Podcast Episodes
FEATURED INTERVIEW: EPISODE 06 - BRYAN CRANSTON
Ep533 – Shannon Mayer – Million-Selling Indie Author
From farrier to million-selling indie author, USA Today bestseller, and writing machine, Shannon bestows wisdom, inspiration, and a quote that[...]
Ep532 – LJ Ross – Rebel with Four Million Sold
LJ Ross has long refused to play by other people’s rules and when she didn’t like the look of a publishing contract[...]
Ep531 – Joanne Harris — Squeeze Your Characters
Joanne Harris returns to the podcast with her gripping page-turning thriller A Narrow Door. Joanne answers our listener questions, tells[...]
Ep530 – Angela Marsons – on getting a 12-book deal
We welcome the wonderful Angela Marsons back to the podcast. Angela is the multi-million bestselling author of the DI Kim[...]
Ep529 – Michael Connelly – How to Write Every Day
We are delighted to welcome worldwide bestseller Michael Connelly back to the podcast to discuss his new novel The Dark[...]
Ep528 – Joe Abercrombie Returns
We celebrate international bestselling fantasy writer Joe Abercrombie’s return to the podcast with The Wisdom of Crowds, which brings his[...]
Ep527 – Steve Cavanagh: “A Masterclass in How to Hook Your Readers”
Sunday Times bestselling thriller writer Steve Cavanagh returns triumphant to the podcast. When we last spoke to him he was[...]
Ep526 – Kate Mosse: “Unlocking the Secrets of Kate Mosse”
Kate Mosse CBE is a global bestselling author with over 8 million sales. Her previous 10 novels include Labyrinth, which[...]
Ep525 – Dean Wesley Smith – How to Stop Listening to Your Critical Voice
Dean Wesley Smith is one of the most prolific writers working today, with over 200 novels, and countless short stories[...]
Ep524 – Linwood Barclay – How to Be a Bestseller Rulebreaker
Linwood Barclay is the international bestselling author of over twenty novels, and his latest thriller Find You First is a fast-paced, high-concept,[...]
Ep523 – Dean Koontz: “The Soul of Dean Koontz. All-Time Bestselling Author”
Dean Koontz is one of the most successful bestselling authors, with over 120 novels published, which have sold an incredible[...]
Ep522 – You Are Not Alone
The Two Marks talks about isolation, loneliness, the voices in our head and all the other stuff that can make[...]
Ep521 – B.J. Fogg — Tiny Habits
BJ Fogg, PhD, founded the Behavior Design Lab at Stanford University and created the Tiny Habits Academy to help people[...]
Ep520 – Philip C. Quaintrell — The Bestseller Breaking All The Rules
Philip C. Quaintrell is in Amazon’s top 1.8% of self-published authors. He does this with no marketing spend, no newsletter,[...]
Ep519 – Richard Armitage Returns – “Hobbits, Audiobooks and How to Manifest Your Dreams”
Hollywood actor Richard Armitage is best known as Thorin in The Hobbit, appearances in Ocean’s 8, Captain America and the[...]
Ep518 – Kim Bretton – Working with ACX Audiobooks Producers
Kim Bretton is an actor and has worked in theatre, TV and film, but these days she’s found great success[...]
Ep517 – Our Listeners’ Challenges and Triumphs
What better way to celebrate our 400th episode than by speaking to some of our longtime listeners and members of[...]
Ep516 – Writers & Mental Health – Live Show Highlights
We discuss one of the most important topics we’ve ever covered: writers and their mental health. With questions from our[...]
Ep515 – Angela Marsons – 3 million sold in 3 years
Angela Marsons’ first novel Silent Scream was rejected by every major UK publisher, but she never gave up and now[...]
Ep514 – Defying the Odds with Sherrilyn Kenyon
Sherrilyn Kenyon’s first book was published when she was still in college, since then she has had more than 80[...]
Ep513 – Ask the Editor with Emad Akhtar
Editor Emad Akhtar has worked with authors like Michael Connelly, Ian Rankin and Justin Cronin and was kind enough to[...]
Ep512 – Steve Cavanagh – Author on the verge of a massive breakthrough
Steve Cavanagh is the author of the Eddie Flynn legal thrillers The Defence, The Plea, The Liar and now, with[...]
Ep511 – Into The Woods With John Yorke
John Yorke is one of the world’s leading lights in the art of storytelling. As former head of Channel Four[...]
Ep510 – Gareth L Powell – How to sing a space opera
Gareth L Powell is one of the most generous authors on social media and a font of writing wisdom. He’s[...]
Ep509 – Joanne Harris | Chocolat & Sheds
Best known for her novel Chocolat, which sold well over a million copies and was made into a movie starring[...]
Ep508 – Mark Billingham – From a shoutline to five million books sold
Mark Billingham is renowned for his bestselling crime thrillers, not least the Jack Thorne series. Having now sold over 5[...]
Ep507 – Taylor Jenkins-Reid – Breaking The Rules = Bestseller
Taylor Jenkins-Reid’s latest novel Daisy Jones and the Six has been a global smash, but what makes it all the[...]
Ep506 – Mark Victor Hansen – “Your Life Story”
Mark Victor Hansen is an American inspirational and motivational speaker and author. He is best known as the founder and[...]
Ep505 — Heather Morris — “Shut up and Listen!”
We celebrate seven years of the podcast with the amazing Heather Morris, author of The Tattooist of Auschwitz, which has[...]
Ep504 – Mark Desvaux – “The Hallmark Habits of Highly Successful Authors (Part 2)”
In Part 2 of this series, Mark Desvaux takes you on a deep dive into five more hallmark habits of[...]
Ep503 – Mark Desvaux – “How to Create a Writing Habit for Life”
We're celebrating nearly five years since the launch of the 200 Word Challenge—a project that has helped countless writers finish[...]
Ep502 – Mark Desvaux – “The Hallmark Habits of Highly Successful Authors (Part 1)”
In Part 1 of this new series, Mark Desvaux takes you on a deep dive into the habits of bestseller[...]
Ep501 – Brandon Sanderson
We caught up with fantasy bestselling author and super nice dude Brandon Sanderson and in a jam-packed episode he answered[...]
Ep500 – Mark Desvaux – “The Six Life-Changing Reasons You Write”
We've reached a monumental episode – the 500th – on the Bestseller Experiment podcast! To celebrate, Mark Desvaux goes deeper[...]
Ep499 – Michael Connelly | 60 Million Thriller Books
Michael Connelly is one of the most successful crime authors in the world with over 60m book sales. Having just released his[...]
Ep498 – Karen Storey – “How to Become a Short Story Superstar”
Karen Storey's name has become synonymous with success in short story writing. With an impressive one-in-three win rate out of[...]
Ep497 – Ben Aaronovitch and the Great Bollocking…
Ben Aaronovitch started writing for Doctor Who and became the author of the bestselling Peter Grant series that started with Rivers[...]
Ep496 – Jacqueline O’Mahony – “Sheer Determination Beats Everything”
Jacqueline O’Mahony was named Young Irish Writer of the Year by the Irish Examiner when she was fourteen. After a[...]
Ep495 – Joe Abercrombie – “The Best Writing Advice Ever”
Photo Credit: Lou Abercrombie Joe burst onto the fantasy scene in 2003 with his debut The Blade Itself. His books[...]
Ep494 – Rachel Lynch – “Speed Drafts, PTSD & The Rich”
In this episode, we dive into the world of Rachel Lynch. Rachel Lynch is a renowned crime fiction author whose[...]
Ep493 – Bryan Cranston on… Writing, Breaking Bad and Donald Trump
Breaking Bad’s Bryan Cranston tells us about his life and new bestselling memoir, A Life In Parts. Oscar-nominated, with two[...]
Ep492 – Lucinda Halpern – “Get Signed! How to Pitch to an Agent”
In this interview, listen in as Mark Desvaux pitches his forthcoming book Pacivida to NY literary agent Lucinda Halpern, who[...]
Ep491 – Lucinda Halpern – “Get Signed! Why You Need an Agent”
Lucinda Halpern is a literary agent with over 15 years' experience securing book deals and working with all major publishers.[...]
Ep490 – Shari Lapena – “The Debut That Sold Four Million”
SHARI LAPENA is the #1 internationally bestselling author of seven suspense novels including A Stranger in the House and The[...]
Ep489 – Joe Hill …On Never Giving Up, Beatles & Carving His Own Path from Dad, Stephen King
Joe Hill is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Fireman, Heart-Shaped Box, and Strange Weather. Joe, son[...]
Ep488 – Amy Newmark – “More Chicken Soup for the Soul (Part 2)”
Amy Newmark is Editor-in-Chief of Chicken Soup for the Soul, publishing over 20,000 stories in the last 15 years, launching[...]
Ep487 – Amy Newmark – “Chicken Soup for the Soul (Part 1)”
Mark Desvaux delves into Part 1 of a fascinating conversation with Amy Newmark, the powerhouse Editor-in-Chief behind Chicken Soup for[...]
Ep486 — Mark Desvaux — “Your Best Writing Year Yet”
Welcome to a New Year's special of the Bestseller Experiment podcast, where we dive into your inner game as[...]
Ep485 — Christmas Special 2023
Mr Stay’s final episode as a co-presenter! The Two Marks celebrate Christmas by looking back at some of Mr Stay’s[...]
Ep484 — Mike Gayle — “Always be Entertaining.”
Mike Gayle joins us to celebrate the 25th anniversary of his Sunday Times top ten bestseller debut novel My Legendary[...]
Ep483 — LM Chilton — “Be a Bit Cheeky.”
L.M. Chilton worked as a journalist for The Times, The Mirror and Metro and TV shows like This Morning, The[...]
Ep482 — Tracy Wolff & Nina Croft — “The Little Things.”
Tracy Wolff is the New York Times, and USA Today bestselling author of over sixty novels from Austin Texas, Nina[...]
Ep481 — Jake Lamar — “Make it Sing.”
Jake Lamar developed his latest work Viper’s Dream as both a radio play and a novel. Jake tells us what[...]
Ep480 — Graham Hurley — “Soft Linkage.”
The author of 49 books and counting, Graham Hurley returns with his latest WWII thriller The Blood of Others. He[...]
Ep479 — Fiona Valpy — “Say Yes to Everything.”
Fiona is an acclaimed bestselling author, whose books have sold millions of copies and been translated into more than thirty[...]
Ep478 — Mira V Shah — “Healing Through Writing.”
Mira V Shah is a British-African-Indian author and legal writer who lives in North London with her husband, three good[...]
The Bestseller Experiment Wins Best Books Podcast at the Independent Podcast Awards
The Bestseller Experiment won Best Books Podcast at the Independent Podcast Awards at a ceremony in central London this evening.[...]
Ep477 — Michael R Miller — “A Sprinkle of My Experience”
Hailing from Scotland's wet and wild west coast, Michael writes sweeping and epic fantasy and since 2018 has sold over[...]
Ep476 — IVY NGEOW — “EMOTION MORE THAN ANYTHING.”
Ivy Ngeow was born and raised in Malaysia and is a multi-award winning author. Her latest novel The American Boyfriend[...]
Ep475 — Heather Morris — “Shut up and Listen!”
We celebrate seven years of the podcast with the amazing Heather Morris, author of The Tattooist of Auschwitz, which has[...]
EP474: Deep Dive — Mountain Ash Press with Andi Cumbo-Floyd & Caroline Topperman
Mountain Ash Press is the brainchild of authors Andi Cumbo-Floyd and Caroline Topperman who wanted to bring a combination of[...]
EP473: Julie Owen Moylan — “Tiny, Weird Obsessions.”
Julie Owen Moylan is a novelist and filmmaker. Her graduation short film ‘BabyCakes’ scooped Best Film awards at the Swansea[...]
EP472: Gareth L Powell — “Be Kind, Be Encouraging.”
The award-winning Gareth L. Powell returns to the podcast with Descendant Machine his new science fiction epic. He also tells[...]
EP471: Jesse Sutanto — “Pure Writing.”
Jesse Sutanto is the award-winning, bestselling author of Dial A for Aunties, Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers and I’m[...]
EP470: Suzie Edge — “Vital Organs, Poo & Wee!”
We are delighted to welcome back Suzie Edge for this special episode of the podcast! Suzie is a phenomenon on[...]
