Podcast appearances and mentions of Robert Galbraith

AudioFile Editor and Founder Robin Whitten joins host Jo Reed this week to discuss three gripping new mystery audiobooks that share a dark wit and anti-establishment protagonists. Martin Cruz Smith's HOTEL UKRAINE, narrated by Jeremy Bobb, is a compact suspense about Detective Arkady Renko and the early days of the invasion of Ukraine; CLOWN TOWN by Mick Herron is the ninth installment of the popular Slough House series, read by Golden Voice Gerard Doyle; and THE HALLMARKED MAN by Robert Galbraith is a lengthy but memorable 8th mystery in the Comoran Strike series, read by Robert Glenister. Read our reviews of the audiobooks at our website:  HOTEL UKRAINE: Published by Hachette Audio CLOWN TOWN: Published by Recorded Books THE HALLMARKED MAN: Published by Hachette Audio Discover thousands of audiobook reviews and more at AudioFile's website   Support for AudioFile's Behind the Mic comes from Blackstone Publishing: an independent, award-winning publisher of bestselling books and audiobooks. Find your next great listen at BlackstonePublishing.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Professor Mouse, the Cosmologist, and Teddy discuss WWE, the NBA vs. the world, Harry Potter, and J.K. Rolling's pen name. People need to know. 

This week, we bring you our spoiler-filled review and in-the-moment reactions to Robert Galbraith's The Hallmarked Man. What a ride!Links:www.thesefilespod.comwww.ko-fi.com/thesefilespodwww.facebook.com/thesefilespodwww.twitter.com/thesefilespodwww.instagram.com/thesefilespodhttp://thesefilespod.tumblr.com

This week, we have our first ever listener predictions episode, this time for The Hallmarked Man! It's split into spoiler-free and spoiler-filled sections (with the latter having spoilers for the five minute audio sample and the teaser videos from Robert Galbraith's social media pages). We also share our thoughts on some of the predictions as well as the sample.(Please keep our public comments section as spoiler free as possible - feel free to message or email us your spoiler-y thoughts!)See you on the other side! Links:www.thesefilespod.comwww.ko-fi.com/thesefilespodwww.facebook.com/thesefilespodwww.twitter.com/thesefilespodwww.instagram.com/thesefilespodhttp://thesefilespod.tumblr.com

In the last two episodes of our Kanreki tribute last month to the life and work of Joanne Rowling Murray, a.k.a., ‘J. K. Rowling' and ‘Robert Galbraith,' as celebration of her 60th birthday, we first explored perhaps the most ubiquitous and mysterious ‘Golden Thread' that runs through her work, namely, that of a ‘Lost Child.' We reviewed the forty plus appearances of this plot point in the just over twenty books she's written and searched for possible ‘Lake' sources in her life for this persistent, prevalent, and essential plot point.The most credible but entirely speculative possibility was that Rowling had had an induced abortion during her relationship with ‘Michael,' her off-and-on for seven years boyfriend from Exeter. On Rowling's birthday, we discussed the value this possibility has for interpreting her work, specifically in understanding the Harry Potter novels; most notably, the hypothesis would explain why every book features the exteriorization of something dangerous or deadly within and its beneficent elimination. In brief, the Hogwarts Saga, when read through this unresolved issue of Rowling's unconscious mind, seems to have been inspired and written as a defense for the intentional death of her child. In addition to explaining how this view of induced abortion as simultaneously necessary for women and the murder of an innocent, defenseless, and voiceless human being is the view of contrarian feminists such as Germaine Greer and Camille Paglia, we offered the Induced Abortion Hypothesis as the most obvious explanation for the Lost Child Golden Thread and demonstrated its potential critical value, if true. We asked repeatedly for listeners to share their objections to the hypothesis as well as alternative explanations for the Lost Child Golden Thread.And you did!The listeners who had followed us through the thirty-one Kanreki Lake and Shed conversations voiced in the comments beneath those posts both their discomfort with the idea and their admiration for the sober way we presented it. There were three challenging responses, as well, to our request for alternative explanations to the Lost Child Golden Thread: an argument from the biological make-up and consequent concerns of women everywhere, the point that “exteriorization of an evil within for elimination” is at least as easily read allegorically for the Christian doctrines of original sin and grace, and a find that the Gloria Conti story, the only explicit abortion narrative in Rowling's work, was lifted straight from The Godfather, Part 2. [See below for links to the sources of these three alternatives.]We discuss these three alternative ideas in the video above, their strengths and weaknesses, and applaud the one listener who shored up[ the weakest part of the Induced Abortion Hypothesis reading of Harry Potter, namely, how Prisoner of Azkaban fits the ‘exteriorization for elimination' pattern in that series. We close with thoughts about the imminent arrival of Hallmarked Man and our first thoughts of how we will be reading it at Hogwarts Professor — the subject of our next conversation in addition to our thoughts about the first releases and conflicting synopses for Strike8 that are in circulation.Please share your thoughts about alternative theories for the Lost Child Golden Thread and your ideas about how you would like us to cover Hallmarked Man. Thank you, as always, for joining us and for your support!Hogwarts Professor is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.Links to Alternative Explanations for the Lost Child Golden ThreadNikolaus Wandinger, Christoph Drexler, and Teresa Peter: The Christian Alternative Theory to the Induced Abortion Hypothesis (June 2004)* Harry Potter and the Art of Theology 1: A Theological Perspective on J. K. Rowling's novels - Part One: Healing, Grace and Original Sin* Harry Potter and the Art of Theology 2: A Theological Perspective on J. K. Rowling's novels - Part Two: Sacrifice and MissionAurore's argument from the Biological Facts of Life about Being a Woman:* Whether or not Rowling herself has had an abortion, I think it makes sense she'd want to comment on the topic given her golden threads about violence against women & girls, pregnancy traps, and mothers' love.* It occurred to me after writing that comment: I don't think a woman has to have personally experienced an abortion to have spent most of her life thinking about the subject… I reckon a big part of the female psyche, from the time one is a girl, is a strange combination of awe and terror at the fact that falling pregnant is a power we have, but not necessarily one we can guarantee will always be in our control. * In my country, a 2023 landmark study showed 1/3 girls are victims of Childhood Sexual Abuse. But much more mundane than sexual and domestic abuse, I've known straight friends to fall pregnant by accident, even while using contraception. * I think it's a very unique issue in a girl or a woman's psyche because, on the one hand it is one of the worst possible consequences of rape, and therefore is part of women's (as Mad Eye would say) constant vigilance about the threat and reality of male-pattern violence. But on the other hand, and however an individual woman feels about children, it is something both inspiring and grave. As Spider-Man's Uncle Ben said, “with great power comes great responsibility!”.David Martin about The Godfather 2 as the Model for Gloria Conti's Abortion in Troubled Blood* In re Gloria Conti's abortion that Margo arranged for her: You will recall that Gloria Conti became interested in what seemed to her to be the “glamourous” Mafioso lifestyle by seeing the film The Godfather (1972). It may be worth noting that at the end of the film The Godfather: Part II (1974) Michael Corleone believes that his wife, Kay Corleone, has had a miscarriage and that her sorrow over that miscarriage is what has made her depressed. In an angry rant Kay tells him instead that she had an abortion, aborting what would have been his son, because she does not want his crime family to go on and she wants out. So – We have two (fictional) women, each seeking to limit or escape their involvement with a mobster and using the same means to do it. Even if Gloria Conti did not see The Godfather: Part II it's perfectly possible – perhaps even likely – that JKR did and so may have borrowed a bit of the plot.* "Strike paid in pain for the walk through the woods at Chiswell House the next morning. So little did he fancy getting up out of bed and heading downstairs to work on a Sunday that he was forced to remind himself that, like the character of Hyman Roth in one of his favourite films, he had chosen this business freely. If, like the Mafia, private detection made demands beyond the ordinary, certain concomitants had to be accepted along with the rewards." Lethal White ch 45Ed Shardlow's Prisoner of Azkaban Notes supporting Induced Abortion Hypothesis* Hi ladies and gents, I've been on holiday and just catching up on the end of the Kanreki series. I see that Snake Wood wasn't the big reveal because you were saving that for the final chapter!* Even the penultimate episode enumerating all the lost children and speculating on that theme's lake origins didn't dilute the impact of seeing how the classic Rowling themes of coercive relationships, motherly love, pregnancy traps, the protection of family and so on, not only come together in that one golden thread, but how it does indeed illuminate the whole HP series. * It certainly has the ring of truth for me. It certainly explains why morality and mortality are the crucial core to its meaning. The last episode was definitely one of those lightbulb-moment experiences for me. Love it!* I feel like there may be more abortion analogies in Azkaban... Perhaps the wolf inside Remus? I think there's something quite uterine about the shrieking shack... And maybe something obstetric? There's also the execution of the innocent Buckbeak. And the Dementors taking the souls of their victims, against whom the remedy is a reassuring and inspiring Patronus. Perhaps that's the embodiment of the good dad, saving the innocents under their guardianship.* This thread also offers another interpretation of The Christmas Pig - the traumatically obliterated DP, forever consigned to the land of the lost, and the replacement CP, carrying the love of his lost brother. Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

Všechno, co jsem v červnu přečetla a všechno, co mě zaujaloz vydaných novinek. Pokud mi chcete sdělit vaše tipy na čtení nebo cokolivjiného, najdete mě na instagramu jako @les.slov :)Přečetla jsem: -         Toulání – Mariko Tamaki -         Kniha, kterou posypal hvězdný prach – Nora Eckhardtová-         Aha! Rodičovství – Sourozenci – Laura Markham-         Šach a mat – Ali Hazelwood-         Dva životy – Ewald Arenz-         Volání kukačky – Robert Galbraith-         Kouzelné přání – Chris Colfer -         Gloria – Timothée de Fombelle -         Mechanika lásky – Alexene Farol Follmuth -         Mateřství – Sheila Heti-         Neopouštěj mě – Kazuo Ishiguro -         I´m Glad My Mum Died – Jennette McCurdy-         Instructions for Dancing – Nicola Yoon

