckBooks mentioned by name or extensively:
Kate Weston: Murder On A School Night
Kate Weston: You May Now Kill The BrideBuy the books: UK || USA
Release details: Recorded 14th March 2024; published 12th August 2024
Where to find Kate online: Website || Twitter || Instagram || TikTok
Where to find Charlie online: website || Twitter || Instagram || TikTok
Discussions
01:56 The starting point/inspiration - hen dos (and Kate's own)
06:17 Why the murders?
08:01 How did you plan/write the book?
10:34 Creating the friends and their personalities
14:58 Was there a particular reason why you offed Tansy first?
16:37 Did you want the murderer to be worked out?
18:36 Have you got a favourite character?
20:00 How did you keep the balance between the bonkers and the realistic?
21:55 Jeremy's club
23:34 Could someone else have been the murderer?
25:29 Could DI Ashford and Lauren's thread ever end happily?
27:04 Transitioning from writing YA
28:59 What are you writing now?
29:29 Tell us about your stand-up careerPhoto credit: Joanna Bongard
Disclosure: If you buy books linked to my site, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops
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Celebrating 100 episodes of this podcast, Charlie is Joined by Liz Fenwick, Emma Cowell, Ronali Collings, and Tammye Huf, for a general bookish chat. We start off with an excellent conversation on the industry's use of 'women's fiction' when the genderless 'commerical fiction' would do very well.
Please note there is one use of 'damn' in this episode.
A transcript is available on my site
General references:
Leonard Cohen's Bird On A Wire
The 'Women in Love' panel Liz was on was part of the Emirates Airline Festival of Literature 2015
The Constant Gardener (film)
Desert Island Discs
Escape To The CountryBooks mentioned by name or extensively:
Charlotte Brontë: Jane Eyre
Elissa Soave: Ginger And Me
Emily Brontë: Wuthering Heights
Emma Cowell: One Last Letter From Greece
Emma Cowell: the House In The Olive Grove
Emma Cowell: The Island Love Song
John Le Carré: The Constant Gardener
Kate Atkinson: Life After Life
Liz Fenwick: One Cornish Summer
Liz Fenwick: The Secret Shore
Paul Auster: The Brooklyn Follies
Paul Auster: The New York Trilogy
Ronali Collings: All The Single Ladies
Sarah Winman: A Year Of Marvellous Ways
Tammye Huf: A More Perfect UnionBuy the books: UK || USA
Release details: recorded 6th May 2024; published 5th August 2024
Where to find Liz online: Website || Twitter || Facebook || Instagram || TikTok
Where to find Emma online: Website || Twitter || Facebook || Instagram
Where to find Ronali online: Website || Twitter || Instagram
Where to find Tammye online: Website || Twitter || Instagram
Where to find Charlie online: Website || Twitter || Instagram || TikTok
Discussions
04:02 What is your genre? (The authors discuss labels in terms of gender expectations and marketing in this vein.)
08:25 How do you books do overseas?
10:40 If you wrote in another genre, which would it be?
15:14 If your book was turned into a film or TV show, who would you want cast in it?
20:33 If you could've written someone else's book, whose would you choose? (Some interesting discussions on individual writing styles here.)
26:01 What is the best fan or reader encounter you've had?
31:50 What do you wish you'd known before you became a published author? (Turns into a longer conversation about the difficulty of writing to a deadline.)
41:28 Can you remember any particularly interesting fact that you discovered in your research that couldn't be included in the book?
44:54 Tell us about what you're currently writingDisclosure: If you buy books linked to my site, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops
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Celebrating 100 episodes of this podcast, Charlie is joined by Phillip Lewis, Melissa Fu, and Amanda Geard for a general bookish chat. This is a slightly quieter episode with some incredibly poignant and compelling stories.
A transcript is available on my site
General references:
Seamus Heany's Limbo
Phillip quotes from Dorothy L Sayers' Unnatural Death. The full quote is "...After all, it isn't really difficult to write books. Especially if you either write a rotten story in good English or a good story in rotten English, which is as far as most people seem to get nowadays."
