#495: Matt Carr, fiction and non-fiction writer, journalist and podcaster
Release Date: 10/25/2025
#501: John Lewis-Stempel, celebrated nature writer and farmer
Collected: The Podcast
The celebrated nature writer and farmer delves into the Royal Literary Fund archive, reflecting on his singular creative processes, why rewilding may not always be a good thing and how he learnt to speak dog. © Royal Literary Fund www.rlf.org.uk
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#500: Abigail Mann, comedy writer turned queen of erotic fiction
Collected: The Podcast
In her first conversation about her hotly anticipated new erotic novel Wet Ink, written under the pen name Abigail Avis, RLF Fellow Abigail Mann tells presenter Ann Morgan about the importance of portraying a diversity of experiences in sex scenes, the perils of the productivity mindset and the fear of combining writing and motherhood. Abigail will be writing a series of articles for Collected following the process of Wet Ink’s publication this year. Follow her journey on the RLF's Substack: © Royal Literary Fund www.rlf.org.uk
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#499: Vanessa Collingridge, broadcaster and non-fiction writer
Collected: The Podcast
Collected's Caroline Sanderson is joined by author and broadcaster Vanessa Collingridge to discuss writing about neurodiversity, chronicling the adventures of her distant relative Captain Cook, tackling fake news and democratising knowledge, and a career that has spanned seven continents. © Royal Literary Fund www.rlf.org.uk
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#498: Paula Hawkins, internationally bestselling novelist
Collected: The Podcast
International bestseller and RLF trustee Paula Hawkins joins Collected host Sonia Faleiro to reflect on her journey to success, how she deals with criticism, and the way each book comes to her differently. Paula's renowned thrillers include The Girl on the Train, A Slow Fire Burning and Into the Water. © Royal Literary Fund www.rlf.org.uk
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#497: Satinder Chohan, playwright and dramastorian
Collected: The Podcast
Presenter Juliet Gilkes Romero is joined by playwright Satinder Chohan to discuss what it means to be a dramastorian, how telling more stories about the dark side of empire would improve our understanding of immigration, and how you balance writing and caring for family members. © Royal Literary Fund
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#496: Elif Shafak, award-winning & international best-selling novelist, essayist and activist
Collected: The Podcast
Elif Shafak, the internationally acclaimed Turkish-British author of 21 books joins host Doug Johnstone on a deep dive into the RLF sound archive. Responding to other writers' observations, she reflects on her approach to structure, the role of activism in her writing, what it means to write a book that won't be read for 100 years, and her love of heavy metal music. © Royal Literary Fund
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#495: Matt Carr, fiction and non-fiction writer, journalist and podcaster
Collected: The Podcast
Presenter Paul Dodgson is joined by Matt Carr, whose wide-ranging curiosity has led him to write books on topics as diverse as the history of terrorism, the conquest of Patagonia and Charles Darwin. As a lifelong Hispanophile, Matt also writes fiction and nonfiction often focused on themes from Spanish and Latin American culture, history, and politics. © Royal Literary Fund
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#494: Beata Umubyeyi Mairesse, author and genocide survivor
Collected: The Podcast
French-Rwandan writer Beata Umubyeyi Mairesse joins host Sonia Faleiro and responds to clips from the RLF archives, using them as ways into her creative process. This moving discussion, which features frank descriptions of violence, reveals how the will to survive can inspire storytelling, the importance of sharing survivors' accounts, and how this can build fellowship and community in the wake of profound trauma. © Royal Literary Fund
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#493: Ian Seed, translator, short-story writer and prose poet
Collected: The Podcast
Host Jonathan Tulloch is joined by award-winning poet, translator, short-story writer, essayist and editor Ian Seed, to explore what makes a prose poem, how translating can influence writing and the power of redrafting. © Royal Literary Fund
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#492: Blake Morrison, poet, memoirist and critic
Collected: The Podcast
Blake Morrison joins Julia Copus to respond to material from the RLF archives, and reflect on his work and process. They discuss how he grew into being more confessional in his writing, how he encourages students to overcome their fears when writing memoir and how he has come to write in such an extraordinary range of genres. © Royal Literary Fund
info_outlinePresenter Paul Dodgson is joined by Matt Carr, whose wide-ranging curiosity has led him to write books on topics as diverse as the history of terrorism, the conquest of Patagonia and Charles Darwin. As a lifelong Hispanophile, Matt also writes fiction and nonfiction often focused on themes from Spanish and Latin American culture, history, and politics.
© Royal Literary Fund