The Bestseller Experiment

Awais Khan returns to the podcast after the publication of his second novel No Honour, which has been getting the most extraordinary acclaim. Awais tells us about the lessons he's learned since the publication of his debut, In The Company of Strangers, not least what he did at times when he felt like giving up.

PublishingPush.com help publishers and authors publish and promote their books, and Patrick runs us through the ten most common mistakes made by authors when launching their books, and he answers our listener questions on book launches. You can discover more about Publishing Push here:  https://publishingpush.com   

Abi Silver is a lawyer and the author of Burton & Lamb courtroom thrillers, including the latest The Midas Game, which dives into the world of online gaming and Youtubers. Abi also wrote an article on why writers write and she tells us why your writing matters. And the two Marks get nostalgic for early computer games.

Bestselling book coach Jennie Nash has inspired hundreds of novelists, and in her new book Blueprint for a Book she makes the case for writers defining the foundational elements of their story before writing. She also answers listener questions on self-editing, first drafts, second drafts, getting an agent, writing stand-alones and series, and how to decide which idea is the one to turn into a nov...

Bestselling book coach Jennie Nash has inspired hundreds of novelists, and in her new book Blueprint for a Book she makes the case for writers defining the foundational elements of their story before writing. She also answers listener questions on self-ed

Sarah Denzil is the million-copy bestselling author of Silent Child, and its sequel Stolen Girl is premiering on audio first. We discuss writing at work, writing in notebooks, how feedback boosted her confidence, and recording and releasing audiobooks in various formats, including multi-voice recordings and dramatisations.

We celebrate international bestselling fantasy writer Joe Abercrombie's return to the podcast with The Wisdom of Crowds, which brings his Age of Madness trilogy to a thrilling climax. As always, Joe is a treasure trove of amazing advice for writers and he answers our listener questions on outlining, symmetry, POV and much more. We also ask him if he still dances naked in the rain… and his answer m...

Sunday Times bestselling thriller writer Steve Cavanagh returns triumphant to the podcast. When we last spoke to him he was on the verge of a great breakthrough. Today he's an award-winner and international bestseller and with his new thriller The Devil's Advocate he's done it again. Steve reveals how he works hard to engage the reader straight away.

Lisa Rogers has been copy editor to some amazing authors including Joe Abercrombie, Terry Pratchett, Iain Banks, Tad Williams and some bloke called Mark Stay. She answers listener questions on the role of a copy editor, common mistakes made by authors, style guides, timelines, differences in style between UK and US publishers, Oxford commas, point-of-view, head-hopping, and why hyphens keep her up...

Piers Torday is the award-winning author of the extraordinary The Last Wild trilogy for children, and he's back with an amazing prequel The Wild Before. Piers' writing comes from a lifelong passion for wildlife and for giving voice to characters that might not otherwise be heard. He also tells us about the Paul Torday prize for debut novelists over 60 and why it's not age that matters when writing...

Dr Jen O'Ryan  the author of "Inclusive AF: A Field Guide for 'Accidental' Diversity Experts". Designed for anyone thinking about Inclusion and Diversity. She answers our listener questions on writing diverse characters, the kinds of research and due diligence to explore when writing outside of your own experience, the changes needed in publishing for diversity to work and much more.

Kia Abdullah's latest novel Next of Kin is not just a page-turning thriller, but Kia is using its publication to support the Trussell Trust charity. Kia talks about writing difficult subjects, cultural appropriation, diversity in publishing, and her writing habits. The Two Marks discuss the writer's commitment to the reader, and are excited to announce that the Bestseller Academy is once again ope...

Mick Finlay is the author of the Arrowood series of crime novels set in 1890s London, and in his latest book Arrowood and the Meeting House Murders , he explores the dark side of human psychology, and tells us how teaching psychology has helped him as a writer. And this week's digression from the Two Marks is on the joys of car boot sales and Beanie Babies.

Matthew Ralph is best-selling children's author whose books celebrate diversity and inclusivity. Matthew takes us through his extraordinary career that started with an idea in an airport to his latest book Family Means, which evolved from the close connection he has with his readers. Matthew gives us tips on marketing, and shares his dream to create a community for his readers. The Two Marks also...

Nicola May is the bestselling author of a dozen romantic comedies, all of which have topped the UK Kindle charts, and now she's back with her new book Welcome To Ferry Lake Market. In a jam-packed interview, Nicola answers listener questions on the essential elements of a romcom, tenacity, blog tours, self-belief, asking for help, and writing in bed!

RJ McBrien's career as a screenwriter saw him writing for Spooks, Wallander and The Bill, and now he's delivered his debut novel Reckless, a page-turning thriller of marriage and betrayal. He takes us through the lessons he's learned in the transition from scripts to novels, why doing something every day is essential, and how to tackle the "then what?" phase of writing.

Adam Simcox is a filmmaker whose debut novel The Dying Squad is published by Gollancz. Adam takes us through his journey to publication — "A leisurely stroll barefoot over broken glass for twenty years" — and we discuss writing for the screen and novels, mood boards, writing to music, commissioning reader reports, self-belief, and writing with your significant other (his partner Kirsty Eyre has al...

Mark Stay is joined by Sara Cox — who helped him launch his novel The Crow Folk earlier this year — to answer listener questions on Book Launches, including… how far should you plan ahead, the different types of launches, the pre-launch essentials, post-launch best practice and much, much more.

Sue Teddern has written for TV and radio and now she's written her debut novel, Anne Stanley All At Sea. Sue takes us through her extraordinary career, with great insight into writing for TV and radio. We also discuss some great British Institutions, including The Archers, the Shipping Forecast and Birds of a Feather.

Award-winning horror author Adam Nevill answers our listener questions on setting the mood, balancing gore and terror to find the right tone, research into the supernormal, getting into the minds of perpetrators of evil, the biggest lessons he has learned in his extraordinary career, how screenwriting has helped his novel writing, and how he's conditioned himself to write in any place at any time...

We always love it when one of our listeners is published, but Nicole Kennedy's debut novel Everything's Perfect had a rocky road to publication. Nicole takes us through a tumultuous time in her family's life, and why it was so important for her to carve out time for writing.

With his new novel Brazilian Psycho, author Joe Thomas completes the São Paulo Quartet, a series that evolved from his ten years living in the city. Joe tells us how living in the setting of his books gave him an insight into a tangled web of crime and corruption to create vivid and engaging fiction. He tells us how an unpublished novel with multiple strands and characters helped give him focus fo...

A narrative non-fiction treat this week as bestselling historian Damien Lewis tell us about the extraordinary heroes of his new book SAS Great Escapes. We also discuss research methods, using primary and secondary sources, how to earn the trust of interviewees, adapting history for the screen and why history is not static.

Nadine Matheson's debut thriller The Jigsaw Man has been hailed as one of the event debuts of the year. But this was far from an overnight success. Nadine's writing journey is one from competition wins, to NanoWriMo, to self-publishing, to a six-publisher auction and the publication of her bestselling debut The Jigsaw Man and a TV option. Nadine tells us the lessons she learned along the way, and...

Do you have a favourite teacher? One who encouraged you to write, maybe? This special episode is for all the teachers and students out there who have inspired one another over the years, and we have two of them on the show. Sarah Moorhead is the author of Witness X and started out as a teacher. One of her students was young Stuart Turton, author of The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle and The Dev...