Happy 60th Birthday, Joanne Rowling Murray! Thank you for close to thirty years of challenging, even edifying fiction, for the joys of community your serious readers enjoy in discussing your work, and for your philanthropic efforts on behalf of women and children everywhere. The faculty at HogwartsProfessor all wish you many, many years.As a birthday gift of sorts, Nick and John close off their month-long celebration of Rowling-Galbraith's life and work with a follow-up look at yesterday's review of the ‘Lost Child' Golden Thread that runs through her stories. After cataloging the almost forty ‘for instances' taken from the opera omnia in the penultimate entry in this series, Nick and John ask, “So What?” How does the possibility that Rowling had an induced abortion and is sufficiently unsettled by it that it inspires many even most of her books at least in part make any difference in understanding their artistry and meaning?John's answer is that, if read through the induced abortion lens, one can see shades of character reflecting Rowling's thought on this subject. More importantly, each Harry Potter novel can be read as a defense of induced abortion, i.e., that each features something evil within a person having to be exteriorized and eliminated, a process that readers celebrate as a ‘win.'A Kanreki celebration is a time when friends and family recognize the ending of a cycle and the beginning of a new life to the 60 year old celebrant. Here's hoping Rowling Studies, as with Rowling herself, will enter another era with this idea, one that the author can confirm, deny, or ignore. Regardless of her answer, Serious Readers are left with the mysteries of the Pregnancy Trap and Lost Child Golden Threads for them to ponder.Please do share your thoughts and questions in the comment boxes below. Nick and John hope to put together a Q&A post to answer the questions listeners have asked this month that they haven't answered and new ones sent in by Monday. Paid subscribers will be invited to join them live for that discussion.New to the Lake and Shed Kanreki Birthday series? Here's what we're doing:On 31 July 2025, Joanne Murray, aka J. K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, will be celebrating her 60th birthday. This celebration is considered a ‘second birth' in Japan or Kanreki because it is the completion of the oriental astrological cycle. To mark JKR's Kanreki, Dr John Granger and Nick Jeffery, both Nipponophiles, are reading through Rowling's twenty-one published works and reviewing them in light of the author's writing process, her ‘Lake and Shed' metaphor. The ‘Lake' is the biographical source of her inspiration; the ‘Shed' is the alocal place of her intentional artistry, in which garage she transforms the biographical stuff provided by her subconscious mind into the archetypal stories that have made her the most important author of her age. You can hear Nick and John discuss this process and their birthday project at the first entry in this series of posts: Happy Birthday, JKR! A Lake and Shed Celebration of her Life and Work.Tomorrow? The hope is that, after sleeping in for the first time in a month, that we can put together for easy reference an Index post that has links to every Lake and Shed post we've sent out this month — and news of our plans for August and beyond. Stay tuned! Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

It's the Day Before Rowling's 60th birthday so Nick and John tackle by reader request the never before discussed subject of the Lost Child theme in the author's more than twenty published works. They re-introduce the Golden Threads idea — see their Pregnancy Trap podcast or the two Kanreki series on this subject (here and here) — then they do a deep dive into the crowded waters of Lost Children in her work, and then they go out out on a high-wire to speculate about what specific spring in her Lake subconscious mind is responsible for this recurrent inspiration. Enjoy!New to the Lake and Shed Kanreki Birthday series? Here's what we're doing:On 31 July 2025, Joanne Murray, aka J. K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, will be celebrating her 60th birthday. This celebration is considered a ‘second birth' in Japan or Kanreki because it is the completion of the oriental astrological cycle. To mark JKR's Kanreki, Dr John Granger and Nick Jeffery, both Nipponophiles, are reading through Rowling's twenty-one published works and reviewing them in light of the author's writing process, her ‘Lake and Shed' metaphor. The ‘Lake' is the biographical source of her inspiration; the ‘Shed' is the alocal place of her intentional artistry, in which garage she transforms the biographical stuff provided by her subconscious mind into the archetypal stories that have made her the most important author of her age. You can hear Nick and John discuss this process and their birthday project at the first entry in this series of posts: Happy Birthday, JKR! A Lake and Shed Celebration of her Life and Work.Tomorrow? John and Nick pull out all the stops on Rowling's 60th birthday to challenge the status quo of Rowling Studies with a reading of her work in light of a possible inspiration for the ubiquitous ‘Lost Child' Golden Thread in her work. Stay tuned!Links to posts mentioned in today's Lake and Shed conversation for further reading:'Pregnancy Traps' in the Works of J. K. Rowling: A Rowling Studies Podcast* The Golden Thread of Coercive Love that Runs Through Everything She has Written* The seven Hogwarts Professor weblog posts that John and Nick reference in that conversation can be found here:* Rowling Pregnancy Traps: Merope Gaunt* Rowling Pregnancy Traps: Casual Vacancy's Krystal Weedon, Kay Bawden* Rowling's Pregnancy Traps: Bellatrix Lestrange and the Cursed Child Delphini* Rowling's Pregnancy Traps: Leda Strike* Rowling's Pregnancy Traps: Four Strikes* Rowling's Pregnancy Traps: Last Strikes* Rowling's Pregnancy Traps: Fantastic Beasts, The Ickabog, The Christmas PigRowling's Real Reason for Going to Portugal in 1991?Where was Rowling for her 10th, 20th, 30th, 40th, and 50th birthdays?Strike Fans!* Emily Pirbright* Josh Blay* Edie Ledwell* Alexander Graves* Cherie Gittins (Carine Makepeace) Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

Two Days and a Wake-Up until Joanne Rowling Murray's 60th Birthday. In their home stretch conversation, Nick and John fulfill a reader request to discuss the book inside Deathly Hallows (one of three actually…), ‘Tales of Beedle the Bard,' a text that Albus Dumbledore leaves Hermione in his will for her to read and apply to the Horcrux Hunt. Nick tells the story of Rowling's creation of six hand-written copies as six-of-a-kind gifts for those who brought Harry Potter to life. John dives into the center story of the five tales, ‘The Hairy Heart,' and tells the meaning of Harry's heart to draw out what Rowling meant by describing Beedle as “the distillation” of the Hogwarts Saga. Enjoy!New to the Lake and Shed Kanreki Birthday series? Here's what we're doing:On 31 July 2025, Joanne Murray, aka J. K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, will be celebrating her 60th birthday. This celebration is considered a ‘second birth' in Japan or Kanreki because it is the completion of the oriental astrological cycle. To mark JKR's Kanreki, Dr John Granger and Nick Jeffery, both Nipponophiles, are reading through Rowling's twenty-one published works and reviewing them in light of the author's writing process, her ‘Lake and Shed' metaphor. The ‘Lake' is the biographical source of her inspiration; the ‘Shed' is the alocal place of her intentional artistry, in which garage she transforms the biographical stuff provided by her subconscious mind into the archetypal stories that have made her the most important author of her age. You can hear Nick and John discuss this process and their birthday project at the first entry in this series of posts: Happy Birthday, JKR! A Lake and Shed Celebration of her Life and Work.Tomorrow? In the Day Before the Big Day, Nick and John do a deep dive into the Golden Thread of ‘The Lost Child,' a plot point occurring (by one count!) forty times in Rowling-Galbraith's twenty one books. Stay tuned!Links to posts mentioned in today's Lake and Shed conversation for further reading:The Heart is the Human Spiritual Center: Deathly Hallows, Ink Black Heart, and Beedle the BardRowling: Beedle the Bard is the Distillation of Harry Potter ThemesTwelve Answers to Beedle the Bard Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

We're in the home stretch of the 60th Birthday Blitz at Hogwarts Professor! On the first of the last four days of July, Nick and John return to the books at a reader's suggestion in order to give a Lake and Shed reading of the original Newt Scamander textbook, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. Nick relays everything you need to know about the genesis of this work and John talks about Rowling's comments to Stephen Fry in a 2022 interview about “archetypal” animals and the importance of understanding them because human beings are story-telling animals. Her discussion of the Lethifold and Niffler are especially challenging and illuminating. Enjoy!New to the Lake and Shed Kanreki Birthday series? Here's what we're doing:On 31 July 2025, Joanne Murray, aka J. K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, will be celebrating her 60th birthday. This celebration is considered a ‘second birth' in Japan or Kanreki because it is the completion of the oriental astrological cycle. To mark JKR's Kanreki, Dr John Granger and Nick Jeffery, both Nipponophiles, are reading through Rowling's twenty-one published works and reviewing them in light of the author's writing process, her ‘Lake and Shed' metaphor. The ‘Lake' is the biographical source of her inspiration; the ‘Shed' is the alocal place of her intentional artistry, in which garage she transforms the biographical stuff provided by her subconscious mind into the archetypal stories that have made her the most important author of her age. You can hear Nick and John discuss this process and their birthday project at the first entry in this series of posts: Happy Birthday, JKR! A Lake and Shed Celebration of her Life and Work.Tomorrow? John and Nick act on the reader suggestion that we give a Lake and Shed reading of Tales of Beedle the Bard. Nick tells the ‘Three Year Summer' background of the Wizarding World's Fairy Tale collection and John talks about ‘The Hairy Heart.' Stay tuned!Links to posts mentioned in today's Lake and Shed conversation for further reading:The J. K. Rowling 2022 Interview with Stephen Fry about the ‘Archetypes' of Fantastic Beast — and Why We Love Story* Etymology of ‘Bejesus'* Stephen Fry's Views on ReligionLiminal Women: Mermaids and Swan Maidens in Galbraith's Strike Novels (Beatrice Groves)Troubled Blood: A Jungian Reading Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

Let's talk about Rowling's use of traditional chiastic structure, what anthropologist Mary Douglas called ‘Ring Composition.' John travels to his backyard Mongolian ger, the archetypal circular architectural form, to deliver a firehose introduction to the four essentials of ring writing. He uses slides to depict the structure of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone as his brief ‘for instance' of how Rowling chooses to organize her stories and he provides a list of links (below!) for further reading. Enjoy!New to the Lake and Shed Kanreki Birthday series? Here's what we're doing:On 31 July 2025, Joanne Murray, aka J. K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, will be celebrating her 60th birthday. This celebration is considered a ‘second birth' in Japan or Kanreki because it is the completion of the oriental astrological cycle. To mark JKR's Kanreki, Dr John Granger and Nick Jeffery, both Nipponophiles, are reading through Rowling's twenty-one published works and reviewing them in light of the author's writing process, her ‘Lake and Shed' metaphor. The ‘Lake' is the biographical source of her inspiration; the ‘Shed' is the alocal place of her intentional artistry, in which garage she transforms the biographical stuff provided by her subconscious mind into the archetypal stories that have made her the most important author of her age. You can hear Nick and John discuss this process and their birthday project at the first entry in this series of posts: Happy Birthday, JKR! A Lake and Shed Celebration of her Life and Work.Tomorrow? John and Nick act on the reader suggestion that we give a Lake and Shed reading of Tales of Beedle the Bard. Can the Hogwarts textbook, Fantastic Beasts, be far behind? Stay tuned!Links to posts mentioned in today's Lake and Shed conversation for further reading:* The Hogwarts Professor Ring Composition Pillar Post* The Ring Inside the Ring of Order of the Phoenix: The Department of Mysteries Gauntlet* Harry Potter as Ring Composition and Ring Cycle (Lulu.com)* J. K. Rowling's ‘G-Spot' and ‘Triple Play:' The Lake & Shed Secret of Her SuccessThe Running Grave's Structure: A Master Class in Ring Composition* Running Grave: Ring Reading Index* Reading 'Running Grave' as the End of the Strike Series (A)* Reading 'Running Grave' as the End of the Strike Series (B)* Reading 'Running Grave' as the End of the Strike Series (C) Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

