Shows
The Writers’ Gym PodcastSarah Bax Horton in conversation with Dr Rachel Knightley
Dr Rachel Knightley is joined by her client, award-winning true crime writer and researcher, Sarah Bax Horton. Sarah is currently appearing in Lucy Worsley’s Victorian Murder Club on BBC2. The three-part miniseries is based on the subject of her second book Arm of Eve: Investigating the Thames Torso Murders (The History Press), for which she won the RBAM (Ripperology Books And More) Book of the Year 2024. Fascinated by genealogy, her discovery of a Whitechapel police ancestor inspired her identification of Jack the Ripper in One-Armed Jack: Uncovering the Real Jack the Ripper (Michael O’Mara Books).
https://www.an...
2026-03-1638 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastDr Xavier Aldana Reyes joins Dr Rachel Knightley at The Writers' GymDr Xavier Aldana Reyes joins Dr Rachel Knightley on the Writers' Gym Podcast, discussing how we turn interests and passions into writing careers. Xavi is Reader in English Literature and Film at Manchester Metropolitan University and a founding member of the Manchester Centre for Gothic Studies. His publications include the monographs Contemporary Body Horror (CUP, 2024), Horror Film and Affect (Routledge, 2016) and Body Gothic (UWP, 2014) and the edited collections Twenty-First-Century Gothic: An Edinburgh Companion (with Maisha Wester, EUP, 2019) and Horror: A Literary History (British Library, 2016). Xavier is co-president of the International Gothic Association and a founding member of the Horror Studies special int...
2026-03-0235 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastNo, Reading isn't StealingDr Rachel Knightley shares how a Writers' Gym member's fear of plagiarizing can be turned from a 'reason' not to write into a reason to write as much as possible.
2026-02-2307 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastAlly Wilkes, Stoker-award nominated author, joins Dr Rachel Knightley at the Writers' GymAlly Wilkes joins Dr Rachel Knightley at the Writers' Gym to discuss the power of horror fiction to explore identity and the highs and lows of creating a writing life that works for the individual you are.
Ally’s debut novel, All the White Spaces, was a Bram Stoker Award finalist, and her second novel, Where the Dead Wait, was one of Esquire’s best horror books of 2023. Her short fiction has been published in numerous magazines and anthologies from publishers including Nightmare Magazine, Cosmic Horror Monthly, Flame Tree Press, Eerie River, and Nepenthe Press. Her ne...
2026-02-1647 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastTrue Resolutions are RealisationsDr Rachel Knightley shares three resolutions for creative confidence on the page and in life.
2026-02-0906 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastJenny Rogers: author, editor and executive coach joins Dr Rachel Knightley at the Writers' GymDr Rachel Knightley is joined by author and editor Jenny Rogers, one of the UK’s most experienced executive coaches. Jenny’s book, Are You Listening? published by Penguin Random House, tells human stories from the perspective of a coach: it tackles common human dilemmas such as how to overcome shame after a mistake, how to face disappointment and bereavement, what it means to start a new career or recover a more honest self after making a fortune or after life as a celebrity. During her stint as a BBC TV producer she commissioned and edited many best-selling books inclu...
2026-02-0237 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastKayleigh Dobbs, Happy Goat Horror founder, joins Dr Rachel Knightley at the Writers' GymKayleigh Dobbs is an author, editor, and playwright from South Wales. She is the founder of Happy Goat Horror, a review site and podcast with a focus on independent horror. Her recent short story collection The End (Black Shuck Shadows) was a 2023 Imadjinn Award Finalist. This year she has presented and interviewed authors for World Fantasy Con and Edge-lit. https://happygoathorror.com/ Connect here: Instagram: @drrachelknightley Substack: Dr Rachel Knightley Facebook: Dr Rachel Knightley LinkedIn: Dr Rachel Knightley Twitter: @drrknightley
2026-01-2632 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastEmeritus Professor Andrew Cowan joins Dr Rachel Knightley at the Writers' Gym.Andrew was for ten years the Director of the Creative Writing programme at UEA, where he taught for twenty years on the MA in Creative Writing. He is the author of the bestselling guidebook, The Art of Writing Fiction, recently reissued in an updated second edition, and the monograph Against Creative Writing. His first novel Pig was the winner of the Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year Award, a Betty Trask Award, the Authors’ Club First Novel Award, a Scottish Arts Council Book Award and the Ruth Hadden Memorial Prize, and was shortlisted for five other awards. He has since pu...
2026-01-1935 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastAlison Littlewood, Shirley Jackson award winning author joins Dr Rachel Knightley at the Writers' GymAlison Littlewood’s latest novels, published as A. J. Elwood, are The Other Lives of Miss Emily White and The Cottingley Cuckoo. Her first book, A Cold Season, was selected for the Richard and Judy Book Club and described as ‘perfect reading for a dark winter’s night.’ Other titles include Mistletoe, The Hidden People, The Crow Garden, The Unquiet House and Path of Needles. Her short stories have been selected for several Best Of anthologies and published in her collections, Quieter Paths, The Flowering and A Curious Cartography. She has won the Shirley Jackson Award for short fiction. Alison l...
2026-01-1236 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastJade Robertson, founder and creative director of Little Lies joins Dr Rachel Knightley at the Writers' GymToday Dr Rachel Knightley explores a different kind of storytelling that has been part of her exploring and expressing the stories she contains for nearly a decade, and a community she's been part of while also building her own in the Writers' Gym: Jade Robertson is the creative force behind Little Lies, an indie fashion brand rooted in 70s rock ‘n’ roll. Since launching the brand from her bedroom in 2015, Jade has built a loyal global community of customers who resonate with the ethos of creating “future-vintage” pieces—timeless styles designed in small batches with inclusivity in mind. Little Lies has g...
2026-01-0549 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastAshley Thorpe, award winning animator joins Dr Rachel Knightley at the Writers' GymDr Rachel Knightley's guest at the Writers' Gym today is Ashley Thorpe. Ashley is a self taught Devon based animator whose early films (SCAYRECROW, THE SCREAMING SKULL & THE HAIRY HANDS) were a celebration of the neglected aspects of British folklore. His first feature 'BORLEY RECTORY' (a Carrion Film / Glass Eye Pix co-venture) with Reece Shearsmith & Julian Sands was completed late 2017and won 'Best Animated Feature' at Buffalo Dreams Festival New York and a "Special Achievement in Cinema" accolade. After being released on Blu Ray in 2019 the film is now streaming on Netflix, Prime and Talking Pictures. As a freelance animator he h...