EP469: Harriet Muncaster — “I Wanted to Create My Own World.”
Harriet Muncaster is an award-winning author and illustrator. Her Isadora Moon books have sold over two million copies worldwide. And[...]
EP468: Sarah Moorhead — “Grit in the Oyster”
Sarah Moorhead returns to the podcast with The Treatment, her extraordinary new novel that tackles issues of justice and revenge[...]
EP467: Linwood Barclay — “The Lie Maker”
In this very special episode, international bestselling author Linwood Barclay returns to the podcast to tease us with details of[...]
EP466: Teresa Driscoll — “Be Genre Aware”
Teresa Driscoll is a former BBC TV news presenter whose psychological thrillers have sold over two million copies across the[...]
EP465: Damian Dibben — “It Needs a Bit of Bite.”
Damian Dibben is an acclaimed British author whose novels have been translated into twenty-seven languages and published in over forty[...]
EP464: AJ Pearce — “Passion, patience & persistence.”
AJ Pearce’s debut novel Dear Mrs Bird was a Sunday Times Bestseller and she returns with the third in the[...]
EP463: Jeremy Szal — “I Want to Break the Reader.”
Jeremy Szal is the author of the Common trilogy from Gollancz, which includes Stormblood, Blindspace, and Wolfskin and he’s the[...]
EP462: Antony Johnston — “Right Place, Right Time.”
Antony Johnston is a New York Times bestselling author and the creator of Atomic Blonde, the comic book originally published[...]
EP461: Freya Berry — “Be Ambitious.”
Freya Berry’s writing career began as a journalist at Reuters. After a stint in New York reporting on the 2016[...]
EP460: Heide Goody & Iain Grant — “We Smush Our Methods Together.”
Heide Goody and Iain Grant have been writing together since 2011 and are best known for their Clovenhoof series, where[...]
EP459: Deep Dive — Making a Thousand Dollars a Month with Paul Austin Ardoin
Paul Austin Ardoin is the USA TODAY Bestselling Author of The Fenway Stevenson Mysteries and the Woodhead & Becker Mysteries.[...]
EP458: Katherine Faulkner — “It’s Not About Your Ego”
Katherine Faulkner’s second thriller The Other Mothers takes us into the school playground and makes it a terrifying place with[...]
EP457: Katie Fforde — “Keep The Page Turning.”
Sunday Times bestselling author Katie Fforde brings us her latest novel One Enchanted Evening, which was inspired by a cookery[...]
EP456: JD Kirk — “Libraries Change Lives”
JD Kirk is the pen name multi-award-winning author, screenwriter, and writer of comics, Barry Hutchison. When he was nine, a kindly[...]
EP455: Deep Dive — How to Write a Novel with Tim Lott
Tim Lott is the multi award winning author of ten novels and a memoir, The Scent of Dried Roses, and has[...]
EP454: Andrea Dunlop — “Keeping Going is a Win.”
Andrea Dunlop began her career in publishing as a publicist for the likes of Doubleday before becoming an author and[...]
EP453: Deep Dive — SEO for Authors
Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is what search engines like Google use to pair questions with answers. If you want to[...]
EP452: James Naughtie — “A Sense of Place is Essential.”
James Naughtie’s voice as presenter of BBC Radio 4’s Today programme will be familiar to listeners all over the world.[...]
EP451: Scarlett Brade — “Take Those First Steps”
Scarlett Brade was born in London, but as a child she spent her summers in Toronto where she fell in[...]
EP450: Deep Dive — Knowing your Readers
Kelly Weekes answers listener questions on discovering who your readers are in a conversation that takes in social media, comparable authors, visualising[...]
EP449: Sue Watson — “You’re Looking for the Answers”
Sue Watson was BBC TV producer until she wrote her first novel and was hooked. Now she’s a USA Today[...]
EP448: Jonathan Whitelaw — “Turn The Idea on its Head.”
Jonathan Whitelaw started out as a journalist, writing darkly satirical fiction on his commute to work. Jonathan tells us how[...]
EP447: Jessie Keane — “Don’t Be Afraid.”
Jessie Keane has Romany heritage and her Gran — who had ’the sight’ — foretold that that Jesse would not[...]
EP446: Katy Brent — “Doing Something Meaningful”
Katy Brent is an award-winning journalist whose debut novel How To Kill Men and Get Away With It is perfect[...]
EP445: Amita Parikh — “Don’t Be a Victim.”
Amita Parikh’s debut novel The Circus Train took six years to write and has been earning praise worldwide, but it[...]
EP444: Deep Dive — Experiments with ChatGPT with Jeevani Charika
Jeevani Charika is the author of Playing for Love, Picture Perfect and more, but she’s also a scientist and has[...]
EP443: JS Monroe — “Weird Alchemy”
JS Monroe worked as a foreign correspondent in Delhi, becoming a full-time writer. His psychological thriller Find Me became a[...]
EP442: Deep Dive — Bookouture with Jenny Geras
In this special deep dive episode we speak to Jenny Geras, Managing Director at Bookouture. Jenny tell us what it[...]
EP441: Delilah S Dawson — “It Was Always in my Head.”
Delilah S Dawson is the New York Times bestselling author of Star Wars: Phasma and many more titles across an[...]
EP440: Academy All Stars – Kate Baker – “Being Ultraflexible!”
In the latest of our Academy All-Stars mini episodes, we talk to Kate Baker who tells us how being ultraflexible[...]
EP439: David McCloskey — “A Lonely Team Sport.”
David McCloskey is a former CIA analyst and his smash hit debut novel Damascus Station was inspired by his time[...]
EP438: Deep Dive — Police Procedures with Stuart Gibbon
Stuart Gibbon is a former UK senior police detective who served in London and the East Midlands. In 2014, he[...]
EP437: Jayne Davis — “Sometimes it Just Feels Right.”
Jayne Davis is a leading Regency Romance author, with nearly 40 million KU page reads, and through sharing her research[...]
EP436: Dave Dawson — “Grammar Free in the UK”
Derek and Dave Philpott have been writing strange letters to famous musicians for ten years now, and getting even stranger[...]
EP435: Rosie Andrews — “Carve out time for yourself”
Rosie Andrews’ debut novel The Leviathan is rooted in her passion for history and she tells us how she was[...]
EP434: Mark Edwards — “It Changed My Life.”
Mark Edwards returns to the podcast to celebrate ten years since his first solo novel The Magpies. He tells us[...]
EP433: Matt Brown — “The Worst Thing They’d Ever Read”
Matt Brown is the author of such wonderful children’s books at the Compton Valance series (about a boy who creates[...]
EP432: Zack & Michael Urlocker — “There Can Only Be One Boss.”
Twin brothers Zack and Michael Urlocker write together as M.Z. Urlocker, and their debut novel The Man from Mittelwerk is[...]
EP431: Richard Armitage — “Know, Don’t Show.”
As well as starring in the likes of The Hobbit and Spooks, the actor Richard Armitage is also a prolific[...]
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[...]
EP429: Deep Dive — Second Sky with Jack Renninson
Digital-first publisher Bookouture are now applying their publishing model to science fiction and fantasy with their new imprint Second Sky. We[...]
EP428: Peter May — “I Felt a Weight Lift.”
Bestselling author Peter May returns to the podcast with his gripping new novel A Winter Grave, a near future thriller[...]
EP427 — Deep Dive — Unwelcome with Jon Wright and Mark Stay
Director Jon Wright joins Mark Stay to answer listener questions on the development of their new monster movie Unwelcome. They[...]
EP426: Lou Abercrombie — “I Write Whilst I Swim.”
Lou Abercrombie worked in TV and film production and as a photographer, and a few years ago started writing children’s[...]
EP425: MATT CAIN — “Write with Heart and Humour.”
Matt Cain endured rejections from thirty agents and fifty publishers before getting his debut novel published… and then it didn’t[...]
EP424: Cole Haddon — “I Stripped the Censor in my Head”
Cole Haddon is an Australian-American screenwriter and novelist whose first TV commission, Dracula, was produced by NBC and SKY and[...]
EP423: Christian Cameron — “You’re Always Worldbuilding.”
Christian Cameron is an incredibly prolific writer and military historian who also writes as Miles Cameron. His new novel as Miles[...]
EP422: Christmas 2022 Special and Setting 2023 Goals!
The Two Marks don their terrible Christmas sweaters and hats to celebrate the festive season and look forward to 2023.[...]
EP421: Margaret Weis — “It’s All About Characters.”
In 1983 Margaret Weis took on a job as a book editor at TSR, producers of the Dungeons and Dragons®[...]
EP420: Elizabeth Noble — “Make the Reader Care.”
Elizabeth Noble is a Sunday Times bestselling author whose debut novel The Reading Group sold a quarter of a million[...]
EP419: SJ Bennett — “A Relentlessly Positive Attitude”
SJ Bennett had a successful career writing award-winning books for teenagers, but after a change in the market and a[...]
EP418: Deep Dive — Blurbs with Louise Willder
Louise Willder has been a copywriter at Penguin Books for twenty-five years. During this time, she estimates she has produced about 5,000[...]
EP417: Harriet Tyce — “Trying to Outdo Myself.”
Harriet Tyce tells us about her brilliant new thriller It Ends at Midnight, how the amazing reception to her debut[...]
EP416: Alan Gorevan — “Write Something and Release It”
Alan Gorevan is an Irish thriller writer and winner of the Irish Writers’ Centre Novel Fair competition. Alan was preparing[...]
EP415: Tracey Lien — “You’re Digging for Clay”
Tracey Lien’s debut All That’s Left Unsaid was sold in a nine-way auction and she tells us why it was[...]
EP414: A.G. Riddle — “What is Right, Right Now?”
A.G. Riddle spent ten years starting internet companies before retiring to pursue his true passion of writing fiction. His novels[...]
EP413: Deep Dive — Forensics with Dr Devin Finaughty and Chandra Finaughty
Dr Devin Finaughty is a lecturer in forensic science the University of Kent, Chandra Finaughty has two Masters specialising in[...]
EP412: Ed McDonald — “Do Everything Now”
Ed McDonald returns to the podcast with a new fantasy series, The Redwinter Chronicles, and we discuss how the fantasy[...]
EP411: Deep Dive — Writing and Directing Independent Film with Danny Stack and Tim Clague
Danny Stack and Tim Clague are award-winning screenwriters and directors who have never waited for permission from the industry to[...]
EP410: Jenny Ashcroft — “Self-Perpetuating Support.”
Jenny Ashcroft has always been fascinated with the past and how extraordinary events can change the lives of ordinary people.[...]
EP409: Sixth Birthday Special — How to Make a Podcast
The two Marks celebrate six years of the podcast by giving their listeners a peek behind the scenes to see[...]
EP408: Deep Dive — ADHD and Writers with Kim Raine
Kim Raine is a High-Performance ADHD Coach, and the founder of ADHD Brains In Business, and she's the author of[...]
EP407: CL Taylor — “Trust Your Gut”
We welcome Sunday Times bestselling author CL Taylor back to the podcast with her new novel The Guilty Couple. In[...]
EP406: Scott Turow — “Plot is a Species of Character.”
Scott Turow is a master of suspense fiction. He returns with his new thriller, Suspect, and tells us about the[...]
EP405: Deep Dive — TikTok with Suzie Edge
Suzie Edge has nearly 250,000 followers on TikTok with nearly 5.5m likes. Suzie tells us what she’s discovered in using[...]
EP404: Aggie Blum Thompson — “I Had No Plan B”
Aggie Blum Thompson sent us an email in 2019 detailing her dream to see her book on a table in[...]
EP403: Luan Goldie — “There’s Always Time”
Luan Goldie won the Costa Short Story Prize in 2017, and her debut novel Nightingale Point was longlisted for the[...]
EP402: Lesley Thomson — “Stay Inside Your Story”
Lesley Thomson's latest book The Companion continues a bestselling streak that’s been inspired by some remarkable places and people, and[...]
EP401: Live Show Highlights — Is Being an Author a Job For Life?
We celebrate over 400 episodes of the podcast with a special live show from Waterstones in Canterbury with guest authors[...]
EP400: Our Listeners’ Challenges and Triumphs
What better way to celebrate our 400th episode than by speaking to some of our longtime listeners and members of[...]