Welcome back! John and Nick finish their back-and-forth challenge to come up with three examples of the ‘Fourteen Golden Threads' in the work of J. K. Rowling, the plot points and story features that run through everything she writes.In this second overview of the Golden Threads, Nick and John talk about Kanreki red caps and tackle three Threads each. Nick gives at least three examples for Evil Government, Occult tropes, and the Embedded Author. John responds with three or more 'for instances' of the Search for the Real, Embedded Texts, and Shadow Doppelgangers. Enjoy!New to the Lake and Shed Kanreki Birthday series? Here's what we're doing:On 31 July 2025, Joanne Murray, aka J. K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, will be celebrating her 60th birthday. This celebration is considered a ‘second birth' in Japan or Kanreki because it is the completion of the oriental astrological cycle. To mark JKR's Kanreki, Dr John Granger and Nick Jeffery, both Nipponophiles, are reading through Rowling's twenty-one published works and reviewing them in light of the author's writing process, her ‘Lake and Shed' metaphor. The ‘Lake' is the biographical source of her inspiration; the ‘Shed' is the alocal place of her intentional artistry, in which garage she transforms the biographical stuff provided by her subconscious mind into the archetypal stories that have made her the most important author of her age. You can hear Nick and John discuss this process and their birthday project at the first entry in this series of posts: Happy Birthday, JKR! A Lake and Shed Celebration of her Life and Work.Tomorrow? John and Nick respond to two readers' requests for a brief introduction to Ring Composition. John reviews the four essential elements in a proper story ring and uses Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone as his example. He shifts from his Shed (garage) to the backyard ger (‘yurt') to deliver his message about the ‘meaning in the middle.' Stay tuned!Links to posts mentioned in today's Lake and Shed conversation for further reading:* David Martin reveals the Role of Books in the Hogwarts Saga* When in Doubt, Go to the Library: The Books Within the Books (David Martin Podcast)* Troubled Blood: Every Tarot Card Spread* Rowling Talks Tarot on 60 Minutes (1999)* Harry Potter and The Hanged Man: Part 1 Rowling's Most Loaded Tarot Reference* Harry Potter and The Hanged Man: Part 2 The Historical and Occult Interpretations* Harry Potter and The Hanged Man: Part 3 Its Meaning in Rowling's Written Work* Troubled Blood: A Jungian Reading Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

Welcome back! John and Nick, having finished their Lake and Shed review of the seven Harry Potter novels, the first seven Strike-Ellacott adventures, the three Fantastic Beasts screenplays, and the three stand-alone stories Cursed Child, Casual Vacancy, and Christmas Pig, are open to suggestions about how to fill the remaining week of daily conversations until Rowling's birthday on July 31st. The first request we received was one asking for more on the ‘Twelve Golden Threads' in the work of J. K. Rowling, the plot points and story features that run through everything she writes.In this first overview of the Golden Threads, Nick and John go back and fourth with four Threads each. Nick gives at least three examples for Bad Dad, Writing about Writing, Violence against Women, and the Evils of Fleet Street. John responds with three or more 'for instances' of Mother Love, Ghosts, Pregnancy Traps, and the Lost Child with Grieving Steward. Enjoy!New to the Lake and Shed Kanreki Birthday series? Here's what we're doing:On 31 July 2025, Joanne Murray, aka J. K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, will be celebrating her 60th birthday. This celebration is considered a ‘second birth' in Japan or Kanreki because it is the completion of the oriental astrological cycle. To mark JKR's Kanreki, Dr John Granger and Nick Jeffery, both Nipponophiles, are reading through Rowling's twenty-one published works and reviewing them in light of the author's writing process, her ‘Lake and Shed' metaphor. The ‘Lake' is the biographical source of her inspiration; the ‘Shed' is the alocal place of her intentional artistry, in which garage she transforms the biographical stuff provided by her subconscious mind into the archetypal stories that have made her the most important author of her age. You can hear Nick and John discuss this process and their birthday project at the first entry in this series of posts: Happy Birthday, JKR! A Lake and Shed Celebration of her Life and Work.Tomorrow? John and Nick talk about the six remaining Golden Threads, namely, Bad Government, Occult Tokens, the Search for the Real, Embedded Texts, the Embedded Author, and Shadow Doppelgangers. Stay tuned!Links to posts mentioned in today's Lake and Shed conversation for further reading:'Pregnancy Traps' in the Works of J. K. Rowling: A Rowling Studies Podcast* The Golden Thread of Coercive Love that Runs Through Everything She has WrittenThe seven Hogwarts Professor weblog posts that John and Nick reference in that conversation can be found here:Rowling Pregnancy Traps: Merope GauntRowling Pregnancy Traps: Casual Vacancy's Krystal Weedon, Kay BawdenRowling's Pregnancy Traps: Bellatrix Lestrange and the Cursed Child DelphiniRowling's Pregnancy Traps: Leda StrikeRowling's Pregnancy Traps: Four StrikesRowling's Pregnancy Traps: Last StrikesRowling's Pregnancy Traps: Fantastic Beasts, The Ickabog, The Christmas Pig Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

Today's Lake and Shed framed conversation focuses in on the remarkable Strike-Ellacott novel, The Running Grave, the last book in our review of every work of fiction with either of Mrs Murray's pseudonyms on the cover. Nick confesses to feeling stumped about what to say as his ‘Lake' contribution to the discussion — before his epiphany on a long walk with Addie that almost every buoy or pillar in Rowling's metaphorical place of inspiration finds its reflection in the seventh Galbraith mystery. John refuses to go into any detail about the work's ‘wheels within wheels within wheels' ring structure but shares instead the symbolic depth of Mama Mazu's mother of pearl fish pendant. New to the Lake and Shed Kanreki Birthday series? Here's what we're doing:On 31 July 2025, Joanne Murray, aka J. K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, will be celebrating her 60th birthday. This celebration is considered a ‘second birth' in Japan or Kanreki because it is the completion of the oriental astrological cycle. To mark JKR's Kanreki, Dr John Granger and Nick Jeffery, both Nipponophiles, are reading through Rowling's twenty-one published works and reviewing them in light of the author's writing process, her ‘Lake and Shed' metaphor. The ‘Lake' is the biographical source of her inspiration; the ‘Shed' is the alocal place of her intentional artistry, in which garage she transforms the biographical stuff provided by her subconscious mind into the archetypal stories that have made her the most important author of her age. You can hear Nick and John discuss this process and their birthday project at the first entry in this series of posts: Happy Birthday, JKR! A Lake and Shed Celebration of her Life and Work.Tomorrow? We move into uncharted territory with an overview of the Lake material via John interviewing Nick about the various pillars and pertinent examples. Stay tuned!Links to posts mentioned in today's Lake and Shed conversation for further reading:The Running Grave's Structure: A Master Class in Ring Composition* Running Grave: Ring Reading Index* Reading 'Running Grave' as the End of the Strike Series (A)* Reading 'Running Grave' as the End of the Strike Series (B)* Reading 'Running Grave' as the End of the Strike Series (C)Hogwarts Professors' Reviews of The Running Grave* Nick Jeffery* Elizabeth Baird-Hardy* Evan WillisThe Christian Symbolism of Mama Mazu's Mother of Pearl Fish Pendant* The Meaning of Robin Ellacott's fight with Mama Mazu in Part 9 of Running Grave* The Beloved Caravaggio Painting In Which Rowling Encountered the ‘Christian Fish' Symbolism* The Symbolism of the Pearl in Suzanne Collins' Hunger Games series Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

Welcome back! After learning the Snakewood Secrets of Dumbledore — that's right, it's Rowling the Wood Snake having a private Lake moment — we return to real books, Ink Black Heart to be specific, a novel written entirely by Mrs Murray, aka Robert Galbraith. Nick covers the front and the back of making Lake readings of Strike6 without a lot of circumspection and John talks about the eerie feeling he had while reading this book that the author was ‘having a go' at him. Enjoy!New to the Lake and Shed Kanreki Birthday series? Here's what we're doing:On 31 July 2025, Joanne Murray, aka J. K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, will be celebrating her 60th birthday. This celebration is considered a ‘second birth' in Japan or Kanreki because it is the completion of the oriental astrological cycle. To mark JKR's Kanreki, Dr John Granger and Nick Jeffery, both Nipponophiles, are reading through Rowling's twenty-one published works and reviewing them in light of the author's writing process, her ‘Lake and Shed' metaphor. The ‘Lake' is the biographical source of her inspiration; the ‘Shed' is the alocal place of her intentional artistry, in which garage she transforms the biographical stuff provided by her subconscious mind into the archetypal stories that have made her the most important author of her age. You can hear Nick and John discuss this process and their birthday project at the first entry in this series of posts: Happy Birthday, JKR! A Lake and Shed Celebration of her Life and Work.Tomorrow? Running Grave! John is not a big fan but Nick is all-in so stand-by for some real back-and-forth about the merits and deficiencies of Strike7. Stay tuned!Links to posts mentioned in today's Lake and Shed conversation for further reading:* Hogwarts Professor Ink Black Heart Search Results Pages* The JKR Live Barmy Army Q&A: A Review* Gilderoy Gleenings* Intro to Epigraphs 101 Aurora Leigh* Rowling and Fandoms* The Mythic Backdrop* Strike as Zeus to Robin's Leda and Cupid to Mads' Psyche* The Gaffes* Ink Black Heart and Deathly Hallows: The Heart is Not About Emotions and Affection but the Human Spiritual Center Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

Today's Lake and Shed framed conversation is all about the Steve Kloves screenplay, The Secrets of Dumbledore, which is “based on a screenplay by J. K. Rowling.” Nick lays out the drama surrounding the third Fantastic Beasts franchise film and his favorite part of the movie (hint: it's about “confusion”). John reveals why Jacob gets a Snakewood wand and one without a core as well as why he thinks Kowalski is the embedded author in this series.New to the Lake and Shed Kanreki Birthday series? Here's what we're doing:On 31 July 2025, Joanne Murray, aka J. K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, will be celebrating her 60th birthday. This celebration is considered a ‘second birth' in Japan or Kanreki because it is the completion of the oriental astrological cycle. To mark JKR's Kanreki, Dr John Granger and Nick Jeffery, both Nipponophiles, are reading through Rowling's twenty-one published works and reviewing them in light of the author's writing process, her ‘Lake and Shed' metaphor. The ‘Lake' is the biographical source of her inspiration; the ‘Shed' is the alocal place of her intentional artistry, in which garage she transforms the biographical stuff provided by her subconscious mind into the archetypal stories that have made her the most important author of her age. You can hear Nick and John discuss this process and their birthday project at the first entry in this series of posts: Happy Birthday, JKR! A Lake and Shed Celebration of her Life and Work.Tomorrow? It's back to real books, a novel written entirely by Mrs Murray, aka Robert Galbraith. We'll be discussing Ink Black Heart with Nick covering the front and the back of making Lake readings of Strike6 without a lot of circumspection and John talking about the eerie feeling he had while reading this book that the author was ‘having a go' at him. Stay tuned!Links to posts mentioned in today's Lake and Shed conversation for further reading:* Snakewood: The Rarest and Most Beautiful Exotic Wood* Snakewood as a Wand Material* Wild ‘Secrets of Dumbledore' Theory: Rowling Puts Pro-Trump Message in Script that Kloves Didn't See or Remove* MsMojo: Secrets of Dumbledore's Answered and Unanswered Questions* Secrets of Dumbledore: Predictions Fulfilled and Promise for the Future Elizabeth Baird Hardy* Beatrice Groves – Secrets of Dumbledore: First Thoughts* Fantastic Beasts: Secrets of Dumbledore The Rowling Library Review Is Up* The Secrets of Grindelwald Screenplay: Three Quick Notes about its Publication* YouTube Link to Film Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