2025-12-2953 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastClaire Louise Amias, actor and playwright joins Dr Rachel Knightley at the Writers' GymClaire Louise Amias is an actor and playwright. She has worked extensively on screen and stage, including feature films, No. 1 touring, West End and regional theatre.She is also Co-Artistic Director of A Monkey With Cymbals Theatre Company and
has written, acted in and produced several projects. The Masks of Aphra Behn is an Offie award-winning one-woman show about the first professional female writer in the English language; the show went on a national tour and helped raise funds for the successful A is for Aphra statue campaign. She wrote a follow-up play, Oranges
& Ink, about Behn’s po...
2025-12-2234 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastKim Morgan MCC, author, speaker and Barefoot Coaching founder joins Dr Rachel Knightley at the Writers' GymDr Rachel Knightley is joined by Kim Morgan MCC, author, speaker, Barefoot Coaching founder and internationally recognised expert in coaching and coach training. Kim’s passion to spread the word about coaching has resulted in two best-selling books, ‘The Coach’s Casebook’ (2015) and ‘The Coach’s Survival Guide (2019). Kim also has a monthly coaching column in Psychologies Magazine, and she is a sought- after conference speaker on all things coaching related.
Kim is one of the select band of coaches accredited by the ICF as a Master Certified Coach. She draws extensively on her own experience of what works in practice to mak...
2025-12-1551 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastTim Lebbon, New York Times-bestselling author joins Dr Rachel Knightley at the Writers' GymTim Lebbon is a New York Times-bestselling writer from South Wales. He’s written over fifty novels, as well as hundreds of novellas and short stories. His latest novel is Secret Lives of the Dead. He has won a World Fantasy Award, four British Fantasy Awards, a Dragon Award and a Scribe Award. His novel The Silence is a movie on Netflix starring Stanley Tucci and Kiernan Shipka. The movie of his novella Pay The Ghost stars Nicolas Cage.
Tim has written extensively in existing universes including Alien, Conan the Barbarian, Predator, Star Wars, Firefly and...
2025-12-0843 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastJoanne Harris (OBE, FRSL) joins Dr Rachel Knightley at the Writers' GymJoanne was born in Barnsley in 1964, of a French mother and an English father. She studied Modern and Mediaeval Languages at Cambridge and was a teacher for fifteen years, during which time she published three novels, including Chocolat (1999), which was made into an Oscar-nominated film starring Juliette Binoche .
Since then, she has written over 20 more novels, plus novellas, short stories, game scripts, the libretti for two short operas, several screenplays, a stage musical (with Howard Goodall) and three cookbooks. Her books are now published in over 50 countries and have won a number of British and international awards. She...
2025-12-0144 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastWhat makes you writeBuild confidence in writing through focus on the inspiration already in your writer's artist palette – with author and coach Dr Rachel Knightley.
This week, we're exploring what makes you write.
2025-11-2405 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastPlots and protagonistsBuild confidence in writing through focus on the inspiration already in your writer's artist palette – with author and coach Dr Rachel Knightley.
This week, we're exploring plots and protagonists.
2025-11-1704 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastAntagonist exercisesBuild confidence in writing through focus on the inspiration already in your writer's artist palette – with author and coach Dr Rachel Knightley.
This week, we're exploring antagonist exercises.
2025-11-1005 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastSymbols and charactersBuild confidence in writing through focus on the inspiration already in your writer's artist palette – with author and coach Dr Rachel Knightley.
This week, we're exploring symbols and characters
2025-11-0305 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastThe brain is a toy cupboardBuild confidence in writing through focus on the inspiration already in your writer's artist palette – with author and coach Dr Rachel Knightley.
2025-10-2706 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastSetting and characterBuild confidence in writing through focus on the inspiration already in your writer's artist palette – with author and coach Dr Rachel Knightley.
This week, we're exploring setting and character.
2025-10-2005 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastRachel Knightley in conversation with British Fantasy Award 2025 nominee Steve ToaseSteve Toase is a British Fantasy Award 2025 nominated fiction and non-fiction author. He was born in North Yorkshire, England, and now lives in the Frankenwald, Germany. Steve’s debut short story collection ‘To Drown in Dark Water’ is published by Undertow Publications, and his archaeology themed horror collection Dirt Upon My Skin is out now from Black Shuck Books. Dirt Upon My Skin is shortlisted for the British Fantasy Award 2025 Best Collection.
Steve writes for magazines, and is a regular contributor to Fortean Times. In the past he has written for Kerrang, and The Author, as well as motor...
2025-10-1343 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastGreen Ink Sponsored Write 2025From creation to publication in 48 hours: Green Ink Sponsored write for Macmillan Cancer Support unites a team of published and developing authors at the Writers' Gym to create entirely new work on a theme inspired by Macmillan's mission of quality of life for all affected by cancer. Founded by Dr Rachel Knightley in 2009, this year's title was selected by Rhianna Pratchett: Somewhere That's Green: Paradises, Utopias and Happy Places. The cover image is by Writers' Gym member Elspeth Hannen and anthology design will be by Steve Shaw.
Visit and share the page here:
https://www.justgiving.com/page/somewhere-thats-green
2025-10-0605 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastGreen Ink Sponsored Write 2025 with Sarah BrooksFrom creation to publication in 48 hours: Green Ink Sponsored write for Macmillan Cancer Support unites a team of published and developing authors at the Writers' Gym to create entirely new work on a theme inspired by Macmillan's mission of quality of life for all affected by cancer. Founded by Dr Rachel Knightley in 2009, this year's title was selected by Rhianna Pratchett: Somewhere That's Green: Paradises, Utopias and Happy Places. The cover image is by Writers' Gym member Elspeth Hannen and anthology design will be by Steve Shaw.
Visit and share the page here:
https://www.justgiving.com/page/somewhere-thats-green
2025-09-2923 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastBuilding your writing worldDr Rachel Knightley talks about how one Green Ink Sponsored Write author, actor, comedian and writer Nic Lamont, found her annual Sponsored Write stories started building a new fictional world she might never have discovered without donating time to this new writing project.
Help your writing community help Macmillan Cancer Support at: https://www.justgiving.com/page/somewhere-thats-green
2025-09-2204 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastAbandon the idea of ‘enough’ time and start writingInstead of waiting for enough time or enough confidence, Dr Rachel Knightley shares how Green Ink Sponsored Write was invented to help writers dive in and shares an example of a favourite piece that came out of the Sponsored Write.
Help your writing community help Macmillan Cancer Support at: https://www.justgiving.com/page/somewhere-thats-green
2025-09-1505 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastWriting that makes a difference Writing that makes a difference: Green Ink Sponsored Write for Macmillan Cancer Support
Dr Rachel Knightley begins the lead-up to this year’s Green Ink Sponsored Write.
Help your writing community help Macmillan Cancer Support at: https://www.justgiving.com/page/somewhere-thats-green
2025-09-0807 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastRachel Knightley talks to award winning author Anthony McGowanAnthony McGowan books have won several major awards, and been shortlisted for many more. He has also written highly regarded adult fiction, as well as books for younger readers. He has a PhD on the history of beauty, and has taught philosophy and creative writing. He lives in London with his wife and two children.