EP399: Elissa Soave — “My Story is Worth Telling”
Elissa Soave is the winner of the inaugural Primadonna Prize, an accolade awarded to unpublished and unrepresented writers. Ginger and Me[...]
EP398: Christopher Abbott — Writing as a Superfan
Christopher Abbott is the award-winning author of the Watson Chronicles, a continuation of the Sherlock Holmes stories. Christopher tells us[...]
EP397: Mark Ellis — Never Give Up
Mark Ellis is the bestselling author of the DCI Frank Merlin series set in the Second World War. Mark celebrates[...]
EP396: Lisa Regan — Let Them Tell You No
Lisa Regan is the USA Today & Wall Street Journal bestselling author of the Detective Josie Quinn series, and this[...]
EP395: Scott Kershaw — Playing the Game
Scott Kershaw's debut The Game is a cracking high concept thriller, and Scott’s route to publication is an extraordinary tale[...]
EP394: Mike Shackle — Tune in and Go With The Flow
Mike Shackle returns to the podcast to celebrate Until The Last, the final part of his epic fantasy series The[...]
EP393: Sarai Walker — Subversive, but Fun
Sarai Walker’s debut novel Dietland was a smash hit and made into an AMC TV series, and now she returns[...]
EP392: David Lee Stone — No One Tells You When You’re Done
Between 1998 and 2016 David Lee Stone wrote fantasy and YA books for some of the biggest publishers in the[...]
EP391: Lizzy Barber — I Carry My Work With Me
Lizzy Barber’s critically acclaimed debut novel My Name is Anna won the Daily Mail First Novel competition, and her latest[...]
EP390: Patricia Gibney — Start Writing Immediately
Patricia Gibney has sold over 2 million copies of her Detective Lottie Parker books, and readers worldwide love her stories,[...]
EP389: Joanne Harris — Squeeze Your Characters
Joanne Harris returns to the podcast with her gripping page-turning thriller A Narrow Door. Joanne answers our listener questions, tells[...]
EP388: Ian Skewis — Memories and Fiction
Ian Skewis’s debut novel A Murder of Crows became a no.1 bestseller and was long listed for the Guardian’s Not[...]
EP387: Angela Marsons — Every Book is a Brand New Journey
We welcome the wonderful Angela Marsons back to the podcast. Angela is the multi-million bestselling author of the DI Kim[...]
EP386: Deep Dive — Editing a Draft with Ian W Sainsbury
Ian W Sainsbury is the award-winning author of the Jimmy Blue series of thrillers. Ian has just started editing the[...]
EP385: Louise Hare — Find the Discipline
Louise Hare’s debut This Lovely City was shortlisted for the RSL Ondaatje Prize and Louise was selected for the Observer’s[...]
EP384: Andrew Chapman — How To Write a Bestseller in a Day
In a special mid-week episode, we speak to Andrew Chapman. Andrew is the author of horror novels like Jack’s Game,[...]
EP383: Simon McCleave — Start with the Twist
Simon McCleave’s first indie novel The Snowdonia Killings sold over 200,000 copies after its release in 2020. He is astonishingly[...]
EP382: Eva Leigh — Romancing the Scoundrels
Eva Leigh is a USA Today bestselling historical romance author who combines female empowerment, whip-smart heroines, dashing rakes and sex[...]
EP381: Rachael Blok — Follow Your Character
Rachael Blok is the bestselling author of the DCI Maarten Jansen novels and she tells us how each book works[...]
EP380: Deep Dive — How to Start a Publisher with Hobeck Books
Rebecca Collins and Adrian Hobart combined their experience in publishing and broadcasting to create Hobeck Books, a publisher dedicated to[...]
EP379: Deon Meyer — It’s a Chemical Reaction.
International bestselling author Deon Meyer returns to the podcast with his latest thriller The Dark Flood. Deon tells us how[...]
EP378: Tim Sullivan — Character is more Important than the Crime
Tim Sullivan is a critically-acclaimed screenwriter who turned his back on Hollywood to self-publish thrillers. 250,000 downloads later Tim became[...]
EP377: FMA Dixon — Finding Your Voice
FMA Dixon’s debut novel The Little House on Everywhere Street was awarded the inaugural Acheven Book Prize for Young Adult[...]
EP376: Martin Latham — A Bookseller’s Tale
Martin Latham has been a bookseller for over thirty-five years and is proud to be responsible for the biggest petty-cash[...]
EP375: Deep Dive — Creating Thrutopia with Manda Scott
Bestselling author Manda Scott tells us about Thrutopia, an extraordinary project designed to challenge writers to rethink how they write[...]
EP374: Nina De Gramont — Searching for Agatha Christie
Nina De Gramont takes on her most ambitious book yet with The Christie Affair, which explores what might have happened[...]
EP373: Erica James — What happens next?
The amazing Erica James returns to the podcast with her latest bestseller Mothers and Daughters. She tells us the key[...]
EP372: Veronica Henry — It’s not supposed to be easy
Veronica Henry returns to the podcast with her latest bestseller The Impulse Purchase, where a mother, daughter and grandmother run[...]
EP371: Cathy Bramley — Launch in a Phone Box
Cathy Bramley is a bestselling author of romantic comedies and her new novel The Summer That Changed Us is delighting[...]
EP370: Lizzie Pook — A Long Old Slog to Publication
Lizzie Pook is a long-time listener of the podcast and Patreon supporter whose debut novel Moonlight and the Pearler’s Daughter was[...]
EP369: Deep Dive — Making an Independent Horror Movie with Bethany Clift and Peter Handford
Bethany Clift and Peter Handford take us through the making of their 2012 independent horror movie HERETIC, from the first[...]
EP368: Bethany Clift — Feeling Fine at the End of the World
Bethany Clift’s debut novel The Last One at the Party is hilarious, moving, cathartic and set in an utterly terrifying[...]
EP367: Jeevani Charika — The “Aah” Factor
Jeevani Charika (aka Rhoda Baxter) is an award-nominated author of women’s fiction with heroines of colour. Her latest novel, Playing[...]
EP366: Beth Miller — The Spine of the Story
Beth Miller is the bestselling author of six novels, one of which took 12 years to write, another just 8[...]
EP365: Samantha King — Enjoy the View
Samantha King returns to the podcast to reveal how her latest novel The Secret Keepers’ Daughter was inspired by a[...]
EP364: Shona Kinsella — We All Help Each Other If We Can
British Fantasy Award nominee Shona Kinsella tells us about her new book Outlander and the real Jacobites, which digs into[...]
EP363: Lori Ann Stephens — Ignore the Fear
Have you ever wanted to tell a story, but been too scared to write it? Lori Ann Stephens’ near-future thriller[...]
EP362: Simon Beckett — All Change
International bestselling author Simon Beckett returns to the podcast to tell us about his new novel The Lost, in which[...]
EP361: Daniel Rigby — Just Start Doing It
BAFTA-award winning actor Daniel Rigby tells us about his Audible original debut Isaac Steele and the Forever Man and how[...]
EP360: A Christmas Special with the Two Marks
Join the Two Marks in a Christmas special where they invited their listeners to share their favourite Christmas books and[...]
EP359: Mia Kuzniar — Make Something Happen
Sunday Times bestselling author Mia Kuzniar brings some light to the bleak midwinter with her wonderful new novel Midnight in[...]
EP358: Deep Dive — Surviving NanoWriMo with GB Ralph
GB Ralph, author of the Rise and Shine series, talks about his last-minute decision to try NanoWriMo this year. He [...]
EP357: Ian W Sainsbury — Limitations Make You Creative
Kindle Storyteller Award Winner Ian W Sainsbury returns the podcast to tell us what’s happened since we last spoke, not[...]
EP356: Lisa Hall — A Dagger in my Heart
Bestselling author Lisa Hall tells us about her new novel The Woman in the Woods, which adds a dash of[...]
EP355: JK Ellem — Think of the Long Game
JK Ellem writes cutting edge thrillers including the Ravenwood series, which was never supposed to be a series, but his[...]
EP354: Deep Dive — Beta Readers with StoryOrigin’s Evan Gow
We welcome Evan Gow back to the podcast to discuss StoryOrigin’s new feature to help manage feedback from your Beta[...]
EP353: Michael Connelly — A Pretty Strange Trip
We are delighted to welcome worldwide bestseller Michael Connelly back to the podcast to discuss his new novel The Dark[...]
EP352: Sasha Greene — Trust and the Writer
Sasha Greene returns to the podcast with her new novel Trust, which explore ideas such as PTSD, sexual assault and[...]
EP351: Christine Pride & Jo Piazza — Communication is the Key
Christine Pride is an editor with 15 years experience with the likes of Doubleday and Simon & Schuster, and Jo[...]
EP350: Deep Dive — Writer Burnout with Paul Bulos
We welcome Paul Bulos back to the podcast to discuss what burnout is and how it affects writers. Paul also[...]
EP349: Katie Khan — X meets Y Equals Bestseller
Katie Khan is the author of the bestsellers Hold Back the Stars and The Light Between Us, and now she’s[...]
Deep Dive — Writing Horror with Adam Nevill
Award-winning horror author Adam Nevill answers our listener questions on setting the mood, balancing gore and terror to find the[...]
Academy All Stars – Mark Hood
Welcome to the latest of our occasional Academy All-Stars mini episodes, where we talk to writers who have joined our[...]
EP347: Alan Gillespie & Emma Grae — Vernacular Voices
Alan Gillespie & Emma Grae are writers from Scotland who both have unique and distinct voices. Alan wrote The Mash House dialogue[...]
EP346: Fifth Anniversary Live Show!
The Two Marks celebrate five years of the Bestseller Experiment and answer listener questions on favourite moments, best writing advice,[...]
EP345: Felix Francis — Writing as a Family Business
Felix Francis has continued the legacy of his father Dick Francis’s literary success, selling over 80 million novels in 40[...]
EP344: Elise Valmorbida — How to be a Happy Writer
Elise Valmorbida’s new book The Happy Writing Book is a unique guide for writers at all levels with 100 prompts[...]
EP343: Deep Dive — Non-Fiction and Memoir with Jenn T Grace
Jenn T. Grace is the founder of Publish Your Purpose, a hybrid publishing company that helps first-time authors get their[...]
EP342: Awais Khan — Do Your Bit, Let The Universe Do The Rest
Awais Khan returns to the podcast after the publication of his second novel No Honour, which has been getting the[...]
EP341: Deep Dive — Book Launches with Patrick Walsh
PublishingPush.com help publishers and authors publish and promote their books, and Patrick runs us through the ten most common mistakes made by[...]
EP340: Abi Silver — Why We Write
Abi Silver is a lawyer and the author of Burton & Lamb courtroom thrillers, including the latest The Midas Game,[...]
EP339: Deep Dive — Jennie Nash, Blueprint for a Book
Bestselling book coach Jennie Nash has inspired hundreds of novelists, and in her new book Blueprint for a Book she[...]
EP338: Sarah Denzil — If I Surprise Myself, I Surprise the Reader
Sarah Denzil is the million-copy bestselling author of Silent Child, and its sequel Stolen Girl is premiering on audio first.[...]
EP337: Joe Abercrombie — The Magic Happens When You Work It
We celebrate international bestselling fantasy writer Joe Abercrombie's return to the podcast with The Wisdom of Crowds, which brings his[...]
EP336: Steve Cavanagh — Engage the Reader Straight Away
Sunday Times bestselling thriller writer Steve Cavanagh returns triumphant to the podcast. When we last spoke to him he was[...]
EP335: Deep Dive — Copy Editing with Lisa Rogers
Lisa Rogers has been copy editor to some amazing authors including Joe Abercrombie, Terry Pratchett, Iain Banks, Tad Williams and[...]
EP334: Piers Torday — What Matters is the Book
Piers Torday is the award-winning author of the extraordinary The Last Wild trilogy for children, and he’s back with an amazing prequel[...]
EP333: Deep Dive — Diversity & Inclusion with Dr Jen O’Ryan
Dr Jen O’Ryan the author of “Inclusive AF: A Field Guide for ‘Accidental’ Diversity Experts”. Designed for anyone thinking about Inclusion and[...]
