The Empty Page

Mark Mordue kicks off season 2 of The Empty Page talking about his brilliant new book, Boy On Fire: The Young Nick Cave. Mark talks about the art of biography, the process of writing this book, and his writing life in general.  (He's also a damn fine poet!) Whether you're a Nick Cave devotee or you're just curious about the process of writing a biography, there's plenty for you in this episode.

One of the challenges I set for myself in this podcast series was to read outside of my own comfort zone, and that's how I came to really enjoy the historical fiction of Fiona McIntosh. In this episode we talk about her new book, The Champagne War, how Fiona does her research, and how she manages to have three books on the3 go at any given time. I got a lot out of this chat!

Ceridwen Dovey draws on her experience studying at Harvard for her latest novel, Life After Truth. In this episode we chat about the awkwardness of reunions, writing through insomnia, and what it was like being at Harvard with Jared Kushner.

Jesse Fink is the co-author of Pure Narco, which tells the extraordinary story of Louis Antonio Navia, aka 'El Senador' and his 25 years inside the cartels. In amongst all the cocaine and danger, it's ultimately a redemption story, and it was a huge project for Jesse to undertake. In this episode Jesse talks about the lengthy and sometimes dangerous process of writing Pure Narco, his advice for writers, and early Elton John music.

Chris Hammer's background as a journalist informs the process of the books he writes. His latest book, Trust, is set in post-covid Sydney and it's depictions of the grimier aspects of the harbour city make for fascinating reading. In this episode Chris talks about writing Trust, coming up with memorable character names, and how he is a "pants-er" (writing by the seat of his pants) as opposed to being a planner.

Perth based writer Craig Silvey's latest book, Honeybee, is just brilliant. The fun part is, I get to tell him how much I loved it at the start of this episode.  Craig chats about the process of writing Honeybee, the real life story that inspired it, his writing routine, and how he breathes life into his characters. 

If you've ever been curious about mindfullness but you're not quite sure where to start, Shannon Harvey's new book might be just what you're looking for. On this episode Shannon discusses her new book, My Year Of Living Mindfully, the process of writing it, and the daily habits she developed during the process of writing this book that have now become part of her every day life. From learning meditation to tackling mobile phone addiction, there's something for everyone in this episode.

Ben Pobjie's new book, Second Best; The Amazing Untold Histories Of The Greatest Runners-Up, celebrates the stories of those people who didn't quite get there.  Ben also chats about his day job writing about TV, and he is the first proper poet who has been a guest on this podcast. I enjoyed this chat with Ben Pobjie so much that I hereby declare this to be the second best episode in this podcast series.

Dr Karl's enthusiasm for science is infectious, and he knows a lot of stuff about a lot of stuff. His latest book, Dr Karl's Surfing Safari Through Science, is one of the first commercially available Australian books to make use of augmented reality technology, using the Dr Karl app. This podcast covers a wide range of topics, from pandemic eradication to dead fish that keep on swimming, to the bizarre fact that the world is running out of sand, to debunking all of the conspiracy theories around 5G, and so much more.  During this strange time in history where science is so often either disbelieved or just plain ignored, the world needs more Dr Karls.

Benjamin Stevenson is a stand-up comedian, and it really shows in his writing. In this episode Benjamin talks about writing his new book, Either Side Of Midnight, how he gets his writing done even in crowded public places, and Benjamin also shares an amazing story of being very badly heckled during one of this stand-up shows.