Dr Rachel Knightley met Anthony McGowan, one of the most widely acclaimed young-adult authors in the UK, by forgetting she didn’t know him already through an event around his semi-fictionalised memoir, The Art of Failing, where he appears alongside Mon...
2025-09-0151 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastRachel Knightley talks to BAFTA-winning writer, director and producer Dan BerlinkaBAFTA-winning writer, director and producer joins Dr Rachel Knightley on the Writers’ Gym. Dan co-created and co-wrote “The A List” for Kindle Entertainment/Lionsgate/CBBC, for which he also directed six episodes, including both season finales. After series one it was picked up and recommissioned by Netflix worldwide, with Dan as an EP over the series. Award-winning online mystery drama “Dixi” ran for four series on CBBC and won a Bafta in 2014. Dan’s 10 x 30’ original children's comedy series “Lagging” debuted on CBBC in 2021 and ran for two more series, the third airing at the end of 2023. Dan was head writer for “Itch”...
2025-08-2551 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastRachel Knightley talks to British Fantasy, Shirley Jackson and World Fantasy Award winner Priya SharmaPriya Sharma's fiction has appeared in Interzone, Black Static, Nightmare, Weird Tales, and Tor.com (now Reactormag.com). She's been anthologised in many Best of series by editors such as Ellen Datlow and Paula Guran.
Priya is the recipient of several British Fantasy Awards and Shirley Jackson Awards, and a World Fantasy Award. She is a Locus Award and a Grand Prix de l’Imaginaire finalist. Her work has been translated into Spanish, French, Italian, Czech, and Polish.
She lives in the UK where she works as a medical doctor. More informatio...
2025-08-1844 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastRachel Knightley talks to Tiny Pieces of Skull author and 2016 Lambda winner Roz Kaveney“I have a long and complicated personal history which I am in the process of turning into a huge memoir; crucial facts are that I was reared Catholic but got over it, was born male but got over it, stopped sleeping with boys about the time I stopped being one and am much happier than I was when I was younger.” Poet, novelist and critic Roz Kaveney’s iography on her Glamorous Rags website is a brilliant beginning for anyone wanting to understand the struggles and celebrations of becoming the writer you are and the person you are. In this ep...
2025-08-111h 08The Writers’ Gym PodcastRachel Knightley talks to six-time Bram Stoker award winner Lisa MortonSix-time winner of the Bram Stoker Award, author of four novels and 200 short stories, and a world-class Halloween and paranormal expert, screenwriter and author Lisa Morton is described by the American Library Association's Reader's Advisory Guide to Horror as consistently dark, unsettling, and frightening.
Lisa also hosts the popular weekly Ghost Report podcast and a newsletter about the paranormal The Whole Haunted World.
She lives in Los Angeles and online at lissamorton.com and we met when we were both in Great British Horror 5 with short stories for that anthology published by B...
2025-08-0429 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastRachel Knightley talks to instant Sunday Times Bestselling author Sarah BrooksIn this episode, Dr Rachel Knightley is joined by instant Sunday Times Bestselling author Sarah Brooks. Sarah won the Lucy Cavendish Prize in 2019. She works in East Asian Studies at the University of Leeds where she also helps run the Leeds Centre for New Chinese Writing. She has a PhD on monsters in classical Chinese ghost stories. She is also co-editor of Samovar, a bilingual online magazine for translated speculative fiction. Originally from Lancashire, she now lives in Leeds. Her novel The Cautious Traveller's Guide to the Wastelands comes out in June 2024 from Weidenfeld and Nicolson (UK) and Flatiron...
2025-07-2857 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastRachel Knightley talks to screenwriter, sci-fi/fantasy novelist and TV/radio dramatist Philip PalmerDr Rachel Knightley is joined today by screenwriter, TV and radio dramatist and science fiction/fantasy novelist Philip Palmer. Philip has a background as a script editor and writes extensively for radio as well as television, scripting five seasons of the Radio Four Hungarian crime drama Keeping The Wolf Out. Other radio plays include The King’s Coinerstarring Iain McDiarmid and The Faerie Queene starring Simon Russell Beale. His feature film The Ballad of Billy McCrae, which he wrote and co-produced, was released on more than 20 UK screens in September 2021. Philip’s books include Version 43 and Hell Ship, the horror...
2025-07-2146 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastRachel Knightley talks to award winning Nordic Noir crime novelist Alex DahlAlex Dahl is the author of six psychological thrillers. Her third novel, Playdate, is currently streaming on Disney+ and she’s published by (among others) Penguin Random House USA, Head of Zeus UK, Harper Collins Australia. Her work has been translated into 16 foreign languages and her debut novel, The Boy at the Door, was shortlisted for a CWA dagger award. She’s a half Norwegian, half American author and studied Russian, German and international studies in Oslo and Moscow before pursuing an MA in creative writing at Bath Spa University – at the same time as Dr Rachel Knightley.
Ale...
2025-07-1441 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastRachel Knightley talks to award-winning author, journalist and ovarian-cancer-wrangler Jennifer Steil‘Liminal’ is much more than the name of award-winning author, journalist and Ovarian cancer wrangler Jennifer Steil’s Substack newsletter. In this extended episode, the winner of the Grand Prize in the international Eyelands 2020 Book Awards and Finalist for the 2021 Lambda Literary Lesbian Fiction Award for Exile Music,talks about the kidnap experience and resulting ‘what if’s that inspired her first novel, The Ambassador’s Wife,and how writing has become even more important to mental health during her cancer treatment. Liminal spaces she discusses with Dr Rachel Knightley include ‘home’, and how that truly means wherever her husband and daug...
2025-07-071h 18The Writers’ Gym PodcastRachel Knightley talks to Macmillan Cancer Support's Andy Gould
Green Ink Sponsored Write brings together published authors and developing writers to raise money for Macmillan Cancer Support.
Each year's theme reflects Macmillan's mission of quality of life for everyone affected by cancer (with writers are sponsored for their time, not their word-count). This year, our theme is chosen by Rhianna Pratchett:
SOMEWHERE THAT'S GREEN: STORIES ABOUT PARADISES, UTOPIAS AND HAPPY PLACES.
Rachel Knightley talks to Macmillan’s Andy Gould about this year’s event.
Sponsor the Writers at
https://www.justgiving.com/page/somewhere-thats-green
Dr Rachel Knightley
www.RachelKnightley.com
2025-06-3022 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastBookmark BibleShowing up authentically on the page — and off the page — can feel like a big ask at first. But all it takes is a few simple truths to make the process of connecting with others, in writing and in speaking, come naturally. Dr Rachel Knightley shares this year’s Writers’ Gym bookmark, and how it’s a reminder of everything you need for an authentic, enjoyable audience relationship.