Melissa's episode of The Diverse Bookshelf
Amanda's episode of Richard & Judy's podcast
Phillip's episode of Charlotte Readers
Information about Charles Ray Finch
Information about Ronnie Long
Netflix's The Staircase
The episode of this podcast that includes Dorothy L Sayers is episode 100 with Liz FenwickBooks mentioned by name or extensively:
Amanda Geard: The Midnight House
Amanda Geard: The Moon Gate
David S Rudolph: American Injustice
Dodie Smith: I Capture The Castle
Dorothy L Sayers: Unnatural Death
Frances Hodgson Burnett: The Secret Garden
Grace Paley: Enormous Changes At The Last Minute
Judy Finnigan: Roseland
Melissa Fu: Peach Blossom Spring
Phillip Lewis: The BarrowfieldsBuy the books: UK || USA
Release details: recorded 28th March 2024; published 29th July 2024
Where to find Phillip online: Website || Twitter || Instagram
Where to find Melissa online: Website || Instagram
Where to find Amanda online: Website || Twitter || Facebook || Instagram
Where to find Charlie online: Twitter || Instagram || TikTok
Discussions
04:10 What does your genre do and what it is for?
09:48 Where do you write, and where do you like to read?
16:46 What's the nicest thing anyone's said about your books, or the nicest review?
20:29 Tell us about a time when you were a guest on another podcast
25:38 What did you do before you were a published author or what do you do alongside your writing?
33:06 You can have a coffee morning with three other authors. Who are you choosing?
39:44 What bookish event or personal bookish event are you looking forward to within the next few years?Photo credit: Isil Dohnke, Sophie Davidson, Amanda Geard
Disclosure: If you buy books linked to my site, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops
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Charlie and Manda Scott (Any Human Power) discuss her book in terms of its Shamanist contexts, her informed ideas for how we can change and thus improve the UK political system, and playing Dungeons And Dragons with Terry Pratchett and Fay Weldon. We also discuss Mass Multiplayer Online gaming in the context of both Manda's book and, briefly, ourselves - this is an episode wherein two gamers meet.
A transcript is available on my site
General references:
Historical Writer's Association
Accidental Gods Podcast
Thrutopian Writer's Association
Ursula K Le Guin's original quotation, "We live in capitalism, its power seems inescapable - but then, so did the divine right of kings. Any human power can be resisted and changed by human beings. Resistance and change often begin in art" is from her speech in acceptance of the National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters, 19th November 2014
Chauvet Cave artwork
The writer Charlie couldn't remember is Max Porter, his book is Grief Is The Thing With Feathers
World Of Warcraft
Guild Wars 2
Doom
The Accidental Gods membership programBooks mentioned by name or extensively:
Isabel Harman: Why We Get The Wrong Politicians
Manda Scott: Any Human Power
Manda Scott: Boudica
Max Porter: Grief Is The Thing With FeathersBuy the books: UK || USA
Release details: recorded 11th March 2024; published 22nd July 2024
Where to find Manda online: Website || Twitter || Facebook
Where to find Charlie online: Website || Twitter || Instagram || TikTok
Discussions
01:50 What was the very initial thought or kernel of this book?
08:52 What Manda would like to see happen in order to start accomplishing the environmental and political goals put forth in Any Human Power
14:13 Lan - why is she dead?
18:00 About the 'spirit guides' in the book, discussing crows
22:02 Lan not stopping the story thread in which Kaitlyn dies
25:42 Manda delves into all the political change in the book and her thoughts on our real UK world in this context
37:10 How far we're meant to like/connect with the characters and how flaws are important
41:16 At the end we have the sense of cycles; do we see a chance for things to change for Lan later on?
