Welcome to Write Through The Roof, the podcast for writers who want to improve their craft.

Episode 51 with Hester Fox – artist & writer of gothic historical fiction

“A love letter to New England set at this beautiful house.”

Episode 51 – Hester Fox – Show Notes
  • Not necessarily writing every day but doing things ‘writing-related’ every day
  • Tea, snack, cosy-up with the cat or coffee shop ambience
  • Conversion from pantser to plotter
  • Dark, gothic with a happy ending – strong female relationships and romantic love
  • Embracing the darkness as an exposure therapy
  • Making every word count
  • Critique partners – sharing chapter by chapter. Feedback and accountability.
  • Cadence and rhythm in a first draft – making notes to keep the momentum going
  • 19th-century authors – Jane Austen, Dickens, Hardy. More recent – Shirley Jackson, Daphne du Maurier, Susanna Kearsley, Simone St.James, Josh Malerman
  • Historic homes in New England and day job as inspiration for The Witch of Willow Hall. Interacting with objects and houses on a daily basis
  • Second novel – The Widow of Pale Harbour – 1840s Maine during Poe-mania and a gender-flipped retelling of Beauty and the Beast

“Juicy relationships set against a dark background.”

“Making every word pull its weight in a sentence.”

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