Better Words

Phil Stamper is currently celebrating the publication of his debut novel The Gravity of Us! He grew up playing piano, writing and looking up at the stars in rural Ohio and now lives in New York City. We talked to him about the space program, reality tv and of course his new book. The Gravity of Us is a queer love story set against the backdrop of a modern space program. Before the interview, Caitlin and Michelle share a few uplifting and joyful recommendations. Interview starts at 14:30.

Anna Whateley has a PhD in young adult fiction, first class honours in English Literature and Post-Grad Certificate in Education. We're delighted to talk to her today about her debut YA novel, Peta Lyre's Rating Normal. We chat about her journey to publication and how she's spent years trying to understand her own neurodiversity and exploring that through the novel. Ahead of that wonderful chat, Caitlin and Michelle talk about their recent reads (superheros and outer space are mentioned) and TV favourites. Interview starts at 13:38.

Check out the shownotes here.

Emery Lord is the amazing young adult author of Open Road Summer, The Start of Me & You, The Names They Gave Us and When We Collided. She is currently celebrating the publication of her fifth novel, The Map From Here To There. We talked to Emery about her writing process, how she started writing, how her first novel was published and The Great British Bake Off! Before the interview, Michelle and Caitlin talk about snow, rainy weekends and our latest TV binges. Interview starts at 21:30.

In this episode we chat about writing, friendship, people watching, outdoor swimming and breakfast foods with Libby Page. Her debut novel The Lido has been sold into 20 territories and is one of Michelle's favourites. Her second novel, The 24 Hour Cafe was just released in Australia and the UK. Before the chat, Caitlin talks about both movies she saw on the weekend, Michelle's latest reality tv obsession and our current reads. Interview starts at 19:05.

Welcome to 2020! Vanessa McCausland has worked as a journalist for 17 years, is currently the weekend editor at kidspot.com.au and her novel The Lost Summers of Driftwood was just released! We talked to Vanessa about how she separates creative writing from work plus the themes and inspirations for her novel. To start, Michelle and Caitlin chat about what they were reading, watching and listening to over Christmas break. Interview starts at 12:10.

This episode is our very first inside look into publishing! We chat to Bella Pearson from Guppy Books about her experience in the publishing, the amazing books she's worked on, some of the challenges in the industry and publishing children's books. Before that, Michelle and Caitlin are getting into the Christmas spirit with lots of recommendations! Interview starts at 16:00.

This week we're joined by freelancer Fiona Thomas to discuss how having a mental breakdown led to a new career as a writer and the publication of her first book, Depression in a Digital Age. She's currently writing a guide to freelancing due for release in 2020. In the intro, we're discussing Holly Bourne's How Do You Like Me Now, David Burton's Man in the Water and Iliza Shlesinger's UnVeiled.  Interview with Fiona starts at 18:10. 

Thanks to Trigger Publishing for providing a copy of the book in preparation for the interview. 

Today's guest is a lawyer and an award winning, critically acclaimed writer. We are so excited to have Bri Lee on Better Words! We talked about Eggshell Skull, the newly released Beauty, other writing projects and her campaign to have the Queensland Law Reform Commission review consent and 'mistake of fact' laws (consentlawqld.com). To start, Michelle and Caitlin talk about tea and their recent reads. Interview starts at 13:30. 

It Sounded Better In My Head seems to have been the talk of the Australian bookstagram community for the past few months. Nina Kenwood has worked in the book industry for over a decade, including with Melbourne’s iconic Readings bookshop. After winning the 2018 Text Prize, her first novel was published in Australia in August (and will be out in the UK and US in early 2020). We talked to Nina about her writing and publishing journey, body positive characters and how much we love Aussie's summer Christmas.

To start, Michelle and Caitlin are talking about how the seasons are changing and sharing their new favourite podcast and tv obsessions. Interview starts at 21:45. 

Our first guest for season 4 has done just about everything. Julie Mayhew is an author, radio dramatist, playwright, screen writer, actress and journalist. We chat with Julie about her new book, Impossible Causes,  what it's like to write across so many mediums and separating the world you create from the world you live in.

Before that, Michelle and Caitlin discuss what they've been watching, reading and listening to over the break. Interview starts at 20:40.

In this shorter episode Michelle and Caitlin are chatting about supporting independent book stores, the rise of the beach read, how intimidating literary fiction can seem, a lucky library sale purchase and what the heck Cats is actually about. Stay tuned to the end for a special announcement. Time to spill some tea! 

The Book Ninjas are back! We welcome Ali Berg and Michelle Kalus back to Better Words to discuss their second bookish rom-com, While You Were Reading. We explore the changes in writing a second book and the publication challenge of including real #bookstagram shots in the novel. In the introduction, we're talking about Yesterday, Parenthood, Luther, and the weird CATS trailer. 

*Interview starts at 20m*

Danielle Wood, Minnie Darke or Angelica Banks? Our guest goes by a few names but we just called her Danielle. You've probably seen Star Crossed on your Instagram and whether you follow astrology or not, it's a very fun read. We talked to Danielle about her inspiration for Star Crossed, her interest in astrology, writing and her experiences in journalism. In our intro, Michelle talks about her weekend trip to Liverpool and Caitlin discusses what she's been watching and reading. Interview starts at 16:20.

Renee Watson is a New York Times best selling author and has published multiple middle grade and young adult novels. Her poetry and fiction explores the lived experiences of black girls and women, and the intersections of race, class, gender, and body image. We talk about her writing, activism, publishing experience and her latest novel, Watch Us Rise, co-authored with Ellen Hagan. Interview starts at 18:10.

Our guest is very well travelled and is now based in Wollongong, New South Wales. Helena Fox is celebrating the publication of her debut, How It Feels To Float. We talked to her about grief being a unique and individual experience, mental health, characters, and writing. Before that we discuss the length and cancelling of various tv shows as well as what else we've been reading and watching.

Michael is a editor, bookseller and writer who loves children's and young adult literature. While chatting to him, we spent the whole conversation gushing about books. Key topics include Kindred: 12 #LoveOzYA Stories, Underdog Short Stories and his experience in the bookish community. In our first internationally recorded introduction, Michelle tells us about her first few days in the UK and Caitlin talks about her latest aerial activities. 

It's our first LIVE episode! So, we've decided to keep it simple and just present to you our interview with the incredible Kate Forsyth at CapriCon Rockhampton 2019. We discuss how a childhood trauma shaped her passion for reading, the origins of fairytales and the magic of retellings, the productivity of writing for a living, and ideas and inspiration.  

This week we're talking about that New Yorker article, You, and Mary Queen of Scots. We're also thrilled to be joined by our friend Carly Findlay, whose memoir Say Hello is now on shelves. She's discussing the long editing process, the cover design, and what she wasn't expecting after publication. 

If you enjoyed this episode, we recommend you also listen to Carly chatting to Zara and Michelle from Shameless. Find them in your podcast app.