New episodes every Friday!
On Page One - The Writer's Podcast, we talk to writers of all descriptions (authors, screenwriters, comic writers and more) about their writing process and how they craft their next great works. We also explore their career, including how their first big break happened, and discuss the ups and downs along the way. We learn something new every episode, and we hope you do as well.
Page One is brought to you by Write Gear, creators of Page One - the Writer's Notebook. Order yours now: https://www.writegear.co.uk/shop.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
New episodes every Friday!
On Page One - The Writer's Podcast, we talk to writers of all descriptions (authors, screenwriters, comic writers and more) about their writing process and how they craft their next great works. We also explore their career, including how their first big break happened, and discuss the ups and downs along the way. We learn something new every episode, and we hope you do as well.
Page One is brought to you by Write Gear, creators of Page One - the Writer's Notebook. Order yours now: https://www.writegear.co.uk/shop.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
David Headley is the Managing Director and co-founder of Goldsboro Books, one of the UK’s leading independent booksellers, and founder of the D H H Literary Agency. Originally from York, David studied theology before building a 25-year career at the heart of the publishing industry. Through Goldsboro, he created the UK’s largest collectors’ book club and became a major influence in hardback fiction sales, while as an agent he represents a wide range of bestselling and award-winning authors.
We had a really interesting chat with David hearing about how he set up Goldsboro Books and then moved into literary agency. We hear what he catches his attention as an agent (in good and bad ways!) and also talk about the state of the industry, what types of books he thinks are selling at the moment, and why he thinks it is the toughest environment for authors he has seen in over twenty years.
Links:
Submit to David at DHH Literary
Support us on Patreon and get great benefits!: https://www.patreon.com/ukpageone
Page One - The Writer's Podcast is brought to you by Write Gear, creators of Page One - the Writer's Notebook. Learn more and order yours now: https://www.writegear.co.uk/page-one
Page One - The Writer's Podcast is part of STET Podcasts - the one stop shop for all your writing and publishing podcast needs! Follow STET Podcasts on Instagram and Bluesky
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Watch as a full video episode on YouTube!
Self-publishing has become a serious and viable route for many authors who can't or don't want to find a traditional publisher. But can it work for everyone? We discuss why some genres are more suited than others, and also talk about all the extra work that is needed to make a real success of self-publishing.
Drafting Notes is a series in which one award-winning writer (Tariq) and one hopefully soon-to-be-published writer (Marco) discuss various writing issues as they occur to them!
Drafting Notes episodes are available early if you join our Patreon - check it out and get this and other great benefits!
Drafting Notes and Page One - The Writer's Podcast are brought to you by Write Gear, creators of Page One - the Writer's Notebook. Learn more and order yours now: https://www.writegear.co.uk/page-one
Drafting Notes is part of STET Podcasts - the one stop shop for all your writing and publishing podcast needs! Follow STET Podcasts on Instagram and Bluesky
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Watch this episode as a full video episode on YouTube
Ed Wilson is an agent and director of Johnson & Alcock, representing a vibrant list of fiction and non-fiction, from new voices to established, bestselling and award-winning authors, including RJ Barker, Shauna Lawless and Sam Holland.
We had great fun chatting with Ed about all things agent-related. He tells us about how he first got into agenting, and we discuss the all-important query letter and the mistakes that will result in a quick pass. We also talk about the role that luck can play in the publishing world, as well as the current state of the industry and whether the outlook is getting bleaker for authors. Plus, he tells us about the time a client named a car after him...
Links:
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Watch as a full video on YouTube
On this week's episode, we discuss Ireland's UBI experiment for artists and writers, and why we would love to see other countries follow suit (but aren't holding our breath). Plus, we look at why indie presses are pressing the panic button, and discuss the latest BookTok marketing scheme - theme-scented books (a topic Tariq gets very excited about!)
00:00 Intro
01:10 Luck of the Irish - UBI for writers
13:45 Indie Presses - Time for trade support?
24:34 Smell of Success? TikTok, Trends and Garlic Mayo
39:56 Off Script - Nadine finds another stranger than fiction story for inspiration
46:18 Off Script - Horror Movie updates and True Crime chat
Links:
Ireland's Basic income for the Arts Scheme made permanent
Indie Presses in existential crisis call for support
Nadine's Stranger than Fiction story
Adventures in Publishing-land is brought to you by STET Podcasts - the one stop shop for all your writing podcast needs, featuring Page One - The Writer's Podcast, The Conversation with Nadine Matheson and more!
