Solid Gold Podcasts #BeHeard The Hidden Lives of Writers

S08 E03 Sarah Lotz

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Sarah Lotz is a prolific and hugely popular author who won the British Fantasy Award in 2015. She lived in South Africa for many years before moving back to the United Kingdom.

Sarah is known for her many writing collaborations, as well as her solo work. Her most recent novel HOW TO KILL A CRIME WRITER is out now from Harper Collins

Sarah joins Fiona and Gail to talk about how grieving the sudden loss of her beloved husband became the impetus behind her most recent work.

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Chapters
  • 00:00 Introduction and Co-Writing
  • 05:45 What Fiona Has Been Watching: Half Man
  • 08:40 What Gail Has Been Reading: Heart the Lover
  • 10:55 Introducing Sarah Lotz
  • 12:33 Sarah's Writing Week and Daily Process
  • 15:35 Spotting the Difference Between Good and Bad Writing Days
  • 17:30 Making the Writing Disappear: Sarah's Craft Philosophy
  • 18:17 Origin Story: From Mural Artist to Published Novelist
  • 20:48 How Co-Writing Began: Writers' Rooms and Natural Collaboration
  • 22:30 The SL Grey Collaboration with Louis Greenberg
  • 24:12 The Helena S. Page Erotica Collaboration
  • 26:36 Writing with Her Daughter Savannah: The Deadlands Series
  • 28:58 Genre-Hopping: Why Different Stories Demand Different Genres
  • 31:11 A Gentler Turn: Writing Impossible as a Response to the World
  • 33:26 Writing How to Kill a Crime Writer Through Grief
  • 37:35 The Abandoned Manuscripts and the Thirty-Thousand-Word Tipping Point
  • 39:41 Plotting Tips: The Want-and-Obstacle Test and Conflict as Engine
  • 42:05 Character Is Everything: What Readers Actually Remember
  • 43:17 Architect vs Gardener: Different Approaches to Plotting
  • 47:36 Tampering with the Cozy Mystery Genre
  • 48:58 The Idea Behind Impossible: Finding the Biggest Obstacle
  • 52:17 What Sarah Has Been Watching and Reading
  • 55:22 Hosts Reflect on Key Takeaways
21 Sep English South Africa Books · Arts

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