My guest on this episode of Writers at Work is Michael Amherst, whose debut novel, THE BOYHOOD OF CAIN is available now. Set in rural England, it's a coming-of-age tale of Daniel, a boy who struggles to understand himself and his place in a small but growing world. Michael's storytelling skills put us inside Daniel's emotional turmoil, a place that isn't always comfortable, but is often all too recognizable.

Michael is well regarded as a journalist, publishing in the Guardian, the Spectator, New Statesman, among others. His essay Go the Way Your Blood Beats won the 2019 Stonewall Nonfiction Prize. He also won the 2020 Hubert Butler Essay Prize and was shortlisted for the Observer Anthony Burgess Prize for Arts.

His short fiction has been similarly acknowledged. As it is for many first-time novelists, Michael's journey to writing and publishing THE BOYHOOD OF CAIN was anything but linear. He joins us from London to discuss that journey, THE BOYHOOD OF CAIN, and whatever else crosses his mind.