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Through discussions and interviews with writers, artists and health professionals, author friends James McKenzie Watson and Ashley Kalagian Blunt explore the big questions: how do books get written? How do people navigate life with chronic illness? And just what are you reading?

Ashley Kalagian Blunt is the author of Dark Mode, an internationally published psychological thriller. Her earlier books are How to Be Australian, a memoir, and My Name Is Revenge, collected fiction and essays. Her writing appears in the Sydney Morning Herald, Overland, Griffith Review, Sydney Review of Books, and more. Ashley is an enthusiastic teacher of writing and creativity. Originally from Canada, she has lived and worked in South Korea, Peru and Mexico. Find her on Twitter and Instagram or visit her website.

James McKenzie Watson is the author of Denizen, which won the 2021 Penguin Literary Prize and was shortlisted in 2023 Ned Kelly Awards for Best Debut. His writing has appeared in The Guardian, Meanjin, Kill Your Darlings and the Newtown Review of Books. He has appeared at events including the Sydney Writers Festival, Newcastle Writers Festival and BAD Crime Sydney. He works as a nurse. Find him on Twitter and Instagram or visit his website.

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  2. 91 | Bonus ep! Learn how to run a writers group with Ashley Kalagian Blunt

91 | Bonus ep! Learn how to run a writers group with Ashley Kalagian Blunt

Jan 16, 2024

If you listen to James and Ashley Stay at Home, you know that both Ashley and James credit much of their skill development to their writers group. And they're not the only ones! You can hear rom com author Jonathon Shannon talk about what he learned from the group, as well as literary fiction author Amy Lovat. Like Ashley and James, they joined as aspiring writers, and their manuscripts have gone on to be published.   
 
Ashley's such a big fan of writers groups, she's put together a new on-demand workshop on the topic – and this short bonus ep tells you all about it. 
 
This one-hour course covers everything from how to find a group near you, or start or your own, how to give and receive feedback, and how to know when your group isn't working and what to do about it.  
 
Find Ashley's course, Get the Most from Writing Groups and Get Published at Bold Authors.  

Learn more about Ashley's psychological thriller Dark Mode and get your copy here or from your local bookshop.

Learn more about James' award-winning novel Denizen and get your copy here or from your local bookshop.

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