Hosts Tina Strachan, Madeleine Cleary, and Natasha Rai reconnect after a busy few months. Natasha begins major structural edits on a 120,000-word second novel with tight timelines and a tip to rewrite editorial notes in her own words. Madeleine describes how edits revealed deeper issues, advises asking for deadline extensions, and discusses proactively visiting bookshops, introducing yourself to booksellers, and signing stock to boost visibility and sales. Tina reports starting an exciting new project after a beach break, discusses “stalking ideas” from the Jack Heath interview, and suggests naps can help solve plot problems. Cassie Stroud introduces her debut novel Iluka, about siblings uncovering letters from their missing mother.

00:00 Podcast Intro

00:56 Hosts Catch Up

07:44 Natasha Structural Edits

12:02 Editing Tips and Mindset

15:47 Madeleine Deadline Extension

20:20 Tina New Story Spark

26:32 Stalking Ideas Discussion

28:00 Story Idea Sparks

28:35 Channeling the Muse

29:37 Naps and Liminal Breakthroughs

32:04 Cassie Stroud Iluka

33:30 Jack Interview Takeaways

36:15 Write for Publishers

42:54 Author Marketing Reality

46:52 Bookseller Hand Selling

53:46 Cold Calls and Signings

56:52 Top Tips and Wrap

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Madeleine Cleary | Author
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Natasha Rai | Author | Mentor

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