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London Writers' Salon

Parul Bavishi, Matthew Trinetti
London Writers' Salon
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  • #164: Liv Maidment — A Literary Agent’s Playbook for Writers: Query Smart, Pick Comps, Nail the Pitch & Synopsis, and Today’s Market
    Head of Books at the Madeleine Milburn Agency, Liv Maidment, shares how literary agents read, evaluate, and champion submissions (from pitches and comps to strategy, timelines, and today’s AI-driven market), helping writers pitch their work clearly and confidently.You'll learn:How to build a snappy 1–2 line elevator pitch that helps everyone down the chain sell your book (“the art of summing something up in one or two sentences”).Tips for writing comp titles and using them smartly.Blurbs vs synopses: how the pitch sells your book while the synopsis tells your book.What strong synopses and author bios must include: how much to reveal, and why they matter.Why agent editorial and development with an agent still matter.Today’s submission etiquette: realistic timelines, when to chase, and how resubmissions work.Market and positioning: genres currently on the rise, platform and geography demystified (do you need social media, does location matter).Implications of AI in today's publishing landscape: contracts, transparency, and more.More exclusive insight and advice for writers from an expert on the other side of the publishing industry. Resources and Links:📑Interview TranscriptMadeleine Milburn WebsiteSubmission FAQs About Liv MaidmentLiv Maidment is Head of Books at the Madeleine Milburn Literary Agency, representing a prizewinning list of literary, upmarket, and book club fiction. She previously worked at The Blair Partnership and United Agents and has brokered major UK and North American deals, guiding debut and established authors throughout their careers.  For show notes, transcripts and to attend our live podcasts visit: podcast.londonwriterssalon.com.For free writing sessions, join free Writers’ Hours: writershour.com.*FOLLOW LONDON WRITERS’ SALONTwitter: twitter.com/​​WritersSalonInstagram: instagram.com/londonwriterssalonFacebook: facebook.com/LondonWritersSalonIf you’re enjoying this show, please rate and review this show!
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  • #163: Indyana Schneider — Lessons from an Opera Singer Who Wrote Her Novel on the Tube; Rhythm, Desire & Tension for Fiction Writers
    Indyana Schneider—international opera singer and novelist—shares practical ways to write rhythm and desire on the page, craft scene-level tension, and shape compressed-time narratives; plus lessons from drafting her debut on the Tube.  You'll learn:How to build sentence-level cadence: vary lengths and read aloud to tune flow.A simple spine for short-timeframe novels: day-by-day beats, rising stakes, a final choice.Where to start and stop scenes so pages move (start late, leave early).Writing desire without cliché: stay in character voice; revise for rhythm and clarity.Turning musical training into prose: sensory sequencing that guides attention.When to query (and what “ready” looked like) plus handling editorial feedback.Smart ways to measure success beyond sales and keep momentum across careers. Resources and Links:📑Interview TranscriptSince the World is Ending by Indyana Schneider28 Questions by Indyana SchneiderIf the World Was Ending by JP Saxe ft Julia MichaelsWhat Makes a Bestseller? | Jonny Geller | TEDxOxford ReaderBankOne Day by David NichollsFundamentally by Nussaibah YounisSo Thrilled for You by Holly BourneThe Transgender Issue by Shon FayeLove in Exile by Shon FayeI Love You, I Love You, I Love You by Laura DockrillIndy’s Instagram About Indyana SchneiderIndyana Schneider is an international opera singer and novelist from Sydney. She studied Music at Oxford and Opera in Hanover, completed training at the Zurich Opera studio, and now performs across the UK, Europe, and Australia. She is the author of 28 Questions and Since the World Is Ending, a novel set over a sweltering weekend in Vienna, steeped in music, desire, and consequence. For show notes, transcripts and to attend our live podcasts visit: podcast.londonwriterssalon.com.For free writing sessions, join free Writers’ Hours: writershour.com.*FOLLOW LONDON WRITERS’ SALONTwitter: twitter.com/​​WritersSalonInstagram: instagram.com/londonwriterssalonFacebook: facebook.com/LondonWritersSalonIf you’re enjoying this show, please rate and review this show!
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  • #162: Natalie Lue — Publishing Mini-Memoirs, Writing Difficult Truths, Choosing Indie Publishing
    Natalie Lue, bestselling author and writer (Baggage Reclaim) shares how she shaped her mini-memoirs Let Go (Family & Friction) with The Pound Project, why intention is your best editor, and the inner tools that helped her write through grief, illness, and complicated family ties — without turning her life into content.You’ll learnHow to decide if you’re writing from the scar or the wound.Practical ways to protect yourself on the page: boundaries, pauses, and purpose.A simple test for what stays in your memoir and what gets cut.Why journaling and “scrap-paper noodling” reveal patterns you can’t see in real time.How a small, focused publisher like The Pound Project co-builds a project — and what they look for in pitches.The mindset shift of “hold it lightly” when outcomes are uncertain.Gratitude for your past self as a creative survival skill.Natalie’s reflection prompts:What am I pretending not to already know?What am I clinging to — and what would it mean to let it go?Who will I become if I let go? Who will I keep being if I don’t?What pattern keeps replaying in my journals — and what’s it trying to teach me?What do I need to feel safe enough to tell the truth?Resources and Links:📑Interview TranscriptThe Baggage Reclaim SessionsThe Pound ProjectEmail for The Pound Project - [email protected] Go by Natalie LueAbout Natalie Lue:Natalie is a writer, speaker, and host of The Baggage Reclaim Sessions, a podcast with 3M+ downloads across 140+ countries. Her books include The Joy of Saying No (Harper Horizon) and self-published titles such as Mr Unavailable and the Fallback Girl. In Let Go (The Pound Project), she explores a decade marked by estrangement, loss, illness, and publishing, showing how releasing what no longer serves can restore creative power and clarity. For show notes, transcripts and to attend our live podcasts visit: podcast.londonwriterssalon.com.For free writing sessions, join free Writers’ Hours: writershour.com.*FOLLOW LONDON WRITERS’ SALONTwitter: twitter.com/​​WritersSalonInstagram: instagram.com/londonwriterssalonFacebook: facebook.com/LondonWritersSalonIf you’re enjoying this show, please rate and review this show!