Today's Lake and Shed framed conversation is once again about The Christmas Pig. Nick by the Lake shares the history of the Murray Family and their beanie pig toys as well as a likely source for the defenestration of DP (in Esquire magazine, no less). John talks about the promise and the limits of reading literature through a biographical lens and then explains the anagogical meaning of the Power palace kangaroo court trial of CP and Jack. Both share their reasons for thinking that The Christmas Pig is the perfect distillation of everything Rowling is doing as a writer, to include the relationship of her Lake inspiration to her final Shed product.New to the Lake and Shed Kanreki Birthday series? Here's what we're doing:On 31 July 2025, Joanne Murray, aka J. K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, will be celebrating her 60th birthday. This celebration is considered a ‘second birth' in Japan or Kanreki because it is the completion of the oriental astrological cycle. To mark JKR's Kanreki, Dr John Granger and Nick Jeffery, both Nipponophiles, are reading through Rowling's twenty-one published works and reviewing them in light of the author's writing process, her ‘Lake and Shed' metaphor. The ‘Lake' is the biographical source of her inspiration; the ‘Shed' is the alocal place of her intentional artistry, in which garage she transforms the biographical stuff provided by her subconscious mind into the archetypal stories that have made her the most important author of her age. You can hear Nick and John discuss this process and their birthday project at the first entry in this series of posts: Happy Birthday, JKR! A Lake and Shed Celebration of her Life and Work.Tomorrow? Our look at the Steve Kloves “complete screenplay” Secrets of Dumbledore, one based on an “original story” by J. K. Rowling. Stay tuned!Links to posts mentioned in today's Lake and Shed conversation for further reading:* The Christmas Pig and Old Rabbit (Nick Jeffery)* The Quadrigal Reading of Christmas Pig (John Granger)* The Velveteen Rabbit and Christmas Pig (Beatrice Groves, pp 17-18)* The Faerie Queene and The Christmas Pig (Elizabeth Baird-Hardy)* The Rowling Studies podcast dedicated to Christmas Pig subjects* Warner Bros Adapting ‘Christmas Pig:' Will It Become Rowling's Best Loved Book? A Second ‘Christmas Carol'?The Perennialist Reading of Christmas Pig Series of HogwartsProfessor posts:* Part 1: John, Peter, and Jack Jones* Part 2: Dante, Sacred Art, and the Symbolism of the Tree and Its Angels12/22: Whence Holly's Hatred in Christmas Pig? The Symbolism of the ‘Broken Angel'* Part 3: The Quadrigal Reading* Part 4: The Magic In Things1/5: Rowling on Love, Hope, Happiness 2018* Part 5: The Blue Bunny1/15 Rowling, Ring Writing, and Maternal Love* Part 6: The Ring CompositionPost Publication Christmas Pig HogwartsProfessor Pieces:10/4: The Christmas Pig – The First Reviews10/10: Beatrice Groves: Unlocking Clues to The Christmas Pig10/13: “For the Straightforward Path Was Lost”: A Few Starting Notes on The Christmas Pig (Evan Willis)10/13: The Christmas Pig and Old Rabbit10/17: Alexandra Palace, JKR, Christmas Pig10/18: J. K. Rowling's Christmas Pig Interviews12/14: Rowling Talks About ‘Christmas Pig'12/17: The Original Christmas Pig was Blind Pig12/26: The Faerie Queene and The Christmas Pig12/27: The Christmas Pig: Amateur AudioBook12/28: Christmas Pig's Chapter Thirteen1/2: Does Anyone “Really” Die in Stories? Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

Today's Lake and Shed framed conversation is once again about the hilarious Christmas story for children of all ages, Christmas Pig. Nick discusses Rowling's many interview statements about the Things which were lost and how many of them match up with things she has lost; he takes a deep dive into the Blue Bunny episode outside the Gates of the City of the Missed and Rowling's embedding herself and her daughter Mackenzie in the story. John talks about the Blue Bunny and his being “found” or “saved” as an allegory of the human condition written in the Rowling shorthand-symbols for (and obsessions with) love, salvation, and what is real.New to the Lake and Shed Kanreki Birthday series? Here's what we're doing:On 31 July 2025, Joanne Murray, aka J. K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, will be celebrating her 60th birthday. This celebration is considered a ‘second birth' in Japan or Kanreki because it is the completion of the oriental astrological cycle. To mark JKR's Kanreki, Dr John Granger and Nick Jeffery, both Nipponophiles, are reading through Rowling's twenty-one published works and reviewing them in light of the author's writing process, her ‘Lake and Shed' metaphor. The ‘Lake' is the biographical source of her inspiration; the ‘Shed' is the alocal place of her intentional artistry, in which garage she transforms the biographical stuff provided by her subconscious mind into the archetypal stories that have made her the most important author of her age. You can hear Nick and John discuss this process and their birthday project at the first entry in this series of posts: Happy Birthday, JKR! A Lake and Shed Celebration of her Life and Work.Tomorrow? Our second look at Christmas Pig with Nick explaining the history of the Murray Family and their beanie pig toys as well as a likely source for the defenestration of DP (in Esquire magazine, no less). John talks about the promise and the limits of reading literature through a biographical lens and then explains the anagogical meaning of the Power palace kangaroo court trial of CP and Jack. Stay tuned!Links to posts mentioned in today's Lake and Shed conversation for further reading:* “For the Straightforward Path Was Lost”: A Few Starting Notes on The Christmas Pig (Evan Willis)* The Epic ‘Blue Bunny' Post* The Rowling Studies podcast dedicated to Christmas Pig subjects* Warner Bros Adapting ‘Christmas Pig:' Will It Become Rowling's Best Loved Book? A Second ‘Christmas Carol'?The Perennialist Reading of Christmas Pig Seriesof HogwartsProfessor posts:* Part 1: John, Peter, and Jack Jones* Part 2: Dante, Sacred Art, and the Symbolism of the Tree and Its Angels12/22: Whence Holly's Hatred in Christmas Pig? The Symbolism of the ‘Broken Angel'* Part 3: The Quadrigal Reading* Part 4: The Magic In Things1/5: Rowling on Love, Hope, Happiness 2018* Part 5: The Blue Bunny1/15 Rowling, Ring Writing, and Maternal Love* Part 6: The Ring CompositionPost Publication Chritmas Pig HogwartsProfessor Pieces:10/4: The Christmas Pig – The First Reviews10/10: Beatrice Groves: Unlocking Clues to The Christmas Pig10/13: “For the Straightforward Path Was Lost”: A Few Starting Notes on The Christmas Pig (Evan Willis)10/13: The Christmas Pig and Old Rabbit10/17: Alexandra Palace, JKR, Christmas Pig10/18: J. K. Rowling's Christmas Pig Interviews12/14: Rowling Talks About ‘Christmas Pig'12/17: The Original Christmas Pig was Blind Pig12/26: The Faerie Queene and The Christmas Pig12/27: The Christmas Pig: Amateur AudioBook12/28: Christmas Pig's Chapter Thirteen1/2: Does Anyone “Really” Die in Stories? Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

