The Literary Sofa
Guest Authors
Guest Author – Conversation with Rob Doyle
I’m happy to say that all three of the brilliant Irish writers* from my Hot Picks 2016 will be joining me on the Literary Sofa in the coming weeks, starting with Rob Doyle, author of This is the Ritual, the first story collection to be included in my selections. Following publication of his astonishing first … Continue reading
Writers on Location – Nicholas Hogg on Tokyo
According to the latest edition of The Economist Pocket World in Figures, the UK heads the world ranking for new titles published, with 2,875 per million of population in 2013 (compared to 1,831 in Slovenia and Taiwan in joint second place, and 959 in the United States in 12th). I find all of this staggering … Continue reading
Guest Author – Isabel Rogers on What a Poet can teach a Novelist
This morning I found myself simultaneously emptying the dishwasher, waiting for an insurance company to answer the phone and thinking about poetry. I will not pretend this is my life. (OK, it is, apart from the poetry bit.) I was trying to mentally compose an introduction worthy of the Literary Sofa’s first visit by a … Continue reading
Writers on Location – André Alexis on Toronto
I am constantly finding new books to enthuse about (I know, it’s hard to keep up) but today’s Writers on Location visit to Toronto is a special cause for celebration – my guest André Alexis has just been awarded Canada’s prestigious Giller Prize for Fifteen Dogs. As a result, this surprising and original novel (published in the … Continue reading
Guest Author – Catherine Simpson on Writing a woman in crisis
One of the joys of running the Literary Sofa is the way threads sometimes develop out of nowhere and lately there’s been something of a ‘what readers really want’ thing going on around here. I’ve been lucky to host several brilliant guest posts on topics that I feel strongly about and I’m clearly not alone … Continue reading
Guest Author – Beth Miller, the Accidental Psychological Thriller Writer
There’s an unusual backstory to this week’s post. I met my guest Beth Miller at a party hosted by her publishers and was given an advance copy of her second novel The Good Neighbour. I often get a sense of what people’s writing might be like from talking to them, about anything at all. Sometimes … Continue reading
Writers on Location – Anja de Jager on Amsterdam
I’ve recently returned from a very enjoyable, stimulating and exhausting week in New York and there will be no drop in the pace over the next few weeks. There’s some great stuff coming up on the Literary Sofa, including several genres you won’t often find here: in this case, crime, and next week, the psychological thriller (even … Continue reading
Guest Author – Helen MacKinven on Setting her Novel in a Small Town
Once again I am very happy to be hosting a writer who has been following and supporting the Literary Sofa from the beginning and who has now achieved her goal of becoming a published novelist. Helen MacKinven and I have still never met in person but we’ve enjoyed exchanging manuscripts and supporting each other on … Continue reading
Guest Author – Stephanie Butland in Praise of the ‘Quiet Book’
Usually (and officially) when a guest author writes for the Literary Sofa it begins with me enjoying their book, getting in touch and suggesting a related topic that will interest my readers. Occasionally it’s the other way round and when Stephanie Butland offered me a piece in praise of the ‘quiet novel’, I didn’t hesitate. … Continue reading
Writers on Location – Lucy Brydon on Shanghai
My trip to Malaysia last winter left me with a hankering to get to know the Far East better but even before that, reading Tash Aw’s Five Star Billionaire had ignited my interest in Shanghai, a place that sounds exhilarating and intimidating in equal measure. Today I’m thrilled to welcome debut author Lucy Brydon to share the … Continue reading
My new novel SCENT – out in paperback on 19 May 2022
The Literary Sofa 