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  • #161: Sarah Hall — Writing Award-Winning Short Stories & Literary Fiction, Evocative Landscape & Creative Freedom; Booker-Nominated Writer
    Sarah Hall—twice Booker Prize–nominated author and the only writer to win the BBC National Short Story Award twice—on crafting fiction that is both lush and uncompromising, and how to captivate readers on the sentence level while staying true to creative freedom.We discuss:Her early reading life in the countryside and the characters who first sparked her imaginationLessons learned from an “unpublishable” first novel and how Haweswater found its true formThe discipline and intuition behind her writing process and when to share draftsWhy handwriting first drafts rekindled a sense of play and sharpened her editingHow to build short stories that hold “the world on a pin” and reverberate beyond the pageGiving voice to Britain’s only named wind in Helm and weaving folklore, climate themes, and playfulnessDiscerning a story’s ending and sustaining joy in the writing process About Sarah HallSarah Hall is one of Britain’s most acclaimed contemporary authors. Twice nominated for the Booker Prize and the first and only writer to win the BBC National Short Story Award twice, she is the author of ten acclaimed novels and short story collections, including Haweswater, The Electric Michelangelo, The Carhullan Army, and Burntcoat. Her latest novel, Helm, blends myth, climate anxiety, and playful storytelling to bring Britain’s only named wind to life.Resources and Links:📑Interview TranscriptHelmThe Helm Wind, the only named wind in Britain - the Met OfficeSarah’s WebsiteSarah’s booksHaweswaterThe Electric MichelangeloHow to Paint a Dead ManThe Carhullan ArmyBurntcoat“The Grotesques” - BBC National Short Story Award WinnerInterview with Sarah Hall in The GuardianFaber & Faber - Sarah’s publisherLee Brackstone - Sarah’s editorZ for Zachariah by Robert C. O’BrienSombrero Fallout by Richard BrautiganIs A River Alive? by Robert MacfarlaneLight Years by James SalterHilary Mantel’s Website For show notes, transcripts and to attend our live podcasts visit: podcast.londonwriterssalon.com.For free writing sessions, join free Writers’ Hours: writershour.com.*FOLLOW LONDON WRITERS’ SALONTwitter: twitter.com/​​WritersSalonInstagram: instagram.com/londonwriterssalonFacebook: facebook.com/LondonWritersSalonIf you’re enjoying this show, please rate and review this show!
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  • #160: Nicolas Cole — How to Balance Art and Business as a Writer: Ghostwriting, AI, Focus & Sustainable Success
    Nicolas Cole—digital writer, entrepreneur, and co-founder of Ship 30 for 30, Premium Ghostwriting Academy, Typeshare, and Write With AI—on building a portfolio of writing businesses, ghostwriting as a path for writers, and how to balance art and commerce.  We discuss:How poetry kept him creatively grounded while building businessesWhy every piece of writing answers a question Career paths to making money as a writer todayThe power of ghostwriting for skill and incomeHow AI changes (and doesn’t change) the job of a writerBuilding consistent writing systems and habitsHow to focus when you have too many ideas + other mindset shifts to scale businesses and find creative clarity About Nicolas ColeNicolas Cole is a digital writer, entrepreneur, and co-founder of Ship 30 for 30, Premium Ghostwriting Academy, Typeshare, and Write With AI. He first rose to prominence as the #1 most-read writer on Quora, later writing a popular column for Inc Magazine. He has ghostwritten for hundreds of entrepreneurs, artists, and authors, and is the author of The Art & Business of Online Writing and The Art & Business of Ghostwriting. Today, he helps writers build sustainable careers by mastering both the art and the business of writing.Resources and Links:📑 Interview Transcriptnicolascole.comPremium Ghostwriting AcademyShip30for30Commercial Fiction Club   For show notes, transcripts and to attend our live podcasts visit: podcast.londonwriterssalon.com.For free writing sessions, join free Writers’ Hours: writershour.com.*FOLLOW LONDON WRITERS’ SALONTwitter: twitter.com/​​WritersSalonInstagram: instagram.com/londonwriterssalonFacebook: facebook.com/LondonWritersSalonIf you’re enjoying this show, please rate and review this show!
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About London Writers' Salon

A deep dive into the habits, mindsets, tools, craft secrets and creative practices bestselling writers use to write novels, plays, poetry, and articles. Hosted by the co-founders of the London Writers' Salon, Matt & Parul.
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