EP332: Kia Abdullah — Don’t Shy Away
Kia Abdullah’s latest novel Next of Kin is not just a page-turning thriller, but Kia is using its publication to[...]
EP331: Mick Finlay — Psychology, Murder & The Writer
Mick Finlay is the author of the Arrowood series of crime novels set in 1890s London, and in his latest[...]
EP330: Matthew Ralph — Celebrating Diversity
Matthew Ralph is best-selling children’s author whose books celebrate diversity and inclusivity. Matthew takes us through his extraordinary career that[...]
EP329: Nicola May — You Have To Be Persistent
Nicola May is the bestselling author of a dozen romantic comedies, all of which have topped the UK Kindle charts,[...]
EP328: RJ MCBRIEN — Let The Subconscious Take Control
RJ McBrien’s career as a screenwriter saw him writing for Spooks, Wallander and The Bill, and now he’s delivered his[...]
EP327: Adam Simcox — A Leisurely Stroll, Barefoot Over Broken Glass
Adam Simcox is a filmmaker whose debut novel The Dying Squad is published by Gollancz. Adam takes us through his[...]
EP326: Deep Dive — Book Launches with Sara Cox
Mark Stay is joined by Sara Cox — who helped him launch his novel The Crow Folk earlier this year[...]
EP325: Sue Teddern — A Story Is A Story, However You Tell it
Sue Teddern has written for TV and radio and now she’s written her debut novel, Anne Stanley All At Sea.[...]
EP324: Deep Dive — Writing Horror with Adam Nevill
Award-winning horror author Adam Nevill answers our listener questions on setting the mood, balancing gore and terror to find the[...]
EP323: Nicole Kennedy — Perfection Takes Time
We always love it when one of our listeners is published, but Nicole Kennedy’s debut novel Everything’s Perfect had a[...]
EP322: Joe Thomas — Balancing Exposition and Realism
With his new novel Brazilian Psycho, author Joe Thomas completes the São Paulo Quartet, a series that evolved from his[...]
EP321: Damien Lewis — History Isn’t Static
A narrative non-fiction treat this week as bestselling historian Damien Lewis tell us about the extraordinary heroes of his new[...]
EP320: Nadine Matheson — A Little Bit of Dismemberment
Nadine Matheson’s debut thriller The Jigsaw Man has been hailed as one of the event debuts of the year. But[...]
EP319: Sarah Moorhead and Stuart Turton — Teacher, Student & Metempsychosis
Do you have a favourite teacher? One who encouraged you to write, maybe? This special episode is for all the[...]
EP318: Deep Dive — Writing Sex Scenes with Caedis Knight
Sex scenes in fiction can be difficult to get right, so much so that there’s even an award for writers[...]
EP317: Dean Wesley Smith — Plug in to your Creative Voice and Play
Dean Wesley Smith is one of the most prolific writers working today, with over 200 novels, and countless short stories[...]
EP316: Josie Lloyd — Make ‘em laugh, Make ‘em cry
Josie Lloyd tells us why The Cancer Ladies Running Club is the most important and personal book she’s written, and[...]
EP315: Andrew Hunter Murray — Terror Leads to Productivity
When Andrew Hunter Murray decided to end the world with his novel The Last Day he had no idea how[...]
EP314: Eric Maikranz — Infinite Reward
The dream for many authors is to see their novel made into a big-budget Hollywood movie. Debut author D. Eric[...]
EP313: Ellie Barker — Dreams Come True… Eventually
Ellie Barker had always dreamed of becoming an author, and her debut novel The Pink Coffee Shop was ten years[...]
EP038: From The Heart | Erica James
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... How do you touch the heart of your readers? We get emotional[...]
EP312: Adele Geras — Be Whoever You Want
Adele Geras is one of Britain’s most acclaimed writers, and has written over 100 books for both children and adults.[...]
EP035: The Incredible Tenacity Of Mark Edwards
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... Mark Edwards is a bestselling author, having sold over two million psychological[...]
EP311: Catriona Ward — Nerve Shredder
Catriona Ward’s first two novels Rawblood and Little Eve won awards and critical acclaim, but her new novel The Last House on Needless Street got the[...]
EP310: Deep Dive — Blog Tour Q&A with Anne Cater
Anne Cater is the founder of Random Things Tours and has been organising book blog tours for over four years.[...]
EP309: Sarah Pinborough — Behind Her Eyes Spoiler Special
We welcome Sarah Pinborough back to the podcast to celebrate the release of the Netflix adaptation of Sarah’s bestselling novel[...]
EP308: Mitch Benn — Helvetica Breakdown
Mitch Benn is a comedian, songwriter, musician, actor and author of the Terra Trilogy, a science fiction adventure series that[...]
EP034: Into The Woods With John Yorke
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... John Yorke is one of the world’s leading lights in the art[...]
EP307: Deep Dive — Networking in Publishing with Justine Solomons
Justine Solomons is founder of Byte the Book, an organisation dedicated to getting authors published, traditionally or self-published. Justine answers[...]
EP306: Linwood Barclay “Chapter Breaks Are Commercial Breaks”
Linwood Barclay is the international bestselling author of over twenty novels, and his latest thriller Find You First is a fast-paced, high-concept,[...]
EP032: Legal Eagles | Keith Mathieson and Paul Joseph
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... We get lawyered-up in this fascinating episode where we talk to a[...]
EP302: Deep Dive — Maria Dismondy – The Business of Inspiring Children
Maria Dismondy is the author of inspirational and award-winning children’s books such as Spaghetti in a Hot Dog Bun, she[...]
EP304: DV Bishop “History Is Really Badly Structured”
DV Bishop’s historical thriller debut City of Vengeance vividly takes the reader to 1530s Renaissance Florence. Writing historical fiction creates[...]
EP031: Fear of Failure | Julie Cohen
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... Julie Cohen is the author of over twenty novels, including the Richard[...]
EP303: Mark Stay and The Crow Folk
Some chancer called Mark Stay hijacks the podcast to shamelessly plug his new novel The Crow Folk. He gets all[...]
EP302: Deep Dive — Literary Agent Q&A with John Jarrold
John Jarrold is a literary agent and editor who has worked with the likes of Michael Moorcock, Guy Gavriel Kay[...]
EP301: Caimh McDonnell — Stranger Fiction
Bestselling indie author Caimh McDonnell makes a triumphant return to the podcast as Transworld author CK McDonnell with his new[...]
EP300: Rich Leder — Write Anyway
Rich Leder is a screenwriter and novelist who tells us why our brains are always lying to us, why he[...]
Academy All Stars – JW Atkinson
Welcome to the first of our occasional Academy All-Stars mini episodes, where we talk to writers who have joined our[...]
EP299: Michele Campbell — Making Writing A Priority
International bestselling author Michele Campbell’s new novel The Wife Who Knew Too Much combines thrills and glamour. Michele talks to[...]
EP029: Kate Harrison | Bestselling Insights
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... Kate Harrison is a rare breed. A fiction and non-fiction award-winning author who used[...]
EP298: Mark Victor Hansen — Pick A Target, Set Goals!
Mark Victor Hansen is co-writer of Chicken Soup For The Soul, the mega-selling phenomenon that has sold over half a[...]
EP297: Deep Dive — Book Marketing Q&A with Leslie O’Connor
Leslie O’Connor has worked extensively in corporate marketing, and she put those skills to use when relaunching Mitch Benn’s Terra[...]
EP027: From Script, To Screen, To Book | Jo Ho
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... Jo Ho is an award-winning screenwriter and director, best known for creating the BBC[...]
EP296: You Are Not Alone
The Two Marks talks about isolation, loneliness, the voices in our head and all the other stuff that can make[...]
EP026: Author & Editor In A Hot Mess | Lucy Vine & Katie Seaman
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... Lucy Vine is a freelance journalist who has written for pretty much every[...]
EP295: Fearless Worldbuilding. A Deep Dive with Allen Stroud
Author Allen Stroud is the current chair of the British Science Fiction Association and has a Masters Degree in Science[...]
EP294: B.J. Fogg — Tiny Habits
BJ Fogg, PhD, founded the Behavior Design Lab at Stanford University and created the Tiny Habits Academy to help people[...]
EP025: The M Word | Shannon Mayer
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... We welcome back Shannon Mayer for the third and final part of[...]
EP293: Getting Published is Just the Beginning. A Deep Dive with Rhoda Baxter
Rhoda Baxter returns to the podcast with an amazing book that covers everything authors need to know about all the[...]
EP292: Rowan Coleman — Writing is Well Hard
We welcome bestselling author Rowan Coleman back to the podcast, but this time she’s wearing a Brontë bonnet. Writing as[...]
EP024: Liz Fenwick & The Crows Of Doubt
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... Is there such a thing as a positive rejection? This week we[...]
EP291: Sally Gardner – Writing in Colour
Sally Gardner is an award-winning novelist who has sold more than 2.5 million books worldwide. The Snow Song is her[...]
EP022: Ben Aaronovitch and the Great Bollocking…
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... Ben Aaronovitch started writing for Doctor Who and became the author of the[...]
EP290: Deep Dive – Crate Digging with David Pennington
David Pennington is an author, writing coach and copywriter who is on a mission to improve how we tell stories.[...]
EP289: Four More Years! Live Show
We celebrate four years of the podcast with a live show where our Patrons and Academy members ask us anything[...]
EP019: Joe Hill
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... Joe is the bestselling author of Heart-Shaped Box, Horns, NOS4A2, Locke &[...]
EP288: Deep Dive – YouTube for Authors with Jeremy Mason
How can authors use YouTube to engage with readers and drive sales? We talk to Jeremy Mason a TV Producer,[...]
EP287: Charles Stross — Don’t Wait. Write!
Charles Stross is the multi-award winning author of bestselling series of space opera, alt-history and more. With his new novel[...]
EP018: Behind Sarah Pinborough’s Eyes!
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... Sarah Pinborough has had over twenty novels published and written for TV and[...]
EP286: Carole Matthews — Write with your Heart
Carole Matthews has sold over 6 million books in 31 countries. She’s written two books a year for the last[...]
Rerun EP017: Million-Selling Indie Secrets | Shannon Mayer Returns
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... The second part of our interview with bestselling Indie author Shannon Mayer[...]
EP285: Philip C. Quaintrell — The Bestseller Breaking All The Rules
Philip C. Quaintrell is in Amazon’s top 1.8% of self-published authors. He does this with no marketing spend, no newsletter,[...]
Rerun EP016: How Do I Get An Agent? | Federica Leonardis & Sonya Lalli
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... ‘How do I get a literary agent?’ is one of the most[...]
EP284: Deep Dive – Deep Dive – Indie Publishing with Caffeine Nights
What can an indie publisher offer to authors that the big houses cannot? MD of Caffeine Nights Darren Laws and[...]
EP283: Caro Ramsay — Everything Happens for a Reason
Caro Ramsay is the author of the critically acclaimed Anderson and Costello series, the first of which, Absolution, was shortlisted[...]
Rerun EP015: Mark Huckerby & Nick Ostler | Peter Rabbit vs Werewolves
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... Emmy winners and BAFTA-nominated, Huckerby & Ostler are one of the most successful TV[...]
EP282: Rachel Winters — Would Like to Meet a Bestseller
Rachel Winters’ debut novel Would Like to Meet is an Amazon bestseller with rights sold in 14 territories and there[...]
EP281: Deep Dive – Bookbub Promo Tips with Paul Ardoin
Paul Ardoin is the author of the Fenway Stevenson Mysteries, and when he reached five books in the series (with[...]
Rerun EP013: Michelle Paver | Research To The Extreme
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... How do you research your books? Michelle Paver has written eighteen novels,[...]
EP280: Six Accountability Tips for Writers
Writing can be a solitary occupation, but it doesn’t have to be that way. The Two Marks discuss how accountability[...]
Rerun EP012: Maria Semple | How To Find Your Voice As A Writer
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... Have you every wondered how important your “Voice” is as a writer?[...]
EP279: Sadie Jones — Writing is a Marathon
Sadie’s Jones’ debut novel The Outcast was a smash hit, selling over half a million copies, but Sophie’s road to[...]
Rerun EP011: Writing a Bestseller | The Story So Far
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... The two Marks bring you up to date on the trials and[...]
EP278: James Swallow — Fuelled by Rage
James Swallow is the internationally bestselling author of the Marc Dane thrillers, and he takes us through his remarkable career,[...]
