The Horrors of Morecambe – Andrew Michael Hurley

‘I think any place like Morcambe, so full of contraditions,  is interesting for a writer…’

Did you hever heard about this town facing a myterious bay in which the sea appears and disappears as quick as lightning? People love or hate Morecambe Bay, but since Lancastrian author Andrew M Hurley chose it as a scenery for his disturbing Gothic novel the place – and its unique imaginery – will be immortal forever.

Andrew has one of this inspiring stories aspiring writers like to hear. One day he was working as a librarian while writing a novel, next day he published it with a small publishing press, and the day after that the novel was bought by a John Murray imprint and won the Costa First Novel Award (in 2015).

But what people forget is that behind all this success there are years and years of endurance, writing, two books of short stories, an MA in Creative Writing and much effort… Listen to the interview for the full story!

And don’t forget Andrew’s final advice…

‘Don’t give up and always trust your own voice’.

What can you find in this interview?

-Doing a Creative Writing MA.

-Publishing with a small press. (Tartarus Press).

-Gothic.

-Teaching CW.

-Finding an agent.

Do you want to know more about Andrew M Hurley?

-Check out his fantastic novel The Loney. It has a brilliant ending, I promise! And, apparently, it’s the first part of a trilogy of Gothic novels set in the Lancashire area…

-Check out his Wikipedia page.

-Check out his collections of short stories Cages and Other Stories, 2006, ISBN 9781411699021, and The Unusual Death of Julie Christie and Other Stories, 2008, ISBN 9780955981401

 

Many thanks to our meticulous editor, Terry Garanhel and to the founder and sponsor of the programme, Yvonne Battle-Felton. Also, to Jenn Ashworth, who helped us get this wonderful interview. And, of course, to Andrew Michael Hurley, who was very kind an accesible. A true inspiration for writers and – specially – fans of Gothic literature!  We wish you the very best with your next novels.

 

 

 

Feeling and writing – Yamuna Venugopal

‘I grew up in a household where female members of the neighbourhood came to talk with my parents about injustices,’ Yamuna Venugopal said. She’s an courageous writer who left a stable job as a software engineer to come to Lancaster and study a Creative Writing MA. She hasn’t regretted this decision, though: ‘Being away from India gave me a broad-minded view of the things I’m writing about.’

Yamuna is a skilled writer who likes to address Indian social reality through her short stories, often told from a female perspective. ‘I like to write about something that affects me.’ For her, the most important thing in writing is to depict believable characters: ‘I try to be in someone else’s skin when I write, it keeps me emotionally close to the character.’ One of her short stories was published in Pif Magazine. After completing her MA, Yamuna returned to India, where she’s currently pursuing a career in writing. ‘I’d love to have an international audience,’ she confesses.

What can you find in this interview?

-Experiences from doing a Creative Writing MA.

-Socially engaged writing.

-Experiences with publishing in online magazines.

-Blogging.

-Writing in a second language.

Texts Read:

–Abstract Art (short story).

Do you want to know more about Yamuna Venugopal?

-Check out her blog.

Many thanks to our meticulous editor, Terry Garanhel, and the founder of the programme, Yvonne Battle-Felton. And, of course, to our talented writer and friend Yamuna Venugopal. We’re sure your books are going to reach an audience from all over the world!

Don’t forget to check our next interview on Sunday 15th of November in 87.7 Bailrigg FM at 6pm with sailor and writer Paul Atherton!