Dear Rach & Soph
Sophie Hamley
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Top 10 Dear Rach & Soph Episodes
Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Dear Rach & Soph episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Dear Rach & Soph for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Dear Rach & Soph episode by adding your comments to the episode page.
05/11/25 • 60 min
This week we have a wonderful guest, Dinuka McKenzie, who was willing to talk about perfectionism and procrastination, paired subjects that have been on our list for a while ... not that we were procrastinating about discussing them (or were we??).
Dinuka was honest about her perfectionism and how it affects her writing, for good and bad, and the good includes the Detective Kate Miles crime series, with novels The Torrent, Taken and Tipping Point published in Australia and the UK.
Dinuka was the winner of the 2020 HarperCollins Australia Banjo Prize. Her writing has been shortlisted for the Sisters in Crime Davitt Awards, the Bad Sydney Crime Danger Awards, and longlisted for the Richell Prize. Her short fiction appeared in the 2022 Dark Deeds Down Under Crime and Thriller Anthology.
She is also an ambassador for Chapters for Change, which is a reading challenge (or readathon), so we asked her about the organisation and the upcoming readathon in July this year.
Registrations open on 15 May for the next readathon and you can find more information at https://chaptersforchange.org
ABOUT CHAPTERS FOR CHANGE
Chapters for Change has to date raised $40,000 to combat Cambodia's high illiteracy rate, where 1 in 5 individuals over 15 lack literacy skills. Funds will maintain a library, support English, Khmer, and preschool classes for disadvantaged children.
These programs have successfully made children literate in their native language within a year and in English within four years. Over 730 children have studied in the programs, with around 100 attending the library daily.
For more about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com
Rachael's latest book is Outback Reunion (2025)
For more about Sophie Green: https://sophiegreenauthor.com
Sophie's latest book is Art Hour at the Duchess Hotel (2024)
For more information about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com
For more informationabout Sophie Green: https://sophiegreenauthor.com
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Episode 17 - Trusting the magic
Dear Rach & Soph
06/15/24 • 63 min
When we started this podcast we don’t think either of us had a single thought about how long it might go for - probably not this long! It's hard to believe we’ve released an episode a week for the past 17 Sundays, but we haven’t run out of things to talk about and we still have a long list of subjects we’d like to discuss. However, we’re going to take a little break as we both have books to write.
In this, our final episode of season 1 (as we do plan to do a season 2), we discuss Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert, a book that Rach has held dear for a while and which Soph read for this podcast but wishes she’d read earlier. She listened to the audiobook, narrated by Gilbert, and loved that experience, but then went and bought the print book as I wanted to have it to refer to. It’s a special book, partly because of how cleanly and clearly Gilbert expresses herself. In this episode Rach and Soph discuss some elements of the book - definitely not all - in light of our own experience as writers.
Happily listening, and we’ll be back!
For more about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com
Rachael's latest book is The Other Bridget
Her next book is The Work Wife (to be published in January 2025)
For more about Sophie Green: https://sophie-green-author.com
Sophie's latest book is Weekends with the Sunshine Gardening Society
Her next book is Art Hour at the Duchess Hotel (to be published in August 2024)
For more information about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com
For more informationabout Sophie Green: https://sophiegreenauthor.com
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05/25/24 • 62 min
Rejections are par for the course for all writers, whether they’ve been published or not. Even once you have a publisher they may reject your next idea - or readers may reject your book by not reading it! Both Rachael Johns and Sophie Green have been rejected - multiple times (and both of us by Mills & Boon, which we talk about in this episode).
As a publisher, and when she was an agent, Sophie does some rejecting, and she also sees a lot of submissions, so she has some things to say about where writers go wrong in the submission process. (She made a ten-minute TikTok about how to write a submission letter and that is linked below.)
Therefore, if you are a writer - or engaged in any creative pursuit - and want to here us chat about being rejected, how to deal with rejection, what leads to manuscripts being rejected, and who knows what else we have in there, this is the episode for you.