2025-06-2311 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastLanding PatternsProcrastination gets — entirely rightly — a pretty bad press. So how do we differentiate it from warming up and getting into the zone? In this episode, Dr Rachel Knightley celebrates landing patterns and how they can add to our enjoyment of the journey.
2025-06-1606 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastShooting the Should FairiesAnxiety is not a documentary. It’s creative writing at its most natural and automatic. Yet we so often hear our own projected worst case scenarios more loudly than our own interest in our writing. In this episode, Dr Rachel Knightley invites you to grab a water-pistol and give the ‘should fairies’ the response they deserve. Step beyond your ‘shoulds’ into curiosity, confidence and creativity at the Writers’ Gym.
2025-06-0905 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastOur Characters in Space and TimeBeing in your character’s body as well as their mind isn’t always first-draft territory. For many writers, it’s easier to begin in an internal monologue, lost in thoughts and feelings which can then be frustrating to pin down to their causes: the triggers in the physical world for each thought, each feeling. The good news? It looks scary from the outside but, inside, that’s where the greatest fun is. Dr Rachel Knightley celebrates natural time and taking space in our own narratives.
2025-06-0204 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastPart Two: How to Trust Your ReaderTrusting your reader is one of the most famous phrases in creative writing teaching. But how do we do that? And what might be stopping us? Dr Rachel Knightley explores the temptations of ‘telling’ versus the greater rewards of showing (not explaining) the reactions, feelings and thoughts that illustrate who a character is and why they show up in their world the way they do.
2025-05-2606 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastPart One: How to Trust Your ReaderTrusting your reader is one of the most famous phrases in creative writing teaching. But how do we do that? And what might be stopping us? Dr Rachel Knightley explores the temptations of ‘telling’ versus the greater rewards of showing (not explaining) the reactions, feelings and thoughts that illustrate who a character is and why they show up in their world the way they do.
2025-05-1907 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastWhy Point of View is EverythingDr Rachel Knightley’s Sherlock Holmes Snoopy lamp is something of a co-presenter this week. What object do you love, that connects you with your past or passions, that someone else might not see the magic in? Through showing the specifics of what characters love, we get so much more: a sense of their values and personality. When they talk to different people, we get different angles on that same essential truth. So jump in and start fictionalising the people and things that make your heart sing — or scream!
2025-05-1206 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastVulnerability is Strength‘Say the Thing’ is one of our most transformational pieces of writing advice Dr Rachel Knightley ever had. That editor wasn’t just showing her a masterkey to clarity and confidence on the page, but off it too. This episode of the podcasts explores how communicating what we love and what we fear deepens our characterisation, links character and plot, and our connection with the reader through the specificity of detail that gives writing its magic; that only comes when you’re truly exploring yourself and your world.
2025-05-0504 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastStealthwritingWhat’s the difference between procrastination and a gentle ‘landing pattern’ on your way down to where the words are? If your bookshelves are noticeably neater when a deadline’s looming, it’s possible your rituals are becoming an end in themselves (procrastination) rather than a landing pattern: moving you towards your inner world. One of the best things to get the joy back? Stealthwriting. Dr Rachel Knightley — with a little help from the incomparable David Lynch reminding us to ‘go where the fish are’ — gets us back in touch with the importance of building space and time where the ideas can disc
2025-04-2808 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastPerfect Was Never On the Menu: Two Creative Writing ExercisesIf you’re listening to a podcast about writing, there’s a good chance you’ve experienced how a book you love has added to your life: how valuable that relationship with the words of a stranger, that tour of a world created by a mind other than your own, can be. Yet when it’s time to pay it forward, we can be blocked by questions like ‘What if it’s too weird?’ or ‘What if it’s too boring?’ In this episode, Rachel Knightley invites you to play Excuses Bingo, an original and favourite Writers’ Gym exercise, so you can move throug...
2025-04-2109 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastThink On The Page“But don’t you HAVE to wait for inspiration?”
Every writing voice is unique — but how we stand in our way can be a lot less so. Inspired (see what we did there?) by a question Dr Rachel Knightley was asked in two workshops and one pub in the same week, this episode at the Writers’ Gym explores how to blend inspiration and perspiration to build healthy writing habits. We go back to Rachel’s key image of the writer’s artist palette: how our unique imagination, memory, observations and questions blend to even more unique results, when we create...
2025-04-1406 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastWhy Normal Jobs Need Not Apply - Kim NewmanMulti-award-winning author, journalist, film critic and fiction writer Kim Newman joins Dr Rachel Knightley at the Writers’ Gym for the final episode in our current series. Kim and Rachel talk about what a healthy and happy writing life can look like, the important relationship between freedom and structure, and how memory and imagination combine to build on our interests as authors into new works within the genres we love.
For a writing workout based on Kim’s interview with Rachel, scroll down or visit WritersGym.com to download every Writing Workout in the series.
2025-04-0738 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastConfidence, Magic and Terry Pratchett – Gabrielle Kent joins the Writers' GymGabrielle Kent talks to Dr Rachel Knightley about the magic of the stories we inherit as well as those we create. Afull-time children's author who began her career as a graphic artist for video games and lecturer in games development. Gabrielle’s work includes Alfie Bloom - a series about a boy who inherits a castle and a whole load of magical problems, Knights and Bikes - a series based on the video game of the same name, and the Rani Reports series, featuring a girl who wants to be an investigative journalist and her adventures with her rambunctious Ma...
2025-03-3139 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastEmbracing the Strange – Aliya Whiteley joins the Writers' GymDr Rachel Knightley speaks to her Great British Horror 5 co-contributor, award-winning author of ovels, short stories and articles (“Usually strange ones”) Aliya Whiteley. is the author of seven books of speculative fiction, including the Arthur C. Clarke Award shortlisted Skyward Inn and The Loosening Skin, and also The Beauty, which was shortlisted for both a Shirley Jackson award and the Otherwise Award. A tenth anniversary edition of The Beauty was published in 2024. She has written over one hundred published short stories that have appeared in magazines such as F&SF, Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Strange Horizons, The Dark, McSweeney’s Internet Tend...
2025-03-2440 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastEyebrows and Imagination – Rosie Garland joins the Writers' GymAward-winning poet, long and short fiction author, performer and vocalist with the March Violets, Rosie Garland talks to Dr Rachel Knightley about curiosity, creative confidence – and taking on the world eyebrows first! She is the author of The Palace of Curiosities (which won the Mslexia Novel Competition and was longlisted for the Desmond Elliott Prize), Vixen and The Night Brother, which was described by The Times as “a delight…with shades of Angela Carter.” Her new novel, The Fates (Quercus) is a retelling of the Greek myth of the Fates. Her latest poetry collection, What Girls do in the Dark (Nine Arch...