43:43 Manda talks about one of her influences, Taiwan's government system
46:22 Talking Manda's use of World Of Warcraft (WoW) in the book, which devolves into a short gaming conversation
50:21 Manda played D&D with Terry Pratchett and Fay Weldon - details
53:07 About Manda's podcast, Accidental Gods
56:30 What Manda's writing now, including book 2Disclosure: If you buy books linked to my site, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops
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Celebrating 100 episodes of this podcast, Charlie is joined by Elissa Soave, Jenni Keer, and Chloe Timms for a general bookish chat. This one is big on writing, branding, and marketing, and, if Charlie dares says herself, is one of the most fun episodes of this entire show.
Please note there is a mild swear word in this episode.
A transcript is available on my site
General references:
Confessions Of A Debut Novelist
Groundhog Day
Elissa episode with me is number 80
Elissa's episode on Chloe's podcast
Chloe's writer's club
The Lake HouseBooks mentioned by name or extensively:
Chloe Timms: The Seawomen
Daphne Du Maurier: Rebecca
Elissa Soave: Ginger And Me
Elissa Soave: Graffiti Girls
Eliza Clark: Penance
Guillermo del Toro: The Shape Of Water
Janice Galloway: Collected Stories
Janice Galloway's The Trick Is To Keep Breathing
Jenni Keer: The Secrets Of Hawthorn Place
Jenni Keer: At The Stroke Of Midnight
Margaret Atwood: The Handmaid's Tale
Margaret Atwood: The Testaments
Roget's ThesaurusBuy the books: UK || USA
Release details: recorded 7th March 2024; published 15th July 2024
Where to find Elissa online: Twitter
Where to find Jenni online: Website || Twitter || Facebook || Instagram || TikTok
Where to find Chloe online: Website || Twitter || Facebook || Instagram
Where to find Charlie online: Website || Twitter || Instagram || TikTok
Discussions
02:21 What is your genre and what does it do, what's it for?
11:31 If you wrote in another genre, which would it be?
17:47 How is your social media strategy?
27:22 What's the best reader or fan encounter you've had?
33:01 If you could have written someone else's book, which book would you choose?
37:17 What is the best writing advice you've ever been given?
43:56 All three tell us what they're currently writing, soon publishing (in two cases), and Elissa also tells us about her November 2024 releaseDisclosure: If you buy books linked to my site, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops
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Charlie and Jacquie Bloese (The Golden Hour/The Secret Photographs) discuss early erotic photography, Victorian erotic stage performances, and the beginnings of bicycle use for women which had a huge impact on female agency.
Please note there are mentions of suicide and abuse in this episode
A transcript is available on my site
General references: The photograph of Marie Berin
Marion Sambourne's diary
I can recommend the keyword phrase 'early bicycle wear women' for lots of pictures of the outfits Jacquie describes
Wikipedia's article on the history of women cycling (bicycling and feminism)Books mentioned by name or extensively: Jacquie Bloese: The Golden Hour
Buy the books: UK || USA
Release details: recorded 3rd April 2024; published 8th July 2024
Where to find Jacquie online: Website || Twitter || Facebook || Instagram
Where to find Charlie online: Website || Twitter || Instagram || TikTok
Discussions
01:26 The whys of this book and the inspiration, particularly in the context of the photography
03:56 More about the model written about by Linley Sambourne, who committed suicide, and how Jacquie was influenced by it
05:47 Why Jacquie chose Brighton, and why she chose the Victorian period in that context also
09:00 About the female photographer, Marie Bertin, that Jacquie mentioned
09:58 About Holywell Street in London
11:30 The women points of view of The Golden Hour - Ellen, Clem, and Lily
16:23 Harriet (Harry) Smart and the music halls/theatres
20:28 More about The Vigilant Association
24:08 How Jacquie plotted her book and kept all the secrets straight in her mind
28:34 How Ottile had a bigger role in previous drafts
31:46 The importance of the questions of sexuality
34:53 Ellen and Reynold's mother, her story and the significance of her story
38:05 Women! Cycling! And the importance of cycling for women at the time
42:09 About Jacquie's inclusion of cats and the way they influenced the book
44:35 What Jacquie's writing now, her book that includes silent filmsDisclosure: If you buy books linked to my site, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops
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Celebrating 100 episodes of this podcast, Charlie is joined by Alex Hay, Stacey Thomas, and Lucy Barker for a general bookish chat with a concentration on the writing. The trio toured together as debuts and we get to witness just how well they work together.
