“It's that juxtaposition of very grand figures from history and the very bog standard person. They're also two boys who are overlooked by life, and I think that connected them.” ~Louise Kulup Little is known about Hamnet Shakespeare, the son of the Bard himself, who died aged 11. But it’s thought his death shaped much of Shakespeare’s late works, including the famously melancholy King John. But now Hamnet has been brought to life in an unique and exciting way. Louise Kulup is the author of ‘Bard Boy’, which sees Hamnet return from the grave to haunt (and mentor) a 13 year old London schoolboy called Ben. Aimed at a middle-grade audience, the novel blends history, humour and supernatural elements. During this conversation Louise and Mark discuss the intriguing genesis of the book, which is surprisingly autobiographical given its supernatural twist. They explore the ups and downs of Louise’s writing journey, and how it saved her from a dark time in her life. And they tap into Louise’s career as an editor and publisher, to share useful advice and common writing pitfalls to avoid. In this episode, you will learn: Why you shouldn’t be afraid of self-publishing To embrace the joy of writing and the comfort it brings The challenges that come with writing for children  Find out more about Louise here and here. Your host is inkjockey founder Mark Heywood. Behind The Spine is an inkjockey production, and the audio accompaniment to The Writing Salon. Sign up to the newsletter here. Follow inkjockey on Substack here. You can buy copies of our anthology series here.  You can view the full transcript here. Connect with the show: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/behindthespinepodcast/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BehindTheSpine Twitter: https://twitter.com/BehindTheSpine Website: www.behindthespine.co.uk