#FromTheArchive: Novelist and historian Philippa Gregory shares her thoughts on the relationship between history and fiction, seeing “The Other Boleyn Girl” go to Hollywood and her latest book, “Normal Women”, which covers 900 years of history. alwaystakenotes.com/episodes/177-p…

NEW EPISODE: Award-winning novelist and journalist Diana Evans tells us about her start in journalism, why she’s inspired by Tolstoy and the relationship between dancing and writing. alwaystakenotes.com/episodes/213-d…

Every writer has their own daily rhythm – finding it is an essential part of an effective writing routine. For Diana Evans, she used to reserve mornings for journalism and the afternoons for fiction. alwaystakenotes.com/episodes/213-d…

How will the novels we write and read now be interpreted in hundreds of years? It’s a question that fascinates Diana Evans and it inspires her to write about the news events that she has witnessed in her fiction. alwaystakenotes.com/episodes/213-d…

NEW EPISODE: Journalist and non-fiction author Ben Macintyre talks to Simon and Rachel about writing “SAS Rogue Heroes”, the best types of source material and how Agent Zigzag taught him to no longer have a “black and white” view of WW2. alwaystakenotes.com/episodes/214-b…

Bestselling author Ben Macintyre has made a career from writing about some of the most opaque figures in British society – spies and the SAS in particular... He tells us what fascinates him – and the rest of us – about the secret world. alwaystakenotes.com/episodes/214-b…

.Ben Macintyre has sold millions of books worldwide and his writing has been turned into TV shows – but his success grew over time. In our latest episode he reflects on what didn’t work about his early books. alwaystakenotes.com/episodes/214-b…

NEW EPISODE: Bestselling novelist Jojo Moyes speaks to Simon & Rachel live from Hay Festival about her start in journalism, her big break with “Me Before You” and why her latest book “We All Live Here” taught her that writers are a little bit sadistic. alwaystakenotes.com/episodes/215-j…

Whether it's the boom in romantasy fiction or the resurgence of Jilly Cooper, sex is everywhere in publishing at the moment. In our latest episode, bestselling novelist Jojo Moyes reveals the secret behind a great sex scene. alwaystakenotes.com/episodes/215-j…

Jojo Moyes’s books have sold almost 60m copies worldwide. But success came after years of graft - she published “Me Before You” ten years after her debut novel. alwaystakenotes.com/episodes/215-j…

#FromTheArchive: Internationally bestselling author Mohsin Hamid draws the curtain back on his influences and writing style, as well as talking about making the transition from the corporate to the literary world and the impact of 9/11 on his work. alwaystakenotes.com/episodes/150-m…

NEW EPISODE: Novelist and academic Viet Thanh Nguyen talks about his Pulitzer prize-winning novel “The Sympathizer”, his politics and the literary representations of Vietnamese people he encountered growing up as a refugee in the US. alwaystakenotes.com/episodes/216-v…

Viet Thanh Nyugen came to the US aged four as a refugee from Vietnam and was initially separated from his parents. This gave him, he says, “the requisite emotional damage to become a writer”, and to write his memoir, “A Man of Two Faces”. alwaystakenotes.com/episodes/216-v…

“The Sympathizer” won a Pulitzer prize, became a The New York Times bestseller and was turned into an HBO series. In our latest episode its author, Viet Thanh Ngyuen, tells us the story was worked out during sessions on the treadmill. alwaystakenotes.com/episodes/216-v…

NEW EPISODE: Award-winning historian Hallie Rubenhold shares her best tips for writing a non-fiction book proposal, her rigorous research process and why she finds joy in writing about the lives of forgotten people. alwaystakenotes.com/episodes/217-h…

“Story of a Murder” is Hallie Rubenhold’s hit retelling of one of the most infamous murders of the 20th century. In our latest episode, she tells us how she meticulously recreates the historical periods she writes about. alwaystakenotes.com/episodes/217-h…

When Hallie Rubenhold started researching the five women killed by Jack the Ripper, she didn’t know the resulting book would turn the true-crime genre on its head. She tells us how and why she came to write it. alwaystakenotes.com/episodes/217-h…

Kendall Roy, Mark Corrigan and Kingsley Owen from Fresh Meat – three maddening but deeply entertaining characters who refuse to see the error of their ways. In our latest episode we asked Jesse Armstrong: why do his characters never seem to change? alwaystakenotes.com/episodes/218-j…

Live at the The London Library, Jesse Armstrong tells us about the importance of improvisation in his work – something he learnt from his time writing with Armando Iannucci (Armando Iannucci) on “The Thick of It”. alwaystakenotes.com/episodes/218-j…