How to write a query/submission letter (TikTok video)
https://www.tiktok.com/@sophiegreenbooks/video/7360218814610443538?_t=8mdflLRbf5G&_r=1
For more about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com
Rachael's latest book is The Other Bridget
Her next book is The Work Wife (to be published in January 2025)
For more about Sophie Green: https://sophie-green-author.com
Sophie's latest book is Weekends with the Sunshine Gardening Society
Her next book is Art Hour at the Duchess Hotel (to be published in August 2024)
For more information about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com
For more informationabout Sophie Green: https://sophiegreenauthor.com
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Episode 13 - Retirement energy (with special guest Fiona Palmer)
Dear Rach & Soph
05/18/24 • 72 min
A little while ago Rachael Johns suggested we do an episode on ‘retirement energy’ after one of her favourites, Elin Hildebrand, announced she was stepping back from her regular writing pace. Writers obviously don’t have the same working structures as those in other careers and the decision to step back or retire can happen for a variety of reasons. Rach also suggested that we chat to fellow Western Australian author Fiona Palmer about her decision not to write novels for the foreseeable future (her last published book is The Wrong Sister from 2022).
Books mentioned:
Regeneration by Pat Barker
The Tea Ladies by Amanda Hampson
Jackie by Dawn Tripp
Expiration Dates by Rebecca Searle
We are releasing out of our recording sequence so please forgive us for little anomalies like saying Fiona is our third guest when we’ve had some other guests on!
If you have a question for us, please email [email protected] and put ‘Dear Rach & Soph’ in the subject line.
And if you’d like to actually be in the podcast with us while we answer your question, please let us know in the email.
For more about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com
Rachael's latest book is The Other Bridget
Her next book is The Work Wife (to be published in January 2025)
For more about Sophie Green: https://sophie-green-author.com
Sophie's latest book is Weekends with the Sunshine Gardening Society
Her next book is Art Hour at the Duchess Hotel (to be published in August 2024)
For more information about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com
For more informationabout Sophie Green: https://sophiegreenauthor.com
Subscribe on Spotify
Subscribe on Apple
Subscribe on YouTube
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Episode 12 - The tricky writing bits
Dear Rach & Soph
05/12/24 • 53 min
In this episode Rachael Johns and Sophie Green talk about the parts of writing that we may or may not find tricky: no, not the existential stuff like 'I feel like I'm ripping my soul out of my body' (NB: we don't) but the technical stuff ... showing vs telling, action tags and dialogue tags, keeping track of timelines, whether or not we describe our characters' appearances, and other subjects of that ilk.
We also catch up on our news, which includes Soph writing a Farmer Wants a Wife recap for Rach, and generally enjoy chatting to each other, as always.
For more about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com
Rachael's latest book is The Other Bridget
Her next book is The Work Wife (to be published in January 2025)
For more about Sophie Green: https://sophie-green-author.com
Sophie's latest book is Weekends with the Sunshine Gardening Society
Her next book is Art Hour at the Duchess Hotel (to be published in August 2024)
For more information about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com
For more informationabout Sophie Green: https://sophiegreenauthor.com
Subscribe on Spotify
Subscribe on Apple
Subscribe on YouTube
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Episode 9: Authors and social media (with special guests Natasha Lester and Jack Heath)
Dear Rach & Soph
04/20/24 • 72 min
Rachael Johns decided to scale back her presence on social media for a little while - not leaving it entirely but restricting how much time she spent on it. With two books to write this year, it's no surprise she needed the time. The surprise came when around the same time as she made that decision she discovered that fellow Western Australian and international bestselling author Natasha Lester made a similar decision, and so did so did Jack Heath, prolific author of books for children and adults.
So Rach suggested that we invite Natasha and Jack come on the podcast to discuss this with us, and a lively and highly interesting discussion ensued. Whether you're an author wondering if you need to build a social media presence or scale back the one you have, or just generally wondering about it, we hope you'll find what we have to say thought-provoking.