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Watch this episode as a full video interview on our YouTube channel.
Liza DeBlock began her publishing career as an assistant at Eccles Fisher Associates in 2018, where she gained a deep understanding of the international book market. After moving into literary agenting and working with Robert Caskie and Silé Edwards, she honed her skills selling rights for bestselling authors including Richard Osman, Claire Douglas, Abigail Dean, Saara El-Arifi, and Hannah Kaner and was named a Bookseller Rising Star in 2022. Now at Greenstone Literary, she is building her own curated list of fiction and non-fiction authors, including them Sally Abé, Dominic Franks, Stacey Thomas, Natalie Chandler, Carys Green, and Pim Wangtechawat.
We had great fun chatting with Liza and hearing how she moved into agenting after being a literary scout and what she wants (and doesn't want!) to see from a query letter. Plus, we talk about the importance of international rights to an author, and hear her views on the latest literary trends and what direction the industry may take in the future.
Links:
Liza's agency profile at Greenstone Literary
Support us on Patreon and get great benefits!: https://www.patreon.com/ukpageone
Page One - The Writer's Podcast is brought to you by Write Gear, creators of Page One - the Writer's Notebook. Learn more and order yours now: https://www.writegear.co.uk/page-one
Page One - The Writer's Podcast is part of STET Podcasts - the one stop shop for all your writing and publishing podcast needs! Follow STET Podcasts on Instagram and Bluesky
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Watch this as a full video episode on our YouTube channel
We all know that querying is the main method for finding an agent, but are there other ways? Many of the guests on Page One have spoken about different experiences in how they finally found an agent, and we ourselves have also tried things like competitions and so on. On this episode, we discuss the pros and cons of some of these alternative methods.
Drafting Notes is a series in which one award-winning writer (Tariq) and one hopefully soon-to-be-published writer (Marco) discuss various writing issues as they occur to them!
Drafting Notes episodes are available early if you join our Patreon - check it out and get this and other great benefits!
You've finished your book and you're ready to send it off - but what should you include in the query letter? And perhaps more importantly, what shouldn't you include? We discuss it all on today's Drafting Notes!
Drafting Notes and Page One - The Writer's Podcast are brought to you by Write Gear, creators of Page One - the Writer's Notebook. Learn more and order yours now: https://www.writegear.co.uk/page-one
Drafting Notes is part of STET Podcasts - the one stop shop for all your writing and publishing podcast needs! Follow STET Podcasts on Instagram and Bluesky
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Watch as a full video on YouTube
On this week's episode, we are talking about a scarcity of books for the Booker Prize and wondering if that is due to poor books or too narrow a category for prizes. Plus, we join the Alchemised train and wonder if fanfic turned to publishing gold shows publishers are unwilling to gamble on new stories, and more generally discuss how risk-averse the industry can be and why that narrows the chances for new authors.
00:00 Intro
01:04 Anthropic Settlement Update
03:22 Booker Prize in crisis?
17:46 Alchemised success - Turning FanFic into Gold
24.20 Betting on Bestsellers - Do Publishers Play the Odds?
36:56 Off Script - Nadine finds another stranger than fiction story for inspiration
43:14 Off Script - Our Favourite Horror Movies
Links:
Sign up for Anthropic settlement
Doyle says Booker Prize struggled to find good novels
Alchemised - Fan fiction turned into a bestseller
Why Romance Readers can't quit Dramione
The Publishing Industry has a Gambling Problem
Nadine's Stranger than Fiction story
Adventures in Publishing-land is brought to you by STET Podcasts - the one stop shop for all your writing podcast needs, featuring Page One - The Writer's Podcast, The Conversation with Nadine Matheson and more!
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Watch as a full video on YouTube
On this week's episode we share some exciting awards news involving Tariq and Marco (both winners at the recent Bloody Scotland Crime Writing Festival!), Nadine reveals a new cover (check her instagram to see it!), plus we discuss the latest in the Anthropic settlement, wonder about whether cosy crime is a reductive term, and in the wake of the Evelyn Clark author reveal, wonder whether marketing gimmicks work for the general public. Plus, Nadine finds another strange story to inspire some fiction, and we pay tribute to Robert Redford with a discussion of our favourite movies featuring him.
