Tag: books

I’m at the Beyond the Book Festival in Brighton this Saturday

I’m excited to be part of the Beyond the Book Festival on 10th May in Brighton…

It runs from 9:30 am to 6pm at the Friends’ Meeting House in Ship Street, Brighton, BN1 1AF and there’s a roster of amazing authors all day! My panel is…

RISE OF THE WORLD BUILDERS

Main Room. 2.45 –  3.45pm 

Fantasy and sci-fi have seen a huge surge in popularity in the last few years, but why do we love these genres so much? In our turbulent times do we read these books to escape this world, or to see it in a different way?

Prepare to enter a multiverse of other worlds with authors Natasha Pulley (The Hymn to Dionysus), Adam Simcox (The Dying Squad), Zulekhá Afzal (Dancers of the Dawn) and podcaster, screenwriter and author Mark Stay (Witches of Woodville) as they share their stories of fantastical realms and incredible adventures. Come and celebrate the power of speculative fiction.

GET TICKETS HERE

Tracy Buchanan on her Biggest Mistake

This month’s special guest bestselling author Tracy Buchanan reveals her biggest mistake in her career…

TRANSCRIPT

MARK: So what’s the biggest mistake you’ve ever made in your writing career?

TRACY: I think not being consistent and maybe pivoting too much sometimes. So, because I’m savvy I’m very aware of being careful with what publishers I’m with. I’ve learned that publishers are pretty much the same. A lot of publishers are the same. As in they’re great. A lot of publishers are great. And at the end of the day, you’re the one who’s in control. So they are helping you in a way. They’re almost like a freelancer for you. So staying with publishers, you know, I think there’s… it’s important to have that consistency. So I probably have, when I’ve been offered opportunities, jumped around a little bit too much. So, I think that’s, that’s something… I wouldn’t say it’s the biggest mistake I’ve made, but , you know, just being a bit more consistent.

Tracy Buchanan: Writing and Walks

This month’s special guest Tracy Buchanan reveals how her dog inspires her creativity…

TRANSCRIPT:

MARK: What small thing has made a big difference to your creative process?

TRACY: Oh, having a dog in my office. A small thing: it’s walks. I know that sounds really… Going out for walks when I get stuck on something or trying to come up with ideas. And that’s what my dog — my dog assistant is snoring at the moment — comes in. So that’s that is a small thing for me, because if I’m sat there and I cannot figure out this plot hole, if I go out into nature, walk around… It untangles. So I’d always recommend that to anyone: going out for walks.

LISTEN TO THE WHOLE PODCAST

Or watch the whole interview on Youtube…

Join Sarah Pinborough on the Creative Differences Livestream

Join me with bestselling author Sarah Pinborough on the livestream that looks at the little things that make a big difference to the creative process.

Sarah Pinborough is an award-winning and New York Times, Sunday Times, and internationally bestselling author and screenwriter who is published in over 30 territories worldwide. Having published more than 25 novels across various genres, her recent books include Behind Her Eyes, now a smash-hit Netflix limited series; 13 Minutes that’s she’s developing with Carnival/NBC, The Death House that she’s adapted herself for Compelling Pictures, and her most recent book Insomnia which she adapted herself and is now streaming on Paramount+
And she’s hilarious, wise and has a lovely dog called Ted.
Do please join us live as you’ll have the opportunity to ask Sarah questions on the night (and just before her big America tour!). 

It’s going to be so much fun. Put that date in your diaries now… 

Monday 12th May 8pm BST.

JOIN US ON FACEBOOK

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Tracy Buchanan on the Creative Differences Podcast: “Celebrate the Good Stuff!”

Tracy Buchanan is the bestselling author of the Dr Vanessa Marwood thrillers and she runs one of the best author groups on Facebook and is a brilliant advocate for authors.

We discuss:
Which comes first: research or plot?
If authors can still earn a living from writing
Growing maggots for research purposes
And much more!

Edit by Kai Newton
Production assistance by Emily Stay
Jingle by Dom Currie

My apologies for the quality of my mic for this episode. I had a dodgy connection and sound a wee bit toppy!

