Ep. 1, Alex Shaw

Welcome to the Dark & Stormy podcast, in which I speak – writer to writer – with authors of crime fiction, thrillers and sci-fi. This is a monthly podcast aimed at fans and readers. Each episode concludes with the guest recommending another writer.My inaugural guest is Alex Shaw, author of the Aiden Snow and Jake Tate series, both international thrillers featuring SAS-trained operators. Alex is from England and has lived in Kyiv and the Middle East. He spoke with me from his home in Abu Dhabi.Timecodes* 0:00 Intro to Alex Shaw* 1:44 His Aiden Snow series, Sophie Racine, and the Jack Tate series* 5:23 What he’s working on now* 5:58 Living in, and writing about, Kiev and Dubai* 9:00 How the war impacts his next book* 13:28 Do publishers want thrillers on Ukraine and Russia?* 15:12 Getting your first novel published* 18:07 Setting and writing locales known and unknown* 20:05 Evolving your characters across series* 24:10 Evolving the writing process and the nature of content* 27:12: Business during Covid* 30:08 Sales - markets, platforms, formats* 31:50 Social media and marketing* 34:58 What readers ask about* 37:28 Hollywood?* 40:12 Alex recommends Jake Needham’s booksLinks* Alex Shaw* Jake Needham* Jamie DibsDark and Stormy is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jamiedibs.substack.com