00:00 Intro
00:26 Bloody Scotland Prize Winners!
05:26 Is the Anthropic AI settlement in trouble?
17:38 Richard Osman says "cosy crime" is a reductive term - is he right?
28:01 Evelyn Clark reveal - are hidden author reveals marketing genius or gimmicks?
38:22 Off Script - Nadine finds another stranger than fiction story for inspiration
44:56 Off Script - Robert Redford - Our Favourite Movies
Links:
Judge stalls Anthropic settlement
Sign up for Anthropic settlement
Richard Osman says cosy crime is reductive
Nadine's Stranger Than Fiction story
Adventures in Publishing-land is brought to you by STET Podcasts - the one stop shop for all your writing podcast needs, featuring Page One - The Writer's Podcast, The Conversation with Nadine Matheson and more!
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
We are taking a short break, but don't despair, we will be back with some exciting new episodes soon!
In the meantime, enjoy this chat that our STET Podcasts colleague Nadine Matheson had with MW Craven!
Adventures in Publishing-land on Apple Podcasts
Adventures in Publishing-land in Spotify
Adventures in Publishing-land on YouTube
Support us on Patreon and get great benefits!: https://www.patreon.com/ukpageone
Page One - The Writer's Podcast is brought to you by Write Gear, creators of Page One - the Writer's Notebook. Learn more and order yours now: https://www.writegear.co.uk/page-one
Page One - The Writer's Podcast is part of STET Podcasts - the one stop shop for all your writing and publishing podcast needs! Follow STET Podcasts on Instagram and Bluesky
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
We are taking a short break, but don't despair, we will be back with some exciting new episodes soon!
In the meantime, enjoy this chat that our STET Podcasts colleague Nadine Matheson had with Elvin James Mensah!
Adventures in Publishing-land on Apple Podcasts
Adventures in Publishing-land in Spotify
Adventures in Publishing-land on YouTube
Support us on Patreon and get great benefits!: https://www.patreon.com/ukpageone
Page One - The Writer's Podcast is brought to you by Write Gear, creators of Page One - the Writer's Notebook. Learn more and order yours now: https://www.writegear.co.uk/page-one
Page One - The Writer's Podcast is part of STET Podcasts - the one stop shop for all your writing and publishing podcast needs! Follow STET Podcasts on Instagram and Bluesky
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
We are taking a short break, but don't despair, we will be back with some exciting new episodes soon!
In the meantime, enjoy this chat that our STET Podcasts colleague Nadine Matheson had with Louise Minchin!
Adventures in Publishing-land on Apple Podcasts
Adventures in Publishing-land in Spotify
Adventures in Publishing-land on YouTube
Support us on Patreon and get great benefits!: https://www.patreon.com/ukpageone
Page One - The Writer's Podcast is brought to you by Write Gear, creators of Page One - the Writer's Notebook. Learn more and order yours now: https://www.writegear.co.uk/page-one
Page One - The Writer's Podcast is part of STET Podcasts - the one stop shop for all your writing and publishing podcast needs! Follow STET Podcasts on Instagram and Bluesky
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Watch as a video episode on YouTube!
Ideas are like gold dust, they say. But are they? Should you hold some back to put in future books, or should you put everything you have into the one you are writing now? We discuss the common pitfalls that some new writers can make.
Drafting Notes is a new series of podcast episodes in which one award-winning writer (Tariq) and one hopefully soon-to-be-published writer (Marco) discuss various writing issues as they occur to them!
Drafting Notes episodes are available early if you join our Patreon - check it out and get this and other great benefits!
You've finished your book and you're ready to send it off - but what should you include in the query letter? And perhaps more importantly, what shouldn't you include? We discuss it all on today's Drafting Notes!
Drafting Notes and Page One - The Writer's Podcast are brought to you by Write Gear, creators of Page One - the Writer's Notebook. Learn more and order yours now: https://www.writegear.co.uk/page-one
Drafting Notes is part of STET Podcasts - the one stop shop for all your writing and publishing podcast needs! Follow STET Podcasts on Instagram and Bluesky
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Watch as a full video interview instead!
