Not Too Busy To Write

Emily Henson is an art director and stylist and the author of five books. Her latest is Create: Inspiring homes that value creativity over consumption. In this episode Emily talks about her journey from stylist and blogger to author and the close collaborative, relationship she has with her publisher. It's a really fun and informative episode for all those who would love to know exactly what goes in to producing and writing gorgeous and thoughtful illustrated books.LinksCreate - Emily HensonLife Unstyled - Emily HensonLife Unstyled BlogLife Unstyled on InstagramEmily Henson's Styling portfolioPenny Wincer's Newsletter - pennywincerwrites.comPenny of Instagram - @pennywincer

Ali and Penny are back together talking about the experience of publication. It has been three months since Ali's book The Last Days came out and it seemed like a great time to have a debrief and discuss the highs and lows, the hard work and the realities of publishing. We talk about reviews, proofs, blurbs, news events that drown out book publicity and the things outside of our control when publishing. We also take a little look ahead to our next publications.LinksStrandings - Peter RileyLipstick Traces - Greil MarcusAn Angel at My Table - Janet Frame Foster - Claire KeeganThe Hours - Michael CunninghamSign up to Penny's newsletter here - pennywincerwrites.comAli Millar on Instagram @ali_millar_writesPenny Wincer on Instagram @pennywincer

Winnie M Li is a Taiwanese-American author and activist originally from New Jersey. Her second novel Complicit is about a film lecturer in an obscure American college who once was on the cusp of a major film career. When she is approached by an investigative journalist about an alleged incident that occurred 10 years earlier, memories of youthful ambition and guilt arise. Winnie talks in this episode about how the lure of writing about film was what compelled her to write a second (very different) novel about sexual assault. About how using the framework of the protagonist telling her story to someone else from the distance of 10 years, gave her an interesting perspective to play with. We also talk about the arts grants that have allowed her to pursue her writing. LinksComplicit - Winnie M LiDark Chapter - Winnie M LiArts Council England Grants https://www.artscouncil.org.uk/ProjectGrantshttps://www.artscouncil.org.uk/dycpWinnie M Li websiteInstagram - @winniemliYou can sign up to Penny's newsletter here Penny on Instagram @pennywincer

Shakaila Forbes-Bell is a fashion psychologist and the author of Big Dress Energy: How fashion psychology can transform your wardrobe and your confidence. It's a book that is a pleasure to read, filled with insights and backed up by rigorous research. In this episode Shakaila talks dressing our different identities, the challenges of switching from academic writing to creative non-fiction, making academic research more widely available to the everyday reader and some of the difficult decisions she made around creating time to write this book, including being honest about her chronic pain condition and her role raising her sisters children. Big Dress Energy is out now.LinksBig Dress Energy - Shakaila Forbes-BellBig Dress Energy Podcast

Margaux Vialleron is a French born, London based writer. Her debut novel The Yellow Kitchen centres around the friendship of three very different women over the course of a year, with a kitchen and the food prepared within it at its heart.Margaux speaks about why she is drawn to writing about friendship and food, how she uses her sense to dive into the English language and why she has chosen to write in her second language. We also talk a bit about her day job as a translation rights literary agent.LinksThe Yellow Kitchen - Margaux VialleronThe Salmon Pink Kitchen PodcastThe Salmon Pink Kitchen NewsletterPenny's instagram @pennywincerContact Penny

Beth Kempton is a Japanologist, a best selling author and a writing mentor whose books have been translated into 24 languages. Her Latest book The Way of the Fearless Writer challenges the assumption that writing must be a struggle and filled with suffering. We talk about why it's important to know why we write, learning to let go in our writing, when to share our work (and when not to) and learning to trust in writing as a practice. LinksThe Way of the Fearless Writer - Beth KemptonFreedom Seeker - Beth KemptonWabi Sabi - Beth KemptonDo What You Love For Life - Writing classes with Beth KemptonThe Fearless Writer PodcastYou can sign up to Penny's weekly newsletter about all things writing and finding time to write here