Rerun EP010: Robin Stevens | NaNoWriMo Success Story
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... Robin is the author of the Murder Most Unladylike Mysteries books, a middle[...]
EP277: Perseverance Pays Off — Live Show Highlights
It’s all too easy to give up when your writing has been rejected, so how do you find the energy[...]
Rerun EP009: Joe Abercrombie | Dancing Naked in the Rain
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... Joe burst onto the fantasy scene in 2003 with his debut The[...]
EP275: Deep Dive – Great Newsletter Content with Caimh McDonnell
Caimh McDonnell is the bestselling author of the Dublin Trilogy and has one of the most entertaining and engaging newsletters[...]
EP274: Adele Parks — Choose to be Positive
Adele Parks has published 20 novels in 20 years and every one has been a Sunday Times bestseller. With over[...]
Rerun EP008: NaNoWriMo & The Muddy Middle | Grant Faulkner
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... We are delighted to welcome NaNoWriMo’s Grant Faulkner back to the podcast[...]
EP273: Liz Moore — Bestsellers Worth Waiting For
Liz Moore is the NY Times bestselling author of Long Bright River, a novel ten years in the making that[...]
Rerun EP007: Michael Connelly | 60 Million Thriller Books
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... Michael Connelly is one of the most successful crime authors in the world with[...]
EP272: Deep Dive – An Editorial Q&A with Rachel Winterbottom
Rachel Winterbottom is Senior Commissioning Editor at Gollancz and she also writes fiction as Rachel Winters. Rachel answers our listener[...]
EP271: Ayisha Malik — Just Get Through It
Ayisha Malik, author of This Green and Pleasant Land, gives us amazing tips on first drafts, sequels, publicity, social media[...]
Rerun EP006: Bryan Cranston | On Breaking Bad, Characters, Writing & Life
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... Breaking Bad's Bryan Cranston tells us about his life and new bestselling[...]
EP270: Mel Sherratt — Pressing That Button Changed My Life
Bestselling author Mel Sherratt tells us why she never gave up after twelve years of rejection. Since then, Mel has[...]
EP269: Deep Dive – Blog tours with Heather Fitt
Heather Fitt is the founder of Overview Media and organised our recent blog tour for the audiobook of Back to[...]
Rerun EP005: NaNoWriMo | How to Write 50,000 Words in Month | Grant Faulkner
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... Every November hundreds of thousands of writers start their annual challenge of[...]
EP268: Emergency Good News Special
We scrambled to put this episode together in which we try and put some positive vibes out into the world.[...]
EP267: Deep Dive – Indie Children’s Publishing with Karen Inglis
Karen Inglis is a bestselling indie children’s author based in the UK. Her books have sold over 100,000 copies and[...]
EP266: One Page Punch-Ups with Emad Akhtar
We're delighted to welcome back Orion Publisher (and Editor of the Year nominee!) Emad Akhtar to critique our latest round[...]
Rerun EP004: Joanne Harris | Chocolat & Sheds
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... Best known for her novel Chocolat, which sold well over a million[...]
EP265: BA Paris — Dilemmas and Digging Deep
BA Paris is the bestselling author of Behind Closed Doors, and with her new novel The Dilemma she takes a[...]
EP264: RNA Awards 2020
The Romantic Novelists’ Association celebrated their diamond anniversary last week with a glitzy award ceremony where four — FOUR! —[...]
EP263: Steff Green – Heavy Metal Bestseller
Steff Green has written over 30 books since 2015. Her career started with a near-miss with a major publisher, but[...]
EP262: James Swallow Listener Q&A – A Deep Dive
Ahead of our main episode with James Swallow in a few weeks, we have this exclusive Q&A with James where[...]
Rerun EP003: Million-Selling Indie Author | Shannon Mayer
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... From farrier to million-selling indie author, USA Today bestseller, and writing machine,[...]
EP261: Productivity Tips for Writers with Bec Evans
Bec Evans was previously a guest on a Deep Dive (ep199, discussing her book How to Have a Happy Hustle),[...]
EP260: Barbara Poelle – The Hook, The Book & The Cook
In this exclusive Deep Dive episode for our Patreons: Barbara Poelle is a New York literary agent and author of[...]
Archive Rerun EP002: Bestselling Editors | Sam Eades & Juliet Ewers – Orion Books
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... In this episode you will discover… What does a commission editor do?[...]
EP259: Science Fiction – A Deep Dive with Hannu Rajaniemi
In the first of an occasional series where we dive into specific genres, we look at science fiction with Hannu[...]
EP258: LJ Ross – Rebel with Four Million Sold
LJ Ross has long refused to play by other people’s rules and when she didn’t like the look of a publishing contract[...]
Archive Rerun EP001: Who Buys Bestsellers? | Vics Tranter – Hachette
In this week's episode from the BXP Archives... As we begin our epic quest to write and chart a book[...]
EP257: Making a Star Wars Documentary with David Whiteley
In this special episode, we speak to writer and producer David Whiteley about his Star Wars documentary The Galaxy Britain[...]
EP256: Caroline Mitchell and the Law of Attraction
Number one bestselling author Caroline Mitchell recently Tweeted that she had sold a million copies of her books since first[...]
EP255: The Itty Bitty Indie Experiment – A Deep Dive
When Robyn Sarty set up her own publisher, Belwood Publishing, she approached Sage Gordon-Davis about writing a series of sweet[...]
EP254: The BXP2020 Challenge Has Lift-Off
It’s 2020 and the BXP2020 challenge is off to an amazing start with over 118.5 million words pledged already! We've[...]
EP253: Kickstarter Tips with A.Y. Chao
Author A.Y. Chao tells us how she funded her debut novel Soul Affinity on Kickstarter in just 4 days! If[...]
EP252: Scott Pack – Tips from a Publisher
Scott Pack celebrates 20 years in publishing in 2020, having worked as head of buying for Waterstones, and as a[...]
EP251: The 2019 Christmas Special
We take stock of the year so far and read out some of the messages we’ve had from our amazing[...]
EP250: Live Show BXP 2020 Challenge FAQs
As we approach the end of the year, we contemplate hibernating after NanoWriMo before gearing up for the BXP2020 challenge[...]
EP249: One Page Punch-Ups with Emad Akhtar
We are delighted to welcome back Orion Publisher Emad Akhtar to critique our latest round of One Page Punch-Ups. These[...]
EP248: Comedy Women in Print with Helen Lederer, Kirsty Eyre & Martha Ashby
Another one of our listeners is an award winner! Kirsty Eyre won the inaugural Comedy Women in Print “Unpublished” award[...]
EP247: Pitch Power with Kate Harrison
We welcome Kate back to the podcast to celebrate the release of her new book for writers Pitch Power- discover[...]
EP246: A ProWritingAid Masterclass with Chris Banks
We took a chapter from Mr Stay’s new work-in-progress and ran it through ProWritingAid. PWA founder Chris Banks was on[...]
EP245: Swearing Is Good For You with Dr Emma Byrne
“Bad language” is a divisive issue for writers. Some revel in it, others work hard to keep it clean. Dr[...]
EP244: Join the BXP2020 Challenge
The highlights from our latest live show in which we swap productivity tips and launch our biggest ever challenge yet[...]
EP243: Networking for Writers – With Dana Kaye
Dana Kaye is the author of Your Book, Your Brand and is the founder of Kaye Publicity, specialising in publishing[...]
EP242: ProWritingAid with Chris Banks
Chris Banks, founder of ProWritingAid, tells us how a skiing accident led to him developing ProWritingAid, which has become the[...]
EP241: A Blurbs Masterclass with Kate Harrison
Kate Harrison returns to the podcast with a Deep Dive special where she takes a look at blurbs from our[...]
EP240: Garth Nix – The Next Book Can Change Everything
Garth Nix is a global bestselling author with over 5 million copies sold. He takes us through his extraordinary career[...]
EP239: From the Faber Academy to Publication with Awais Khan
Awais Khan is the author In The Company of Strangers. After studying at the University of Western Ontario and Durham[...]
EP238: Ian W Sainsbury – Kindle Storyteller Award Winner
A special episode where we catch up with the winner of this year’s Kindle Storyteller Award, Ian W Sainsbury. Ian[...]
EP237: How Book Deals Work with Phoebe Morgan
In the fourth of a series of Deep Dives into the business side of dealing with publishers and agents we[...]
EP236: RJ Barker Returns
We welcome RJ Barker back to the podcast who triumphantly returns with his new book The Bone Ships. Starting a[...]
EP235: A Deep Dive with Contracts Director Paul Bulos
In the third of a series of Deep Dives into the business side of dealing with publishers and agents we[...]
EP234: LIVE SHOW Highlights – Writers and Mental Health pt2
We celebrate three years of the podcast with a packed live episode in which we continue our conversation with our[...]
EP233: Contract Negotiations with Literary Agent Ed Wilson
In the second of a series of Deep Dives into the business side of dealing with publishers and agents we[...]
EP232: Keith A Pearson – Do The Opposite & Sell 100k
Keith published his first book as part of a drunken bet. There was no big plan and, by his own[...]
EP231: One Page Punch-Ups with Juliet Ewers
We are delighted to welcome back Orion Publishing’s Associate Editor Juliet Ewers to critique our latest round of One Page[...]
EP230: The Business of Being An Author with Rhoda Baxter
In the first of a series of Deep Dives into the business side of dealing with publishers and agents we[...]
EP229: David Koepp – Everything You Write Moves You Forward
David Koepp is one of the most successful screenwriters in Hollywood history. With a collective box office somewhere in the[...]
EP228: Hera Books – Everyone is A-List
Just over a year ago Keshini Naidoo and Lindsey Mooney left their jobs and took a huge risk to create[...]
EP227: Phoebe Locke – Using Therapy To Create Characters
Phoebe Locke is the pseudonym of Nicci Cloke. Phoebe’s book The July Girls takes the life of a character from[...]
EP226: An Audiobooks Masterclass with Kim Bretton
Kim is the narrator and producer of the Back to Reality audiobook and we go into detail about the process[...]
EP225: Kim Bretton – Working with ACX Audiobooks Producers
Kim Bretton is an actor and has worked in theatre, TV and film, but these days she’s found great success[...]
EP224: Edward Cox – Amazing Worlds Built From Notebooks
Edward Cox is the Gemmell Award-nominated author of the Relic Guild trilogy, and with his new book Song of the[...]
EP223: StoryOrigin promotions with Evan Gow
Evan Gow started StoryOrigin as a community of writers who promote one another through group promotions and newsletters. Evan takes[...]
EP221: Youtube Flash Fiction with Kit Cox
Kit Cox is an author, illustrator and actor and has just launched a Flash Fiction Youtube page where he tells[...]
EP222: Sarah Hilary – Crime and Emotional Truth
Sarah’s writing has been described as “downright dangerous” by Mick Herron, and with her new novel Never Be Broken she[...]
EP220: Writers & Mental Health – Live Show Highlights
We discuss one of the most important topics we’ve ever covered: writers and their mental health. With questions from our[...]
EP219: Getting an Agent with Juliet Mushens
In a companion episode to this week’s interview with Gray Williams, we speak to his agent Juliet Mushens about the[...]
EP218: Gray Williams – Getting Published With An Amazing Agent
Gray Williams had a dream to be published, but he wasn’t about to desperately rush in and accept the first[...]
EP217: Literary Festivals with Victoria Falconer
Victoria Falconer has been running the highly successful WhitLit Festival since 2014 and she takes us through what’s involved in[...]
EP216: REPLAY Ep 019 Joe Hill
Joe is the bestselling author of Heart-Shaped Box, Horns, NOS4A2, Locke & Key and most recently the New York Times[...]
EP215: Tutoring and Mentoring with Alison May
Alison May is an award-winning author, an adult education tutor, a member of the Society of Authors and she has[...]
EP214: REPLAY Ep 003 Million-Selling Indie Author | Shannon Mayer
From farrier to million-selling indie author, USA Today bestseller, and writing machine, Shannon bestows wisdom, inspiration, and a quote that[...]
EP213: Children’s Marketing with Georgina Atwell
Georgina Atwell is the founder of Toppsta.com a children’s book review site that helps readers find the best book for[...]