Today's Lake and Shed framed conversation is once again about the fifth Cormoran Strike novel, Troubled Blood. Nick discusses Rowling's history with the Clerkenwell neighborhood. John talks about Troubled Blood as a double re-telling of The Faerie Queene, Book One, with Strike and Margot as the Redcrosse Knight and Oonaugh and Robin as Una.New to the Lake and Shed Kanreki Birthday series? Here's what we're doing:On 31 July 2025, Joanne Murray, aka J. K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, will be celebrating her 60th birthday. This celebration is considered a ‘second birth' in Japan or Kanreki because it is the completion of the oriental astrological cycle. To mark JKR's Kanreki, Dr John Granger and Nick Jeffery, both Nipponophiles, are reading through Rowling's twenty-one published works and reviewing them in light of the author's writing process, her ‘Lake and Shed' metaphor. The ‘Lake' is the biographical source of her inspiration; the ‘Shed' is the alocal place of her intentional artistry, in which garage she transforms the biographical stuff provided by her subconscious mind into the archetypal stories that have made her the most important author of her age. You can hear Nick and John discuss this process and their birthday project at the first entry in this series of posts: Happy Birthday, JKR! A Lake and Shed Celebration of her Life and Work.Tomorrow? Our first look at Christmas Pig with both Nick and John talking about the Blue Bunny. Stay tuned!Links to posts mentioned in today's Lake and Shed conversation for further reading:* The Clerkenwell/Islington Gate of St John (Twitter Header)Faerie Queene!John Granger:* How Spenser Uses Cupid in Faerie Queen and Its Relevance for Understanding Troubled Blood* Reading Troubled Blood as a Medieval Morality PlayElizabeth Baird-Hardy* Day One, Part One: The Spenserian Epigraphs of the Pre-Released Troubled Blood Chapters* Day Two, Part Two: The Spenserian Epigraphs of Troubled Blood Chapters Eight to Fourteen* Day Three, Part Three: The Spenserian Epigraphs of Troubled Blood Chapters Fifteen to Thirty* Day Four, Part Four: The Spenserian Epigraphs of Troubled Blood Chapters Thirty One to Forty Eight* Day Five, Part Five: The Spenserian Epigraphs of Troubled Blood Chapters Forty Nine to Fifty Nine* Part Six: The Spenserian Epigraphs of Troubled Blood Chapters Sixty to Seventy One* Spenser and Strike Part Seven: Changes for the BetterBeatrice Groves* Trouble in Faerie Land (Part 1): Spenserian Clues in Troubled Blood Epigraphs* Trouble in Faerie Land (Part 2): Shipping Robin and Strike in the Epigraphs of Troubled Blood* Trouble in Faerie Land (Part 3): Searching for Duessa in Troubled BloodThis is a tentative listing by category of the posts at HogwartsProfessor about Troubled Blood. There's much more work to do on this wonderful work!1. Chiastic StructureRowling's fixation on planning in general and with structural patterns specifically in all of her work continues in Troubled Blood. From the first reading, it became apparent that in Strike5 Rowling-Galbraith had taken her game to a new level of sophistication. She continued, as she had in her four previous Strike mysteries, to write a story in parallel with the Harry Potter septology; there are many echoes of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, the fifth and equivalent number in the Hogwarts Saga, in Troubled Blood. Just as Phoenix was in important ways a re-telling of Philosopher's Stone, so Troubled Blood also echoes Cuckoo's Calling — with a few Stone notes thrown in as well. The new heights of Rowling's structural artistry, though, extend beyond her patented intratextuality; they are in each of Strike5's first six parts being ring compositions themselves, the astrological chart embedded in the story chapters, and the six part and two chapters correspondence in structure between Troubled Blood and Spenser's Faerie Queen.* Structure Part One* Structure Part Two, Notes Two to Six* Structure Part Three, Notes One to Three* Structure Part Four, Notes One to Three, Eight, and Ten* Structure Part Five, Notes One to Four, Nine* Structure Part Six, Notes One to Four* Structure Part Seven, Ring Latch, Story Axis* Astrological Clock Structure of Troubled Blood* Career of Evil Echoes* Order of the Phoenix Echoes* Cuckoo's Calling Echoes* Philosopher's Stone Echoes2. Literary AlchemyPer Nabokov, literary artistry and accomplishment are known and experienced through a work's “structure and style.” Rowling's signature structures are evident in Troubled Blood (see above) and her characteristic hermetic artistry, literary alchemy, is as well. Strike5 is the series nigredo and Strike and Robin experience great losses and their reduction to their respective and shared prima materia in the dissolving rain and flood waters of the story.* Strike's Transformation* Robin Ellacott and the Reverse Alchemy of the First Three Strike Novels* Lethal White as the Alchemical Pivot of the Strike Series* The Wet Nigredo: Troubled Blood's Black Names, Holiday Three Step, and Losses3. Psychology/MythologyRowling told Val McDermid that if she had not succeeded as a writer than she would have studied to become a psychologist:V: If it hadn't worked out the way it has. If you'd sat there and written the book in the café and nobody ever published it, what would you have done with your life, what would you have liked to have been?JK: There are two answers. If I could have done anything, I would have been really interested in doing, I would have been a psychologist. Because that's the only thing that's ever really pulled me in any way from all this. But at the time I was teaching, and I was very broke, and I had a daughter and I think I would have kept teaching until we were stable enough that we were stable enough that I could change.Because of her lifelong study and pre-occupation with mythology, it is fitting that in Strike5 readers are confronted with a host of references to psychologist Carl Jung and to a specific Greek myth which Jungian psychologists consider essential in understanding feminine psychology. All of which leads in the end to the Strike series' equivalent of the Hogwarts Saga's soul triptych exteriorization in Harry, Hermione and Ron as Body, Mind, and Spirit, with Robin and Strike as Handless Maiden and Fisher King, the mythological images of anima and animus neglected and working towards integration.* Carl Jung and Troubled Blood* A Mythological Key to Cormoran Strike? The Myth of Eros, Psyche, and Venus* The Anima and Animus: The Psychological Heart and Exteriorization of the Cormoran Strike Novels4. Valentine's DayThe story turn of Troubled Blood takes place on Valentine's Day and the actions, events, and repercussions of this holiday of Cupid and Heart-shaped candies, not to mention chocolates, shape the Robin and Strike relationship drama irrevocably. Chocolates play an outsized portion of that work symbolically, believe it or not; the word ‘chocolate' occurs 34 times in the first four Strike novels combined but 82 times in Troubled Blood. I explore the importance of this confection in two posts before beginning to explain the importance and appropriateness of Valentine's Day being the heart of the story, one that is in large part a re-telling of the Cupid and Psyche myth.* Troubled Blood: Interpreting the Poetry of Cormoran's Five Gifts To Robin* Troubled Blood: Poisoned Chocolates* Troubled Blood: The Secret of Rowntree* A Mythological Key to Cormoran Strike? The Myth of Eros, Psyche, and Venus5. Edmund Spenser's Faerie QueenTroubled Blood features several embedded texts, the most important of which is never mentioned in the book: Edmund Spenser's Faerie Queen. Serious Strikers enjoyed the luxury of not one but two scholars of Edmund Spenser who checked in on the relevance and meaning of Rowling's choice of the greatest English epic poem for her epigraphs, not to mention the host of correspondences between Strike 5 and Queen. Elizabeth Baird-Hardy did a part by part exegesis of the Troubled Blood-Faerie Queen conjunctions and Beatrice Groves shared her first thoughts on the connections as well. Just as Lethal White's meaning and artistry is relatively unappreciated without a close reading of Ibsen's Rosmersholm, so with Strike 5 and Faerie Queen.* Spenser's Faerie Queen (Above)6. The GhostsRowling's core belief is in the immortality of the soul and her favorite writer of the 20th Century is Vladimir Nabokov, whose work is subtly permeated by the otherworldly. No surprise, then, that Troubled Blood is haunted by a host of ghosts, most importantly the shade of Margot Bamborough but to include the women murdered by Dennis Creed and Nicolo Ricci. Their influence is so obvious and so important that it has spurred discussion of the spectres that haunt the first four Strike novels whose presence had not been discussed prior to the revelations of Strike 5.* Troubled Blood: The Dead Among Us* The Ghosts Haunting Troubled Blood* The Ghosts Haunting Cuckoo's Calling, Silkworm, Career of Evil, and Lethal White7. The NamesThe Cryptonyms or Cratylic Names of Troubled Blood are as rich and meaningful, even funny, as those found in Lethal White. From Paul Satchwell's “little package” to Roy Phipps as the Spanish King Phillip, from the nigredo black elements of Bill Talbot and Saul Morris to the Spenserian echoes of Oonaugh Kennedy and Janice Beattie, and the Rokeby-Oakden coincidences, Strike5 is full of name play. Did I mention that the detectives solve the mystery largely through their exploration of names? Douthwaite and Oakden only pop-up after Strike has revelations consequent to serious reflection on their names and pseudonyms. Rowling-Galbraith really wants her real-world readers to be reflecting on the Dickensian names of all her characters.* The Cratylic Names of Troubled Blood: A Top Twenty Round Up8. The Flints and GaffesRowling commented in one of her interview tableaus for Troubled Blood that she had worked extra hard to get the dates right in this most complicated of novels and that her proof reader and continuity editor found a big mistake. Serious Strikers, though, were left crying “Alas!” and laughing aloud at the number of bone-headed gaffes in The Presence's longest work to date. It remains her best as well as her longest book to date, but, really, get the woman the help she needs to comb the book for errors pre-publication. Can you say, “Isla”?* Troubled Blood: Flints, Errors, and Head Scratchers* Troubled Blood Gaffes: A Second Look at Ages and Dates9. The AstrologyThe principal embedded text in Troubled Blood, the one Robin and Cormoran read repeatedly, create keys for, and discuss throughout the book, is Bill Talbot's ‘True Book.' It features an astrological chart for the exact time and place of Margot Bamborough's disappearance in 1974, which map Talbot used to try and solve the case. Strike is profoundly disgusted by this approach but spends, as does Robin, much of his time trying to figure out the chart or at least what Talbot made of it. Troubled Blood, consequently, turns into something of an exploration of astrology and its relevance to understanding ourselves and the world. Unpacking what Rowling means by it, not to mention what the natal charts of Robin and Cormoran tell us about these charactes, their relationship, and Rowling-Galbraith's intentionally hermetic artistry, is a large part of the exegetical work to be done on Troubled Blood.* Nick Jeffery: Troubled Blood — The Acknowledgements* Part Three, Note Five* Troubled Blood: Strike's Natal Chart* Astrological Clock Structure of Troubled Blood* Astrological Allegorical: The Sun Signs of Characters in Troubled Blood* A Second Look at Talbot's Chart: What Does it Reveal to the Unbiased Eye?10. The Tarot Card SpreadsWe know that Rowling has significant skills when it comes to astrology. What is less well appreciated is that almost from childhood she has played with tarot card reading which knowledge has informed her work. This is comic in Trelawney, say, but comes to the fore in Troubled Blood‘s card spreads: the Celtic Cross in Talbot's ‘True Book,' his embedded three card spreads in the illustrations of that tome, and Robin's two readings, one in Laemington Spa and the other in her flat at story's end.* Part Three, Note Six* Part Four, Note Five* Part Five, Note Five* Part Six, Notes Five, Six, Eight* Bill Talbot's Tarot: The Embedded Occult Heart of Troubled Blood* Robin Ellacott's Tarot: The Missed Meanings of Her Twin Three Card Spreads in Troubled Blood11. Who Killed Leda Strike?To Rowling-Galbraith's credit, credible arguments in dedicated posts have been made that every person in the list below was the one who murdered Leda Strike. Who do you think did it?* Jonny Rokeby and the Harringay Crime Syndicate (Heroin Dark Lord 2.0),* Ted Nancarrow (Uncle Ted Did It),* Dave Polworth,* Leda Strike (!),* Lucy Fantoni (Lucy and Joan Did It and here),* Sir Randolph Whittaker,* Nick Herbert,* Peter Gillespie, and* Charlotte Campbell-Ross12. Embedded TextsAll of Rowling's novels feature books and texts, written work as well as metanarratives, with which her characters struggle to figure out in reflective parallel to what her readers are trying to do with the novel in hand. Troubled Blood is exceptionally laden with these embedded texts. Beyond Talbot's True Book and Spenser's Faerie Queen noted above, we are treated to selections from The Demon of Paradise Park, Whatever Happened to Margot Bamborough?, Astrology 14, and The Magus.13. The Murderers: Creed and BeattieA demon-possessed psychopath and the brain-damaged lonely woman… Each is described as “a genius of misdirection” and being without remorse or empathy. The actual murderers in Troubled Blood are distinct, certainly, but paired as well, as one of the many mirrored pairs in this story.14. FeminismTroubled Blood, Rowling has said, is a commentary of sorts on changes in the history of feminism. It is an unvarnished, even brutal exploration of the heroic age of the feminist movement, its front and back, largely through the personalities, circumstances, choices, and experiences of two pairs of women, Margot Bamborough and her plucky Irish side-kick Oonaugh Kennedy and the paired through time couple of Irene Bull-Hickson and Janice Beattie.15. Rokeby 3.0Jonny Rokeby makes his first appearance, albeit only by phone call, in Troubled Blood and yet it has reset thinking about Strike and his biological father considerably. Kurt Schreyer thinks the head Deadbeat is more Snape than Voldemort — and, if this is the case, we need to re-read the series to see how much Strike's emotional injuries from childhood neglect have misshaped his understanding of his dad so he lives in upside-down land.* Guest Post: Rokeby Redux – Is Strike's Father More Snape than Lord Voldemort? Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

