EP430: Simon Scarrow — “Trust the Reader”

Simon Scarrow is best known for his Eagles of the Empire series that began in 2000 with Under the Eagle featuring Roman soldier heroes Cato and Macro. 2022 saw the release of Death to the Emperor, the twenty-first book in the series, and he’s also just released Dead of Night, the second of his Berlin wartime thrillers. Simon takes us through his extraordinary career, with tips on historical research, co-writing, developing ideas, and creating a series where the reader can start with the twenty-first book and still enjoy it.

This week Mark Stay is joined by guest co-host Julian Barr, author of historical fantasy including novels The Way Home, The Ivory Gate and The Seven Hills, as well as the Viking inspired serial Tooth and Blade.

And in the extended version for Academy members and podcast Patrons, Mark and Julian discuss reading as a creative act, research and reenactment, working with editors, and much more!

Simon Scarrow author photo © Bill Waters

WE DISCUSS…

Planning versus overplaying
Why authors need to learn to trust the reader
And he has some great tips for research and collaborating with other writers

PODCAST

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This Week’s Links:

Simon Scarrow: https://www.simonscarrow.co.uk/
Julian Barr: https://jbarrauthor.com/
Mark and Julian’s Deep Dives on the Hero’s Journey:
Craig Mazin on the central dramatic argument: https://youtu.be/vSX-DROZuzY
Dear Mr Pop Star available via Amazon Paperback, and Kindle..
- https://amzn.to/3HBAwFe Amazon Wordwide
- https://amzn.to/406zmc0 Amazon UK

Permalinks…

THE BESTSELLER ACADEMY: bestsellerexperiment.com/academy
Sign up to the 200 Word A Day Challenge here: 200wordchallenge.com
Here’s the 200 Word A Day Word Bank https://bestsellerexperiment.com/bxp2020–word–count/
Support the podcast and join our exclusive Facebook Group: bestsellerexperiment.com/support
Buy Back to Reality: http://bestsellerexperiment.com/backtoreality/
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Sign up to Mr Stay’s newsletter for free books here: https://witchesofwoodville.com/#library
The Unofficial Bestseller Experiment Book Club… https://www.facebook.com/groups/252973655872910

Find out more at https://bestsellerexperiment.com/backtoreality

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