The Failing Writers Podcast

Welcome to our cheeky little bonus episode! The poetry competition has landed.  What started off as a crazy little idea from Jon, has turned into a crazy BIG idea.  We’ve got prizes (quite a few actually - huge thanks in particular to  https://writershq.co.uk/  and  https://libro.fm/ ) We’ve got a judge (the amazing Rowan McCabe  https://rowanthepoet.com/ ) All we nee...

It's been a while since we had a little poetry splurge. So to rectify that terrible neglect of our duty, Tom and I had a lovely natter with Hollie McNish. We meandered through where her love of poetry began, how it helps her assimilate ideas, writing essays, and the Olympic Breakfast at Little Chef, Chieveley Services. Oh... and we also discuss her brilliant new book, Virgin. Buy it now... in fact...

Writing competitions. Clearly they’re not all made the same. Some are free, some are costly, some are actually impossible for mere mortals to enter due to their criteria. The prizes vary too. From small cash prizes, to publishing deals. Today, we’re asking the question… on the whole, if you’re serious about being a writer… are they actually worth it? Are they worth the money, the - let’s face it –...

Hang on... before we start... let us just fill you in on a very exciting evening happening on Monday the 6th of July, in Alton, Hampshire. At 8pm in the lovely Goldfinch Books on Alton High Street, we are doing our first ever proper LIVE podcast. Our guest will be the fabulous Costa-Novel-Prize-Winning Claire Fuller. We'll be talking about her brilliantly unsettling new book Hunger & Thirst an...

Come and see us LIVE! We'll be at Alton Arts Festival on July the 6th, at Goldfinch Books, doing our thing in full colour, 4K, Ultra HD, real life. There will be laughter. There will be genuine writing tips and insight from Costa Novel Prize Winner Claire Fuller . There will be a ditty or two. There will be give-aways, impromptu poetry and even Tom’s very-very-serious-wordy-writery-quiz-thing! Get...

We're doing a live podcast at Goldfinch Books in Alton on Monday the 6th of July, with the brilliant Claire Fuller. Come and join us! CLICK HERE TO GET YOUR TICKETS TO SEE US LIVE AT ALTON ARTS FESTIVAL!!! So what do we have in today's episode? An absolute treat, that's what. Philippa Perry, agony aunt, psychotherapist, artist, self-help-book writer and now cosy crime author. How the heck does she...

OK, so you've written something. Well done. *light applause* That's nice. But the next stage - getting it out into the world... that's a really tricky bit. However... one sure fire way of doing that, if you can't persuade some other mug to do it for you, is to blummin'-well slap on some grease paint, don some tights and perform it yourself, on what we call... ... the stage. Well that's what Jon an...

Oh, you've listened to this episode already and you'd like to cross our palm with gold? Well, you're in luck.... Simply click HERE to show your appreciation in a pecuniary fashion And speaking of fashion - take a look at our merch HERE and THANK YOU! Now... onto the less grubby business of writing... and this week we're lucky enough to be joined by the excellent Gareth Rubin, a writer whose career...

Heeeey! You’re back. Well, that’s bloody joyful isn’t it? Nice of you to join us again. Now, let me ask you an impertinent question. How seriously are you taking your writing this year? The reason I ask is we’re looking at writing goals.  Last year’s first of all… see how we got on… and then… we’re all making new ones.  Yeah. You too. Come join us in stating your targets and le...

Not long until we get this show back on the road!! Join us for season 6 when we interview some amazing writers, get stuck into some proper writing craft bits and bobs, and loads and loads and loads and loads and loads and loads more beside!! Season 6 of the award-winning Failing Writers Podcast... coming sooooooon!!!!! (Oh, and while you're here, check out our new merch store right here... https:/...

How do you give your readers everything they're looking for? And your agent? You have to feed the beast don't you? (Is calling agents 'The Beast' too offensive?) It's your job as a writer to offer up precisely what your readership is looking for. Anything else and you risk losing your commercial edge. And we can't have that can we? Oh we can? Oh... OK. We met up with the wonderful Doug Johnstone,...

The second stop on our literary whistle stop tour of Edinburgh is The Writers Museum in Makars Court. Focussing on the three writers generally considered to be the great Titans of Scottish Literature: Robbie Burns, Sir Walter Scott & Robert Louis Stevenson. We have a wander round, read some poetry and look into why these fellas are so revered. We also go on a literary pub tour and have a...