A transcript is available on my site
General references:
Downton Abbey
Ocean's Eleven
Mary & George (Julianne Moore)
Zsolt's Instagram post on The Revels
Euphoria
Fear The Walking Dead
Pride And Prejudice
PersuasionBooks mentioned by name or extensively:
Alex Hay: The Housekeepers
Isabella Beeton: Mrs Beeton's Book of Household Management
Stacey Thomas: The Revels
Lucy Barker: The Other Side Of Mrs WoodBuy the books: UK || USA
Release details: Recorded 18th January 2024; published 1st July 2024
Where to find Alex online: Website || Twitter || Instagram
Where to find Stacey online: Twitter || Instagram || TikTok
Where to find Lucy online: Website || Twitter || Instagram
Where to find Charlie online: Website || Twitter || Instagram || TikTok
Discussions
02:44 How the trio's debut novelist tour came about
05:42 Anecdotes about the tour
08:37 Will you do another tour?
09:40 Last discussion on the tour
10:39 What is historical fiction, what does it do, what's it for?
20:51 Was there anything particular that you liked in research but couldn't include in your book?
31:25 What is the best reader or fan encounter you've had?
34:25 If your book was to be adapted who would you want cast in it?
37:46 Tell us more about what you're writing at the momentDisclosure: If you buy books linked to my site, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops
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Charlie and Liz Fenwick (The Secret Shore) discuss the women cartographers who were fundamental in the Allies winning the Second World War and the way women at university at the time had to choose between their career and having a family. We also discuss Liz's love of Cornwall, her use of Dorothy Sayer's Gaudy Night, and we go back a few times to the people who were involved in the secret flotillas that preceded the Normandy landings.
A transcript is available on my site
General references:
My previous interview with Liz is episode 35
Liz's TikTok plot walk on Frenchman's Creek
The Woman's Hour episode including women's intuitionBooks mentioned by name or extensively:
Daphne Du Maurier: Frenchman's Creek
Dorothy Sayers: Gaudy Night
Ernie Pyle: The Best Of Ernie Pyle's World War II Dispatches
Liz Fenwick: A Cornish Stranger
Liz Fenwick: The Returning Tide
Liz Fenwick: The Path To The Sea
Liz Fenwick: The River Between Us
Liz Fenwick: The Secret Shore
Liz Fenwick: A Portrait Of YouBuy the books: UK || USA
Release details: recorded 25th March 2024; published 24th June 2024
Where to find Liz online: Website || Twitter || Facebook || Instagram || TikTok
Where to find Charlie online: Website || Twitter || Instagram || TikTok
Discussions
01:45 You'd wanted to write about the secret flotillas for a long time?
02:58 Women's work in cartography in the Second World War
05:48 Furthering this discussion we go to Liz's character, Merry, or Dr Tremayne, and begin a discussion on what Liz left out of this book
09:42 More about Merry's work in the context of how a woman had to choose between a career and having a family, particularly in the context of Oxford University
16:06 Merry's mother, Elise, including her story in The Secret Shore
19:46 The romance in the book, including the love story
23:00 Liz's love and use in her novels of Frenchman's Creek, Cornwall
25:06 Ridifarne!
27:01 Is heart or head more important?
28:16 Liz's use of Dorothy Sayers' Gaudy Night and the character of Peter Wimsey
31:19 The real people in the book and how Liz made it all happen
33:38 All about Maurice Cohen and the mouse
35:22 The sacred wells in Cornwall
38:14 All about Liz's plot walks, which she releases to TikTok
41:03 Does it feel strange when you're not writing about Cornwall?
44:10 Liz's next book, A Portrait Of YouDisclosure: If you buy books linked to my site, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops
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Celebrating 100 episodes of this podcast, Charlie is joined by Gill Paul, Elizabeth Fremantle, Amanda Geard, and Maggie Brookes for a general bookish chat. We get all philosophical about genre, discuss film adaptations (Elizabeth’s Firebrand is out), whose books we wish we could have written, and best fan encounters.