2025-03-1743 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastJD Barker's Writing LifeThis week at the Writers’ Gym, Dr Rachel Knightley is joined by New York Times and international bestselling thriller writer JD Barker. His work has been broadly described as suspense thrillers, often incorporating elements of horror, crime, mystery, science fiction and the supernatural. He is a frequent collaborator with James Patterson. JD shares the creative exercises and habits that support his writing life and how valuing every contact he made in his early career meant building the creative career he has today.
For a writing workout based on JD’s interview with Rachel, scroll down or vi...
2025-03-1032 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastReturning to Being a Writer – Prano Bailey-Bond joins the Writers' GymToday’s episode and writing workout feature the art and life of Prano Bailey-Bond. Prano is an award-winning filmmaker and screenwriter who grew up on a diet of Twin Peaks in the depths of a strange Welsh community. Her work invokes imaginative worlds, fusing a dark vocabulary with eerie allure, revealing how beauty resides in strange places. Prano shares with Dr Rachel Knightley her early influences, creative fuel and sources of confidence and how directing her debut feature was when she reengaged with being a writer.
For a writing workout based on Prano’s interview with Rac...
2025-03-0343 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastAdrian Tchaikovsky talks Writing Health (and Insects)Episode 2: Adrian Tchaikovsky
Today at the Writers’ Gym, Dr Rachel Knightley is joined by multi-award-winning science fiction and fantasy author Adrian Tchaikovsky. Find out how early experience running Tabletop roleplaying games combine with Adrian’s childhood inspiration (mainly insectoid) and adult inspiration (including coffee) to create his career as an author and what a healthy, happy writing life means to him.
Adrian Tchaikovsky is a British science-fiction and fantasy writer known for a wide-variety of work including the Children of Time, Final Architecture, Dogs of War, Tyrant Philosophers and Shadows of the Ap...
2025-02-2635 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastDr Rachel Knightley and Ashley Lexine - Building Creative Confidence at the Writers' GymThe Writers’ Gym is not just a podcast: it’s a membership platform, supporting writers (and writers-to-be) in buildingcreative confidence, growing their writing life and beating the inspiration addiction. Membership of the Writers’ Gym puts you in charge of your writing. It means creative confidence for life, work and art. It also means being part of a writing community with group and one-to-one sessions and personal support available throughout the week.
Founder and Writers’ Gym PT Dr Rachel Knightley is a fiction and non-fiction author, lecturer in Creative Writing and a qualified business and personal coach. Th...
2025-02-2427 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastMemory and FlashbackIn this final episode of season 3, Dr Rachel Knightley and Emily Inkpen chat about memory and flashback and the ways in which authors can use them to add colour, realism and plot twists to their work. Harking back to our episode about unreliable narrators, we look at the ways in which our memory can play tricks upon us and we examine memory-loss as a plot device. As always we end with a writing exercise from Rachel.
Rachel, Emily and Chris would like to thank everyone who has listened to season 3. Listen out for a new series...
2024-12-1137 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastA Writer's FuelWhether it be ensuring the correct amount of nourishment for your body, exercise, a good sleep or combinations of aspiration and fear, writers tend to need to look after themselves in order to produce their best work. In this episode Dr Rachel Knightley and Emily Inkpen look at fuel for writing. And coffee...lots of coffee.
Join the Writers’ Gym and book your next writing workout at https://www.rachelknightley.com/the-writers-gym/
The Writers Gym Podcast is an Alternative Stories production for The Writers' Gym.
Find out more about The Writers' Gym and Rach...
2024-12-0443 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastPrologues and EpiloguesIn this episode Dr Rachel Knightley and Emily Inkpen discuss prologues and epilogues and how writers can use them to create intriguing openings and satisfying endings for their fiction. As usual we range from novels to TV, film, and audio drama looking at good and not-so-good examples.
Join the Writers’ Gym and book your next writing workout at https://www.rachelknightley.com/the-writers-gym/
The Writers Gym Podcast is an Alternative Stories production for The Writers' Gym.
Find out more about The Writers' Gym and Rachel Knightley by going to: https://www.rache...
2024-11-2736 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastNarratorsIn this episode we look at the role of narrators in fiction and discuss when, how and whether to deploy them. As usual Dr Rachel Knightley and Emily Inkpen bring examples from their own writing and from the wider worlds of literature and drama.
Rachel would like to point out that it was Arthur Dent's upper arm that was bruised and not his elbow.
Join the Writers’ Gym and book your next writing workout at https://www.rachelknightley.com/the-writers-gym/
The Writers Gym Podcast is an Alternative Stories production for Th...
2024-11-2039 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastReading For WritersIn this episode we look at reading and how it can help to fire creativity and inspire imagination for authors. As usual, Emily and Rachel bring plenty of stories and anecdotes about ways in which books have inspired them. We end with a look at books about writing.
Books mentioned in this podcast include
Ursula Le Guin: Steering the Craft and Conversations on Writing
Stephen King: On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft
Rachel Knightley: Your Creative Writing Toolkit
Margaret Atwood: Negotiating with the Dead
David Lynch: Catching the B...
2024-11-1344 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastViewpoint and PerspectiveIn this episode we explore viewpoint and perspective in fiction. Rachel Knightley and Emily Inkpen discuss the different types of perspective and the ways in which a writers' instinct might dictate the best approach to telling their particular story.
In the discussion Rachel references “Point of View: the thing that makes all other things more doable” which you can find on YouTube here
https://youtu.be/GgB7_I37efM?si=bVCVYAxNTsrWZ0OU
It is presented by Rachel Knightley and produced by Simret Cheema-Innis
Join the Writers’ Gym and book your next w...
2024-11-0643 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastPrinciples of ScriptwritingIn this episode Rachel Knightley and Emily Inkpen talk about scriptwriting and offer advice to writers wishing to get started in writing for stage, screen or audio drama.
You can listen to Rachel Knightley's audio drama "Winter Spring" here https://open.spotify.com/episode/2gBu6Bqmc7CiC8zwXTYIPZ?si=b2c423862aaf4438
Emily's drama serial "The Dex Legacy" can be heard here https://open.spotify.com/show/1aphgDiefw4FdO8EN5LJxy?si=2908e95681354b81
Join the Writers’ Gym and book your next writing workout at https://www.rachelkn...
2024-10-3047 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastPace and StructureIn this episode Rachel Knightley and Emily Inkpen discuss pace and structure in fiction. They ask whether pace comes from structure or can be added at the editing stage and ponder examples of well structured stories on page and screen.
Join the Writers’ Gym and book your next writing workout at https://www.rachelknightley.com/the-writers-gym/
The Writers Gym Podcast is an Alternative Stories production for The Writers' Gym.
Find out more about The Writers' Gym and Rachel Knightley by going to: https://www.rachelknightley.com/
Find...
