Bookin'ell!

As Dan and Em embrace the spooky season, they share their love for Hocus Pocus and debate the brutal reality of classic childhood films. We discuss writing updates, including Em’s focus on reading and polishing, and Dan’s struggle to weave northern humour into his dark domestic thriller. The conversation turns to the complexities of separating art from the artist, highlighting the ongoing Harry Potter controversy and problematic children's authors. Finally, we dive into the online world, venting about Canva AI witch-hunts, broken Instagram algorithms, and annoying Bookstagram trends.

In the latest instalment of Bookin'ell!, Dan and Em dive into the results of their Instagram 'Two Truths and a Lie' game, sharing chaotic stories about drunkenly coming out, a lunch-break tongue piercing, a dramatic injury involving a taxi door, and the time Dan snuck off to have a drink with Lewis Capaldi. We discuss writing progress, highlighting Dan’s choices in his queer dark thriller romance and Em’s dry, Northern rom-com edits. Finally, we swap book recommendations, discussing Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, Kelly Armstrong's Rockton series, as well as Dan’s starstruck encounter with author Ali Smith.

What happens when two working-class Northerners have a drink and decide to start a writing podcast? You get Bookin'ell! Join us for this debut episode where we try to unpick how we met twenty years ago before reminiscing about reading Fifty Shades of Grey in Benidorm. We discuss our manuscripts, comparing Dan's Barnsley-based domestic thriller with Em’s journey through fantasy and rom-coms. We also get brutally honest about book spice and bad sex realism. Finally, Dan details his return to social media after a 2011 exit, confusing Instagram buttons, and the wild world of bookstagram.

A brand new podcast hosted by two aspiring writers Em Sharpe and D. M. Wilson.

Once every fortnight, we will be talking about our attempt to write without fully loosing our minds, oversharing far too much, and discussing the books we love.

The first full episode drops on Tuesday 1 September, so hit the follow button to make sure you never miss an episode!