Elodie Harper is a bestselling author whose Wolf Den trilogy has won wide acclaim. The first book The Wolf Den, was a book of the month for both Waterstones and Barnes & Noble, won the Glass Bell Award and was shortlisted for Page turner of the year at the British Book Awards. The second in the series, The House with the Golden Door, was a Sunday Times top 10 bestseller. Elodie's first standalone novel set in the ancient world - Boudicca's Daughter - publishes in the UK and US in August 2025.
We had great fun chatting with Elodie in the studio and hearing about what made her move from journalism to fiction writing, and why your first books don't need to be your big break (Wolf Den was book 3). Plus, we talk about her love of Ancient Rome and what inspires her to write her stories.
Links:
Buy Boudicca's Daughter and Elodie's other books now
Adventures in Publishing-land on Apple Podcasts
Adventures in Publishing-land in Spotify
Adventures in Publishing-land on YouTube
Support us on Patreon and get great benefits!: https://www.patreon.com/ukpageone
Page One - The Writer's Podcast is brought to you by Write Gear, creators of Page One - the Writer's Notebook. Learn more and order yours now: https://www.writegear.co.uk/page-one
Page One - The Writer's Podcast is part of STET Podcasts - the one stop shop for all your writing and publishing podcast needs! Follow STET Podcasts on Instagram and Bluesky
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Drafting Notes is a new series of podcast episodes in which one award-winning writer (Tariq) and one hopefully soon-to-be-published writer (Marco) discuss various writing issues as they occur to them!
Drafting Notes episodes are available early if you join our Patreon - check it out and get this and other great benefits!
You've finished your book and you're ready to send it off - but what should you include in the query letter? And perhaps more importantly, what shouldn't you include? We discuss it all on today's Drafting Notes!
Drafting Notes and Page One - The Writer's Podcast are brought to you by Write Gear, creators of Page One - the Writer's Notebook. Learn more and order yours now: https://www.writegear.co.uk/page-one
Drafting Notes is part of STET Podcasts - the one stop shop for all your writing and publishing podcast needs! Follow STET Podcasts on Instagram and Bluesky
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Natalie Jayne Clark is a neurodivergent writer and poet based in Perth, Scotland. The view as she writes is the ever-changing vista of trees and clouds lining the top of Kinnoull Hill. Her debut novel, a darkly funny sapphic crime tale called 'The Malt Whisky Murders', is out now and is nominated for best debut at Bloody Scotland 2025.
It was great fun chatting with Natalie and hearing how a 2.5 minute pitch at Bloody Scotland's Pitch Perfect competition led to a pre-emptive book deal and an agent within a week. Plus, we talk about writing stories you want to read, and how modern tech can ruin crime stories.
Links:
Buy The Malt Whisky Murders now
Adventures in Publishing-land on Apple Podcasts
Adventures in Publishing-land in Spotify
Adventures in Publishing-land on YouTube
Support us on Patreon and get great benefits!: https://www.patreon.com/ukpageone
Page One - The Writer's Podcast is brought to you by Write Gear, creators of Page One - the Writer's Notebook. Learn more and order yours now: https://www.writegear.co.uk/page-one
Page One - The Writer's Podcast is part of STET Podcasts - the one stop shop for all your writing and publishing podcast needs! Follow STET Podcasts on Instagram and Bluesky
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
We all know the old saying "Don't judge a book by its cover" - but the trouble is, many people do! That's why trad publishers spend lots of money on designers for book covers! We discuss the difference a good and a bad cover can make, how self-published authors can make covers like the pros, and how to push back on trad publishers if the cover they suggest isn't working.
Drafting Notes is a new series of podcast episodes in which one award-winning writer (Tariq) and one hopefully soon-to-be-published writer (Marco) discuss various writing issues as they occur to them!
Drafting Notes episodes are available early if you join our Patreon - check it out and get this and other great benefits!
Drafting Notes and Page One - The Writer's Podcast are brought to you by Write Gear, creators of Page One - the Writer's Notebook. Learn more and order yours now: https://www.writegear.co.uk/page-one
Drafting Notes is part of STET Podcasts - the one stop shop for all your writing and publishing podcast needs! Follow STET Podcasts on Instagram and Bluesky
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Watch this episode as a full video interview on YouTube
Catriona Silvey was born in Glasgow and grew up in Scotland and England. After collecting an unreasonable number of degrees from various universities in the UK and the US, she moved to Edinburgh where she lives with her husband and children. She is the author of Meet Me in Another Life (2021) and the time-travel romantic comedy Love and Other Paradoxes (2025).