2024-10-2339 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastAnimosity in FictionIn this first episode of season three of The Writers' Gym Podcast, Dr Rachel Knightley and Emily Inkpen look at animosity in fiction and the ways in which writers can use conflicts, feuds, fights and arguments to add interest and plot lines to their work.
This episode begins with a conversation about the Green Ink Sponsored Write 2024 which is taking place on Saturday 19th October. You can find out more and sponsor Rachel and the other writers via this link:
https://www.justgiving.com/page/greeninksponsoredwrite2024
Join the Writers’ Gym and book your next writing workout at https://www.rachelknightley.com/the...
2024-10-1650 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastRhianna Pratchett at the Writers' GymIn this special episode of the podcast Rachel and Emily are in conversation with multi-disciplined writer Rhianna Pratchett about her work in video games, comics, TV, radio and books.
To find out more about Rhianna and her work please visit her website at https://rhiannapratchett.com/
and you can follow her on X here https://x.com/rhipratchett
Join the Writers’ Gym and book your next writing workout at https://www.rachelknightley.com/the-writers-gym/
The Writers Gym Podcast is an Alternative Stories production for The Writers' Gym.
Fin...
2024-07-1059 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastChronological Versus Fractured NarrativesIn this episode Dr Rachel Knightley and Emily Inkpen look at the ways in which writers use time in their storytelling. From linear narratives following a traditional chronology to fractured, repeating and circular narratives we compare them and look at the advantages of playing around with time in your work.
Join the Writers’ Gym and book your next writing workout at https://www.rachelknightley.com/the-writers-gym/
The Writers Gym Podcast is an Alternative Stories production for The Writers' Gym.
Find out more about The Writers' Gym and Rachel Knightley by going to http...
2024-07-0342 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastForeshadowingDropping hints about events to come in your stories can raise tension and add depth and interest to your work. In this episode we look at the art and technique of foreshadowing and ask why should writers consider it an important tool in their skillset.
Join the Writers’ Gym and book your next writing workout at https://www.rachelknightley.com/the-writers-gym/
The Writers Gym Podcast is an Alternative Stories production for The Writers' Gym.
Find out more about The Writers' Gym and Rachel Knightley by going to https://www.rachelknightley.com/
Find o...
2024-06-2638 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastShort FictionIn this week's episode we'll look at short fiction and the skills and techniques you'll need to master concise storytelling. We discuss the pros and cons of writing short fiction and some of the drawbacks and limitations of the form. As usual we end with a writing challenge from Rachel.
Join the Writers’ Gym and book your next writing workout at https://www.rachelknightley.com/the-writers-gym/
The Writers Gym Podcast is an Alternative Stories production for The Writers' Gym.
Find out more about The Writers' Gym and Rachel Knightley by going to https...
2024-06-1944 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastRelationships in FictionIn this episode we talk about relationships in your fiction and how they can mould and shape your stories and the arcs of your characters. We explore the ways in which characters interact and consider sources of conflict and interest in these interactions. From dysfunctional families to romantic attachments via warring parties and long-held feuds we hope to provide you with some ideas and inspiration for writing your own fictional relationships.
Join the Writers’ Gym and book your next writing workout at https://www.rachelknightley.com/the-writers-gym/
The Writers Gym Podcast is an...
2024-06-1245 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastMaking Time to WriteIn this episode we look at the challenges of making time for your writing and how best to use time when you have it. As usual we have tips advice and experience from Dr Rachel Knightley and Emily Inkpen and a writing challenge from Rachel.
Join the Writers’ Gym and book your next writing workout at https://www.rachelknightley.com/the-writers-gym/
The Writers Gym Podcast is an Alternative Stories production for The Writers' Gym.
Find out more about The Writers' Gym and Rachel Knightley by going to https://www.rachelknightley.com/
F...
2024-06-0544 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastWriting Tips from the Writers' Gym TeamIn this edition Rachel, Emily and Chris each share pieces of writing advice which we hope you'll find useful.
Join the Writers’ Gym and book your next writing workout at https://www.rachelknightley.com/the-writers-gym/
The Writers Gym Podcast is an Alternative Stories production for The Writers' Gym.
Find out more about The Writers' Gym and Rachel Knightley by going to https://www.rachelknightley.com/
Find out more about Emily Inkpen and her work by going to https://www.emilyinkpen.com/
And learn more about Chris Gregory and...
2024-05-2927 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastWriting with Nigel PlanerIn this episode of the Writers' Gym Podcast we're joined by actor, comedian, novelist and poet Nigel Planer for a discussion about his writing life and the challenges of working on a memoir.
To find out more about Nigel Planer and to purchase copies of his books as discussed in today's podcast please follow the links below
Website www.nigelplaner.co.uk
Patreon https://www.patreon.com/NigelPlaner
To order a copy of Nigel's novel Jeremiah Bourne In Time from Unbound please go to https://unbound.com/books/jeremiah-bourne-in-time
Find...
2024-05-2250 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastInspiration Versus PerspirationIn this episode of the Writers' Gym Podcast with Dr Rachel Knightley and Emily Inkpen we're looking at inspiration and perspiration and whether one or other of them is the predominant force in the lives of our presenters. As usual we have advice, anecdotes, ideas and a writing challenge that listeners can participate in
Join the Writers’ Gym and book your next writing workout at https://www.rachelknightley.com/the-writers-gym/
The Writers Gym Podcast is an Alternative Stories production for The Writers' Gym.
Find out more about The Writers' Gym and...
2024-05-1555 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastWriting Across Genres with Gareth L PowellIn this edition of the Writers' Gym podcast we are joined by the award-winning novelist Gareth L Powell to talk about his work across several genres. Known primarily as a science-fiction author, Gareth has also written thrillers and fantasy. His guide for writers "About Writing : A Field Guide for Aspiring Authors" (Gollancz 2022) was described as "Brilliant" by The Guardian. In this conversation with Rachel Knightley and Emily Inkpen we discuss Gareth's career and hear his advice for writers wishing to focus on a single genre or expand their writing into new genres.
To find out mo...
2024-05-081h 02The Writers’ Gym PodcastMusic and WritingIn this edition of the Writers' Gym Podcast with Rachel Knightley and Emily Inkpen we'll look at the relationship between music and writing. We'll explore music as inspiration and motivation, music as a creator of moods and as an accompaniment to your work and books inspired by or suggested by music.
Artists mentioned in this podcast include
Thomas Bergersen
Mogwai
David Bowie
Sigur Ros
Allen Stroud and his soundtrack for The Dex legacy
Pink Floyd
The soundtracks to Fantasia, Lord of the Rings, How to Train Your Dragon and Wind River.
The Soundtracks of Nick Ca...