Books mentioned:
Stolen Focus by Johann Hari
Doppelganger by Naomi Klein
For more about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com
Rachael's latest book is The Other Bridget
Her next book is The Work Wife (to be published in January 2025)
For more about Sophie Green: https://sophie-green-author.com
Sophie's latest book is Weekends with the Sunshine Gardening Society
Her next book is Art Hour at the Duchess Hotel (to be published in August 2024)
For more information about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com
For more informationabout Sophie Green: https://sophiegreenauthor.com
Subscribe on Spotify
Subscribe on Apple
Subscribe on YouTube
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Episode 8: Rejections, submissions, and the editorial process
Dear Rach & Soph
04/13/24 • 59 min
The editorial process is something every published author goes through but which time and repetition tends not to ameliorate ... alas!
In this episode bestselling novelists Rachael Johns and Sophie Green talk about the different stages of the editorial process, both the ones we go through before turning in a manuscript and what happens as a manuscript is turned into a book. Hopefully it’s interesting for writers who haven’t experienced it yet and for published authors it may be cathartic to listen to! We certainly liked chatting to each other about it and hope you enjoy listening in.
Writers - do you have a challenge or conundrum, or a question about process, how to get started, or anything at all to do with writing? We’d love to be your writing agony aunts.
Readers - we would love to hear from you too! You can ask us questions about our books ... and we’d also be happy to be YOUR agony aunts. We may not have professional qualifications but we sort out problems for our characters all the time, so if you’d like to get something off your chest/ask for some input/just see what we think about something, let us know.
If you have a question for us, please email [email protected] and put ‘Dear Rach & Soph’ in the subject line.
And if you’d like to actually be in the podcast with us while we answer your question, please let us know in the email.
For more about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com
Rachael's latest book is The Other Bridget
Her next book is The Work Wife (to be published in January 2025)
For more about Sophie Green: https://sophie-green-author.com
Sophie's latest book is Weekends with the Sunshine Gardening Society
Her next book is Art Hour at the Duchess Hotel (to be published in August 2024)
For more information about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com
For more informationabout Sophie Green: https://sophiegreenauthor.com
Subscribe on Spotify
Subscribe on Apple
Subscribe on YouTube
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 6: Rules, no rules, and the role of panic
Dear Rach & Soph
03/30/24 • 56 min
We're up to episode 6! How did that happen? In this episode Rach and Soph talk about their writing processes; whether they follow rules when they write; what happens in head hopping, Rach's panic about her new manuscript and how Soph has inadvertently become her writing therapist.
During the episode Soph mentions Gretchen Rubin's Four Tendencies quiz and you can find that here.
Writers - do you have a challenge or conundrum, or a question about process, how to get started, or anything at all to do with writing? We’d love to be your writing agony aunts.
Readers - we would love to hear from you too! You can ask us questions about our books ... and we’d also be happy to be YOUR agony aunts. We may not have professional qualifications but we sort out problems for our characters all the time, so if you’d like to get something off your chest/ask for some input/just see what we think about something, let us know.
If you have a question for us, please email [email protected] and put ‘Dear Rach & Soph’ in the subject line.
And if you’d like to actually be in the podcast with us while we answer your question, please let us know in the email.
For more about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com
Rachael's latest book is The Other Bridget
Her next book is The Work Wife (to be published in January 2025)
For more about Sophie Green: https://sophie-green-author.com
Sophie's latest book is Weekends with the Sunshine Gardening Society
Her next book is Art Hour at the Duchess Hotel (to be published in August 2024)
For more information about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com
For more informationabout Sophie Green: https://sophiegreenauthor.com
Subscribe on Spotify
Subscribe on Apple
Subscribe on YouTube
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 3: Why we write
Dear Rach & Soph
03/09/24 • 50 min
In the third episode of Dear Rach & Soph, Rachael Johns and I talk about her recent book tour for her latest novel, The Other Bridget; my copy edit for my next novel, Art Hour at the Duchess Hotel, and the big question for the episode: why we write. You can watch the YouTube version of the podcast below, or find us on your favourite podcast platforms (some links below).
