Guest: Evie Wyld

Experimenting with character, voice and dialogue can open up your writing practice and lead to exciting possibilities, and place is not simply the setting of your story - it’s the interaction of character, context, time, emotion and atmosphere too. Join Kellie tonight to unpack these ideas in conversation with novelist Evie Wyld. She’s the author of four novels including The Bass Rock and the recipient of the Miles Franklin Award, The Stella Prize, the European Union Prize, the Jerwood Fiction Prize and the Encore Award. In 2013 she was included in Granta’s list of Best of Young British Novelists.

Guest: Diana Evans

Tonight we’ll be discussing the challenges and complexities of revisiting beloved characters, interweaving multiple strands of story and working on a large canvas with Diana Evans, the award-winning, bestselling author of A House for Alice, Ordinary People, The Wonder and 26a. A book of the year in the New Yorker, Ordinary People received the South Bank Sky Arts Award, and was shortlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction, the Rathbones Folio Prize and the Orwell Prize for Political Fiction. A House for Alice is the critically acclaimed follow-up. Set in the aftermath of the Grenfell tragedy, it reignites the cast of Ordinary People to create an intergenerational portrait of middle-class black Britain.

Guest: Meryl Pugh

What can a prose writer learn from thinking like a poet? The poet employs metaphor, simile, sound, rhythm and precision of language to create intensity, mood and tone. These elements can be in service to the prose writer too. Join us tonight online in conversation with poet and author Meryl Pugh. She’s the author of three pamphlets and one collection of poetry, Natural Phenomena. Her latest book Feral Borough, part herbarium, part bestiary and part memoir, was published in 2022. She holds a PHD in Critical and Creative Writing from UEA and teaches creative writing, mostly at the Poetry School.

Guest author: Claire Fuller

Words Away is delighted to welcome back Claire Fuller, the Costa-winning, Women’s Prize-shortlisted author of Unsettled Ground. We shall discuss writing speculative fiction - a genre she’s loved reading since she first was a reader. Claire’s much anticipated fifth novel, The Memory of Animals (published in the UK on 20th April 2023), has been described as ‘…a gripping, haunting novel about human need and survival, for readers of Never Let Me Go and Station Eleven.’ In the context of imagining a world of ‘what if?’ we’ll be chatting about the creative challenges and possibilities of character, plot, structure and pacing. All Claire’s books will be offered at 10% discount on the night, supplied by P&G Wells Bookshop.

Guest: Federico Andornino

Our guest this evening is Federico Andornino, Executive Publisher at Sceptre, the literary imprint of Hodder & Stoughton. He’s published many bestselling and prize-listed books including Small Pleasures by Clare Chambers, Murder Before Evensong by the Reverend Richard Coles, Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason and The Weekend by Charlotte Wood. We’ll be breaking down what happens to your book from submission through to the final manuscript ready for publication and beyond. Learn about the editor-writer relationship, what sort of books excite interest and why, and how business balances with creative decisions. Includes a Q&A session.

Guest: Tom Conaghan

Tonight’s zalon celebrates the brilliance of the short story. Kellie will be joined by Tom Conaghan, publisher of Scratch Books, a new publishing house dedicated to the craft of short  stories. We’ll be exploring what makes a story brilliant, from openings to endings to inspiration and craft as well as the eco system and getting published.

Guest author: Lily Dunn

How can we write about real lives and experiences - your own or someone else’s - with candour and authenticity to create a compelling story? Join Kellie online tonight in conversation with Lily Dunn, who’s recent memoir, Sins of My Father: A Daughter, A Cult, A Wild Unravelling was included in the Guardian’s list of best memoirs of 2022. She also teaches creative writing at Bath Spa University and co-runs London Lit Lab.

Guest writer: Zoe Gilbert

Who says stories must be told the same old way? How can we break away from conventional storytelling formats to breath innovation into our writing? Please join us online tonight alongside author Zoe Gilbert as we delve into the creative possibilities of narrative form. Be it experimenting with structure or perspective, combining different genres or playing with time, come find new ways to embolden your writing practise. Zoe Gilbert’s first novel, Folk, was shortlisted for the International Dylan Thomas Prize and adapted for BBC Radio. Her second novel, Mischief Acts, was published in March 2022. Her short stories have appeared in anthologies and journals in the UK and internationally, and won prizes including the Costa Short Story Award.

