Break-up revenge, queer friendships and anti-running propaganda with Laura Kay

Laura Kay is a writer and editor. She has an MA in American History from the University of Sheffield, and now lives in London with her wife and cat. In 2018, Laura was selected as one of the 10 PRH WriteNow mentees. She is based in London and The Split is her first novel.Our interview starts at 20 minutes.Mini book club: The Boy from the Mish by Gary LonesboroughWe both adored this funny and heartwarming queer Indigenous YA novel, set in a rural Australian community, about seventeen-year-old Jackson finding the courage to explore who he is, even if it scares him.In this interview, we chat about:Laura’s debut novel The Split and why she felt it was important to explore a nuanced relationship breakdownWhy Laura wanted to write about a close friendship between a queer woman and a queer man as the central relationship of the novelThe character of Ally’s dad and why Laura wanted to explore the relationship between a grown-up daughter and her father, especially when they’re thrown into living together again unexpectedlyThe Sheffield setting of The Split (and no, Michelle did NOT plan to have so many midlands authors on the podcast)Laura’s experience as a ‘reluctant runner’ and how this was incorporated into the bookThe road to publication and how a Penguin mentoring program helped Laura get her publishing dealHow it’s felt publishing in a pandemic and what Laura will be doing to mark the official hardback release date Books and other things mentionedMemorial by Brian WashingtonLast Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda LoIn at the Deep End by Kate DaviesDetransition, Baby by Torrey PetersThe Secret Life of Albert Entwistle by Matt Cain Follow Laura on Instagram @lauraekayFollow us on Instagram @betterwordspodThe Split is out 18 March in the UK and 30 March in Australia.Michelle received a PR copy of The Split from Quercus.