Ahoy there, you weary word-wanderer. You found us. Finally!  Thank goodness. Welcome to the Failing Writers Podcast. Think of us as your writing harbour. Your safe haven. Your Lighthouse. Come and moor here for a while and have your brain de-barnacled by the glorious mind of poet Michael Pederson. Writer, linguaphile, Edinburgh Makar and all-round inspirational wordsmitherizer. And once...

Hello writers. Just when you thought the competition was all wrapped up… this week we look at the almost-winners of our big annual comp. Yep, these are the brilliant writers who made the shortlist, but didn’t quite manage to snaffle a place on Sarah’s podium. And here are those five wondrously wizard-like word weavers: Kieran Ahern Jonathon Davies Steven Stilbech Stuart James Taylor Jasmine Sears...

Lovers of flash fiction… prepare to have your ears blown into absolute blummin smithereens, because this episode is the big reveal of the winners of our annual writing competition, and there’s FIVE HUNDRED SQUIDS up for grabs. Which, as I’m sure you’ll agree, is a serious amount of squids. Think of all the ink you could buy. So, come on in, and hear the traditional ‘YOU’RE ALL WINNERS SONG’, liste...

So, here we are again for the actually now offically award winning Failing Writers Podcast. You were perhaps hoping this was the competition reveal episode weren’t you? Well, look, it’s not that one… not yet, however, we’ve got a little treat for you today. ’Specially for long time fans of the podcast. Someone we’ve had on before and was a delight from start to finish. Someone who's just self publ...

Maps? What's that got to do with writing? Men? How are they relevant in 2025? Oh no… wait … Er. OK... let me explain what’s going on today... by introducing you to (another) 2 handsome and charismatic young men. Jay Foreman – comedian, singer songwriter (bloody great songs-look em up!) & Map-enthusiast. And Mark Cooper-Jones – Ex-geography teacher, producer & comedian. Both… now… primarily...

You know those writers who seem to have managed effortlessly to harness the awesome power of social media to hook increasing numbers of readers into their gravitational pull? Well good for them! No but seriously, wouldn’t it be fascinating to talk to someone who’s become an actual viral sensation themselves and find out what their strategy was? (That’s your cue to stop reading and crack on with li...

Finally. I know, I know. It's that time of year we all look forward to. The leaves begin to loosen their grip. The sky is pregnant with it's autumnal offerings. Jon gets poetic. But aside from all that - it's the bloody Failing Writers Five Hundred Pound Flash Fiction Competition, in association with Scrivener! That's the bit we're really all excited about. That's when Tommy and I hunker down, cur...

Aaaaand PART 2: This week we're looking at the extremes of the indie publishing industry. From the fantastic BlueMoose Books... https://bluemoosebooks.com Where we speak to founder, Kevin Duffy about the highs and... well... mostly highs to be honest... of being a very successful indie publisher. Right over to the very opposite end of the spectrum, where our second guest, Janeen, tells us about th...

PART 1… it’s double-bill time! It suddenly occurred to us that we didn’t know much about independent publishers. And that doesn’t sit well with us - Not knowing stuff about the world of writing. So we reached out to our lovely online writer friends, and found a few people happy to talk about their experience of being published by a small press. And what we found out was very eye opening! About the...

10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 Bbbrrbuummmbbbb....Lift off...fffwwoooooooooshhhhhhh. This week we launch into a good ole' natter with the brilliant Doug Naylor, co-creator & writer of Red Dwarf. We talk about his excellent new children's book, and its space-ship based iterations. We talk more generally about writing children's stories. We talk about how Doug learned the craft of writing co...

We've got Ben Aaronovitch on the pod this week. I mean, what else do you need to know? That's the important bit. Just that. Ben Aaronovitch. On this podcast. Oh, apart from to say THANK YOU to our amazing sponsor Scrivener. Which you can get right now.. with 20% off - as long as you use our special code FAILING. Just pop along to https://www.literatureandlatte.com/ Oh... and one other thing! Check...

For many, the idea of having their book published is an actual dream. A beautiful, glorious, waking dream. But for others, perhaps even most writers, the dream isn't quite as dreamy as people might imagine. So let's draw back the curtain and have a little peek at the actual, unfiltered, no-bull realities of giving birth to a beautiful baby book, with the supremely talented (and honest) journalist...

Well oh my gosh, haven’t we got a right proper banger for you today? I know. We spoil you. But it’s only cos you’ve been so good recently. Yeah. Don’t be coy. You have. So we thought. Oh heck, why not… Let’s do an episode with the lovely Jessica Knappett. She of Inbetweeners / Drifters / Avoidance / Ghosts / Travel Man / Taskmaster and countless other stuff on telly- fame. BUT…&nbsp...