Podcast Episodes

Writing The Magic With Lucy Holland and Dan Coxon

I'm delighted to be joined by bestselling fantasy authors Lucy Holland and Dan Coxon for an all-encompassing discussion on writing fantasy.

Dan has curated and co-edited a brilliant new craft book ca…

Published on 8 hours ago

Linguistics and Historical Fiction with Professor Charles Li

In this episode, I'm delighted to be joined by Professor Charles Li, author of the brilliant new historical fiction novel, Lord Guan.

We chat all about Professor Li's expertise in languages and lingu…

Published on 1 month ago

Writing Fantasy With Jim C. Hines

I'm thrilled to be joined by bestselling fantasy author, Jim C. Hines for an extended interview about his two new books, Kitemaster and the relaunch of the beloved classic, Goblin Quest.

Jim opens up…

Published on 2 months ago

Writing Fresh Fantasy With Kel Kade

Season 3

In this episode, I’m joined by New York Times Best Selling fantasy author, Kel Kade. 

Kel’s new book, Sanctum of the Soul, was published by Tor in February 2025 and completes her brilliant new trilogy…

Published on 3 months ago

Theme, Premise and Writing YA In 2025 with Sarah Arthur

Award-winning YA author Sarah Arthur returns to the Toolshed to discuss her brilliant new book, Once A Castle.

Sarah also shares her experiences following the release of her debut YA novel (Once A Que…

Published on 4 months ago

Writing About Injuries and Wounds

In this episode, I'm joined by fantasy author and ER doctor, HB Reneau.

HB talks all about injuries we commonly see in fantasy worlds--usually inflicted by swords and magic, and explains how we can be…

Published on 5 months ago

How To Get A Literary Agent

In this episode, I'm joined by Brianna Summers, literary agent assistant with Holloway Literary. Brianna also works as an editor with Of Metal and Magic Publishing.

Brianna shares her wisdom after spe…

Published on 6 months ago

How To Write Short Stories With Dan Coxon

In this episode, award-winning short story writer and editor Dan Coxon joins me for an in-depth chat about writing short fiction.

We look at the definition of a short story, the different structures t…

Published on 7 months ago

How To Write Grimdark With Anna Smith Spark

Season 3

In this episode, I’m delighted to be joined by the Queen of Grimdark, Anna Smith Spark!

Anna joins me for a deep dive into all things writing. We look at Anna’s process, how she wrote her brilliant …

Published on 8 months ago

The Best Writing Tips Of 2024 - Short Stories, Ian Rankin and more

Season 3

In this final episode of 2024, I discuss all of the best writing tips I've come across in the past year, as well as the most helpful things I've learned.

In particular, I dive into writing short stori…

Published on 9 months ago