This week on the Penguin Podcast, Nihal Arthanayake is joined by debut novelist Michael Magee.

Michael joins us to discuss his critically acclaimed novel, Close to Home, which has already been shortlisted for the Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize.

The two also discuss how Michael's novel started off as a letter-writing exercise, approaching masculinity on his own terms, working alter egos into fiction, and how bleakness in working-class fiction works best when there is added levity.

Don't forget to subscribe so you never miss an episode, and please do leave us a review – it really does help us. And finally, to find out more about the #PenguinPodcast, visit www.penguin.co.uk/podcasts.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.