Better Words

Alison Booth was born in Melbourne, brought up in Sydney and has worked in the UK and in Australia as a professor as well as a novelist. She holds a PhD in Economics from the London School of Economics and has written five novels, including The Philosopher’s Daughters which was published in April 2020.

Interview starts at 20 minutes.

Mini book club: Cow Girl by Kirsty Eyre

We enjoyed reading this funny book about Billie, a biochemist who has to go back to her home town to run her family dairy farm when her Dad falls ill. Battling misogyny, homophobia and the economic turmoil of a dairy crisis, can Billie find a way to save the farm, save the cows and save herself?

In this interview, we chat about:

• The inspiration for The Philosopher’s Daughters. 
• Why it’s so important to balance the present with the truth of history.
• Choosing how to accurately present history on the page. 
• How the research process differs for historical fiction depending on the time period.
• How do we define history and historical fiction?
• Why Alison had to retrain herself to include emotion in her writing after studying economics.

Books and other things mentioned:

• Up The Dusty Track by Norman Booth
• The Territory by Ernestine Hill
• Back In Time For Dinner AU on ABC TV

Follow Alison @alisonboothauthor9723 and get your copy of The Philosopher’s Daughters at all good bookshops.

Follow us on Instagram @betterwordspod

Meg Rosoff spent 15 years working in advertising before writing her first novel. That book, How I Live Now, has since sold over one million copies in 36 territories, won prestigious awards and been adapted into a film. Her subsequent novels have been awarded or shortlisted for multiple awards including the Carnegie Medal. Although she was born in Boston, our guest now lives in London with her husband, daughter and dogs.

Interview starts at 15 minutes.

Caitlin recommends

2 brilliant fiction podcasts: Next Stop and Little Did I Know

For fans of rom-coms and uplifting contemporary storytelling. 

Michelle recommends

Matt Haig's fiction. Beautiful magical realism exploring what it means to be human.

Books mentioned: How to Stop Time, The Dead Fathers Club, The Radleys, The Midnight Library

In this interview, we chat about

• The difficulty with trying to explain exactly what happens in The Great Godden (or any character-driven novel)
• Exploring conventional beauty, the commodity of beauty, and challenging commonly held beliefs
• Meg’s struggle writing The Great Godden and her decision to keep the narrator unidentified
• The act of discovery involved in writing a novel and trusting where the characters want to go
• Meg’s plans for another novel exploring a pivotal summer, set during a New York internship and featuring an intense friendship that goes wrong
• The arrival of the AIDS epidemic while Meg was living in New York in the 1980s
• How our society will change (and potentially flourish) after Covid
• The notion of adolescence and how it re-appears in our lives
• Why Meg believes self-doubt is “unbelievably important” to the creative process
• Meg’s experience of winning the second richest literary prize in the world: feeling unworthy, working harder to prove she was indeed worthy of the prize, and re-evaluating ‘success’
• The person Meg regards as the best writer in the world
• Meg’s advice to her younger self (and us all)

Books and other things mentioned

• Downton Abbey
• You’re Wrong About Podcast - Princess Diana series
• Pride (film)
• This Podcast Will Kill You Podcast - Hit Me With Your Best (Polio) Shot
• Wolf Erlbruch
• The Sword in the Stone by TH White

Learn more and get in touch with Meg at her website  megrosoff.co.uk.

Follow us on Instagram @betterwordspod

Caitlin and Michelle both received copies of The Great Godden from Bloomsbury Publishing. 

Kalynn Bayron is an author and classically trained vocalist. She grew up in Alaska, which apparently means skiing and ice-skating in PE class. She studied opera in college, trained in ballet and can play the clarinet. As if all of that isn’t talent enough, she’s recently published her debut novel, Cinderella Is Dead.

Interview starts at 20 minutes

Mini book club: Read with Pride (Paper and Hearts Society Book 2)

We enjoyed this YA novel about the importance of diverse and inclusive books (even if it did give us flashbacks to high school stress)

In this interview, we chat about:

• The inspiration for Cinderella is Dead (ft Disney Princesses, an old book of fairytales, Once Upon a Time and Wicked)
• Why fairytales have endured for centuries
• Exploring violence in YA and choosing how to represent that on the page
• Using genre to explore contemporary issues and making the discussion more accessible for people who wouldn’t usually read issues-heavy contemporary novels
• Kalynn’s journey to a book deal and publication
• Knowing when to give up on a story idea and writing the story you’re truly passionate about, not just what you think people want
• Why reader reactions keep Kalynn grounded and some of the amazing responses to Cinderella is Dead
• The musicals Kalynn is obsessed with

Books and other things mentioned:

• Books Are My Bag Awards
• Heartstopper by Alice Oseman

Follow Kalynn @kalynnbayron and get your copy of Cinderella is Dead at all good bookshops. 