2024-05-0153 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastCharacter BuildingIn this episode of the podcast we’ll be looking at the art of generating characters for your fiction. We’ll look at the secrets of creating believable and authentic characters that can drive your story forward. Emily and Rachel will talk about their own characters, the inspiration behind them and the ways in which they have shaped events in their fiction.
Join the Writers’ Gym and book your next writing workout at https://www.rachelknightley.com/the-writers-gym/
The Writers Gym Podcast is an Alternative Stories production for The Writers' Gym.
2024-04-2459 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastBeating the Blank PageIn this episode of the Writers’ Gym Podcast we will be thinking about starting to write. Writing the opening page of your story needn’t be a battle against that glaring white first page and all the psychological demons it implies. Rachel and Emily offer tips, advice and hacks for starting to write and share examples and anecdotes from their own writing lives.
Join the Writers’ Gym and book your next writing workout at https://www.rachelknightley.com/the-writers-gym/
The Writers Gym Podcast is an Alternative Stories production for The Writers' Gym.
Find out m...
2024-04-1739 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastWrite What You Know: A DiscussionIn this edition of the Writers’ Gym Podcast with Dr Rachel Knightley and Emily Inkpen we take a look at one of the most common pieces of advice offered to writers: “Write what you know” We examine this advice to consider what it means for our writing and consider how it works in the worlds of science fiction and fantasy as well as in general fiction.
Join the Writers’ Gym and book your next writing workout at https://www.rachelknightley.com/the-writers-gym/
The Writers Gym Podcast is an Alternative Stories production for The Writ...
2024-04-1041 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastUnreliable NarratorsIn this episode Rachel and Emily look at unreliable narrators and how to create and use them in your writing. With examples from literature we look at the ways in which unreliable narrators can give your stories depth, authenticity and a plot-twist or two to keep your readers guessing.
The references in today’s episode include
Pale Fire by Vladimir Nabokov
The other lives of Miss Emily White by AJ Ellwood
The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins
Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
The Debt to Pleasure by John Lanchester
The C...
2024-04-0339 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastLayout and FormattingIn this episode we look at the art and science of laying out and formatting your writing. We ask when you should begin to format your work, how you should go about doing it and explore a few good reasons for starting the process early …or indeed later. We look at some of the formatting skills and techniques you’ll need for getting your manuscript ready if you’re self-publishing including some thoughts on cover design and format.
Join the Writers’ Gym and book your next writing workout at https://www.rachelknightley.com/the-writers-gym/
The Writer...
2024-03-2743 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastWorldbuildingIn this episode Rachel Knightley and Emily Inkpen look at the process of worldbuilding for fiction writers. Normally associated with science fiction and fantasy writers, world building skills can also be applied to real places adapted for fiction.
In our conversation we mentioned the map creation services of Dewi Hargreaves who you can follow on twitter https://twitter.com/Dewiwrites
Rachel’s map and prop were made in 2009 by Jude Claybourne, who these days can be found at Past Imperfect: the Alchemy of Transforming Trauma: https://open.spotify.com/show/6XG8ZlvGfWZb...
2024-03-2038 minThe Writers’ Gym Podcast"What's your Wessex?": Place, setting and location in fictionIn this episode Rachel Knightley and Emily Inkpen look at the role and influence of place in creative writing. We look at the ways in which setting can influence you as writers and affect your characters. As usual, we offer creative writing challenges to help you consider the influence of place in your own work.
In this episode Rachel references “Three Wishes” by Liane Moriarty (Penguin 2003)
Join the Writers’ Gym and book your next writing workout at https://www.rachelknightley.com/the-writers-gym/
Book onto the Alternative Stories “Writing for Ra...
2024-03-1341 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastEditing 101In this podcast we’ll talk about the art and techniques of editing. We’ll discuss approaches to editing, what you should take out and keep in and some of the best and worst editing advice we’ve received.
Subscribe to The Writers’ Gym in your favourite podcast app to be notified of all new episodes as they are released. New episodes will appear every Wednesday
The Writers Gym Podcast is an Alternative Stories production for The Writers' Gym.
Find out more about The Writers' Gym and Rachel Knightley by going to https://www.rachelkni...
2024-03-0642 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastHow Not to Give FeedbackIn this episode Rachel Knightley and Emily Inkpen discuss the art of giving and receiving feedback. We’ll have advice on how and who to ask for feedback, when feedback will be useful and how you should use feedback as part of your creative process.
Subscribe to The Writers’ Gym in your favourite podcast app to be notified of all new episodes as they are released. New episodes will appear every Wednesday
The Writers Gym Podcast is an Alternative Stories production for The Writers' Gym.
Find out more about The Writers' Gym and Rachel K...
2024-03-0645 min
The Writers’ Gym PodcastWriters' Gym Series 2 trailerWelcome to the second series of The Writers' Gym Podcast. We'll be releasing episodes weekly – each Wednesday – from 6th March and we'll cover topics such as:* How not to give feedback* Editing 101* Unreliable narrators * World building* "What's Your Wessex?": A guide to place in fiction* Layout* "Write what you know": A discussionEach episode features Rachel Knightley, Emily Inkpen and Chris GregoryThe Writers Gym Podcast is an Alternative Stories production for The Writers' Gym. Find out more abo...
2024-03-0501 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastThe Writers' Gym TrailerThis is our trailer for The Writers' Gym Podcast.
We'll be releasing episodes weekly each Wednesday from 6th March and we'll cover topics such as
How not to give feedback
Editing 101
Unreliable narrators
World building
"What's Your Wessex" : A guide to place in fiction
Layout
"Write what you know" : A discussion
Each episode features Rachel Knightley, Emily Inkpen and Chris Gregory
The Writers Gym Podcast is an Alternative Stories production for The Writers' Gym.
Find out more about The Writers' Gym and Rachel Knightley by going to...
2024-03-0401 min
The Writers’ Gym PodcastNigel Planer visits the Writers' GymAcclaimed actor, poet and novelist Nigel Planer joins me for a very special, between-series episode of The Writers’ Gym podcast. From writers’ geographical landscapes to the love of flares and the influence of Pratchett on their lives and works (N.B. I apologise to the whole Disc for saying ‘lavender’ when I meant ‘lilac’: if you know, you know), this is a sneak preview of Nigel Planer and Friends, featuring me alongside Nigel and filmmaker and debut novelist Simon Rumley, at Riverside Studios Tuesday 30 January at 7pm.Book tickets at https://riversidestudios.co.uk/see-and-do/nigel-planer-and-friends-97418/This episo...
2024-01-2734 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastNigel Planer and FriendsAcclaimed actor, poet and novelist Nigel Planer joins Dr Rachel Knightley for a very special, between-series episode of The Writers’ Gym podcast. From writers’ geographical landscapes to the love of flares and the influence of Pratchett on their lives and works, this is a sneak preview of Nigel Planer and Friends, featuring Nigel, Rachel and filmmaker and debut novelist Simon Rumley, at Riverside Studios Tuesday 30 January at 7pm.