Today's Lake and Shed framed conversation is about the fifth Cormoran Strike novel, Troubled Blood. Nick discusses Rowling's history with the divinatory art of astrology and the occult resources and reference works she brought into play in writing a novel whose primary embedded text is a murder scene's astrological chart. John talks about the astrological clock structure of twelve houses in which Galbraith tells this remarkable story.New to the Lake and Shed Kanreki Birthday series? Here's what we're doing:On 31 July 2025, Joanne Murray, aka J. K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, will be celebrating her 60th birthday. This celebration is considered a ‘second birth' in Japan or Kanreki because it is the completion of the oriental astrological cycle. To mark JKR's Kanreki, Dr John Granger and Nick Jeffery, both Nipponophiles, are reading through Rowling's twenty-one published works and reviewing them in light of the author's writing process, her ‘Lake and Shed' metaphor. The ‘Lake' is the biographical source of her inspiration; the ‘Shed' is the alocal place of her intentional artistry, in which garage she transforms the biographical stuff provided by her subconscious mind into the archetypal stories that have made her the most important author of her age. You can hear Nick and John discuss this process and their birthday project at the first entry in this series of posts: Happy Birthday, JKR! A Lake and Shed Celebration of her Life and Work.Tomorrow? Another look at Troubled Blood, this time with an introduction to Rowling's ties to Clerkenwell from Nick and with John making a case for reading Troubled Blood as a re-telling of Spenser's Faerie Queene, Book One, with Strike and Margot as the Redcrosse Knight and Robin and Oonaugh as Una. Stay tuned!Links to posts mentioned in today's Lake and Shed conversation for further reading:* Nick Jeffery: Troubled Blood — The Astrologers in the Acknowledgements* J. K. Rowling, Author-Astrologer, Pt 1: How Did We Not Know About This?* Troubled Blood: Strike's Natal Chart* Astrological Clock Structure of Troubled BloodThis is a tentative listing by category of the posts at HogwartsProfessor about Troubled Blood. There's much more work to do on this wonderful work!1. Chiastic StructureRowling's fixation on planning in general and with structural patterns specifically in all of her work continues in Troubled Blood. From the first reading, it became apparent that in Strike5 Rowling-Galbraith had taken her game to a new level of sophistication. She continued, as she had in her four previous Strike mysteries, to write a story in parallel with the Harry Potter septology; there are many echoes of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, the fifth and equivalent number in the Hogwarts Saga, in Troubled Blood. Just as Phoenix was in important ways a re-telling of Philosopher's Stone, so Troubled Blood also echoes Cuckoo's Calling — with a few Stone notes thrown in as well. The new heights of Rowling's structural artistry, though, extend beyond her patented intratextuality; they are in each of Strike5's first six parts being ring compositions themselves, the astrological chart embedded in the story chapters, and the six part and two chapters correspondence in structure between Troubled Blood and Spenser's Faerie Queen.* Structure Part One* Structure Part Two, Notes Two to Six* Structure Part Three, Notes One to Three* Structure Part Four, Notes One to Three, Eight, and Ten* Structure Part Five, Notes One to Four, Nine* Structure Part Six, Notes One to Four* Structure Part Seven, Ring Latch, Story Axis* Astrological Clock Structure of Troubled Blood* Career of Evil Echoes* Order of the Phoenix Echoes* Cuckoo's Calling Echoes* Philosopher's Stone Echoes2. Literary AlchemyPer Nabokov, literary artistry and accomplishment are known and experienced through a work's “structure and style.” Rowling's signature structures are evident in Troubled Blood (see above) and her characteristic hermetic artistry, literary alchemy, is as well. Strike5 is the series nigredo and Strike and Robin experience great losses and their reduction to their respective and shared prima materia in the dissolving rain and flood waters of the story.* Strike's Transformation* Robin Ellacott and the Reverse Alchemy of the First Three Strike Novels* Lethal White as the Alchemical Pivot of the Strike Series* The Wet Nigredo: Troubled Blood's Black Names, Holiday Three Step, and Losses3. Psychology/MythologyRowling told Val McDermid that if she had not succeeded as a writer than she would have studied to become a psychologist:V: If it hadn't worked out the way it has. If you'd sat there and written the book in the café and nobody ever published it, what would you have done with your life, what would you have liked to have been?JK: There are two answers. If I could have done anything, I would have been really interested in doing, I would have been a psychologist. Because that's the only thing that's ever really pulled me in any way from all this. But at the time I was teaching, and I was very broke, and I had a daughter and I think I would have kept teaching until we were stable enough that we were stable enough that I could change.Because of her lifelong study and pre-occupation with mythology, it is fitting that in Strike5 readers are confronted with a host of references to psychologist Carl Jung and to a specific Greek myth which Jungian psychologists consider essential in understanding feminine psychology. All of which leads in the end to the Strike series' equivalent of the Hogwarts Saga's soul triptych exteriorization in Harry, Hermione and Ron as Body, Mind, and Spirit, with Robin and Strike as Handless Maiden and Fisher King, the mythological images of anima and animus neglected and working towards integration.* Carl Jung and Troubled Blood* A Mythological Key to Cormoran Strike? The Myth of Eros, Psyche, and Venus* The Anima and Animus: The Psychological Heart and Exteriorization of the Cormoran Strike Novels4. Valentine's DayThe story turn of Troubled Blood takes place on Valentine's Day and the actions, events, and repercussions of this holiday of Cupid and Heart-shaped candies, not to mention chocolates, shape the Robin and Strike relationship drama irrevocably. Chocolates play an outsized portion of that work symbolically, believe it or not; the word ‘chocolate' occurs 34 times in the first four Strike novels combined but 82 times in Troubled Blood. I explore the importance of this confection in two posts before beginning to explain the importance and appropriateness of Valentine's Day being the heart of the story, one that is in large part a re-telling of the Cupid and Psyche myth.* Troubled Blood: Interpreting the Poetry of Cormoran's Five Gifts To Robin* Troubled Blood: Poisoned Chocolates* Troubled Blood: The Secret of Rowntree* A Mythological Key to Cormoran Strike? The Myth of Eros, Psyche, and Venus5. Edmund Spenser's Faerie QueenTroubled Blood features several embedded texts, the most important of which is never mentioned in the book: Edmund Spenser's Faerie Queen. Serious Strikers enjoyed the luxury of not one but two scholars of Edmund Spenser who checked in on the relevance and meaning of Rowling's choice of the greatest English epic poem for her epigraphs, not to mention the host of correspondences between Strike 5 and Queen. Elizabeth Baird-Hardy did a part by part exegesis of the Troubled Blood-Faerie Queen conjunctions and Beatrice Groves shared her first thoughts on the connections as well. Just as Lethal White's meaning and artistry is relatively unappreciated without a close reading of Ibsen's Rosmersholm, so with Strike 5 and Faerie Queen.Elizabeth Baird-Hardy* Day One, Part One: The Spenserian Epigraphs of the Pre-Released Troubled Blood Chapters* Day Two, Part Two: The Spenserian Epigraphs of Troubled Blood Chapters Eight to Fourteen* Day Three, Part Three: The Spenserian Epigraphs of Troubled Blood Chapters Fifteen to Thirty* Day Four, Part Four: The Spenserian Epigraphs of Troubled Blood Chapters Thirty One to Forty Eight* Day Five, Part Five: The Spenserian Epigraphs of Troubled Blood Chapters Forty Nine to Fifty Nine* Part Six: The Spenserian Epigraphs of Troubled Blood Chapters Sixty to Seventy One* Spenser and Strike Part Seven: Changes for the BetterBeatrice Groves* Trouble in Faerie Land (Part 1): Spenserian Clues in Troubled Blood Epigraphs* Trouble in Faerie Land (Part 2): Shipping Robin and Strike in the Epigraphs of Troubled Blood* Trouble in Faerie Land (Part 3): Searching for Duessa in Troubled BloodJohn Granger:* How Spenser Uses Cupid in Faerie Queen and Its Relevance for Understanding Troubled Blood* Reading Troubled Blood as a Medieval Morality Play6. The GhostsRowling's core belief is in the immortality of the soul and her favorite writer of the 20th Century is Vladimir Nabokov, whose work is subtly permeated by the otherworldly. No surprise, then, that Troubled Blood is haunted by a host of ghosts, most importantly the shade of Margot Bamborough but to include the women murdered by Dennis Creed and Nicolo Ricci. Their influence is so obvious and so important that it has spurred discussion of the spectres that haunt the first four Strike novels whose presence had not been discussed prior to the revelations of Strike 5.* Troubled Blood: The Dead Among Us* The Ghosts Haunting Troubled Blood* The Ghosts Haunting Cuckoo's Calling, Silkworm, Career of Evil, and Lethal White7. The NamesThe Cryptonyms or Cratylic Names of Troubled Blood are as rich and meaningful, even funny, as those found in Lethal White. From Paul Satchwell's “little package” to Roy Phipps as the Spanish King Phillip, from the nigredo black elements of Bill Talbot and Saul Morris to the Spenserian echoes of Oonaugh Kennedy and Janice Beattie, and the Rokeby-Oakden coincidences, Strike5 is full of name play. Did I mention that the detectives solve the mystery largely through their exploration of names? Douthwaite and Oakden only pop-up after Strike has revelations consequent to serious reflection on their names and pseudonyms. Rowling-Galbraith really wants her real-world readers to be reflecting on the Dickensian names of all her characters.* The Cratylic Names of Troubled Blood: A Top Twenty Round Up8. The Flints and GaffesRowling commented in one of her interview tableaus for Troubled Blood that she had worked extra hard to get the dates right in this most complicated of novels and that her proof reader and continuity editor found a big mistake. Serious Strikers, though, were left crying “Alas!” and laughing aloud at the number of bone-headed gaffes in The Presence's longest work to date. It remains her best as well as her longest book to date, but, really, get the woman the help she needs to comb the book for errors pre-publication. Can you say, “Isla”?* Troubled Blood: Flints, Errors, and Head Scratchers* Troubled Blood Gaffes: A Second Look at Ages and Dates9. The AstrologyThe principal embedded text in Troubled Blood, the one Robin and Cormoran read repeatedly, create keys for, and discuss throughout the book, is Bill Talbot's ‘True Book.' It features an astrological chart for the exact time and place of Margot Bamborough's disappearance in 1974, which map Talbot used to try and solve the case. Strike is profoundly disgusted by this approach but spends, as does Robin, much of his time trying to figure out the chart or at least what Talbot made of it. Troubled Blood, consequently, turns into something of an exploration of astrology and its relevance to understanding ourselves and the world. Unpacking what Rowling means by it, not to mention what the natal charts of Robin and Cormoran tell us about these charactes, their relationship, and Rowling-Galbraith's intentionally hermetic artistry, is a large part of the exegetical work to be done on Troubled Blood.* Nick Jeffery: Troubled Blood — The Acknowledgements* Part Three, Note Five* Troubled Blood: Strike's Natal Chart* Astrological Clock Structure of Troubled Blood* Astrological Allegorical: The Sun Signs of Characters in Troubled Blood* A Second Look at Talbot's Chart: What Does it Reveal to the Unbiased Eye?10. The Tarot Card SpreadsWe know that Rowling has significant skills when it comes to astrology. What is less well appreciated is that almost from childhood she has played with tarot card reading which knowledge has informed her work. This is comic in Trelawney, say, but comes to the fore in Troubled Blood‘s card spreads: the Celtic Cross in Talbot's ‘True Book,' his embedded three card spreads in the illustrations of that tome, and Robin's two readings, one in Laemington Spa and the other in her flat at story's end.* Part Three, Note Six* Part Four, Note Five* Part Five, Note Five* Part Six, Notes Five, Six, Eight* Bill Talbot's Tarot: The Embedded Occult Heart of Troubled Blood* Robin Ellacott's Tarot: The Missed Meanings of Her Twin Three Card Spreads in Troubled Blood11. Who Killed Leda Strike?To Rowling-Galbraith's credit, credible arguments in dedicated posts have been made that every person in the list below was the one who murdered Leda Strike. Who do you think did it?* Jonny Rokeby and the Harringay Crime Syndicate (Heroin Dark Lord 2.0),* Ted Nancarrow (Uncle Ted Did It),* Dave Polworth,* Leda Strike (!),* Lucy Fantoni (Lucy and Joan Did It and here),* Sir Randolph Whittaker,* Nick Herbert,* Peter Gillespie, and* Charlotte Campbell-Ross12. Embedded TextsAll of Rowling's novels feature books and texts, written work as well as metanarratives, with which her characters struggle to figure out in reflective parallel to what her readers are trying to do with the novel in hand. Troubled Blood is exceptionally laden with these embedded texts. Beyond Talbot's True Book and Spenser's Faerie Queen noted above, we are treated to selections from The Demon of Paradise Park, Whatever Happened to Margot Bamborough?, Astrology 14, and The Magus.13. The Murderers: Creed and BeattieA demon-possessed psychopath and the brain-damaged lonely woman… Each is described as “a genius of misdirection” and being without remorse or empathy. The actual murderers in Troubled Blood are distinct, certainly, but paired as well, as one of the many mirrored pairs in this story.14. FeminismTroubled Blood, Rowling has said, is a commentary of sorts on changes in the history of feminism. It is an unvarnished, even brutal exploration of the heroic age of the feminist movement, its front and back, largely through the personalities, circumstances, choices, and experiences of two pairs of women, Margot Bamborough and her plucky Irish side-kick Oonaugh Kennedy and the paired through time couple of Irene Bull-Hickson and Janice Beattie.15. Rokeby 3.0Jonny Rokeby makes his first appearance, albeit only by phone call, in Troubled Blood and yet it has reset thinking about Strike and his biological father considerably. Kurt Schreyer thinks the head Deadbeat is more Snape than Voldemort — and, if this is the case, we need to re-read the series to see how much Strike's emotional injuries from childhood neglect have misshaped his understanding of his dad so he lives in upside-down land.* Guest Post: Rokeby Redux – Is Strike's Father More Snape than Lord Voldemort? Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