EP212: Catherine Kirwan – Darkest Debut
Catherine Kirwan’s debut novel The Darkest Truth is one of the most critically acclaimed debuts of the year. Catherine tells[...]
EP211: An Indie Author Journey With Mike Morris
Following on from our episode with Mike Shackle, we talk about his indie pen name Mike Morris in this fascinating[...]
EP210: Mike Shackle – Never Give Up, Never Surrender
Mike Shackle was on the verge of giving up on his writing when he heard one of our early episodes[...]
EP209: Writing Alt. History with JDK Wyneken
The Alt. History genre — also known as Counter-Factual History — takes a key moment in history and use a[...]
EP208: Glastonbury Or Bust – Did We Make It?
At the end of 2018, the Two Marks set themselves a challenge: to sell ten thousand copies of their novel[...]
EP207: PR and Social Media Deep Dive with Kim Nash
Kim Nash, award-winning novelist, book blogger and PR manager at Bookouture answers our listener questions on blog tours, social media,[...]
EP206: Caimh McDonnell – Too Funny, Too Irish
That’s the feedback that Caimh got for his first novel. Over a hundred thousand book sales later, he’s writing in[...]
EP205: Live from Harbour Books
To celebrate Independent Bookshop Week we recorded our first ever LIVE episode of the podcast at Harbour Books in Whitstable![...]
EP204: One Page Punch-Ups SF&F special
In the latest of our One Page Punch-Up specials we asked our Patreon Chart Topper supporters to send in one[...]
EP203 Teaser: Everyday Bravery – Writing Diversity and Mental Health with Sasha Greene
Sasha Greene is the author of Something Like Happy, a thought-provoking novel about day-to-day struggles with mental health. Sasha tells[...]
EP202: Tim Clare – Giant Mutant Batman
Tim Clare is a poet, author and musician who has wanted to write since childhood. Despite his commitment and determination,[...]
EP201 Teaser: Fifty Billion Dollar Movie Advice with John Robert Marlow
Many of us all dream of seeing our books turned into movies or TV shows. Award-winning screenwriter John Robert Marlow[...]
EP200: The Two Marks Celebrate Two Hundred Episodes
The Two Marks celebrate two hundred episodes of the podcast by answering some of the strangest questions they have ever[...]
EP199 Teaser: A Happy Hustle with Bec Evans
Being an author is a classic side-hustle: that thing you do between your day job and family and friends. Bec[...]
EP198: Lorna Cook – A Bestseller Dream Come True
Lorna Cook is yet another listener who used what she had learned on the podcast to launch her career and[...]
EP197 Teaser: Creative Writing Courses with David Bishop
David Bishop is programme leader for Creative Writing at Edinburgh Napier University. He tells us about the variety of creative[...]
EP196: Kiley Dunbar – Another Listener Who Got A Deal!
These are our favourite episodes where we speak to one of our listeners who got a book deal! Kiley Dunbar[...]
EP195 Teaser: How To get Your Book Into An Indie Bookshop
Liz Hurley runs Hurley Books in Cornwall and is a writer herself. Here she gives us some frank and immensely[...]
EP194: Tade Thompson – Master Storyteller And Worldbuilder
Tade Thompson’s Rosewater has been nominated for pretty much every award going this year, and Tade’s skill in combining complex[...]
EP193 Teaser: Audiobooks Masterclass with Tina Dietz
Tina Dietz is an award-winning audiobook publisher and marketing expert and she was kind enough to answer our listeners’ questions[...]
EP192: One Page Punch-Ups With Juliet Ewers
In the latest of our One Page Punch-Up specials we asked our Patreon Chart Toppers supporters to send us one[...]
EP191 Teaser: Writing Romantic Comedy with Rhoda Baxter and Jane Lovering
We welcome back romantic fiction novelist Rhoda Baxter and this time she’s joined by Jane Lovering, winner of Romantic Comedy[...]
EP190: Simon Beckett – One Moment That Changed Everything
Simon Beckett has sold over ten million copies of his books worldwide, but he came close to giving up fiction[...]
EP189 Teaser: A Masterclass on Writing Comics with David Bishop
In the 1990s David Bishop ran Judge Dredd magazine and 2000 AD comic and since then has become a prolific[...]
EP188: Taylor Jenkins-Reid – Breaking The Rules = Bestseller
Taylor Jenkins-Reid’s latest novel Daisy Jones and the Six has been a global smash, but what makes it all the[...]
EP187 Teaser: Author Website Q&A with Simon Appleby
Simon Appleby is the founder of Bookswarm, a specialist service dedicated to developing websites for authors. We had so many[...]
EP186: Claire Handscombe – Myers-Briggs, Enneagrams and The West Wing
Claire Handscombe is a British writer whose obsession with The West Wing took her to Washington DC. Her debut novel,[...]
EP185 Teaser: Self Publishing Paperbacks with Craig Anderson
Author Craig Anderson recently sold over ten thousand copies of his books on Amazon and much of this was down[...]
EP184: David Gaughran – How Amazon Works
David Gaughran is bestselling novelist and the author of a series of amazing guides on how to market books online.[...]
EP183 Teaser: Deep Dive – A Facebook Ads Masterclass with Craig Anderson
Author Craig Anderson recently sold over ten thousand copies of his books on Amazon and much of this was down[...]
EP182: Angela Marsons – 3 million sold in 3 years
Angela Marsons’ first novel Silent Scream was rejected by every major UK publisher, but she never gave up and now[...]
EP181 Teaser: Dictation Software – A Deep Dive
We speak to two authors about how they use dictation software for write their books and they answer our listeners’[...]
EP180: The London Book Fair 2019
A special episode from the 2019 London Book Fair. We spoke to Nicola May about her novel The Corner Shop in[...]
EP179: Chris Humphreys – From The Stage To Page
Chris Humphreys started as an actor but his writing career took off when he took one of his key roles[...]
EP178: The Crafty Craft of Writing Live Show
We asked our Patreon supporters for their questions on the crafty craft of writing and with our live audience we[...]
EP177: One Page Punch-Ups with Jon Wood
In the second of our One Page Punch-Up specials we asked our Patreon Chart Topper supporters to send us one[...]
EP176 Teaser: Deep Dive – An Amazon Ads Masterclass with Craig Anderson
Author Craig Anderson recently sold over ten thousand copies of his books on Amazon and much of this was down[...]
EP175: Anna Stephens – From 36 rejections to a 6-figure deal
Anna Stephens’ fantasy novel Godblind was one of the most-anticipated debuts of 2017, but it had a very long road[...]
EP174 Teaser: Deep Dive – Dos and Don’ts of a Book Launch
We run through the essential elements of a successful book launch, including top tips on venues, public speaking, food and[...]
EP173: Gavin G Smith – Rock n Roll Book Promotion
Gavin G Smith is the author of The Veteran and The Bastard Legion science fiction series. When it came to[...]
EP172 Teaser: A Deep Dive Q&A with Dave Chesson The Kindlepreneur
We speak to Dave Chesson, the Kindlepreneuer, and ask him listener questions about Kindle pricing, marketing niche titles, marketing YA[...]
EP171: James Oswald – From Self-Published To Six Figure Deals
We haven’t had many authors who have Sheep Shit Sampler on their resumé, but James Oswald is a farmer who[...]
EP170 Teaser: Deep Dive – Start Your Own Publisher with Michael R Miller
Michael R Miller is author of the Dragon Blade trilogy and, with Taran Matharu, is co-founder of Portal Books, a[...]
EP169: Breaking The Rules – Live Show Highlights
In our latest live show - exclusive to our Patreon Chart Topper supporters - we asked which writing rules they[...]
EP168 Teaser: A Digital First & Metadata Deep Dive
We spoke to Orion Fiction’s Victoria Oundjian about their strategy for digital first publishing and she gives us some amazing[...]
EP167: One Page Punch-Ups with Emad Akhtar
In the very first of our One Page Punch-Up specials we asked our Patreon Chart Topper supporters to send us[...]
EP166 Teaser: The Edit Process step-by-step, a Deep Dive with Melissa Caruso
Melissa Caruso is the author of the amazing Swords & Fire trilogy and her recent Twitter thread on the editorial[...]
EP165: Peter May – Story In His Blood
Peter May is the multi-award-winning and bestselling author of the Lewis series and he takes us through his incredible career,[...]
EP164 Teaser: Deep Dive: Girl Friday Part 3 – Being Authentic in Sales – Plus Bonus David Barnett
In the third and final of our three exclusive episodes for our Patreon supporters we speak to Ingrid Emerick, one[...]
EP163: Working With Editors – David M Barnett
David M Barnett is the bestselling author of Calling Major Tom, a book that came at a crossroads in his[...]
EP162 Teaser: Deep Dive: Our Marketing Masterclass with Sam Missingham continues…
We continue our masterclass with Sam Missingham, founder of Lounge Marketing, on how exactly we plan to sell ten thousand[...]
EP161: A Marketing Masterclass with Sam Missingham
Sam Missingham, founder of Lounge Marketing, hijacks the show and grills us on how exactly we plan to sell ten[...]
EP160 Teaser: Deep Dive: Girl Friday Part 2 – Building Your Brand
In the second of three exclusive episodes for our Patreon supporters we speak to Ingrid Emerick, one of the founders[...]
EP159: January LIVE SHOW highlights – Strategies for selling your books
On this month's live show for our Patreon Chart Topper supporters we talked about the kind of strategies you can[...]
EP158: Jump Into 2019 With The Crash Test Dummies
We talk about our personal goals for 2019 and reveal our new insane challenge for 2019… and once again we’re[...]
EP157: A Christmas Special with Ian Rankin
A Christmas treat as we speak to bestselling author Ian Rankin who takes us through his incredible career, including tips[...]
EP156: Julian Barr – A Small Press, Epic Stories and a Bestseller
Julian Barr's thrilling debut YA novel The Way Home was published by Odyssey Books, a small press. Julian has taken[...]
EP155: Catherine Ryan Howard – Get Your Arse In The Chair
Catherine started by self-publishing her travel adventures and has gone on to write USA Today and Irish Times bestselling thrillers.[...]
EP154: Mark Billingham – From a shoutline to five million books sold
Mark Billingham is renowned for his bestselling crime thrillers, not least the Jack Thorne series. Having now sold over 5[...]
EP153: From a Pitch to a Deal, with Alison Belsham
Alison Belsham tells us how her debut novel The Tattoo Thief started with a pitch at a crime festival and[...]
EP152: Editing Masterclass with Emad Akhtar and Caroline Hulse
The highlights from our YouTube Live Show for our Patreon supporters. We talk through the editorial process with author Caroline[...]
EP151: Matthew Reilly – How To Sell 8 Million Books Out of the Back of Your Car
Matthew Reilly self-published his first novel when he was 19, selling copies from the back of his car. Now with[...]
EP150: Joanna Nadin – The Queen of Bloody Everything
Joanna Nadin has written over 70 award-winning books for children and adults and recently inspired Mr. Stay to completely re-write[...]
EP149: Halloween Special with Ramsey Campbell
Ramsey Campbell is a legend of horror fiction who has been terrifying readers for over six decades, so who better[...]
EP148: RJ Barker and Explosions of Joy
RJ Barker combines the page-turning thrills of a whodunnit crime thriller and the world-building of fantasy in his Wounded Kingdom[...]
EP147: Defying the Odds with Sherrilyn Kenyon
Sherrilyn Kenyon’s first book was published when she was still in college, since then she has had more than 80[...]
EP146 Teaser: Deep Dive: Essential Guide to Bloggers and Blog Tours
An essential guide to bloggers and blog tours with Gollancz’s Publicity Manager Stevie Finegan. You will discover how to find[...]
145: Mr. Stay’s Hot Tub Alpine Retreat with Marcus Sedgwick and Dawn Kurtagich
Mr. Stay overcomes his suspicion of writing retreats and joins award-winning author Marcus Sedgwick on his retreat in the Alps[...]
EP144 Teaser: Deep Dive with Clare Christian
A special episode where we talk to Clare Christian from RedDoor Publishing about their hybrid model of publishing where the[...]
143: Rowan Coleman’s Impossible Summer
We speak to bestselling author Rowan Coleman about why she heckled Mr. Stay at the RNA conference, how to make[...]