A transcript is available on my site
General references:
Firebrand - the UK release date it 14th June
A Royal Affair
House Of The Dragon
Netflix's The Queen's Gambit
Amanda's interview with me on The Moon Gate is episode 84
Elizabeth's appearance on BBC Front Row
The Irish Times' article on Amanda's house (includes a photo of the room we discuss)
Father Ted
The Historical Novel Society 2024 ConferenceBooks mentioned by name or extensively:
Amanda Geard: The Midnight House
Amanda Geard: The Moon Gate
Diana Gabaldon: Voyager
Dodie Smith: I Capture The Castle
Elizabeth Fremantle: Queen's Gambit
Elizabeth Fremantle: Disobedient
Elizabeth Fremantle: The Sinners (working title)
Gill Paul: The Secret Wife
Gill Paul: Another Woman's Husband
Gill Paul: The Manhattan Girls
Gill Paul: A Beautiful Rival
Gill Paul: Scandalous Women
Jenny Ashcroft: Echoes Of Love
Kerry Fisher: The Secret Child
Maggie Brookes: The Prisoner's Wife
Maggie Brookes: Acts Of Love And War
Maggie O'Farrell: I Am, I Am, I Am
Paula McLain: The Paris Wife
Walter Tevis: The Queen's GambitBuy the books: UK || USA
Release details: Recorded 26th September 2023; published 26th February 2024
Where to find Elizabeth online: Website || Twitter || Facebook || Instagram
Where to find Amanda online: Website || Twitter || Facebook || Instagram
Where to find Gill online: Website || Twitter || Facebook || Instagram || TikTok
Where to find Maggie online: Website || Twitter || Facebook || Instagram
Where to find Charlie online: Website || Twitter || Instagram || TikTok
Discussions
02:36 What is historical fiction - what does it do, what it is for?
06:09 If you wrote in another genre, what would it be?
08:29 If your book was to be made into a film or TV show, who would you want cast in it?
13:03 Can you describe your latest book without talking about the plot at all?
15:47 If you could have written someone else's book, whose would you choose?
18:38 What's the weirdest thing anyone's said about one of your books?
22:43 What's the best reader or fan encounter you've had?
26:11 Have you ever been mistaken for another author?
28:55 What is the best interview you've had excluding this podcast?
32:53 What is the best writing advice you've ever been given?
37:27 Can you remember any particularly interesting fact that you discovered in research that you couldn't include in your book?
42:48 What bookish event are you looking forward to in the next couple of years?
45:52 What is everyone's next book? (Except Gill - she mentioned hers earlier.)Photo credit: Gill Paul, JP Masclet, Amanda Geard, Lyn Gregory
Disclosure: If you buy books linked to my site, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops
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Charlie and Chịkọdịlị Emelụmadụ (Dazzling) discuss Igbo mythology, the differences between polygamy and monogamy in Igbo culture, and the social impacts of colonialism and military coups in Nigeria. Chịkọdịlị also talks about having her characters bother her when she's trying to shower, finding literature in rubbish heaps, and needing a literary residency - please let her know if you've one to spare!
Please note there are mentions of rape and general violence in this episode.
Where to find Chịkọdịlị online
Twitter || Instagram
Where to find Charlie online
Website || Twitter || Instagram
Discussions
01:43 The starting point of Dazzling
04:54 The original narratives and the hows and whys of Chịkọdịlị's choices in terms of points of view and tenses
07:41 Why Chịkọdịlị doesn't have a favourite character and how she knows her characters
09:23 Is Chịkọdịlị writing a sequel? Shhh...
