27: Fiction and Creative Side Projects, with Freya Bromley

Surprise, it's me. I thought I'd share what I've learned in my 17 years as a newspaper columnist for both local and national titles, including my advice for getting started and getting your next commission.

Rebecca Perry is back to discuss her heady, phenomenal debut novel, 'May We Feed the King'. Mere hours after recording this 'longlisted' for the Booker Prize episode, she was shortlisted!

Chris Bailey joins Kerry to discuss how he forged a writing career in the year after business school. They talk about Chris' productivity experiments and how a lower dopamine altitude can help writing focus.

In the episode, Kerry is joined (once again!) by Freya Bromley, author of 'The Tidal Year' and 'A Real Piece of Work'. They discuss her migration from memoir to fiction, plus how to approach the creative projects in your life.

In this episode, Kerry is joined by David Sodergren, the Scottish horror author of the smash hits ‘The Haar’, ‘Maggie’s Grave’, ‘Rotten Tommy’ and many more. They discuss what makes horror scary, subverting genre and how to get started in self-publishing.

Fiction author Molly Aitken joins Kerry to discuss her writing process, her role as a Creative Writing lecturer and her recent experience having her short story, 'This is How it Happens', published in The New Yorker.

Freelance editor Bryony Leah joins Kerry to discuss self-publishing, the differences between line, copy and story edits, as well as the common foibles she corrects in her authors' work. Kerry finds yet another reason to get out her giant dictionary.

In this episode, Managing Editor of MacStories, John Voorhees joins Kerry to discuss the best ways to get started in technology journalism and how a daily online publication operates.

Kerry's friend and colleague, Chloé Finn, joins her to chat about what they read in 2025 and what they're planning to read in 2026. Chloé discusses authors who create rich interior worlds and Kerry bench presses a gigantic Collins Dictionary.

Marcia Hutchinson joins Kerry to talk about her work running Primary Colours, for which she was awarded an MBE for services to cultural diversity, along with finding the writing flows that work for her, and her debut novel, 'The Mercy Step'.