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In Writing with Hattie Crisell

Hattie Crisell

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Journalist Hattie Crisell visits the studies of writers of all kinds – novelists, screenwriters, poets, journalists and more – to find out how they write, why they write, and what they can teach us about doing it better.

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Top 10 In Writing with Hattie Crisell Episodes

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S3 Ep30: James Acaster, stand-up comic

In Writing with Hattie Crisell

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03/26/21 • 72 min

James Acaster joins me this week to talk about writing stand-up comedy. James has filmed five stand-up specials – the first four make up the series Repertoire, available on Netflix, while the most recent, Cold Lasagne Hate Myself 1999, arrived on Vimeo earlier this month. He was also nominated a record-breaking five years in a row for Best Comedy Show at the Edinburgh Fringe, from 2012 to 2016. He talks me through how he writes a set; the structure of stand-up, and the art of a well-placed callback; and how he reconciles the inherently stressful dynamic of his job with his efforts to protect his mental health.
James also wrote the bestselling books James Acaster's Classic Scrapes and Perfect Sound Whatever, which can be found alongside other books by guests of the podcast here: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/in-writing
I'd also recommend Steve Martin's Born Standing Up for anyone interested in the construction of stand-up comedy (even though James has been given three copies of it and still hasn't made it to the end). I can't find it on Bookshop.org so here it is at Waterstones: https://www.waterstones.com/book/born-standing-up/steve-martin/9781847391483
Watch Cold Lasagne Hate Myself 1999 here: https://www.jamesacaster.com/cold-lasagne/
And listen to James's podcasts here:
James Acaster's Perfect Sounds: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p089rgkp
Off Menu with Ed Gamble and James Acaster:
https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/off-menu-with-ed-gamble-and-james-acaster/id1442950743?mt=2

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S2 Ep18: Robert Popper, comedy writer

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07/03/20 • 48 min

TV writer Robert Popper joins me for a chat this week, fresh off the sixth series of his Channel 4 sitcom Friday Night Dinner. Robert has been involved in some of the best British comedy of the last 20 years; he co-wrote the cult favourite Look Around You, a spoof science documentary series that ran from 2002 to 2005, and worked as a script editor on Peep Show, The Inbetweeners and The IT Crowd. He is also the alter ego of Robin Cooper, author of The Timewaster Letters. He tells me how he made an artform out of writing insane things to strangers; the unorthodox way he broke into the television world (it also involved letter-writing); and why in comedy, the story must always come before the jokes.

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S2 Ep13: Kiley Reid, novelist

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05/29/20 • 28 min

Kiley Reid joins me for this episode of In Writing, recorded when she visited London in February to promote her bestselling debut novel Such A Fun Age. Kiley is a graduate of the famous Iowa Writers’ Workshop, where she shaped this novel, and we talk about how the feedback of other writers helped her hone it, how to flesh out fiction with well-researched fact, and why it’s essential to “write to your obsessions”.

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S2 Ep16: Will Harris, poet and essayist

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06/19/20 • 47 min

This week I chat to Will Harris, a London-born poet and essayist of mixed Anglo-Indonesian heritage. Will’s debut poetry collection RENDANG came out in February; previously he was perhaps best known for the essay Mixed-Race Superman, which was published in 2018, and which The New York Times called “A zany, exuberant and highly original meditation on what it means to come of age as a mixed-race person in a predominantly white world.” He spoke to me about how engaging with his family history helped his poetry, the value of therapy as a writer, and why in his work, the political can’t be separated from the personal.

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06/12/20 • 42 min

Alexandra Shulman joins me this week to talk about life on both sides of the divide: editor and writer. At the helm of Vogue, she spent 25 years herding journalists. Now she has a column in the Mail on Sunday and has this year published a book that blends memoir with fashion history, Clothes and Other Things that Matter. We talk about the article that changed her career, the challenge of writing two novels with a full-time job, and the value of storytelling in journalism.

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S2 Ep14: Robert Webb, writer and performer

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06/05/20 • 39 min

This week, from my living room in London, I speak to Robert Webb in his loft study (also in London). By the time Robert published his memoir How Not To Be A Boy in 2017, he’d already achieved huge success as an actor and performer (memorably, of course, in Peep Show). We discuss that book and his new novel Come Again; how his instinct to entertain translates from the screen to the page, and how years of writing comedy sketches gave him insight into characterisation.

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S2 Ep17: Mhairi McFarlane, novelist

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06/26/20 • 38 min

Mhairi McFarlane is the author of six great novels in the genre of romantic comedy/chick lit (delete as preferred), including her most recent, If I Never Met You. This week she speaks to me from her front room – she does not have or want a study – about the process of rewriting her first book, You Had Me At Hello, and what she learned along the way, plus the essential components of a good romcom.

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S2 Ep12: Hugo Rifkind, columnist

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05/22/20 • 42 min

This week’s guest is the sharp and funny Hugo Rifkind, award-winning columnist for The Times. In the attic of his house in north London – not long before recording a podcast in person started to look like insanity – we had a great discussion about his journalistic career, how he approaches the (nightmarish) challenge of a weekly opinion column, and what he’s learnt about writing satire from his very funny diary series, My Week.

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S2 Ep11: Curtis Sittenfeld, novelist

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05/16/20 • 52 min

The second series of In Writing is here in the midst of a pandemic, and while going into writers’ workspaces may not be practical for a while, that doesn’t mean we can’t pretend. This week, from my duvet fort in London, I speak to Curtis Sittenfeld in her small, distraction-free study (which she likens to Harry Potter’s under-stair bedroom) in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Curtis is the author of five bestselling novels, including Prep, American Wife and Eligible, and a book of short stories, You Think It, I’ll Say It; she’s now promoting her sixth novel, Rodham, which tantalisingly imagines what might have happened if Hillary Clinton had decided not to marry Bill. In our interview, she shares her insight into structuring a book (and why that process is so crucial); the value of a well-placed sex scene; and how to “set yourself up for writing success” with some serious time management.

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S2 Ep19: Kit de Waal, novelist

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07/10/20 • 42 min

Kit de Waal, whose books include My Name Is Leon, The Trick to Time and the new short story collection Supporting Cast, joins me this week from her home in the West Midlands. Kit started writing in her mid-forties, and remembers being stunned by how hard it was. In our chat she reflects honestly on that time, the stories that worked, the novels that didn’t, and how getting too interested in her characters tripped her up. She also spills the beans on her plotting spreadsheet, her knack for tackling heartbreaking subjects with lightness and warmth, and how she cracked the problem of description.

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FAQ

How many episodes does In Writing with Hattie Crisell have?

In Writing with Hattie Crisell currently has 55 episodes available.

What topics does In Writing with Hattie Crisell cover?

The podcast is about Film Interviews, Podcasts, Books, Arts and Tv & Film.

What is the most popular episode on In Writing with Hattie Crisell?

The episode title 'S3 Ep30: James Acaster, stand-up comic' is the most popular.

What is the average episode length on In Writing with Hattie Crisell?

The average episode length on In Writing with Hattie Crisell is 48 minutes.

How often are episodes of In Writing with Hattie Crisell released?

Episodes of In Writing with Hattie Crisell are typically released every 7 days.

When was the first episode of In Writing with Hattie Crisell?

The first episode of In Writing with Hattie Crisell was released on Dec 1, 2019.

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