WRITER 671: Emilia Hart discusses her latest bestselling novel, The Sirens

How much research is too much when writing historical fiction? This is just one of the topics that bestselling author Emilia Hart discusses in this episode as she shares details of her latest novel, The Sirens – a blend of nautical history and fantasy across two stories separated by time and distance. 00:00 Welcome 04:23 Writing tip: ‘The Most Dangerous Writing App’ 07:25 WIN!: The Retirement Plan by Sue Hincenbergs 08:51 Word of the week: ‘Luthier’ 11:01 Writer in residence: Emilia Hart 12:48 Inspirations for the books two timelines 19:45 Writing about Australia during the pandemic 20:24 Exploring the themes of distance and journey 22:17 Researching convict history 25:00 Note taking methods 25:59 The importance of her day job in her writing  28:11 Deleting 300,000 words 30:00 There’s no such thing as a perfect draft 30:32 Learning to sail for the book 31:20 The book deal and publishing process 32:50 Balancing writing with public engagement 35:10 Emilia’s writing tips 37:29 Final thoughts Read the show notes Connect with Valerie and listeners in the podcast community on Facebook Visit WritersCentre.com.au | ValerieKhoo.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.