For the latest Scots Whay Hae! podcast Ali caught up with writer Chris McQueer who was last a guest back in 2018. Since then Chris has been working on his debut novel which is now with us in the form of Hermit, published with Wildfire Books on the 27th February.
Chris gives a synopsis of Hermit before explaining how the novel has changed in terms of style and story over the years while the central characters of Jamie and Fiona were always there.
The two discuss the inspirations behind all the characters, how the structure helped the writing, finding the rhythm of this novel, writing about difficult subjects, and the dark and depressing research Chris undertook to best understand the online subculture of incels.
Chris also talks honestly about the challenges in, and expectations of, writing his first novel after the success of his two short story collections HINGS and HWFG, and what he's looking forward to next. Hermit is one of the most eagerly-awaited novels of the year, and it was such a pleasure to be able to discuss it with the author in such an open and insightful manner.
For full details, including all the ways to listen, go to scotswhayhae.com