Huma Qureshi is a former Guardian and Observer journalist and is the author of the memoir How We Met and her latest book Things We Do Not Tell The People We Love, is a short story collection about the distance between people - between mothers and daughters and between lovers. It includes the "The Jam Maker" which won the Harper's Bazaar Short Story Prize 2020. We talk about what drove Huma to set herself the challenge of writing 10 short stories in a fairly short period of time, the importance of short story prizes as a way of setting yourself deadlines and challenges, and how motherhood both affected her confidence as a writer but also gave her an urgency to get the words on to the page.LinksMiniature Worlds: Writing short stories with Huma QureshiThings We Do Not Tell The People We Love - Huma QureshiHow We Met - Huma QureshiSense and Sensibility - Jane Austen A Ghost in the Throat - Doireann Ni GhriofaYou can find Huma Qureshi on instagram @humaqureshiwriterSign up for Penny's newsletter hereYou can check out all the book recommendations from the podcast at our bookshop on bookshop.org which helps support independent booksellers

Cathy Rentzenbrink is a Sunday Times best selling author of The Last Act of Love, A Manual for Heartache, Dear Reader and Everyone is Still Alive. Her latest book, Write It All Down, is all about writing from life. Cathy talks about how her first memoir started because she need to write it out of her, how she's learned to trust the process of writing, even though she's still filled with self doubt and learning that external validation of our writing doesn't magically fix that doubt. LinksWrite It All Down - Cathy RentzenbrinkThe Last Act of Love - Cathy RentzenbrinkEveryone Is Still Alive - Cathy RentzenbrinkThe Virgin Suicides - Jeffery EugenidesWithout Warning And Only Sometimes - Kit De WaalYou can follow Cathy on Instagram @catrentzenbrink and twitter @catrentzenbrinkYou can follow Penny on Instagram @pennywincer and sign up for her newsletter here.

Julia Silk is a an agent with Greyhound Literary. Julia spent many years as an editor before becoming an agent who represents a wide range of fiction and non-fiction authors. We talk about what exactly an agent does, how agents find and nurture authors as well as how agents deal with rejection (yes they get rejected too!). She also talks about the common problems that she sees in manuscripts, including really figuring out what the point of your book is and the importance story and how to write a captivating cover letter. It is a packed epsiode full of gold for submitting writers.Julia Silk is currently open for submissions You can find Julia on twitter @juliasreadingBook Proposal Group Program with Penny Wincer LinksSisters - Daisy JohnsonNine Perfect Strangers - Liane MoriatyIf This Is a Man - Primo LeviEat Up - Ruby Tandoh You can find all the books recommended on the podcast at our Bookshop.org shop - Not Too Busy To Write Recommends - buying through our bookshop supports independent booksellers as well as supporting the podcast

REPLAY: This episode was originally released in April 2022Sophie Howarth has a varied and unique career spanning art, entrepreneurship, teaching, activism and writing. She has been Curator of Public Programs at Tate Modern, co-founded The School Of Life and Department Store for The Mind, has written several books on photography. Her latest book The Mindful Photographer is about slowing down and paying attention to what we see. Sophie is a big believer in the joy of being an amateur and the book is for anyone, regardless of equipment or expertise, to find a fresh way of paying attention in the world. We talk about 'beginning in the middle' - how in middle age, with our awareness of impermanence, we are somehow freed from constraints by being more aware of death. We also talk about the process of writing a photography book, of approaching the artists she wanted to use to illustrate the ideas in the book and the range of work including diversity of gender, race and genre.Our conversation spans so many areas - inspiration (and too much inspiration/input), work freedom, following joy and the idea of practise as a way of living.LinksBook Proposal Group Program with Penny Wincer The Mindful Photographer - Sophie HowarthStreet Photography Now - Sophie HowarthFamily Photography Now - Sophie Howarthsophiehowarth.comYou can find Penny on Instagram @pennywincer and you can sign up for her newsletter here