Not Too Busy To Write

Kate Mosse is the international bestselling historical fiction author and the co-founder and chair of the Women's Prize for Fiction. Kate's latest book, An Extra Pair of Hands, is about her experience as an unpaid carer to both of her parents and now her mother in law. We talk about Kate's decision to write about such a personal topic, respecting other peoples stories and contributing to a conversation to shed light on a hidden group. Kate talks about her writing routine and how caring has influence it in recent years. We also take a dive into the Women's Prize, why it was set up and the incredible work it has done to put wonderful books into the hands of readers. From it's inception the prize was designed to look outwards, to include the reader and to support, invest in and value the work of women writers. We also talk about the snobbery around women's fiction and certain genres of fiction. Kate tells us about her standout winners from the past 25 years.Women's Prize Shortlist 2021LinksAn Extra Pair of Hands - Kate Mosse The City of Tears - Kate MosseFugitive Pieces - Anne MichaelsSmall Island - Andrea LevyWe Need To Talk About Kevin - Lionel ShriverThe Book About Getting Older - Dr Lucy PollockTo The Ends of The Earth - William GoldingA Line To Kill - Anthony Horowitz Outline - Rachel CuskYou can find Kate Mosse on Twitter and Instagramhttps://www.katemosse.co.uk/

Ali talks to Tanya Shadrick about her forthcoming book, The Cure for Sleep: A Late Waking Life. Described as an electrifying voice, The Cure for Sleep details Tanya's transformative near death encounter after the birth of her first child, and how this became the catalyst to transforming her life. In this intriguing conversation Ali and Tanya talk about the need to be selfish as mothers, how class has impacted on their writing and the importance of not always reading to see their own reflections but instead to broaden the world, while simultaneously understanding that as writers with unusual backgrounds, they have stories that deserve to be told. Read more about Tanya's work and the book here:www.thecureforsleep.com You can follow Tanya here:Twitter: @tanyashadrickInstagram: @tanyashadrickwriter

Rebecca Schiller is the author of four non-fiction books, a freelance journalist and the co-founder of the human rights charity Birth Rights. We take a dive into Rebecca's latest book Earthed - a memoir about returning to the land and how it refuses to follow the usual "good life" tropes and instead documents an unravelling of a woman whose problems follow her. Rebecca is also the founder of Mothers Who Write, which began life as in-person retreats for mothers who need to escape the everyday pressures of the domestic and get some clear headspace for writing. Rebecca talks a little about the future of Mothers Who Write which is now expanding into an online community that she hopes will not only support writers but help them earn an income too. We also go on quite important tangent on the difficulties writers face earning an income and how that can really impact on diversity in publishing.linksEarthed - Rebecca SchillerMothers Who Write You can sign up for Mothers Who Write Mailing List hereBorn Between Crosses - Natasha CarthewWe Should All Be Millionaires - Rachel RodgersYou can find Rebecca Schiller on Instagram @rebecca.schillerPenny @pennywincerAli @ali_millar_writes

Jessica Hatcher-Moore is an award winning foreign correspondent specialising in women's health in conflict zones. After moving back from East Africa to North Wales with her husband to have their first child, she was shocked to find a deep problem within her home country around silence after birth and a lack of care and support for women in the post natal period. After Birth is a pregnancy book all about the period after giving birth and how to recover your body and mind. As an investigative journalist Jessica challenges the given wisdom and found many apposing views and presents a wider view that women are rarely given.Jessica talks about the specific challenges of writing about pregnancy while being pregnant (she handed in her manuscript just before giving birth to her second child) and what she learned from her own research about seeking out help.LinksAfter Birth - Jessica Hatcher-MooreYoung Adam - Alexander TrocchiEarthed - Rebecca Schiller Everyone is Still Alive - Cathy Rentzenbrink You can find Jessica on Instagram @jessicajanehatcher

Olivia Sudjic is the author or two novels and a non-fiction long form essay. Her latest novel, Asylum Road, is a darkly unsettling story of a newly engaged couple unraveling.In this episode Olivia talks about the lure of control that drove her to novel writing as well as the risks involved when shouldering creative responsibility largely alone. The advantages of choosing a young, up and coming agent who is also your ideal reader as well as the the challenges of writing versus publishing and making the reader do a bit of work. And what happens when the siren song of writing becomes a day job?LinksAsylum Road - Olivia SudjicSympathy - Olivia SudjicExposure - Olivia SudjicIll Feelings - Alice HattrickThis is the Ritual - Rob DoyleIn The Garden: Essays on Nature and Growing - Daunt BooksThe Adventures of Miss Barbara Pym - Paula ByrneYou can find Olivia Sudjic on instagram @olivia.sudjic