Follow us on Instagram @betterwordspod

*Note: Michelle and Caitlin received PR copies of Cinderella is Dead from Bloomsbury Publishing. 

Our guest this week is an award winning writer, she has a PhD in Creative Writing and Literary Studies, her work has been published in Overland, Griffith Review, The Big Issue fiction edition and more. She has won the Josephine Ulrick Prize for Literature, the Margaret River Short Story Competition, the Neilma Sidney Short Story Prize and the Fair Australia Prize for Fiction. Her first book was a finalist in the Queensland Literary Awards and her second book, Ordinary Matter was published on September 1st. Ordinary Matter is a short story collection inspired by the first 20 times women won a Nobel prize in the sciences. (We're giving you an update on the 2020 winners before the interview)

Interview starts at 18 minutes.

Caitlin recommends

Enola Holmes

*Henry Cavill superfan Jack has a correction: Henry  lives on Jersey, not Gurnsey

Michelle recommends

Because of You by Dawn French

*Michelle received a copy of the audiobook from Penguin Books UK

In this interview, we chat about

• How Laura came up with the concept for Ordinary Matter, a short story collection inspired by the 20 times women have won Nobel Prizes in the sciences, and the process of developing an idea for each story
• The writing process for the collection (and how a grant application sparked it all)
• The history of women and the Nobel Prize, including the great increase in female winners in the 21st Century
• Laura’s experience in Stockholm during the week of the prize announcement
• A small digression to discuss The Radium Girls
• How Laura knows when to stop researching and start writing
• Laura’s experience completing a PhD and how it made her the writer she is today
• The experience of publishing in 2020

Books and other things mentioned

• Love of a Bad Man by Laura Elizabeth Woollett
• Only the Animals by Ceridwen Dovey
• The Radium Girls by Kate Moore
• The Greatest Showman
• Ellie Marney’s Every Series

Follow Laura on Twitter @LauraElvery

Follow us on Instagram @betterwordspod

Caitlin and Michelle both received copies of Ordinary Matter from UQP Books. 

Ireland is a land known for its literary exports and our guest this week is certainly adding to the country’s reputation for impeccable fiction. Louise O'Neill is from West Cork and has been described as a feminist powerhouse. Her first two novels, Only Ever Yours and Asking For It, were written for young adults but tackled very tough topics including sexual assault and consent. Her books have won multiple awards and been bestsellers on the Irish fiction charts. Her latest novel and her second adult fiction, After the Silence, was published on September 3 and, at the time of recording just a week later, was number 2 on the Irish bestseller charts. 

Just a warning before listening: This episode deals with discussions of domestic violence, and may be triggering for some listenings. If you need support: 

• In the UK, contact the 24-hour National Domestic Abuse Helpline 0808 2000 247
• In Australia, contact The National Sexual Assault, Family & Domestic Violence Counselling Line 1800 737 732
• In Ireland, reach out to SafeIreland

Interview starts at 16 minutes. 

Mini-book club: The Switch by Beth O'Leary

We loved this delightful and uplifting story about a woman and her grandmother switching lives. 

In this interview, we chat about:

• What genre After the Silence falls into (and why it’s her favourite novel so far)
• Portraying emotional abuse, coercive control, and violent relationships in fiction and how Louise explored the shame associated with that
• The influence of the West Cork podcast on After the Silence
• The outsider perspective on an tiny Irish community
• How Louise nailed the Aussie slang in After the Silence
• Louise’s Granny Murphy, who the book is dedicated to and who passed away in 2019
• The wildness of Ireland and how that translated to the novel
• The political and social history of Ireland and how that has changed since Louise was a child
• Louise’s decision to include Irish in After the Silence and her favourite Irish words (with a Fleabag reference)

Books & other things mentioned:

• Freaky Friday
• The Holiday
• West Cork (Audible podcast)
• Are You There God? It’s me, Ellen by Ellen Coyne (coming October 30, 2020)

Follow Louise @oneilllou. After the Silence is available now in the UK and Australia. 

