Month: February 2021

A brand new episode of We’d Like a Word gets released into the wild today in which Paul Waters and Stevyn Colgan discuss the topic of Northern Irish crime fiction. Joining them are authors James Murphy and Simon Maltman, and publisher and owner of the iconic Belfast No Alibis bookshop, David Torrans.

Among the many topics discussed are whether the ‘ship has sailed’ on Ulster Noir, how the NI Arts Council is supporting writers and writing teachers, and why writing about anything set during The Troubles is problematic. And just who is Barry Murderer??

Simon Maltman is the author of Witness, the Bongo Fury series, The Mark, Return Run and more. His blog is here.

James Murphy is the author of The Rise of Terror, the Terror Within, and Dark Light. His website is here.

David Torrans is the owner of the No Alibis bookshop and the No Alibis Press. Among the title he has published are The Lammisters by Declan Burke, Disorder by Gerard Brennan, and the much anticipated Seed by Joanna Walsh.

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We’d like a Word is a (nearly) award-winning podcast about writing, writers and readers hosted by authors Paul Waters and Stevyn Colgan and served up in three easily digestible 20 minute chunks per episode.

You can find it on most podcast platforms such as iTunes, Spotify, ListenNotes, Podcast Radio, Anchor FM, Google Podcasts, etc.

Or just click here.

Hello! And welcome to another episode of our (nearly) award-winning podcast (so close!). This episode we’re looking at the divisive topic of publishers. Are they too celebrity obsessed? Are they driven by accountants rather than people who appreciate good writing? Is it possible to land a book deal without an agent? What is the state of publishing today in the wake of COVID-19?

We put these questions, and a lot more, to our excellent guests – Karen Sullivan of Orenda Books and Miranda Jewess of Viper Books.

You may not be surprised to learn that the world of publishing is like any other area of business – it exists on a spectrum with the greedy and sales-obsessed quantity lovers at one end and the caring, quality book lovers at the other. Both Karen and Miranda are definitely towards the latter end of that sliding scale – of course they want to sell books but not at the cost of quality. Consequently, the books they publish are well-written, often bestselling, and popular with readers. And they care about their authors.

It’s a lively, fun episode and a must for any writers out there.

Find us on iTunes, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Podcast Radio, Anchor FM and, indeed, anywhere else that hosts great podcasts.

Or, just click here.