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST

Or watch it on Youtube…

LINKS
TRACY’S WEBSITE: http://www.tracy-buchanan.com
THE SAVVY WRITERS’ SNUG FB GROUP: https://www.facebook.com/groups/savvywriterssnug/

THE GREEN ROOM: https://ko-fi.com/markstaywriter/tiers

KINGDOM COME DELIVERANCE 2: https://kingdomcomerpg.com/
ASSASSIN’S CREED SHADOWS: https://www.ubisoft.com/en-gb/game/assassins-creed/shadows
LANA DEL RAY: https://youtu.be/nDYY3nJ7a0s?si=CWI1sTc_iFAnErWq
CARELESS PEOPLE BY SARA WYNN-WILLIAMS: https://amzn.to/4lYWT9J (Amazon affiliate link: I earn money if you click/buy using this)
SUPREMACY BY PARMY OLSEN: https://amzn.to/4lUgrfn (Amazon affiliate link: I earn money if you click/buy using this)
CONCLAVE: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conclave_(film)
THE LAST OF US: https://www.hbo.com/the-last-of-us
ANDOR: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andor_(TV_series)
WRITING FOR LOVE AND/OR MONEY BY FRANK D GILROY: https://amzn.to/42VdzWT
SAMANTHA FISH, SWEET SOUTHERN SOUNDS: https://youtu.be/3rhUFAdfEjA?si=tuzMbqt3YwOxREmX

THE BESTSELLER EXPERIMENT EPISODE WITH ENTERTAINMENT LAWYERS ON COPYRIGHT/LYRICS ETC: https://bestsellerexperiment.com/ep32-legal-eagles/

COME AND MEET MARK STAY IN MAY 2025 AT:
MAIDSTONE 4TH MAY: https://www.creedconventions.com/event/maidstone-comic-con/
BEYOND THE BOOK FESTIVAL, BRIGHTON: https://www.beyondthebookfestival.org
READING 11TH MAY: https://www.creedconventions.com/event/reading-comic-con/
TONBRIDGE 18TH MAY: https://strikingevents.com/tonbridge/
MCM COMIC CON LONDON 23-25 MAY: https://www.mcmcomiccon.com/london/en-us/guests/guest-profile.html?gtID=362260&guest-name=Mark-Stay
HATFIELD 31ST MAY: https://strikingevents.com/hatfield/

My Writing Process on the Real Writing Process Podcast

I had a great time talking to Tom Pepperdine about my writing process in great depth. This gets very nerdy, very quickly. This is an excellent podcast for writers, so do check out the backlist, too…

The Real Writing Process of James Goodhand – The Real Writing Process

Tom Pepperdine interviews author, James Goodhand, about his writing process. James explains how important human psychology is to his books, why inspiration doesn't always equate to quality, and the great advice he got from his childhood drum teacher.James's Instagram is here: https://www.instagram.com/james.goodhand/And you can find more information about previous episodes of this podcast on the following links:https://bsky.app/profile/realwritingpro.bsky.socialhttps://www.threads.net/@realwritingprohttps://www.instagram.com/realwritingpro
  1. The Real Writing Process of James Goodhand
  2. The Real Writing Process of Caitlin Rozakis
  3. The Real Writing Process of Mark Stay
  4. The Real Writing Process of Eliza Chan
  5. The Real Writing Process of M. R. Carey

Which Mark Stay Am I?

There are two authors named Mark Stay on Amazon and Goodreads. Which one am I?

TRANSCRIPT

Hello folks, I’m Mark Stay… Or am I?

If you pop on to Amazon or Goodreads you’ll see that there are two authors with the name Mark Stay. It’s not much bothered me before, but the other day I noticed that the other Mark Stay had a one-star review for their latest novel, On the Leaden Shore, and I thought I’d have a look and I discovered that the poor guy had received a not great review because he wasn’t me… That hardly seems fair on the other Mark, so, to be clear, this is me: if there’s magic and witches and, occasionally robots and spaceships, it’s probably me.