Today's Lake and Shed framed conversation is about Rowling's remarkable “fairy-tale” and the history and meaning of its release during the “pandemic” hysteria of 2020. The Ickabog, along with Casual Vacancy and Ink Black Heart, is not only one of Rowling's most autobiographical works, but, with the Lake and Shed interview, the Solve et Coagula tattoo, her RFK Award speech, and the Trans Tweet Heard Round the World, a key to her self-understanding in the critical year 2019-2020. Nick takes the ‘Shed' point and lays out the controlled demolition of her reputation among Group Thinkers on the Left in the lead up to Ickabog's publication and John shares the meaning of ‘The Ickabog's Song,' the embedded text of the tale, as interpreted by Daisy Dovetail (an embedded author?).New to the Lake and Shed Kanreki Birthday series? Here's what we're doing:On 31 July 2025, Joanne Murray, aka J. K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, will be celebrating her 60th birthday. This celebration is considered a ‘second birth' in Japan or Kanreki because it is the completion of the oriental astrological cycle. To mark JKR's Kanreki, Dr John Granger and Nick Jeffery, both Nipponophiles, are reading through Rowling's twenty-one published works and reviewing them in light of the author's writing process, her ‘Lake and Shed' metaphor. The ‘Lake' is the biographical source of her inspiration; the ‘Shed' is the alocal place of her intentional artistry, in which garage she transforms the biographical stuff provided by her subconscious mind into the archetypal stories that have made her the most important author of her age. You can hear Nick and John discuss this process and their birthday project at the first entry in this series of posts: Happy Birthday, JKR! A Lake and Shed Celebration of her Life and Work.Tomorrow? Perhaps the best single book by Rowling-Galbraith, Troubled Blood. Nick will be sharing Rowling's skills in and beliefs about astrology which plays an outsised role in the fifth Strike novel. John talks about the “Best Mate” scene in the Agency office and its important mythological backdrop. Stay tuned!Links to posts mentioned in today's Lake and Shed conversation for further reading:Nick Jeffery: Beginning at the Beginning A History of ‘Ickabog' and Christmas PigInk Black Heart and Deathly Hallows: The Heart is Not About Emotions and Affection but the Human Spiritual CenterWeek Seven of the Ickabog! Hurrah!* Last Chapters Comment‘The Song of the Ickabog' — Three NotesRowling Writes Trans Views Tell All Post; Fandom Divides ‘Team Jo,' ‘Team Trans'Reading, Writing, Rowling 44: Ickabog! John Granger's Last MuggleNet PodcastRowling's Pregnancy Traps: Fantastic Beasts, The Ickabog, The Christmas PigRowling Tweets Potter Fandom, IckabogThe Ickabog: Rowling Facebook EventGuest Post: Ickabog Notes & PredictionsThe Ickabog: JKR's Political Fairy TaleWas 2020 A Bad Year for J. K. Rowling? Nominated for 3 British Book AwardsGroves: The Rowling-Norton InterviewThe Names of “The Ickabog” – Part 1 (Beatrice GrovesThe Names of “The Ickabog” – Part 2: Ichabod (Beatrice Groves) Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

Nick and John take a Lake and Shed long look at the second screenplay for the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them film series. On the Lake side of things, Nick explores the Johnny Depp casting scandal and the lead-up in 2018 to the 2019 Tweet Heard Round the World. John explains that the cut scenes from this dog's mess of a movie point that the shooting script, i.e., what Rowling wrote and approved before David Yates butchered the film in the editing room, was all about Leta Lestrange. More important, John makes the Shed point that every Rowling book features a text of some kind that the characters struggle to understand — and that Crimes of Grindelwald has ten of these, a veritable library of interior texts to interpret.New to the Lake and Shed Kanreki Birthday series? Here's what we're doing:On 31 July 2025, Joanne Murray, aka J. K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, will be celebrating her 60th birthday. This celebration is considered a ‘second birth' in Japan or Kanreki because it is the completion of the oriental astrological cycle. To mark JKR's Kanreki, Dr John Granger and Nick Jeffery, both Nipponophiles, are reading through Rowling's twenty-one published works and reviewing them in light of the author's writing process, her ‘Lake and Shed' metaphor. The ‘Lake' is the biographical source of her inspiration; the ‘Shed' is the alocal place of her intentional artistry, in which garage she transforms the biographical stuff provided by her subconscious mind into the archetypal stories that have made her the most important author of her age. You can hear Nick and John discuss this process and their birthday project at the first entry in this series of posts: Happy Birthday, JKR! A Lake and Shed Celebration of her Life and Work.Tomorrow? We enter 2020, Rowling's annus horribilis, with the simultaneous nightmares of the COVID hysteria and lockdowns coupled with the Trans Wars, in which all thinking people (to include Rowling) were dismissed — or, in the prevalent jargon of those years, “cancelled” — as hateful, hurtful, even murderous “transphobes.” Nick explains the fascinating received history of The Ickabog manuscript and John builds on Nick's caveats and misgivings with why he thinks the textus receptus narrative is so much hogwash. John shares his favorite scene in the book, one from ‘Week Six,' in which Daisy talks with the Monster about her heart. Stay tuned!Links to posts mentioned in today's Lake and Shed conversation for further reading:The Crimes of Grindelwald ‘Pillar Post' at HogwartsProfessor.com (more than 50 links to posts!) Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

Today's Lake and Shed framed conversation is about the fourth Cormoran Strike novel, Lethal White. Nick discusses the embedded class struggle in the book and its roots in Rowling's background before dropping the bomb of the real world identity of Jack O'Kent and his unhappy family. John is so taken aback by this revelation that Nick has to prompt the Shed portion of the conversation with a fun history of the Sonia Friedman production of Ibsen's Rosmersholm on London's West End, a show starring Thom Burke as Rosmer and which ended just before Bronte Studios beginning the filming of Lethal White. John explains why Rowling might have had something to do with the teevee C. B. Strike gaining a memorized knowledge of this play before filming the fourth book's adaptation.New to the Lake and Shed Kanreki Birthday series? Here's what we're doing:On 31 July 2025, Joanne Murray, aka J. K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, will be celebrating her 60th birthday. This celebration is considered a ‘second birth' in Japan or Kanreki because it is the completion of the oriental astrological cycle. To mark JKR's Kanreki, Dr John Granger and Nick Jeffery, both Nipponophiles, are reading through Rowling's twenty-one published works and reviewing them in light of the author's writing process, her ‘Lake and Shed' metaphor. The ‘Lake' is the biographical source of her inspiration; the ‘Shed' is the alocal place of her intentional artistry, in which garage she transforms the biographical stuff provided by her subconscious mind into the archetypal stories that have made her the most important author of her age. You can hear Nick and John discuss this process and their birthday project at the first entry in this series of posts: Happy Birthday, JKR! A Lake and Shed Celebration of her Life and Work.Tomorrow? Another work with Rowling's name on the cover that is the not the work she wrote! Nick and John take a Lake and Shed long look at the second screenplay for the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them film series. On the Lake side of things, Nick explores the Johnny Depp casting scandal and the lead-up in 2018 to the 2019 Tweet Heard Round the World. John explains that the cut scenes from this dog's mess of a movie point that the shooting script, i.e., what Rowling wrote and approved before David Yates butchered the film in the editing room, was all about Leta Lestrange. More important, John makes the Shed point that every Rowling book features a text of some kind that the characters struggle to understand — and that Crimes of Grindelwald has ten of these, a veritable library of interior texts to interpret.Links to posts mentioned in today's Lake and Shed conversation for further reading:* Henrik Ibsen's ‘Rosmersholm'* Every ‘Rosmersholm' White Horse Reference (Odd Sverre Hove)* London Production of Rosmersholm: Starring Tom Burke (Cormoran Strike)* London Production of Rosmersholm (2): Starring Tom Burke (Cormoran Strike)* The ‘Reading, Writing, Rowling' podcast on Lethal White (Kathryn McDaniel, Louise Freeman, Beatrice Groves, John Granger)* The Top Ten Things We've Learned About Lethal White Since Publication Day* The Three Things about J. K. Rowling's Cormoran Strike Novels Every Harry Potter Fan Should Know* Lethal White: The Ring Structure* Lethal White: The Cratylic Names* Lethal White: Autobiographical Elements* Lethal White: Flints and Head ScratchersLethal White as Turning Point of Seven Part Ring Cycle* Does Lethal White Foreshadow Running Grave? You Betcha* The Missing Page Mystery* The Missing Page Mystery, Part 2* Does Lethal White Echo Goblet of Fire?* Lethal White: Every Goblet of Fire Link?* Lethal White: Cuckoo's Calling Retold?* The Cuckoo's Calling Echoes (25+)* Seven More Cuckoo's Calling Links* Lethal White: The Big Change at the Turn (End of the Strike Agency in Strike5?)Literary Alchemy and the Mythic Context* M. Evan Willis: The Mythic Context and Hermetic Meaning of Cormoran Strike* Guest Post: Mythological Leda Strike – Cormoran, Zeus, Castor and Pollux (Joanne Gray; prepublication)* Guest Post: Rowling's Mercurial Hermetic Artistry from Snape to Strike (M. Evan Willis; prepublication)* The Swan Symbolism* More Strike Swans: Historical and Film Connections (Elizabeth Baird-Hardy)* Harry Potter and The Hanged Man: Part 1 Rowling's Most Loaded Tarot Reference* Harry Potter and The Hanged Man: Part 2 The Historical and Occult Interpretations* Harry Potter and The Hanged Man: Part 3 Its Meaning in Rowling's Written WorkOn ‘White Horses'* The White Horse Gallows: Karmic Legacy of Empire in the UK?* Charlotte Campbell: The Broodmare of Lethal White (Louise Freeman)* Every ‘Rosmersholm' White Horse Reference (Odd Sverre Hove)* Taylor Swift's ‘White Horses' (Louise Freeman)* Lethal White: The White Horse Evidence (pre-publication list of pointers)* Lethal White Horses (Pre-publication; Beatrice Groves, MuggleNet)Series Mystery Possibilities* Lethal White: Is Strike Rokeby's Son? The Dates Don't Seem To Match Up* Bookending the Past: Cormoran Strike's Real Father? (Joanne Gray)* Lethal White: The Daddy Chiswell Evidence (Joanne Gray)Literary Allusions and Influences* Henrik Ibsen's ‘Rosmersholm'* Every ‘Rosmersholm' White Horse Reference (Odd Sverre Hove)* London Production of Rosmersholm: Starring Tom Burke (Cormoran Strike)* London Production of Rosmersholm (2): Starring Tom Burke (Cormoran Strike)* Agatha Christie's The Moving Finger* Allingham: The Fashion in Shrouds* Rowling's Favorite Poem Found in Oz : Whitman's “Of the Terrible Doubt of Appearances”* Dorothy Sayers' Murder Must Advertise, Ian Rankin, P. D. James (ChrisC, pre-publication)* Cormoran and Robin: Echoes of Homer's Odysseus and Penelope? (Joanne Gray)* Cormoran and Robin: Echoes of Homer's Odysseus and Penelope (2) Joanne Gray* Ben Jonson's ‘Every Man In His Humor' A Meaningful Model for Strike Stories? (prepublication)* Ian Rankin and Cormoran Strike (prepublication)* The Three Fates Meet The Weird Sisters: Cormoran Strike, Harry Potter, and the Question of Fate, Free Will, and Choice (prepublication)The National Health Service Sub Plot* Lethal White: Ghosts of Aneurin Bevan? Lorelei Bevan, Dodgy Doc, and the NHS* Lethal White and the NHS: Rowling SpeaksMiscellaneous:* Marketing Efforts and Sales* Most Common Pub Names* The Personal Assistant Drama* Possibility Two: Court Ordered Silence* The Robert Glenister Audiobook* Lethal White Wins CrimeFest Award* On ‘Doom Bar Ale'* BBC1 Adaptation a ‘Go'* A Review of the Legacy and Online Media Book ReviewsRowling Interviews, Twitter* Pre-Publication: The Lethal White Music Playlist (Louise Freeman)* The Graham Norton Interview* On ‘Galbraith Meets Graham Norton' (Beatrice Groves)* Rowling as Labour's Tweeting Prophet* New Political Maturity from Rowling?Prepublication Predictions and Speculation* A Lethal White ‘White Horse' Round-Up: An Explanation of ‘Heroin Dark Lord 1.0'In a nutshell, the theory is that Jonny Rokeby was responsible for Leda Strike's death, a ‘hit' that he arranged to insure that she would never reveal what she knew about crimes he committed as a Deadbeat, crimes to include murder, in conjunction with heroin and the drug trade. The ‘White Horse' that Rowling has been teasing readers with this past year may involve an actual stallion but the larger meaning of the clues is heroin, for which ‘white horse' is a street euphemism.* Lethal White and Strike Speculation 101: The Trouble with JKR/Galbraith Dates (Heroin Dark Lord 2.0: The IED Explosion)* Super Lethal White Speculation Podcast! Reading, Writing Rowling, Episode 14: Cormoran Strike – and Harry Potter?The thirteen HogwartsProfessor birthday videos posted thus far in this series can be read at the links below:* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows* A Lake and Shed Reading of Casual Vacancy* A Lake and Shed Reading of Cuckoo's Calling* A Lake and Shed Reading of The Silkworm* A Lake and Shed Reading of Career of Evil* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child* A Lake and Shed Reading of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Screenplay) Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