14:13 Chịkọdịlị tells us about how she worked on world building, which includes information about her childhood in Nigeria and how it compared to her initial years in the UK. She also discusses colonial and Christian impacts on Igbo culture
22:03 Why it was important to include the lack of family - Chịkọdịlị talks about polygamy in her culture and the differences between that and a one-mother family
29:08 The spirits and Igbo mythology in the book
34:32 Chịkọdịlị's use of the leopard society, which is a factual society, and who they were in reality
39:47 The 'lost girls' in the book - the whys and hows and the connections to reality. And the 'use' of menstruation
44:15 The inclusion of politics and its importance - looking at the civil wars and coups
47:04 Bringing the Harmattan into what Chịkọdịlị's been saying
49:25 What Chịkọdịlị is writing nowPhoto credit: The Visual Team.
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Charlie and Sarah Marsh (A Sign Of Her Own) discuss the lesser-known aspect of Alexander Bell's work - teaching deaf children to speak - in terms of both the real history and the fictionalised character she created in order to explore the events. This includes snippets about the manufactured rivalry between the two inventors of the telephone; Bell's wife, Mabel Hubbard (who was deaf); the Deaf community in London in the late 1800s; and the way Sarah employs language - written, signed, spoken - to excellent effect.
A transcript of this episode is available on the podcast website.
Reuben Conrad's 1979 book is called Deaf School Child
Wikipedia's page on Bell and Elisha Grey's rivalryWhere to find Sarah online
Twitter || Instagram
Where to find Charlie online
Website || Twitter || Instagram
Discussions
01:55 The inspiration for A Sign Of Her Own
03:27 Alexander Bell's work with deaf children, 'Visible Speech', and the reality of it all
07:08 The Deaf community in London at the time
08:13 The locations - America and London
09:21 The characters, particularly Sarah's fictional heroine, Ellen, and where bird names as surnames come into it
11:49 Talking about Mabel Hubbard, Alexander Bell's wife, who was deaf
13:24 The rivalry between Alexander Bell and Elisha Grey
15:30 The way Sarah uses different languages in her book
18:57 The romance in the book, between Ellen and Frank
20:48 Where Sarah sees Ellen going in her life beyond the book
22:34 Brief notes on what Sarah's writing now -
Charlie and Natasha Solomons (Fair Rosaline) discuss Natasha's interpretation of Romeo and Juliet, told from the perspective of Rosaline, wherein Romeo is a groomer and Juliet must be saved from him. We discuss as well Natasha's stylistic choices for her prose and the changes she made to the original ending.
Please note that there is a lot of discussion of sexually predatory behaviour and some explicit language in this episode.
Mark Scott's rephrasing of Charles Dibdin's argument can be found in his 1987 publication, Shakespearean Criticism, page 419
Natasha's I, Mona Lisa
Natasha's Mr Rosenblum's List
Ros Barber, The Marlowe Papers
Pamela Butchart's To Wee Or Not To Wee
Susan Calman's audiobook version of Pamela Butchart's To Wee Or Not To WeeWhere to find Natasha online
Twitter || Instagram
Where to find Charlie online
Website || Twitter || Instagram
Discussions
01:39 The inspiration for Fair Rosaline - Natasha's interpretation of Romeo and Juliet as being darker than it's portrayed
06:18 How we never see Rosaline in the original, and how Natasha changes this
07:01 Shakespeare's own thoughts on his characters, and Natasha's interpretations here
10:29 How Natasha borrowed from other Shakespearean Rosalines and Rosalinds
16:32 The importance of Juliet and her relative relevance in the book, and how Natasha considered different types of readers when she wrote
19:39 We start talking about the changes Natasha makes to the ending
20:44 Romeo's copying Tybalt - the balcony and roses not being Romeo's original idea in Fair Rosaline
21:57 The theme of roses and thorns
24:54 How Natasha wrote her prose - similar but not the same as Shakespeare's
28:12 How Natasha changes (or, as she says, 'made it more explicit') Friar Lawrence
32:45 The men being in on it
34:17 The importance of the convent and the theme of women's freedom
40:25 Tybalt's death and why Natasha made the choices she did
42:29 How Natasha wrote with her young daughter beside her on Zoom in lockdown
44:34 What Natasha's writing now: Cleopatra, with the Shakespearean influence again
47:18 There will be a play of Fair Rosaline! -
Charlie and Lucy Barker (The Other Side Of Mrs Wood) discuss Victorian mediums both factual and fictionalised - their work, the spiritualism that led to their popularity, the social circles, the rivalry, the rumours of fraud, and the women's roles as early grief counselors. We also talk about the early days of the Suffrage movement and various aspects of the book's ending.
