Afternoon tea, stunning views across a windswept sea and a captivating talk by a bestselling author. How could I resist the chance to hear Rowan Coleman talk about her books at the Purbeck Literary Festival this week? If you haven’t discovered Rowan’s books yet you really should. She combines a compelling style with powerful narratives that don’t shy away from difficult subjects. In the past she’s written about domestic abuse ...keep reading
If you haven’t discovered Fionnuala Kearney’s books yet, you’re in for a treat. The Day I Lost You, her second novel, is out this week and it’s a stunning read about three women – a mother, her daughter and her granddaughter. I was lucky enough to get the chance to interview Fionnuala and this is what she said. Q: The Day I Lost You is your second novel. Can you tell ...keep reading
A grand, redbrick hotel on a cliff overlooking the sea. Yes, the scene was like something out of a novel – which was rather appropriate considering we were all there to hear author Jill Mansell talk about her new book, You and Me, Always. The event was part of the Purbeck Literary Festival and Jill had driven through the wilds of the Somerset and Dorset countryside to meet scores of her ...keep reading
I adored Ruth Rendell’s books and as today would have been her 86th birthday I‘m rerunning part of a blog I wrote about her back in 2013. It has just been announced, by the way, that a new award is being launched in her memory by the National Literacy Trust and the Authors’ Licensing and Collecting Society. The annual Ruth Rendell Award will be presented to the author or writer who has ...keep reading
University creative writing courses are getting it in the neck again – this time from novelist DJ Taylor. In an interview with John Humphrys on Radio Four’s Today programme this morning he declared that universities have become “employment bureaus for novelists.” In a spirited defence, Andrew Cowan, director of creative writing at the University of East Anglia, pointed to the success of a host of distinguished authors, from Kazuo Ishiguro ...keep reading
Carole Blake is the doyenne of literary agents. She has worked in publishing for 50 years, started her own literary agency in 1977 (now Blake Friedmann) and has a star-studded list of clients that includes the likes of Peter James, Barbara Erskine and Sheila O’Flanagan. She’s also the author of From Pitch to Publication: Everything You Need to Know to Get Your Novel Published, a must-read for writers. Carole is ...keep reading
I’ve been to a lot of author events over the years but I’ve never heard anyone read as beautifully as Taiye Selasi did on Thursday evening. The event, at the super-cool Ace Hotel in Shoreditch, was packed with readers, all eager to meet the 34-year-old writer, whose acclaimed debut novel, Ghana Must Go has been showered with plaudits. You could hardly hear a pin drop as she read, the words on ...keep reading
My desk is a complete tip so I’m trying to have a sort-out. So far I’ve uncovered stuff that’s been hidden under coffee-stained papers and books for years. Lost treasures include 20 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows CDs, a dog-eared copy of Jilly Cooper’s Polo and a fountain pen I was given during the Prince and Princess of Wales’s Middle East tour of 1986. I’ve also found a notebook I ...keep reading
One was a straight-talking US agent in turquoise trainers who’d flown into Heathrow at dawn. The other was a former philosophy teacher in a charcoal suit who founded the Bragelonne publishing house in Paris. At first sight Christine Witthohn and Stéphane Marsan made an unlikely speaking duo but with years of experience in publishing, a willingness to share their expertise and a dry sense of humour, they each gave a ...keep reading
One of the very best things about Twitter is meeting other writers. Alison Morton and I got chatting about writing, blogging and France a few months back and with the her debut novel, Inceptio, out today I jumped at the chance to interview her for House With No Name. Inceptio is your debut novel. Can you tell me a little about the road to publication? Alison: I’ve played with words ...keep reading