142: YALC special with Dhonielle Clayton
Mr. Stay reports from YALC, the Young Adult Literature Convention in London and speaks to author Dhonielle Clayton about her[...]
141: The Two Marks – Mark Desvaux (Mr D) Returns
In this special episode we welcome back Mark Desvaux (Mr. D) to the show. To support the show, check out[...]
140: The Conventions & Comic Cons Survival Guide
In these highlights from our YouTube Live show with Gollancz’s Marcus Gipps and Stevie Finnegan we look into the[...]
139: Lisa Cutts – Cop, writer, bestseller
Lisa Cutts works for Kent Police as a full-time detective constable, but when she’s not solving murders and other serious[...]
138: Miranda Dickinson – The Longest Apprenticeship
Miranda Dickinson is a Sunday Times bestselling author, shortlisted twice for the RNA Novel of the Year, and has sold[...]
EP137 Teaser: Newsletters Deep Dive with Julia Pidduck
In this Deep Dive we explore newsletters with digital marketing consultant Julia Pidduck who brings years of experience working with[...]
EP136: John McGhie – Writing Living History
John McGhie has been an investigative journalist for the BBC and Channel 4 News and was the Observer’s political correspondent,[...]
EP135: The Romantic Novelists’ Association conference with Rhoda Baxter, Nicola Cornick and Sheila Crighton
Love is in the air at the Romantic Novelists’ Association conference! I was invited to talk about the podcast and[...]
EP134 Teaser: The Hero’s Journey Part 3
Mark Stay and Julian Barr, author of The Way Home, discuss Joseph Campell’s Hero’s Journey in the second of a[...]
EP133: Pernille Hughes – A Star In Sweatpants Is Born
Pernille Hughes brings the funny with her debut novel Sweatpants at Tiffanie’s. To add to the joy, Pernille is one[...]
EP132 Teaser: The Hero’s Journey Part 2
Mark Stay and Julian Barr, author of The Way Home, discuss Joseph Campell’s Hero’s Journey in the second of a[...]
EP131: Sam Missingham – A massive boot up the arse for publishing
Sam Missingham fell in love with the quirks of the publishing industry when she started working at The Bookseller over[...]
EP130 Teaser: The Hero’s Journey Part 1
Mark Stay and Julian Barr, author of The Way Home, discuss Joseph Campell’s Hero’s Journey in the first of a[...]
EP129 Teaser: Romcoms
Mr. Stay discusses Romcoms with literary agent and romcom devotee Federica Leonardis in this special Deep Dive. We look at[...]
EP128: Youtube LIVE show with Ed Wilson (Mr. Stay’s agent spills the beans on money and more)
This is not the usual ‘How do you get an agent?’ show, instead we talk about money, author’s earnings, shrinking[...]
EP127: Cally Taylor aka CL Taylor aka six time Sunday Times Bestseller
You may know CL Taylor as the Sunday Times bestselling author of psychological thrillers The Lie, The Accident, The Fear[...]
EP126: Veronica Henry – A Recipe For A Bestseller
Veronica Henry is a Sunday Times bestselling novelist who started out as a writer on BBC radio’s The Archers after[...]
EP125: Steve Cavanagh – Author on the verge of a massive breakthrough
Steve Cavanagh is the author of the Eddie Flynn legal thrillers The Defence, The Plea, The Liar and now, with[...]
EP124 Teaser: Beta Readers
Feedback from Beta Readers can transform your writing, but how do you find them? How should you work with them?[...]
EP123: Warren Adler – The Master of Dysfunction
Warren Adler is best known for his classic bestseller The War of the Roses and has had the most incredible[...]
EP121 Teaser: State of the (publishing nation) with Sam Missingham
Hey Patreon supporters, we have over a month’s backlog of recordings on the podcast at the moment, but we wanted[...]
EP122: The kids are all right! Live Show with Amber Caravéo
The highlights from our live show with Children’s Literary Agent Amber Caravéo! Amber was formerly a commissioning editor at Random[...]
EP120: The Quanderhorn Xperimentations with Rob Grant and Andrew Marshall
Mr. Stay spoke to a pair of his TV writing heroes at the MCM Comic Con in London recently. Rob[...]
EP119: Crowdfunding tips with Jimmy Leach
Crowdfunding is an increasingly common and way for authors to make their project come to life. But how to do[...]
EP118 Teaser: Rights
In one of our Industry Insider Deep Dives we talk to Jessica Purdue from the Orion Publishing Group's Rights department[...]
EP117: Gareth L Powell – How to sing a space opera
Gareth L Powell is one of the most generous authors on social media and a font of writing wisdom. He’s[...]
EP116 Teaser: Adaptation
This week's topic of adaptation came from one of our Patreon supporters and listeners Julian Barr, who joined me to[...]
EP115: Julie Wassmer – The Pearl of Whitstable
Julie Wassmer is an EastEnder who has written for EastEnders and she’s now bumping off the locals in her wonderful[...]
EP114 Teaser: Criticism
In this Deep Dive we take a look at one of the hardest parts of being a writer: coping with[...]
EP113: Sharon Bolton and the Mysteries of Mystery Fiction
Sharon Bolton (aka SJ Bolton) is the bestselling and award-winning thriller author of the Lacey Flint series and her writing[...]
EP112: Deborah Haywood – Pin Cushion
This week we go to the movies with writer/director Deborah Haywood whose debut feature film Pin Cushion will be released[...]
EP111: Live Show with Ben Willis
Another special YouTube Live episode featuring Orion editor Ben Willis with contributions from our wonderful Patreon supporters! Ben worked in[...]
EP110 Teaser: Introducing Your Characters
This week's Deep Dive focuses on introducing your characters. We've already had a Deep Dive on writing compelling characters, but[...]
EP109: Win Kelly Charles – The Curiosity Killed The Cat Kid
Win Kelly Charles is a bestselling indie author who has publicly declared that she’s stepping away from Facebook after the[...]
EP108 Teaser: Short Stories
Writing short stories is hard! Cramming great character and story into just a few thousand words is a skill few[...]
EP107: Isabel Ashdown’s Secrets and Lies
Isabel Ashdown is the author of bestselling thrillers Little Sister and Beautiful Liars. She walked away from a successful career[...]
EP106 Teaser: Cliches and Tropes
CLICHES AND TROPES - how to identify cliches in your writing and tropes in your storytelling, and strategies for making[...]
EP105: Ed McDonald, Dear Debut Authors
Ed McDonald broke onto the fantasy scene with his incredible debut Blackwing in 2017 and has had an amazing year.[...]
EP104 Teaser: Production Part 2 with Paul Hussey
In this week’s Deep Dive Mark Stay is joined by Paul Hussey and they take a deep dive into the[...]
EP103: Michael J Ward – Choose Your Own Adventure
Michael J Ward is a writer and gamer who has taken choose-your-own-adventure books to the next level. With compelling characters[...]
EP102 Teaser: Production Part 1 with Andy Bowden
In this week’s Deep Dive Mark Stay is joined by Andy Bowden and they take a deep dive into the[...]
EP101: Live Show with Emad Akhtar
Editor Emad Akhtar has worked with authors like Michael Connelly, Ian Rankin and Justin Cronin and was kind enough to[...]
EP100 Teaser: Elements of a Chapter
This week’s Deep Dive is short n sweet and crammed with tips on making your chapters work as hard as[...]
EP99: Cavan Scott
We speak to Cavan Scott, an extraordinary writer who writes on licence, meaning that he is hired to write for[...]
EP98 Teaser: Audiobooks
Here's a Teaser for Episode 98 - Options Deep Dive which is available only at https://bestsellerexperiment.com/support PODCAST BUY Back to Reality[...]
EP97: Roz Morris
We speak to Roz Morris, a writer whose books have sold over 4 million copies, but until recently you won’t[...]
EP96 Teaser: Deep Dive – Options Part 3
Here's a Teaser for Episode 96 - Options Deep Dive which is available only at https://bestsellerexperiment.com/support PODCAST BUY Back to Reality[...]
EP95: Richard Morgan
We speak to Richard Morgan about his novel Altered Carbon and its long journey through development hell before it went[...]
EP94 Teaser: Deep Dive – Options Part 2
Here's a Teaser for Episode 94 - Options Deep Dive which is available only at https://bestsellerexperiment.com/support PODCAST BUY Back to Reality[...]
EP93: Alex T. Smith
In the latest of an occasional series of reports from the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators conference, we[...]
EP92: The Gingerbread Shortlist
A special episode where Mr. Stay catches up with Sam Eades on the Gingerbread writing competition launched in episode[...]
EP91 Teaser: Deep Dive – Options Part 1
Here's a Teaser for Episode 91 - Options Deep Dive which is available only at https://bestsellerexperiment.com/support PODCAST BUY Back to Reality[...]
EP90: Ask the Two Marks
Braving snowmageddon, our monthly live show was recorded in London and Vancouver, with our audience of Patreon supporters. Featured listener[...]
EP89 Teaser: Deep Dive – Five Principles on 2nd Drafts
Here's a Teaser for Episode 89 - Five Principles on 2nd Drafts Deep Dive which is available only at https://bestsellerexperiment.com/support PODCAST[...]
EP88: Unbound and The End of Magic
Mr. Stay has a new book coming! And it’s being published by Unbound Books who use a crowdfunding model. We[...]
EP87 Teaser: Deep Dive – Five Principles on 2nd Drafts
Here's a Teaser for Episode 87 - Five Principles on 2nd Drafts Deep Dive which is available only at https://bestsellerexperiment.com/support PODCAST[...]
EP86: Catriona Innes
We speak to the completely charming Catriona Innes, Senior Editor of Cosmopolitan, the UK’s best selling glossy magazine. Working on[...]
EP85 Teaser: Deep Dive – Rocket Your Word Count
Here's a Teaser for Episode 85 - Rocket Your Word Count Deep Dive which is available only at https://bestsellerexperiment.com/support PODCAST BUY[...]
EP84: Cass Green
We speak to Cass Green, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Woman Next Door and In a Cottage In a[...]
EP83 Teaser: Deep Dive – Creating Compelling Characters
Here's a Teaser for Episode 83 - Creating Compelling Characters Deep Dive which is available only at https://bestsellerexperiment.com/support PODCAST BUY Back[...]
EP82: Jen Williams – “Even Aliens Have Issues.”
We speak to Jen Williams, writer of charismatic characters and founder of the Super Relaxed Fantasy Club. To hear more[...]
EP81: Live Show Q&A with the two Marks
Behold, the highlights of this month's YouTube Live show for our Patreon supporters. To hear more of this episode in[...]
EP80 Teaser: Deep Dive – Beat Writers Block
Here's a Teaser for Episode 80 - Beat Writers Block Deep Dive which is available only at https://bestsellerexperiment.com/support PODCAST BUY Back[...]
EP79: Liz Pichon
In the first of an occasional series of reports from the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators conference, we[...]
EP78 Teaser: Deep Dive – Brandon Sanderson
Here's a Teaser for Episode 78 - Branson Sanderson Deep Dive which is available only at https://bestsellerexperiment.com/support PODCAST BUY Back to Reality[...]
EP77: Brandon Sanderson
We caught up with fantasy bestselling author and super nice dude Brandon Sanderson and in a jam-packed episode he answered[...]
EP76: This Week on The Bestseller Experiment Deep Dive of episode 075
Here are some clips of what is happening over on the Deep Dive at https://bestsellerexperiment.com/support PODCAST BUY Back to Reality[...]
EP75: Location, location, location and murder with Lara Dearman
We talk to novelist Lara Dearman about her debut book The Devil’s Claw and the importance of place, location, myths[...]
EP74: This Week on The Bestseller Experiment Deep Dive of episode 073
Here are some clips of what is happening over on the Deep Dive at https://bestsellerexperiment.com/support PODCAST BUY Back to Reality[...]
EP73: New Year’s Countdown to Your Favourite Episodes
A Happy New Year to all our listeners! In today’s special episode we conclude our thrilling countdown of our top[...]
EP72: Christmas Special
Merry Christmas to all our listeners! In today’s special episode we begin our countdown of our top 10 best episodes[...]
EP71: MR Carey
Mike Carey writes comics, novels and screenplays like Hellblazer, Lucifer, X-Men, the Felix Castor novels, and The Girl With All[...]