We recorded this episode on the day our first episode was released, so we didn't yet have listener questions - we have since had some, and upcoming episodes will cover those! And we'd love to have your questions.
Writers - do you have a challenge or conundrum, or a question about process, how to get started, or anything at all to do with writing? We’d love to be your writing agony aunts.
Readers - we would love to hear from you too! You can ask us questions about our books ... and we’d also be happy to be YOUR agony aunts. We may not have professional qualifications but we sort out problems for our characters all the time, so if you’d like to get something off your chest/ask for some input/just see what we think about something, let us know.
If you have a question for us, please email [email protected] and put ‘Dear Rach & Soph’ in the subject line.
And if you’d like to actually be in the podcast with us while we answer your question, please let us know in the email.
For more about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com
Rachael's latest book, The Other Bridget: https://www.rachaeljohns.com/books/the-other-bridget/
For more about Sophie Green: https://sophie-green-author.com
Sophie's next book is Art Hour at the Duchess Hotel: https://linktr.ee/arthourattheduchesshotel
For more information about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com
For more informationabout Sophie Green: https://sophiegreenauthor.com
Subscribe on Spotify
Subscribe on Apple
Subscribe on YouTube
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
11/30/24 • 72 min
From time to time on this pod and elsewhere Rachael Johns mentions her virtual assistant, Annie Bucknall. Through her business Well Creative Annie helps Rach with her social media, website and newsletter, and recently moved that newsletter to Substack.
Rach and Soph have been talking about Substack, especially about the fact that there’s a lot of book coverage on there at a time when book coverage is disappearing from mainstream media. We have read some opinion pieces (on Substack) about how traditional media should no longer be the focus for book promotion. As authors who have books recently released and due for release next year, we have to think about these things, as our publishers will do some promotion but can’t do it all, and while some authors will say that they ‘just want to write’, it has never been the case, really, that authors can just write. If we believe in our books we want them to reach readers and we need to give them the best chance of doing so.
However, there’s plenty authors don’t know about book promotion and don’t have time to do or learn. That’s where someone like Annie comes in. Rach has always raved about Annie, so we thought we’d talk to her about what she does for her author clients, why social media is important for authors, and also whether Substack is the right platform for newsletters.
While we’re talking about Annie’s business, this is not sponsored content - we are talking about it because we want to. And thanks to this chat Soph became a client of Annie’s because there are some things she just doesn’t have time for either!
For more about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com
Rachael's latest book is Outback Reunion (2024)
For more about Sophie Green: https://sophie-green-author.com
Sophie's latest book is Art Hour at the Duchess Hotel (2024)
Subscribe on Spotify
Subscribe on Apple
Subscribe on YouTube
Sophie's latest book is Art Hour at the Duchess Hotel (2024)
For more information about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com
For more informationabout Sophie Green: https://sophiegreenauthor.com
Subscribe on Spotify
Subscribe on Apple
Subscribe on YouTube
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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FAQ
How many episodes does Dear Rach & Soph have?
Dear Rach & Soph currently has 43 episodes available.
What topics does Dear Rach & Soph cover?
The podcast is about Fiction, Novels, Writing, Podcasts, Books, Australian and Arts.
What is the most popular episode on Dear Rach & Soph?
The episode title 'Episode 16 - Entering competitions and publishing first novels' is the most popular.
What is the average episode length on Dear Rach & Soph?
The average episode length on Dear Rach & Soph is 60 minutes.
How often are episodes of Dear Rach & Soph released?
Episodes of Dear Rach & Soph are typically released every 7 days.
When was the first episode of Dear Rach & Soph?
The first episode of Dear Rach & Soph was released on Feb 25, 2024.
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