Book tickets at https://riversidestudios.co.uk/see-and-do/nigel-planer-and-friends-97418/
Hosted by Rachel Knightley and edited by Chris Gregory of Alternative Stories: https://riversidestudios.co.uk/see-and-do/nigel-planer-and-friends-97418/
2024-01-2634 min
The Writers’ Gym PodcastThe Horror Muse and the Freelance LifeAhead of the launch of Twisted Branches (coming Oct 2023 from Black Shuck Books), Rachel Knightley talks to Trevor Kennedy of Big Hits Radio UK for his horror spot on the Sunday Service. In return, Trevor comes to the Writers' Gym to talk about his freelance writing life and how confidence in our voices is only ever half the story of what it feels like to be a professional writer.Big thanks to Big Hits Radio UK for the interview material. Sadly we cannot attach the songs of choice: You Want It Darker is the title track of...
2023-08-141h 14The Writers’ Gym PodcastThe Horror Muse and the Freelance Life – with Trevor Kennedy, Big Hits Radio UKAhead of the launch of Twisted Branches (coming Oct 2023 from Black Shuck Books), Rachel Knightley talks to Trevor Kennedy of Big Hits Radio UK for his horror spot on the Sunday Service. In return, Trevor come to the Writers' Gym to talk about his freelance writing life and how confidence in our voices is only ever half the story of what it feels like to be a professional writer.
Big thanks to Big Hits Radio UK for the interview material. Sadly we cannot attach the songs of choice: You Want It Darker is the title track of Leonard Cohen's 2016 album. W...
2023-08-141h 14
The Writers’ Gym PodcastWriting LivesToday's Personal Training at the Writers' Gym takes in the spaces between what goes on the page, and how to work with our feelings about ourselves and the world to create the work lives as well as the art we want.Rachel Knightley's guest is Maura McHugh. Maura was born in the USA, but raised in Ireland, where she developed a love of mythology, horror fiction, art, and writing. She has lived in New York, Dublin, and Galway, and worked in IT before succumbing to her love of storytelling.She co-wrote the comic book Witchfinder...
2023-07-0345 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastWriting Lives: with Maura McHughWhat does full-time writing look like? It depends on the writer – and what we create in our lives off the page depends directly on what we imagine.
Today's Personal Training at the Writers' Gym takes in the spaces between what goes on the page, and how to work with our feelings about ourselves and the world to create the work lives as well as the art we want.
Rachel Knightley's guest is Maura McHugh. Maura was born in the USA, but raised in Ireland, where she developed a love of mythology, horror fiction, art, and wr...
2023-07-0345 min
The Writers’ Gym PodcastConnection Through ImperfectionInternationally best-selling author, artist, journalist and speaker John-Paul Flintoff trained in improvisation with Keith Johnstone. He designs today's word-count workout alongside Rachel Knightley as they discuss the benefits of stagecraft on communication, and how performance provides 'factory conditions' for understanding your own character motivation offstage as much as on it.John-Paul's books include the internationally bestselling How to Change the World, and A Modest Book on How to Make an Adequate Speech. John-Paul will also be joining the Writer's Gym's Green Ink Sponsored Write for Macmillan Cancer Support on 14 October 2023. To receive your world-exclusive anthology of new w...
2023-06-0355 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastConnection Through ImperfectionInternationally best-selling author, artist, journalist and speaker John-Paul Flintoff trained in improvisation with Keith Johnstone. He designs today's word-count workout alongside Rachel Knightley as they discuss the benefits of stagecraft on communication, and how performance provides 'factory conditions' for understanding your own character motivation offstage as much as on it.
John-Paul's books include the internationally bestselling How to Change the World, and A Modest Book on How to Make an Adequate Speech. John-Paul will also be joining the Writer's Gym's Green Ink Sponsored Write for Macmillan Cancer Support on 14 October 2023. To receive your world-exclusive anthology of new w...
2023-06-0351 min
The Writers’ Gym PodcastNot Writing Every Day: Being a Writer Every Day."What writing advice really pisses you off?" was one of my favourite questions to ask award-winning author and editor Dan Coxon.At the time (an interview for the Business of Writing module I convene at Roehampton University), his answer was one of the most prolific – and apparently innocuous – answers out there. Maybe you've heard it. Dan's the first to say if it works for you, great. But what are the potential issues behind it...?In this episode of the Writers' Gym, all exercises and discussion are on the aspect of writing that unites all...
2023-05-0754 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastThe Political Is The Personal: Mike Jones on Memoir, Poetry and SongwritingOne thing that becomes clear the more accomplished we get in any area of writing (or of anything else): the kind of writing somebody else is doing still looks to us more like "real" writing...
Dr Mike Jones is a rock lyricist (notably for Latin Quarter, including their Top 20 hit Radio Africa), reader and lecturer in music at Liverpool University. His work includes an MA programmes in partnership with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic and another in the Beatles: Music Industry and Heritage. He wrote, directed and produced 'Where Light Falls', an exploration of the career of Joni M...
2023-03-3142 min
The Writers’ Gym PodcastThe Political Is The Personal: Mike Jones on Memoir, Poetry and SongwritingOne thing that becomes clear the more accomplished we get in any area of writing (or of anything else): the kind of writing somebody else is doing still looks to us more like "real" writing...Dr Mike Jones is a rock lyricist (notably for Latin Quarter, including their Top 20 hit Radio Africa), reader and lecturer in music at Liverpool University. His work includes an MA programmes in partnership with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic and another in the Beatles: Music Industry and Heritage. He wrote, directed and produced 'Where Light Falls', an exploration of the career of J...
2023-03-3142 minThe Writers’ Gym PodcastRachel Knightley talks to Jennifer SteilA painter doesn't need permission to mix any colours they like. Yet, as writers, our memories, imagination, observations and questions about the world and ourselves come with "not supposed to go there" stamped all over them. How can we give ourselves permission to beat those blocks?
Multi-award-winning author Jennifer Steil joins Rachel Knightley to talk about about what kept her writing through kidnap, cancer treatment and everyday life in the three countries she calls home.
2023-02-2651 min
The Writers’ Gym PodcastRachel Knightley talks to Jennifer SteilA painter doesn't need permission to mix any colours they like. Yet, as writers, our memories, imagination, observations and questions about the world and ourselves come with "not supposed to go there" stamped all over them. How can we give ourselves permission to beat those blocks?Multi-award-winning author Jennifer Steil joins Rachel Knightley to talk about about what kept her writing through kidnap, cancer treatment and everyday life in the three countries she calls home. Get full access to Dr Rachel Knightley at the Writers' Gym at drrachelknightley.substack.com/subscribe
2023-02-2652 min