Summer Rewind | Lily King -The Myth of Overnight Success

🌞 Summer Rewind: While we count down to Season 5 (launching 8 September 2026), we're revisiting some of the best conversations and fan favourites from Season 4."I think you just have to keep at it. You cannot give up. You just cannot give up."Lily KingIn this episode, Nadine sits down with Lily King, best known for Writers and Lovers, to talk about her latest novel, Heart the Lover, and the long road that shaped her writing life.Lily opens up about her early career, including the pressure of finishing her first book while watching peers find success faster. She talks candidly about self-doubt, what "overnight success" really looks like, and why writing for yourself first, before an audience, is what protects a writer's authenticity. She also walks through her process book by book, including a difficult stretch while writing Heart the Lover that forced her to confront her own struggles in order to finish the story. And she looks back on a high school teacher who first spotted her talent and encouraged her toward creative writing, a moment she credits with setting her on this path.In this episode:Lily's early career and the pressure of watching peers succeed firstThe myth of "overnight success" and what actually sustains a writing careerWriting for yourself vs. writing for an audienceThe specific challenges of writing Heart the LoverThe teacher who first recognised her talentAdvice for aspiring and seasoned writers alikeFollow Lily KingBuy 'Heart the Lover'Season 5 of The Conversation with Nadine Matheson launches 8 September 2026.Buy the Book: The Shadow CarverBuy me a cup of coffee ☕️ | Buy books by my guestsFollow Me Bluesky | Substack | Instagram | Facebook | Threads Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.