Please note there is a very mild swear word in this episode.
The Courtauld's exhibition of Georgiana Houghton's spirit paintings
A preview of Tracy Ann Oberman's audio version of The Other Side Of Mrs Wood
Lucy's blog post on the postal service in Victorian times
One Night At McCool's
Lucy's blog post on using Notting HillWhere to find Lucy online
Blog || Twitter || Instagram
Where to find Charlie online
Website || Twitter || Instagram
Discussions
01:50 The real mediums who inspired the book: Agnes Guppy and Florence Cook
05:17 Lucy talks about how mediums in general were able to escape accusations of falsehood despite many being outed as frauds
08:53 The fickleness and loyalty of medium patrons
10:35 Why the Victorians were in to Spiritualism
14:00 The importance of the references to America throughout the book - America's own spiritualism
15:27 Mrs Wood, Miss Newman, and Miss Finch
19:07 The very early days of the women's suffrage movement
22:30 About Mrs Wood's circle of people
26:35 How Mrs Wood seeing herself as providing a service for grieving people, and the role of mediums in early grief counseling
29:34 The comedy in the book, and Lucy speaks briefly about her next book in the context of humour
30:58 Lucy's use of letters in the book, and Mr Clore's columns
33:23 The ending: why Lucy chose the ending she did for Mrs Wood and Mr Larson
35:32 Charlie thought it was going to be revealed that Miss Finch could really talk to spirits - Lucy discusses this point. Listen in!
37:24 The ending: Mrs Wood and Miss Finch and their terms
39:20 Lucy tells us about the locations in the book: Victorian-era Notting Hill, Portobello Road, Ladbroke Grove
42:32 Lucy gives us more information about her next book -
Charlie and Jennifer Saint (Atalanta) discuss the forgotten story of the female member of the Argonauts - Jennifer's use of and changes to the various versions of the mythological story, including her usage of motherhood as a theme, Homer's thoughts on his women characters, the assault of Callisto, and the fact that Jason isn't much of a hero.
Please note there are mentions of sexual assault in this episode.
Episode 60 of this podcast is my interview with Jennifer about Elektra
Jennifer's Elektra
Jennifer's Ariadne
The Argonautica
Sarah Clegg's Women's Lore
Cicero said, in the Tusculan Disputations, Book I, On The Contempt Of Death, section XXXIX: "If a child dies young, one should console himself easily. If he dies in the cradle, one doesn't even pay attention."
Emily Wilson's translation of The IliadWhere to find Jennifer online
Website || Twitter || Instagram
Where to find Charlie online
Website || Twitter || Instagram
Discussions
01:42 Why Atalanta, what drew you to her?
03:19 Why the first person in particular and how did you create Atalanta's voice?
06:31 The relevance of Atalanta's story to our present day, especially compared to Elektra
08:49 The unimportance of Jason (of the Argonauts)
10:07 Atalanta's growth as a person and her relative genderlessness
12:49 How and why Jennifer included motherhood in the way that she does (and how there are bad parents in Greek mythology)
17:54 Depending on the version of the story, Atalanta doesn't always meet Artemis - Jennifer talks about this and her choices for her story. We then move on to Callisto's story and the different versions of it
24:25 Jennifer talks about how Homer seems to have empathy for the women in his stories as part of a wider discussion as to the reception of the female characters in Ancient Greek society
27:49 How Jennifer approached writing the male characters, who revolve around Atalanta rather than the other way around
34:57 The ending - becoming lions would've been seen as a punishment in Ancient Greece, so how did Jennifer change this for her story?
38:02 Artemis' and Aphrodite's relationship
41:16 What's next - Jennifer's book on Hera
42:23 Might Jennifer ever write a 'regular' high fantasy novel? - Show more
