James Hunt's debut memoir Love Needs No Words is the story of a unique fatherhood, caring for his two sons, both of whom are non-speaking and autistic. James talks with me about the decision to write the things he didn't feel he could say out loud to friends and family, and how those words began to reach families all over the world with a shared reality. He talks about needing that connection so much early in his journey, how he came to be able to speak about his own mental health so much more openly and how he hopes this book will reach the many Dads who struggle to be open about their experiences.

Links

Love Needs No Words by James Hunt

SAA Clothing

Stories about Autism on Instagram

Lauren Currie OBE is an entrepreneur, writer, speaker and founder of Upfront, an organisation on a mission to change the confidence of 1 million women. In her new book Be Upfront: 24 Rules of life changing confidence, Lauren picks apart the old rules of confidence that don't serve women and introduces the reader to new rules to live by.

We talk about how Lauren's confidence as a writer has grown, why she thinks self doubt is no bad thing (and some men could use a little more of it) and her different experiences of self publishing and traditional publishing.

We are giving away copies of Be Upfront on Instagram! To be grab one - follow @_laurencurrie_ and @pennywincer and comment on the competition post to enter.

Links

Be Upfront by Lauren Currie

Taylor Meets The Trick by Lauren Currie

Upfront

Lauren Currie's newsletter

Jodi Wilson is a health journalist and author of A Brain That Breathes: Essential habits for an overwhelming world. Jodi talks with me today about how after her third book was published and she was feeling depleted, she became curious about what our brains need to be creative and productive. This book is the result.

In the conversation we talk about the uncertainty, magic and hard work of writing books and how tiny pockets of breathing space can transform our creativity and lives.

It's lovely to be back for series 12!

Links

A Brain That Breathes by Jodi Wilson

Jodi Wilson on Substack - Practicing Simplicity

Jodi Wilson on Instagram

The Fold Membership for writers

Penny Wincer on Instagram

Francesca Segal is the author of Welcome to Glorious Tuga and Island Calling, the first two novels in a trilogy about the delightful fictional island of Tuga De Oro in the South Atlantic. Francesca talks with me about fictional world building, the deliberate choice to create a refuge and a community, not without challenges but incredibly hopeful as well as the influence of 19th century literature on the novels, and the joys and challenges of writing interconnected books. We also talk about Francesca's 2019 memoir Mothership, still one of the most incredible accounts of early motherhood I have ever read.

links

Welcome to Glorious Tuga - Francesca Segal

Island Calling - Francesca Segal

Mothership - Francesca Segal

The Fold membership for writers

This series of the podcast is sponsored by award winning audio book app xigxag

Listeners of Not Too Busy To Write can receive their second book FREE

To redeem, download the xigxag app from the App Store or Google Play.

Go to My xigxag/Settings, then click on Account.

Under Vouchers, click on the ‘Enter code’ button and add your voucher code TOOBUSY to your account.

After your first purchase, your second title will be free!

Today I am in conversation with not one but three guests! We're talking about the incredible impact of the Women's Prize Discoveries from three perspectives - 2026 Judge and Curtis Brown literary agent Ciara Finan, 2022 shortlistee and author of the extraordinary debut novel Ordinary Saints, Niamh Ni Mhaoileoin and Alice Trew, 2024 shortlistee who has just secured a 2 book deal, the first of which The Hungry Dark, will be out in 2027.

Ciara talks us through her work as a literary agent and what she'll be looking for amongst entries in the 2026 prize, and Niamh and Alice talk about their experiences as shortlistees and the incredible impact it has had on their careers and their community as writers.

The Women's Prize Discoveries is open to all women aged over 18 who are unagented and unpublished, resident in the UK and Ireland, and writing in English, in any adult fiction genre. The deadline for the 2026 prize is January 12th. Submission is free and requires 10k words and a synopsis. See the link below for more details.

Links

Women's Prize Discoveries

Ordinary Saints - Niamh Ni Mhaoileoin

Curtis Brown Creative

Ciara Finan at Curtis Brown

Alice on Instagram

Niamh on Instagram

This series of the podcast is sponsored by award winning audio book app xigxag

Listeners of Not Too Busy To Write can receive their second book FREE

To redeem, download the xigxag app from the App Store or Google Play.

Go to My xigxag/Settings, then click on Account.

Under Vouchers, click on the ‘Enter code’ button and add your voucher code TOOBUSY to your account.

After your first purchase, your second title will be free!

Chartered psychologist, coach and author Suzy Reading believes women need to learn to be a bit selfish. After many books on the subject of self care and self nourishment, Suzy focuses her new book How To Be Selfish, instead, on the importance of receiving care.

Suzy and I talk about why women struggle with self advocacy so much and why it's a vital skill to live a full life, especially one in which we contribute so much to our families and communities. We also talk about why writers specifically need to be a little bit selfish and why it's worth learning how to be.

Links

How To Be Selfish by Suzy Reading

Suzy Reading on Instagram

The Fold membership for writers

Penny Wincer on Instagram

This series of the podcast is sponsored by award winning audio book app xigxag

Listeners of Not Too Busy To Write can receive their second book FREE

To redeem, download the xigxag app from the App Store or Google Play.

Go to My xigxag/Settings, then click on Account.

Under Vouchers, click on the ‘Enter code’ button and add your voucher code TOOBUSY to your account.

After your first purchase, your second title will be free!

Lily Dunn is the author of the acclaimed Sins of My Father and her latest book Into Being brings together her experience as a writer and teacher of literary memoir. It's an essential read for anyone embarking on personal narrative form. Lily talks with me about assumptions people get wrong about memoir, the unique relationship between memoirist and reader and the ethics and challenges of writing about other people.

Links

Into Being by Lily Dunn

Sins of My Father by Lily Dunn

London Lit Lab

Memoir Bootcamp with Lily Dunn

The Fold Writers Membership

This series of the podcast is sponsored by award winning audio book app xigxag

Listeners of Not Too Busy To Write can receive their second book FREE

To redeem, download the xigxag app from the App Store or Google Play.

Go to My xigxag/Settings, then click on Account.

Under Vouchers, click on the ‘Enter code’ button and add your voucher code TOOBUSY to your account.

After your first purchase, your second title will be free!

Claire Lynch is on the podcast this week talking about her incredible debut novel A Family Matter, the story of a family torn apart and the decades of silence that follows. This is Claire's second time on the podcast - we spoke way back in 2021 about her memoir Small: On Motherhoods.

Claire talks with me about when she first discovered how lesbian mothers had access to their children forcibly removed by court order well into the 1990s in the UK and her decision to explore this heartbreaking recent history in fiction. Claire talks about the varied reception the book has had across different regions facing differing political climates, as well as her recent decision to leave her job as a professor of literature and creative writing and write full time.

Links

A Family Matter by Claire Lynch

Small: On Motherhoods by Claire Lynch

The Fold Membership for Writers

This series of the podcast is sponsored by award winning audio book app xigxag

Listeners of Not Too Busy To Write can receive their second book FREE

To redeem, download the xigxag app from the App Store or Google Play.

Go to My xigxag/Settings, then click on Account.

Under Vouchers, click on the ‘Enter code’ button and add your voucher code TOOBUSY to your account.

After your first purchase, your second title will be free!