We usually talk about getting the work done and being productive. Today is a counter episode - rest. Ali thinks she's bad at it, Penny feels she's pretty good at it. We talk about how it's easy to always measure your productivity but rest is needed is we are to keep going. When we're on deadlines or are afraid of losing momentum on a project, it can feel scary to slow down and take breaks. But taking a step back to rest can really pay off. We talk about the importance of self awareness and doing what works best for you. One way of really understanding where your time goes is time logging, an exercise which Ali and Penny both did for this episode. They talk about the interesting results of putting a magnifying glass to how they spend their time.Sign up to Penny's newsletter for updates on her upcoming course on creating time LinksMy Phantoms - Gwendoline RileyThe Invisible Life of Addie LaRue - V E SchwabEffortless - Greg McKeown

On the podcast today, Christina Sweeney-Baird, talks about her debut, The End of Men; a prescient debut about the effects of a virus that only kills males. Not only did Sweeney-Baird write her debut before the pandemic hit, she also balances writing life with the demands of being a full time Corporate Litigation Lawyer. Christina tells us how she manages her time, and how an earlier manuscripts can act as training for subsequent drafts. We also discuss the benefits of writing within a genre - how the specific rules of plot help as building blocks to a novel. It's a jam-packed episode and The End of Men looks set to be the runaway hit of the summer - enjoy! Due to wifi troubles, Christina's sound cuts out a couple of times, but it's so informative that it's 100% worth sticking with it.Links Letters To Camondo by Edmund De Waal Nothing But Blue Sky - Kathleen MacMahonThe Invisible Life of Addie LaRue - V E SchwabThe Handmaids Tale - Margaret AtwoodYou can find Christina Sweeney-Baird on Instagram @christinasweeneybairdNot Too Busy To Write at Bookshop.org

Annie Ridout writes in multiple genres including non-fiction, poetry, journalism and now fiction. Her latest non-fiction book Shy: How being quiet can lead to success explores the positive aspects of shyness as well as how to manage some of the more challenging sides of it. We talk about embracing our natural personalities, expanding our comfort zones and dealing with rejection as a writer. We also dive in to the topic of platform building as a writer, Annie's slightly unusual route to publishing and juggling running a business with writing books and raising kids. It's a chock a block episode!LinksShy: How being quiet can lead to success - Annie RidoutFreelance Mum - Annie RidoutRedhead By The Side of The Road - Anne TylerConfusion - Elizabeth Jane HowardYou can find Annie Ridout on Instagram @annieridoutYou can see all the podcast reading recommendations at Bookshop.org

Reading and writing go hand in hand. In their most conversational episode yet, Ali and Penny talk about what they read to inform their writing practice; and Ali discovers she owes Agatha Christie an apology. Some books act as guide books, others as inspiration, others as companions to the writing process, all are vital ways to breathe life and depth into writing, Ali and Penny unpick just how they use their reading to do this. Be warned, they talk about a lot of books, but you'll leave the episode feeling inspired and ready to tackle your current or next project.

In Episode 9 Ali and Penny talk to Jodie Chapman about her debut novel, Another Life, out now on Penguin Michael Joseph. Another Life tells the story of Nick and Anna, and the one seminal summer the pair spend together that marks each of them in its own way. Years later, tragedy brings the two back into each other's orbits, but is it too late? Jodie Chapman describes the book as a book about love in all its forms, and it's this idea that forms the backbone of her conversation with Ali and Penny. Anna is trapped by the expectations of the religion she's raised in, one where there are no birthday celebrations, or Easter or Christmas, and the end of days hangs heavily over her. We talk about using life to inform your writing, and the risks and opportunities this presents. Another Life is narrated by Nick, we talk about writing from the male perspective, about motherhood and the fear of toxic masculinity as well as the immense privilege and challenges of raising boys; and how life life is never black and white, only ever hues of something else. It's a packed episode - enjoy! Links Another life - Jodie ChapmanSorrow and Bliss - Meg MasonPeel Me a Lotus - Charmian CliftMany Different Kinds of Love - Michael RosenNo One Is Talking About This - Patricia LockwoodYou can shop all the podcast book recommendations on the Not To Busy To Write Recommends at Bookshop.org You can find Jodie Chapman in instragram @jodiechapman