Guest author: Leone Ross

Fusing realistic detail and magical elements in long- and short- form fiction makes for exciting and original storytelling. What possibilities or technical challenges await the writer as they navigate the blurred lines between literary realism and fantasy? In tonight’s zalon, Kellie is delighted to welcome back acclaimed author, editor and lecturer in creative writing, Leone Ross. We’ll be discussing Leone’s creative process, magic realism and her latest novel This One Sky Day, fifteen years in the making and shortlisted for the 2021 Goldsmiths Prize.

Guest author: Anna Mazzola

As the evenings begin to draw in Words Away is returning online for an autumn/winter series of Zalons. Join Kellie in conversation tonight with Anna Mazzola, author of historical thrillers and Gothic fiction. We’ll be exploring the shadowlands of fiction, where the macabre and unexplained disrupt the orderly surface of ordinary life. Come along and discover ideas on how to incorporate elements of the gothic in your own writing to create a brooding atmosphere, vivid characters and compelling stories.

Guest: Scott Pack

This evening’s guest, Scott Pack, has twenty years of experience in the book world - first as head buyer for the Waterstones book chain, then as a publisher at Harper Collins, acquiring and editing many bestsellers and award-winning books. In tonight's salon, which includes a Q&A session and possibly a trade secret or two, pick up practical tips on writing and editing, learn how to create the perfect submission and what to expect once you’ve published your book.

Guest editor: Andrew Wille

Discover creative ways to develop your work in progress. Join Kellie tonight in conversation with experienced editor and book doctor Andrew Wille to explore craft-based as well as intuitive approaches to your writing. You should go away with some imaginative ideas for editing your manuscript, whether you are still working on your book or already have a complete draft. Bring along your editorial questions for the Q&A.

Guest writer: Nikesh Shukla

Just like a work of fiction, a memoir needs to draw us in, establish a voice and take us on a journey. In tonight’s zalon we’ll be talking about the choices and challenges of writing about your life and the people in it - from aspects of craft to selecting material and finding the emotional focus of your story. Joining us to discuss the art of writing a memoir is the novelist and editor of The Good Immigrant, Nikesh Shukla whose latest book, Brown Baby: A Memoir of Race, Family and Home was published earlier this year.

Guest author: Claire Fuller

“O the month of May, the merry month of May,

So frolic, so gay, and so green, so green, so green!”

- Thomas Dekker (d. 1682)

See those green shoots? That’s your writing mojo bursting into life after a very long winter! Whether you’re seeking inspiration to generate new ideas, or have simply run out of steam and need a creative nudge to reconnect with your work, welcome to the Words Away greenhouse. Joining Kellie, garden trug in hand, is the novelist, short fiction writer and artist, Claire Fuller, who’ll be zooming in with a fresh take on staying on track, boosting your motivation and finishing that novel or story. Claire’s fourth novel, Unsettled Ground, published in March 2021, Claire’s fourth novel, Unsettled Ground, published in March 2021, is on the longlist for the Women’s Prize for Fiction.

Guest author: Helen Cullen

Tonight join Kellie in conversation with the Irish author Helen Cullen. We’ll be taking a look at the representation of motherhood in fiction and delving into the different forms literary motherhood might take. From the ‘perfect mother’ on her pedestal to the negligent or absent mother - what do we want to write when we write about motherhood? How does a writer develop the role of the mother to create a dynamic character-in-action with agency and drive? Helen Cullen’s second novel The Truth Must Dazzle Gradually reconfigures the cultural meaning of the iconic “Irish Mammy” while exploring societal changes experienced in Ireland in recent years through the lens of one family.

Guest author: Courttia Newland

Speculative fiction takes the question ‘what if?’ to unleash a myriad of opportunities for the writer: breaking down form, rewriting historical tradition, playing with genre expectations, and revisioning norms of gender and race and other categories. In tonight’s zalon, Courttia Newland, the award-winning novelist, screenwriter and playwright, joins Kellie to discuss the creative possibilities and challenges of writing speculative fiction in the context of his other creative work. His latest novel, A River Called Time (January 2021), is set in an alternate London where slavery and colonisation never happened, and Cosmogramma, a collection of speculative fiction stories, will be published by Canongate later this year. As a screenwriter Courttia has written two feature length films for the Steve McQueen BBC series Small Axe, of which Lovers Rock was jury selected for Cannes and opened New York Film Fest 2020.