Follow us on Instagram @betterwordspod

*Note: Michelle received a PR copy of After the Silence from Riverrun Books.

Meg Mason started her career at the Financial Times and The Times of London - definitely not too shabby! Since then, she’s been published in major Australian newspapers, The New Yorker, Sunday Style, GQ, Vogue, Elle and Marie Claire. She has written a memoir and a novel, but this week we are discussing her second novel, Sorrow and Bliss.

Caitlin recommends

Splitting Up Together

A two-season US sitcom about a couple who find out getting divorced is the best thing they could ever do for their marriage. 

Michelle recommends

Louise Candlish (author of Our House, Those People, The Other Passenger). Great domestic psychological suspense novels. Perfect for fans of Big Little Lies. 

In this interview, we chat about:

• The light and shade of Sorrow and Bliss, which is an anti-love story of sorts (and difficult to succinctly describe)
• The question “how much of this novel is autobiographical”
• Exploring mental illness in fiction (and not having a character defined by an illness)
• How it feels to be compared to Sally Rooney and Phoebe Waller-Bridge
• Why Meg scrapped the novel she spent 2018 writing and why Sorrow and Bliss was meant to be her “career suicide note”
• How Meg rediscovered the joy of writing (thanks to Trent Dalton)
• Meg’s experience of writing memoir and the transition to writing fiction
• How Meg looks back on writing her debut memoir and why she wishes she had approached it differently
• What we give away of our children’s lives on social media
• Decisions over whether to include trigger warnings on books
• The advice Meg would give to her younger self
• Meg’s decision to go off social media and consumption vs creation

Books and other things mentioned:

• All Our Shimmering Skies by Trent Dalton
• Nanette by Hannah Gadsby
• Notting Hill
• So You’ve Been Publicly Shamed by Jon Ronson
• More Than a Woman by Caitlin Moran

Meg isn't online, but Sorrow and Bliss is available now and you can find out more about Meg at her website. 

Follow us on Instagram @betterwordspod

Please note that Caitlin's job at HarperCollins Publishers did not affect our decision to invite Meg to be a guest, we're delighted to have her and hope you enjoy this episode.

Alice Oseman is a formidable young writer.  Alice's first book was published when she was just 19. Now at 25, our guest has already published four celebrated novels and written and illustrated a much loved graphic novel series. Alice's latest novel, Loveless, is a celebration of friendship and coming out as asexual and aromantic.

Interview starts at 12 minutes.

Mini-book club: Heartstopper by Alice Oseman

Confession: We haven't read many graphic novels before! We love Heartstopper. It is the PERFECT queer love story.

In this interview, we chat about:

• Why we need more books that explore post-high school experiences in YA
• The writing process for Loveless and why it was Alice’s most challenging novel yet
• The pressure of success and how it affects the writing process
• Alice’s experience on the aromantic and asexual spectrum and why she wanted to explore this in Loveless
• Why Alice’s novels focus on the importance of friendship (and why we need more books about friendship)
• A brief interlude about how Caitlin and Michelle met
• How Alice got published while she was still a teenager (and the advice she would give her younger self)

Books & other things mentioned

• Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo
• Lumberjanes by Shannon Watters, Grace Ellis, Brooklyn A. Allen and Noelle Stevenson
• Watchmen by Alan Moore, Dave Gibbons and John Higgins
• Pumpkin Heads  by Rainbow Rowell (illustrated by Faith Erin Hicks)
• Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein

Follow Alice on Instagram @aliceoseman. Loveless is available now in Australia and the UK. Novella This Winter is published in paperback in the UK on October 15. 

Follow us on Instagram @betterwordspod

Please note that Caitlin's job at HarperCollins Publishers did not affect our decision to invite Alice to be a guest, we're delighted to have her and hope you enjoy this episode.

Nydia Hetherington grew up in Leeds in the north of England and moved to London in her twenties to start an acting career. She studied at a renowned French theatre school and went on to create her own theatre company. Her debut novel, A Girl Made of Air, was published in September.

Interview starts at 12 minutes. 

Caitlin recommends

Love Struck by Bronwyn Sell

Perfect for pretending you were allowed to travel to an exotic tropical location for summer this year. 