This other Mark is from the suburban Midwest of the USA and in his bio says he comes from a large religious family and he does seem to write about supernatural stuff, but from a Christian perspective. Here are his books… 

Me? Well, I’m from London and no fan of religion so I guess that makes me the Anti-Mark Stay.

So, once again (and this time, demonstrated via the medium of these socks that my daughter bought me a few Christmases ago): dragons and wizards and shit: me.

Christian stuff: that’s the other Mark.

Me…

Not me…

Me…

Not me…

I hope that’s clear. Always read the author bio. And happy reading.

Not Reading the Small Print, with Nadine Matheson

This month’s special guest Nadine Matheson reveals how not reading the small print led to a big break…

LISTEN TO THE WHOLE PODCAST

Or watch it all on Youtube…

TRANSCRIPT

MARK: What’s the best happy accident of your writing career?

NADINE: I’d say that not reading the small print when I entered the city university competition, because, honestly, if I’d read the small print, then I would have read that: if you win the competition, you win a £2,000 bursary. And I know definitely back then, if I’d read that it was a bursary of the Creative Writing Masters, then I wouldn’t have entered because I’m thinking, I’m already working full time, you know, being a lawyer. But I was also teaching in the law school and I would do that in the evenings. So, I don’t want to spend any more time in a classroom. I give up my evenings as it is, you know, teaching in a classroom. Why would I want to go back? Why would I want to go back to school to learn how to write? So if I’d read the small print, I would not have entered. But because I did not read the small print, I entered and won the competition, did the Creative Writing MA, I and I wrote the Jigsaw Man, so… Is that a happy accident?

MARK: Absolutely, yes. It is. Absolutely. Fantastic. Yeah. Who reads the small print? Honestly, we all sign up to META and it says in there, you know, 17 pages down, we can steal everything you put up here. So yeah, anyway, enough of that.

Tracy Buchanan on the Creative Differences Livestream

Join me with bestselling author Tracy Buchanan on the livestream that looks at the little things that make a big differences to writers.

Tracy writes gripping thrillers that delve into the darkest corners of family, psychology and forensic investigation. Her books explore secrets, lies and the dangerous choices people make when pushed to the edge.

And, as a child, she crafted stories using cut-outs from her mum’s Littlewoods catalogues! She also runs one of the best writers’ groups on Facebook and is a brilliant advocate for authors. It’s going to be a really lively one, so pop the date in your diaries now!

TUESDAY 22ND APRIL, 2025, 8PM BST

JOIN US ON FACEBOOK

Or on Youtube…

When to Start a First Draft with Nadine Matheson

This month’s special guest Nadine Matheson shares a great tip for starting first drafts (and let’s take a moment for poor Nick)…

LISTEN TO THE WHOLE PODCAST

Or watch it on Youtube…

TRANSCRIPT

MARK: What’s the thing that makes you think that you’re ready to start writing on a project?

NADINE: Because I’m a planner; once I’ve done the plan. If I haven’t done a plan and I’m like, well, yeah, it’s like… if there’s no outline, then I wouldn’t be comfortable writing. Because I know what would happen. I would just get to 20,000 words and then that would be it. I’ll just be… I don’t know what I’m doing with the story. But, and I say, it doesn’t need to be a, you know, a beat by beat by beat outline of the whole story. But it’s a general one. And once I’ve got that in place: okay, now I’m ready to start writing,

MARK: It kind of occurs to me, that’s the point in the story where you need to start making serious choices, story choices that have consequences. You know, the first 20,000 words you’re introducing people, you’re having fun, setting everything up. And then it’s like: we can start making serious decisions now. So it’s kind of scary, isn’t it? You don’t know where you’re going.

NADINE: I think that’s exactly it. I’ve mentioned this for my own podcast recently, I was writing this book, and I had a character called Nick. I didn’t have a plan for it. And, you know, the beginning’s, you know, all the set ups, that’s all the fun stuff. But then I got Nick into… Nick got released from prison, and then he went home. Now he’s sitting in his dad’s house, sitting in his dad’s kitchen. And to this day, he’s still there cause I’m like… I don’t know what to do with you now. I don’t know what. I don’t know what to do. So to this day, Nick is still sitting in his dad’s kitchen.