Guest: Ronke Lawal

In tonight’s zalon Ronke Lawal, PR Specialist and founder of Ariatu PR, will discuss how to get the most out of networking online in literary and publishing spaces. We might like to think writing is simply about developing talent and craft, but social networking is an excellent way to heighten your profile and forge professional relationships through finding your people online. Boost your social confidence by discovering ways to tackle any fears about networking, make meaningful connections online, and build your personal brand in a fun and authentic way.

Guest: Andrew Wille

Acclaimed book doctor Andrew Wille is renowned for his editorial expertise as well as inspirational workshops. In tonight’s Zalon we’ll discuss mindful and holistic approaches to writing, paying special attention to integrating feedback and submitting our manuscripts to agents and publishers as professional writers. Taming our monkey minds and seeking out the luminous moments in our work, we’ll spark our energies for a creative new year.

Guest: Bhanu Kapil

Tonight please join us alongside the award-winning poet and prose writer, Bhanu Kapil for a special interactive zalon to celebrate the glimpse and the fragment…”the shedding off…the coming together”. Through discussion, a reading, and a unique writing experiment we’ll explore the creative possibilities of form and new approaches to enrich your revision practice. Think about a scene or place in your on-going work (be it prose or any genre) that needs revision but somehow when you try to write it…it deflects the gaze or enquiry. It might be helpful beforehand to consider the scene or event or moment in the work you’d like to revisit. Bring something to write with, and something to write on and we’ll light up the darkness of December with our words!

Guest literary agent: Nelle Andrew

You’ve polished your manuscript and hoping to secure your first book deal - what happens next? November’s zalon welcomes Nelle Andrew, of Rachel Mills Literary. Nelle Andrew joined RML in 2020. She previously worked as an agent at Peters Fraser and Dunlop for eleven years, and prior to that at Macmillan publishers. Nelle represents an array of internationally bestselling and award-winning authors across both fiction and non-fiction. She is particularly interested in books that shine a light on new ideas or little known histories, but above all are entertaining reads with a compelling story, well told. She is actively looking for new voices to add to her list. Nelle has a particular affinity for debuts of any age as she is a published author in her own right and personally knows the struggles to get published.

Guest author: Caoilinn Hughes

Experimenting with character, voice and dialogue can open up your writing practice and lead to exciting possibilities. But what do we mean when we talk about ‘voice’? How can dialogue work to add vibrancy and colour to our writing? Join Kellie tonight to unpack these ideas in conversation with the award winning author and poet, Caoilinn Hughes whose debut novel, Orchid & the Wasp (2018) won the Collyer Bristow Prize and was a finalist for four other prizes. Her short fiction has been awarded the Moth Short Story Prize and an O.Henry Prize. Her second novel, The Wild Laughter, was published in June 2020.

Industry Guest: Lennie Goodings

Tonight’s guest is Lennie Goodings, Chair of Virago Press and an award-winning editor and publisher who’s worked with many much-loved writers, including Margaret Atwood, Marilynne Robinson, Sarah Waters, Sandi Toksvig and Maya Angelou among others. While still acquiring and editing for Virago, Lennie has written and published her own book, A Bite of the Apple: A Life with Books, Writers and Virago (February 2020). Part memoir, part history of Virago, it contains Lennie's stories and reflections on over forty years of feminist publishing. In tonight's zalon, which includes a Q&A session, we’ll be exploring what stories can do, the intimacy of editing and what it takes to create good and truthful writing.

Guest author: Emma Darwin

In this evening’s zalon Kellie will be in conversation with Words Away favourite, author, tutor and creative writing expert, Emma Darwin. Writing a novel can feel like entering a dark forest without a map to follow or a torch to see where you’re going. But whether you’re stumbling at the start line, stuck in the middle or have even finished a draft of your manuscript and are wondering what to do next, help is at hand! Join us to unpack and unpick all things to do with plot, structure and storytelling. Come along, join in the Q&A, all warmly welcome!