Michelle recommends

The Science of Storytelling by Will Storr (with an extra cheeky recommendation for Building a Story Brand by Donald Miller)

Perfect for anyone who is fascinated about why we as humans love a good story. 

In this interview, we chat about:

• Folklore and myths from Nydia’s childhood on the Isle of Man
• How Nydia developed the novel over 6 years through short pieces while studying creative writing
• The unusual storytelling format of A Girl Made of Air and how it became an obsession for Nydia
• How Nydia’s writing was influenced by her experience and life as a performer
• Pulling back the curtain on the world of circus
• The research Nydia did into the world of Freak Shows and Coney Island
• What Coney Island is like now
• Creating during UK lockdown and feeling distanced from any writing
• Shielding in the UK lockdown and living with anxiety

Books and other things mentioned

• The Tin Drum by Günter Grass
• Geek Love by Katherine Dunn
• Freaks by Tod Browning

Follow Nydia @nydiamadeofair. A Girl Made of Air is available now in the UK and Australia. 

Follow us on Instagram @betterwordspod

*Note: Michelle received a PR copy of A Girl Made of Air from Quercus Books.

Kay Kerr is a former journalist and community newspaper editor from Brisbane. She now lives on the Sunshine Coast with her husband and daughter and works as a freelance writer. Her debut young adult novel, Please Don’t Hug Me, was inspired by her own autism-spectrum diagnosis. 

The interview starts at 17 minutes.

This week, we started the episode with a mini book club discussion of Olive by Emma Gannon. Overall: We loved this book and recommend to anyone who enjoys contemporary fiction and likes discussing female friendships.

*Note: We both received PR copies of Olive for review. 

In the interview, we chat about: 

• Sibling relationships in YA fiction (and life)
• Working as a journalist in regional Queensland, including the closure and downsizing of dozens of small publications in mid-2020
• Kay’s own autism spectrum diagnosis and the experience of writing a neurodivergent character
• How Kay navigated the pitching process and sold Please Don’t Hug Me
• Why Kay decided to date the book with specific Queensland high school references
• The catharsis of writing about and reflecting on the emotion of writing about high school
• The unexpected benefits of launching a book in a pandemic
• A little bit about Kay’s next novel, Social Queue

Books and other things mentioned

• Peta Lyre’s Rating Normal by Anna Wheatley (listen to our chat with Anna here)
• The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang

Follow Kay @kaykerr_. Please Don't Hug Me is available now in Australia. 

Follow us on Instagram @betterwordspod

Laura Jane Williams is an incredibly talented storyteller who has written columns for numerous magazines, published two non-fiction books and has just celebrated the release of her second fiction novel. Her debut fiction Our Stop was a smash hit in the UK summer in 2019 and The Love Square is set to be just as popular, having been described as “clever, hilarious and a total unbridled joy to read".

We've refreshed the podcast format a tiny bit to include just one recommendation for each of us in the introduction. But if you want to skip straight to our interview, it starts at 13 minutes. 

Caitlin recommends

You Were Made for Me by Jenna Guillaume

“If Frankenstein was a Young Adult rom-com”

Michelle recommends

The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Oseman

“This is like tea and scones and jam and cream British comfort, but with a slight edge which I love”

*Note: Michelle listened to the audiobook of this novel as part of the publicity tour for Penguin. 

In this interview, we chat about:

• Why The Love Square is set in the Derbyshire countryside after Our Stop’s ‘love letter to London’
• The influence of Thomas Hardy’s Far From the Maddening Crowd
• The human need for love and connection and the mistaken belief in romantic love ‘completing’ women
• The experience of writing the first draft of another novel during UK lockdown
• Making the transition from writing non-fiction
• Digital detoxes and reconsidering how much of ourselves we share online
• A tiny sneak peek at The Lucky Escape (coming 2021)

Books and other things mentioned:

• How to Fail by Elizabeth Day
• Untamed by Glennon Doyle
• Ctrl Alt Delete Podcast: #254 Holly Bourne on Writing Teen & Adult Novels
• Olive by Emma Gannon
• How Do You Like Me Now? by Holly Bourne

Follow Laura on Instagram @laurajaneauthor.  The Love Square is available now in the UK and Australia. 

Follow us on Instagram @betterwordspod

Please note that Caitlin's job at HarperCollins Publishers did not affect our decision to invite Laura to be a guest, we're delighted to have her and hope you enjoy this episode.