We had great fun chatting with Catriona in our studio, and hearing about how she wrote many novels before finding the one that would get her first publishing deal. We also talk about the intricacies of time travel, and why she wants to explore different types of stories in her writing.
Links:
Adventures in Publishing-land on Apple Podcasts
Adventures in Publishing-land in Spotify
Adventures in Publishing-land on YouTube
Support us on Patreon and get great benefits!: https://www.patreon.com/ukpageone
Page One - The Writer's Podcast is brought to you by Write Gear, creators of Page One - the Writer's Notebook. Learn more and order yours now: https://www.writegear.co.uk/page-one
Page One - The Writer's Podcast is part of STET Podcasts - the one stop shop for all your writing and publishing podcast needs! Follow STET Podcasts on Instagram and Bluesky
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Watch as a full video episode on our YouTube channel
Whether you are just starting our or are established, feedback can be invaluable for a writer. When should you seek feedback, and how can you find reliable people to provide feedback? And if you are giving feedback, what is useful and what isn't? We discuss it all on this week's Drafting Notes!
Drafting Notes is a new series of podcast episodes in which one award-winning writer (Tariq) and one hopefully soon-to-be-published writer (Marco) discuss various writing issues as they occur to them!
Drafting Notes episodes are available months earlier if you join our Patreon - check it out and get this and other great benefits!
Drafting Notes and Page One - The Writer's Podcast are brought to you by Write Gear, creators of Page One - the Writer's Notebook. Learn more and order yours now: https://www.writegear.co.uk/page-one
Page One - The Writer's Podcast is part of STET Podcasts - the one stop shop for all your writing and publishing podcast needs! Follow STET Podcasts on Instagram and Bluesky
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
David Mamet is a Pulitzer Prize–winning American playwright, screenwriter, director, novelist, and essayist, born November 30, 1947, in Chicago, Illinois. He is renowned for his breakthrough in theater during the 1970s with works like American Buffalo and Sexual Perversity in Chicago, later earning the 1984 Pulitzer Prize for Glengarry Glen Ross. His distinctive writing style—sharp, staccato dialogue, often referred to as "Mamet‑speak"—redefined modern theatrical and cinematic storytelling. Beyond the stage, Mamet penned acclaimed screenplays for The Verdict, The Untouchables, and Wag the Dog, earning Academy Award nominations, and has directed notable films such as House of Games and Homicide. He also co-founded the Atlantic Theater Company, has taught at prestigious institutions like Yale, NYU, and Goddard College, and authored novels, essays, and memoirs. His new book, Recollections of St Ives, is out now.
We had a very interesting discussion with David about how he first started writing, and what keeps him going today. We also talk about the differences in writing for the screen, stage and page, and he tells us why he wanted to write his latest novel, Some Recollections of St Ives.
Links:
Buy Some Recollections of St Ives
Adventures in Publishing-land on Apple Podcasts
Adventures in Publishing-land in Spotify
Adventures in Publishing-land on YouTube
Support us on Patreon and get great benefits!: https://www.patreon.com/ukpageone
Page One - The Writer's Podcast is brought to you by Write Gear, creators of Page One - the Writer's Notebook. Learn more and order yours now: https://www.writegear.co.uk/page-one
Page One - The Writer's Podcast is part of STET Podcasts - the one stop shop for all your writing and publishing podcast needs! Follow STET Podcasts on Instagram and Bluesky
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Watch as a full video episode on our YouTube channel
On this week's Drafting Notes, inspired by the publication of Tariq's book, The Midnight King, we are talking book launches. How important are they? Do they make a difference to sales? And what happens for the author after the book has been launched?
Drafting Notes is a new series of podcast episodes in which one award-winning writer (Tariq) and one hopefully soon-to-be-published writer (Marco) discuss various writing issues as they occur to them!
Drafting Notes episodes are available months earlier if you join our Patreon - check it out and get this and other great benefits!
Drafting Notes and Page One - The Writer's Podcast are brought to you by Write Gear, creators of Page One - the Writer's Notebook. Learn more and order yours now: https://www.writegear.co.uk/page-one
Page One - The Writer's Podcast is part of STET Podcasts - the one stop shop for all your writing and publishing podcast needs! Follow STET Podcasts on Instagram and Bluesky
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
