Welcome back to Writers Behaving Badly, the podcast where writing sins are confessed, manuscripts get a little crispy, and literary chaos reigns supreme. This week, we’re serving up fresh mischief with special guest Kerryn Mayne, who joins Lisa, Brooke, and Annie to spill all the tea on publishing, manuscript meltdowns, and the questionable choices that got us here.

Got a sin to confess?

Tell us your worst writing sin of the week in the comments—did you out-bad us?

What’s inside this episode?

🔥 Sins & Wins – Who’s been productive, who’s been procrastinating, and who’s drowning in a shiny new idea instead of finishing the old one? (Brooke, we’re looking at you 👀).

✍️ Roast or Toast – Lisa takes a very close look at Brooke’s latest manuscript draft. Will she make it out unscathed?

📖 Editing is Painful – Kerryn Mayne shares how her debut novel Lenny Marks Gets Away With Murder changed from first draft to final book—and why sometimes, losing a character (or two) is necessary.

🍵 Tea Time Rant – Are male authors really being discriminated against in publishing? 🤡 Or are women just writing better books? The WBB crew spills their most scalding takes yet.

😂 Chaotic Sign-Offs – Who’s getting roasted next? How can you submit your manuscript for a light (read: brutal) critique? And why is Lisa pretending she has control over this podcast?

If you’re a writer, an aspiring author, or just here for the absolute shenanigans, hit subscribe and join us every week for more literary mayhem.

🎙️ Want your manuscript critiqued live on air? Submit your first page on Substack—we promise we’ll be gentle(ish).

🚨 Leave us a five-star review or roast us. We really don’t mind.

Lisa’s full critique of Brooke’s work

If you’d like to read Brooke’s full extract (including Lisa’s comments), you can access a Google Docs version below.

Brooke should be deep in edits for her current book… but The Shiny ✨ (aka a tempting new idea) is making that very difficult. Hopefully this critique will get her back on track! Lisa loved the atmosphere of Brooke’s opening pages but had thoughts on clarity and flow. You can hear the full critique—and Brooke’s reaction—on the podcast!

To read our brave guest, Kerryn Mayne’s latest book JOY MOODY IS OUT OF TIME click the button below!

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit writersbehavingbadly.substack.com