EP70: Listeners’ Question Time
The Two Marks answer your questions in this recording of our first Patreon subscribers’ live show. To hear more of[...]
EP69: Tad Williams – Legendary Worldbuilder
Tad Williams is a master of the fantasy genre. Not only an incredible world builder, but he populates his books[...]
EP68: Victoria Aveyard – The Red Queen of YA
We hitch a ride with Victoria Aveyard, the bestselling author of the Red Queen series, and we talk unreliable narrators,[...]
EP67: Season 2 – Publicity Secrets Revealed
On the day the Two Marks land a big feature in Publisher's Weekly, they talk with top publicists Elaine Egan,[...]
EP66: Bestseller Launch Day (Part 4)
Bestselling author and friend of the show Shannon Mayer joins Mark Desvaux in the final part of the launch day[...]
EP65: Bestseller Launch Day (Part 3)
The sky over London turns red as the two Marks recall the third part of their launch day event for[...]
EP64: Bestseller Launch Day (Part 2)
It’s High Noon as the two Marks recall the second part of their launch day event for their novel Back[...]
EP63: Bestseller Launch Day (Part 1)
Relive the magic of launch day as the Two Marks attempt to hit the bestseller charts with their novel Back to[...]
Launch Day – Livestream Replay
Did you miss the launch day livestream? Fear not! You can relive every minute of the magic here!Also, if you[...]
EP62: PUBLICATION DAY! Back to Reality is Out Now!
It's Launch Day! After a year of podcasting and writing our book, Back to Reality is finally available to buy[...]
EP61: One Day to Go! Back to Reality Book Reading
In the seventh of our daily mini-episodes in the run-up to publication we thought you might like a little taster[...]
EP60: Two Days to Go! Favourite Pod Moments
In the sixth of our daily mini-episodes in the run-up to publication of Back to Reality, The Two Marks look[...]
EP59: Three Days to Go! Social Media
How do you harness the power of social media in your book launch? Find out in the fifth mini-episode, as[...]
EP58: Four Days to Go! Reviews & Launch Teams
In the fourth of our daily mini-episodes in the run-up to publication we look at the importance of reviews and[...]
EP57: Five days to go! Beta readers and reviews
In the third of our daily mini-episodes in the run-up to publication we look at Beta readers and reviews and[...]
EP56: Six Days to Go! Getting Quotes for Your Book
How do you get pull quotes from other authors for your book? Find out in the second of our daily[...]
EP55: One Week to Go! Back to Reality & Blurbs
Holy cow! Only seven days until we publish our novel, Back to Reality. This is the first of eight special[...]
EP54: The Mighty Joanna Penn
Only two weeks to go till the publication of our book Back To Reality, and we seek the advice of[...]
EP53: GollanczFest, Gin and a Special Guest
Only three weeks to go till publication, but we somehow found time to talk to the wonderful folk from Gollancz[...]
EP52: Four Weeks To Go!
Holy cow! Only four weeks till publication? Already?? What do we do? How did it come round so soon? Yes,[...]
EP51: The Impossible Choices Of Samantha King
Samantha King is a bestselling debut novelist, and her book The Choice taps into parental fears. Sam has also worked[...]
EP50: Gingerbread
A very special episode with an amazing opportunity for writers. PODCAST Competition Link: https://gingerbread.org.uk/content/2454/One-in-four-new-writer-competition In this episode you will[...]
EP49: Bookbub Mythbusting
As the two Marks gear-up for publication, it’s suddenly dawned on them that they will have to market and sell[...]
EP48: A Kick In The Ed
The two Marks have met with their editor. Sit in on one of their story sessions as they go through[...]
EP47: Titles, Covers & Deadlines
In the second part of this conversation between the two Marks before their book goes to their editor, they wonder[...]
EP46: Research and Reconnoitring
The two Marks are recording in the same room! Will universes collide? Will they reveal any more about their damn[...]
EP45: Katherine May – Creative Writing Cocktails
Katherine May is an award-winning writer, blogger and the programme director of creative writing at Canterbury, Christ Church University. She[...]
EP44: Jennifer Niven
Jennifer Niven is a phenomenally successful YA novelist. All The Bright Places was a Goodreads Choice Award winner and is[...]
EP43: Martina Cole – Dangerous Lady
Martina Cole is the undisputed queen of British crime fiction. She’s sold over 14 million books and her novels regularly[...]
EP42: The End
We’ve done it, we’ve finished our first draft! After months of writing — and that outline — we discuss what[...]
EP41: Deon Meyer Fever!
Deon is a bestselling thriller writer from South Africa whose books have been translated into 20 languages, but with his[...]
EP40: Laura Barnett’s Greatest Hits
Laura Barnett’s 2015 debut The Versions Of Us was a smash hit, a number one bestseller, and translated into 23[...]
EP39: Million-Selling Children Books | Karen Ball
A children’s fiction special. We talk with Karen Ball who has published some of the bestselling children’s series of the[...]
EP38: From The Heart | Erica James
How do you touch the heart of your readers? We get emotional over tea and cake with bestselling author Erica[...]
EP37: Go For Launch | Susan Kaye Quinn
In the second part of our interview with Susan Kaye Quinn, we talk about how to launch your book, pre-orders,[...]
EP36: For Love Or Money | Susan Kaye Quinn
Susan Kaye Quinn is not only a genuine rocket scientist, but she’s also a bestselling indie author in fiction and[...]
EP35: The Incredible Tenacity Of Mark Edwards
Mark Edwards is a bestselling author, having sold over two million psychological thrillers including The Magpies. Having been self-published and traditionally-published,[...]
EP34: Into The Woods With John Yorke
John Yorke is one of the world's leading lights in the art of storytelling. As former head of Channel Four[...]
EP33: A Deep Dive With The Two Marks
The two Marks discuss the progress of their novel so far as the deadline rapidly approaches, and Mr. Stay recalls[...]
EP32: Legal Eagles | Keith Mathieson and Paul Joseph
We get lawyered-up in this fascinating episode where we talk to a pair of top entertainment lawyers: Keith Mathieson is[...]
EP31: Fear of Failure | Julie Cohen
Julie Cohen is the author of over twenty novels, including the Richard & Judy bestseller Dear Thing. She also teaches[...]
EP30: The Future Of Publishing | David Shelley
David Shelley is the CEO of Orion Publishing and the Little, Brown Publishing Group, he started as an editor, working[...]
EP29: Kate Harrison | Bestselling Insights
Kate Harrison is a rare breed. A fiction and non-fiction award-winning author who used her insight experience with the BBC[...]
EP28: What Exactly Is A Bestseller? Number Crunching with Nielsen
We answer one of the most common questions we get on our quest: What is a bestseller? We spoke to[...]
EP27: From Script, To Screen, To Book | Jo Ho
Jo Ho is an award-winning screenwriter and director, best known for creating the BBC TV series Spirit Warriors, but she[...]
EP26: Author & Editor In A Hot Mess | Lucy Vine & Katie Seaman
Lucy Vine is a freelance journalist who has written for pretty much every magazine going. Inspired by one of Lucy’s[...]
EP25: The M Word | Shannon Mayer
We welcome back Shannon Mayer for the third and final part of our epic interview with her and we finally[...]
EP24: Liz Fenwick & The Crows Of Doubt
Is there such a thing as a positive rejection? This week we chat with award-winning author, Liz Fenwick about the[...]
EP23: The Plot Thickens
Licking the wounds from their encounter with Ben Aaronovitch last week about the progress of their novel, the two Marks[...]
EP22: Ben Aaronovitch and the Great Bollocking…
Ben Aaronovitch started writing for Doctor Who and became the author of the bestselling Peter Grant series that started with[...]
EP21: Obscurity to Million-Selling Indie Success | Mark Dawson
Mark Dawson had been published by a mainstream publisher, but to little success. A friend introduced him to Amazon’s Kindle[...]
EP20: Amazon | Kindle Direct Publishing with Darren Hardy
Self-publishing an eBook? You’re almost certainly going to be publishing on Kindle. We were delighted to speak to Kindle’s head[...]
EP19: Joe Hill
Joe is the bestselling author of Heart-Shaped Box, Horns, NOS4A2, Locke & Key and most recently the New York Times[...]
EP18: Behind Sarah Pinborough’s Eyes!
Sarah Pinborough has had over twenty novels published and written for TV and film. Sarah’s new thriller Behind Her Eyes[...]
EP17: Million-Selling Indie Secrets | Shannon Mayer Returns
The second part of our interview with bestselling Indie author Shannon Mayer who recently hit #2 in the main Amazon.com[...]
EP16: How Do I Get An Agent? | Federica Leonardis & Sonya Lalli
'How do I get a literary agent?' is one of the most common questions asked by new writers, so we[...]
EP15: Mark Huckerby & Nick Ostler | Peter Rabbit vs Werewolves
Emmy winners and BAFTA-nominated, Huckerby & Ostler are one of the most successful TV writing partnerships around, and with their[...]
EP14: John Connolly | No Formulas & Finishing Books
John Connolly has won pretty much every crime award going, and his books are regular Sunday Times bestsellers. He doesn’t[...]
EP13: Michelle Paver | Research To The Extreme
How do you research your books? Michelle Paver has written eighteen novels, including the bestselling Chronicles Of Ancient Darkness. She’s[...]
EP12: Maria Semple | How To Find Your Voice As A Writer
Have you every wondered how important your "Voice" is as a writer? This week on The Bestseller Experiment podcast, New[...]
EP11: Writing a Bestseller | The Story So Far
The two Marks bring you up to date on the trials and tribulations their nascent bestseller, the processes that they’re[...]
EP10: Robin Stevens | NaNoWriMo Success Story
Robin is the author of the Murder Most Unladylike Mysteries books, a middle grade series following schoolgirl detectives Daisy Wells[...]
EP09: Joe Abercrombie | Dancing Naked in the Rain
Joe burst onto the fantasy scene in 2003 with his debut The Blade Itself. His books have climbed high up[...]
5 Essential Tips Writers Can Learn From Breaking Bad
Breaking Bad is one of the best, if not the best TV series ever. From incredible characters, amazing plots, terrific twists...[...]
EP08: NaNoWriMo & The Muddy Middle | Grant Faulkner
We are delighted to welcome NaNoWriMo’s Grant Faulkner back to the podcast in mid-November, where we discuss strategies for coping[...]
EP07: Michael Connelly | 60 Million Thriller Books
Michael Connelly is one of the most successful crime authors in the world with over 60m book sales. Having just released his[...]
EP06: Bryan Cranston | On Breaking Bad, Characters, Writing & Life
Breaking Bad's Bryan Cranston tells us about his life and new bestselling memoir, A Life In Parts. Oscar-nominated, Golden Globe,[...]
EP05: NaNoWriMo | How to Write 50,000 Words in Month | Grant Faulkner
Every November hundreds of thousands of writers start their annual challenge of writing 50,000 words in one month. It's called[...]
EP04: Joanne Harris | Chocolat & Sheds
Best known for her novel Chocolat, which sold well over a million copies and was made into a movie starring[...]
We’ve hit the iTunes charts!
A big thank you to everyone supporting the Podcast. The show debuted today at #4 in the iTunes Arts & Literature[...]
EP03: Million-Selling Indie Author | Shannon Mayer
From farrier to million-selling indie author, USA Today bestseller, and writing machine, Shannon bestows wisdom, inspiration, and a quote that[...]
EP02: Bestselling Editors | Sam Eades & Juliet Ewers – Orion Books
Ian Rankin, Neil Gaiman, Michael Connelly have worked with them and now they get us cornered. Juliet Ewers and Sam[...]
EP01: Who Buys Bestsellers? | Vics Tranter – Hachette Books
As we begin our epic quest to write and chart a book in one year, we need to discover what kind of person[...]
EP00: The Bestseller Experiment Preview
Welcome to the Bestseller Experiment! Join author and screenwriter Mark Stay with coach and entrepreneur Mark Desvaux, as they discover the secrets to[...]
How Do I Listen to a Podcast?
If you are new to Podcasts, we've put together this short guide on how enter this amazing world of brilliant[...]
Podcast Launching Soon
Have you ever dreamed of writing a bestseller? Authors spend many months, often years, writing a book, only for it[...]