Guest author: Charlotte Wood

Friendship, love, betrayal, grief: the complexities of human relationships are the life blood of the best stories. How do we create authentic, compelling characters and dramatise a vivid sense of time and place in our own writing? In this special Saturday morning zalon we’ll be in discussion with the acclaimed Australian author, Charlotte Wood. Grab a cuppa, bring your questions and join in the conversation. Charlotte Wood is the prizewinning author of six novels and two books of non-fiction. Her new book is The Weekend, a novel about friendship and growing older.

Guest Author: Emma Jane Unsworth

Tonight Kellie will be in conversation with the award-winning novelist and screenwriter Emma Jane Unsworth. After the success of Emma’s second novel, Animals, the book was adapted into a film for which she wrote the screenplay. She’s currently adapting her latest novel, Adults, for television as well as writing a memoir about post-natal depression that is not depressing. Join in the discussion as we talk about the creative challenges of plot and structure and how adaption has influenced Emma’s approach to prose. Whether you’re interested in fiction, screenwriting or both it’s going to be a fun one!

Guest: Andrew Wille

Find creative ways to develop your work in progress. Join Kellie tonight for a discussion with experienced editor Andrew Wille to explore craft-based as well as intuitive approaches to your writing. You should go away with some imaginative editorial solutions to enhance your writing, whether you have a good central idea or a complete draft.

Guest author: Amanda Craig

Come and explore the playful possibilities of fiction with our guest, novelist, critic and journalist, Amanda Craig. Amanda is the author of seven novels, including A Vicious Circle, Hearts and Minds (Long-listed for the Women's Prize) and The Lie of the Land (Radio 4 Book At Bedtime). Although each of the novels can be read on its own, they are part of an inter-related series about contemporary life in which minor characters become major ones, and vice versa. Often satirical, romantic and concerned with crime, she has been called a "State of the nation" novelist, and most often compared to Dickens, Trollope, Kate Atkinson and Evelyn Waugh. This salon should appeal to fiction writers looking for new ideas or intrigued by the process of constructing compelling stories.

Guest author: Leone Ross

Join Kellie and Emma tonight at The Teahouse Theatre Cafe for our first salon of 2020, with novelist, short-story writer and creative writing teacher, Leone Ross. We’re starting the year with a bang, (so to speak…) unpacking the art, craft and technique of writing sex scenes in fiction, including erotica. Leone’s published two critically-acclaimed novels, All The Blood Is Red and Orange Laughter and her fiction has been nominated for the Orange Prize and the V. S. Prittchett Award amongst others. Come along and discover how narrative tools like dialogue, characterisation, vocabulary and humour might work in creating an authentic, well written sex scene.

Guest author: Ayisha Malik

Come and join us by the fire to explore the funny side of writing fiction in this our last salon of the year. Everyone loves a laugh – it’s a way to connect and bond with the reader – but the skilled use of humour in fiction is one of the greatest challenges for the writer. If tackled effectively, though, humour can illuminate truths about characters and the worlds they inhabit. It can also be used to tackle difficult or taboo subjects, easing tension and providing respite from awkward moments. Join us tonight to unpack these challenges in conversation with author Ayisha Malik, whose debut novel, Sofia Khan is Not Obliged, was met with great critical acclaim and was a WHSmith Fresh Talent pick in 2016. The book has also been optioned for TV. The sequel, The Other Half of Happiness was published in April 2017. Her latest novel, This Green and Pleasant Land, is out now. Ayisha is also the ghost writer for Great British Bake Off winner, Nadiya Hussain’s book, The Secret Lives of the Amir Sisters.

Guest publisher: Richard Beswick

Discover how the editing and publishing process works and what happens to your book from submission through to the final manuscript ready for publication. Join Kellie and Emma tonight in conversation with Richard Beswick, the Managing Director of Little, Brown & Abacus. Abacus is the paperback imprint for Little, Brown books and has an impressive roster of award-winning, bestselling fiction authors, including Donna Tartt; Celeste Ng; Alexander McCall Smith; Beryl Bainbridge; Anita Shreve and Chigozie Obioma among many others. Little, Brown/Abacus also has a hugely successful non-fiction list, with authors including Nelson Mandela’s Long Walk to Freedom; David Sedaris; Walter Isaacson’s biography of Steve Jobs; and the Fire and Fury by Michael Wolff.