Today's Lake and Shed framed conversation is about J. K. Rowling's first “original screenplay,” Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. Nick does his signature deep dive into the history of the Fantastic Beasts film franchise's origins in Warner Brothers' determination to keep the Wizarding World profit-pillar in their portfolio alive after the last Harry Potter adaptation — and Rowling's equal determination that they not use their copyright privilege to muck up her legacy with an Indiana Jones meets Crocodile Dundee knock-off. John takes the Shed pole in the conversation and shares his months long pursuit of the shooting text screenplay, the actual last screenplay over which Rowling had control. He lays out the (1) twelve scenes that were cut from that shooting script by Steven Kloves, David Heyman, and David Yates as they “fit the woman to the dress” of Hollywood blockbuster formula, and (2) how it made a mess of the movie's chiastic integrity. Hat tip to Kelly Loomis!New to the Lake and Shed Kanreki Birthday series? Here's what we're doing:On 31 July 2025, Joanne Murray, aka J. K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, will be celebrating her 60th birthday. This celebration is considered a ‘second birth' in Japan or Kanreki because it is the completion of the oriental astrological cycle. To mark JKR's Kanreki, Dr John Granger and Nick Jeffery, both Nipponophiles, are reading through Rowling's twenty-one published works and reviewing them in light of the author's writing process, her ‘Lake and Shed' metaphor. The ‘Lake' is the biographical source of her inspiration; the ‘Shed' is the alocal place of her intentional artistry, in which garage she transforms the biographical stuff provided by her subconscious mind into the archetypal stories that have made her the most important author of her age. You can hear Nick and John discuss this process and their birthday project at the first entry in this series of posts: Happy Birthday, JKR! A Lake and Shed Celebration of her Life and Work.Tomorrow? It's back to a book we know was written by Joanne Murray, aka Robert Galbraith, Lethal White, the fourth Cormoran Strike novel. Nick promises to lay out the tensions between classes and castes in this book and how the story told reflects those tensions in Rowling's own life. John is set to discuss how Ibsen's Rosmersholm, the source of this book's epigraphs, is also a story template for this turning point of the first seven books. Stay tuned! Links to posts mentioned in today's Lake and Shed conversation for further reading:Unlocking Fantastic Beasts: Finding the Text* Preface: ‘The Original Screenplay' – Not the Shooting Script or Even a Faithful Movie Transcript (What the Movie Makers Changed or Left Out)* Preface 2: Comparing the Original Screenplay with the Actual Film: What the Film Makers Left Out, Changed, or Deleted (with Kelly Loomis)* Part 1: J. K. Rowling, Screenwriter — Who is Working for Whom?* Part 2: The Film Makers and Decision Makers?* Part 3: The Six Scenes You Missed in Fantastic Beasts and the Seventh: GrindelGraves' Vision* Part 4: Fantastic Beasts Revelations from the Far Side Sources (Can You Say ‘Lego Movie'?) * Part 5: So What? The Found Text and Its Meaning* 5.1 The Story of the Text We're Looking For* 5.2 Theseus the Hero and Newt Scamander* 5.3 Jacob Kowalski: Is He Bigger than Newt?* 5.4 The Grindelwald-Credence Relationship* 5.5 Lumos and the Barebone OrphanageInterpretation and Speculation: Ring Structure, Christian Content, Elder Wand, Etc.* On the Story Structure of Fantastic Beasts: Is It a Ring?* On the Deep Back Story Revealed in Fantastic Beasts* On the Christian Content in Fantastic Beasts — and the New Controversy* Rune Magic in ‘Fantastic Beasts'? I wish* Why the Film Franchise Cannot Win a Major League ‘Oscar'* Nicolas Flamel to Appear in the Sequel? Don't You Believe It!* Who is the Death Stick's Master? The Elder Wand and Fantastic BeastsPodcasts:* Fantastic Beasts Ring Composition: A ‘Reading, Writing, Rowling' Podcast (with Katy McDaniel and Brett Kendall)* On Rowling's Missteps and Misappropriatrions in ‘History of Magic in North America‘ (with Dr. Amy H. Sturgis and Allison Mills, MuggleNet Academia podcast)* The HogwartsProfessors Talk ‘Fantastic Beasts' (with Louise Freeman, Emily Strand, and Elizabeth Baird-Hardy; MuggleNet Academia podcast)* Eugenics in American History and Fantastic Beasts (with Professor Chris Gavaler of Washington and Lee University; MuggleNet Academia podcast)Elizabeth Baird-Hardy's Fantastic Beasts Posts* Throwback Thursday with Narnia, Newt Scamander, and Fantastic Beasts: Part I* Throwback Thursday with Narnia, Newt Scamander, and Fantastic Beasts: Part II* Pack Your Bags! Newt Scamander's Fantastic Beast-y Suitcase, Hermione's Handbag, and their Literary Relatives* Five Spoiler-Free Reasons Potterphiles will Love Fantastic Beasts* Thanksgiving Thoughts on Terrific Treats from Fantastic Beasts!* Fantastic Beast Flashbacks: The Five Things We Want to Know about What Happened BEFORE Newt's NY Adventure* Fairies and Wizards? A Midsummer Night's Dream and What We Might Expect from Crimes of GrindelwaldGuest Posts:* Wayne Stauffer: Names in Fantastic Beasts* Beatrice Groves: On ‘Nagini Maledictus' – Literary Allusion in Fantastic BeastsThe twelve HogwartsProfessor birthday videos posted thus far in this series can be read at the links below:* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows* A Lake and Shed Reading of Casual Vacancy* A Lake and Shed Reading of Cuckoo's Calling* A Lake and Shed Reading of The Silkworm* A Lake and Shed Reading of Career of Evil* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

Today's Lake and Shed framed conversation is about the Jack Thorne play, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. Nick reviews the history of how Rowling was sold on the idea of a Wizarding World stage production via a bit of bait and switch marketing and John reads the review of the Jack Thorn script by Pepperdine English Professor James Thomas. Neither John nor Nick is a big fan of the play but their back and forth about the several controversies connected with it and the question of its being “the eighth Harry Potter story” are still challenging and fun.New to the Lake and Shed Kanreki Birthday series? Here's what we're doing:On 31 July 2025, Joanne Murray, aka J. K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, will be celebrating her 60th birthday. This celebration is considered a ‘second birth' in Japan or Kanreki because it is the completion of the oriental astrological cycle. To mark JKR's Kanreki, Dr John Granger and Nick Jeffery, both Nipponophiles, are reading through Rowling's twenty-one published works and reviewing them in light of the author's writing process, her ‘Lake and Shed' metaphor. The ‘Lake' is the biographical source of her inspiration; the ‘Shed' is the alocal place of her intentional artistry, in which garage she transforms the biographical stuff provided by her subconscious mind into the archetypal stories that have made her the most important author of her age. You can hear Nick and John discuss this process and their birthday project at the first entry in this series of posts: Happy Birthday, JKR! A Lake and Shed Celebration of her Life and Work.Tomorrow? Another work with Rowling's name on the cover that is the not the work she wrote! Nick and John take a Lake and Shed long look at the screenplay for the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them film. On the Lake side of things, Nick explores the genesis of this movie franchise (and finds The Blind Pig speakeasy in Rowling's home!). John lays out the twelve scenes cut from Rowling's shooting script to make the case that what was published as ‘The Original Screenplay' was a Reader's Digest condensed version of her story, one that “fit the woman to the dress.”Links to posts mentioned in today's Lake and Shed conversation for further reading:* Pepperdine's Premiere Potter Pundit James Thomas Reviews Jack Thorne's ‘Harry Potter and the Cursed Child'* Re-Hashing, Re-working, and Resurrection: The Cursed Child and Why Authors Cannot Settle for Re-Visiting their Texts.* Rowling's Pregnancy Traps: Bellatrix Lestrange and the Cursed Child Delphini* New ‘Cursed Child' Condensed Version: Will the New Play's Script Be Published?* Cursed Child and HogwartsProfessor Fan Fiction post Deathly Hallows* Cursed Child: Rowling Video Testimony* MuggleNet Academia: Four Hogwarts Professors Discuss ‘Cursed Child'* Reading, Writing, Rowling Episode 12: Serious Readers Talk About Cursed Child Performances in NYC, London* Guest Post: PotterPundit at Cursed Child* Voldemort, Delphini, and Oedipus: Complex Folks and Cursed Children* Meta-Potter: Is ‘Cursed Child' Harry Potter Canon or Something Else?The eleven HogwartsProfessor birthday videos posted thus far in this series can be read at the links below:* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows* A Lake and Shed Reading of Casual Vacancy* A Lake and Shed Reading of Cuckoo's Calling* A Lake and Shed Reading of The Silkworm* A Lake and Shed Reading of Career of Evil Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

Today's Lake and Shed framed conversation is about J. K. Rowling's third Cormoran Strike novel, Career of Evil. Nick and John debate whether Rowling crossed the line of “violence porn” that she worried she had approached and they discuss why, in one of the few surveys of Serious Strikers, Career seems unique among these mysteries in being considered the best or the very worst of the set. The ‘Lake' point that Nick explores is Rowling's personal experience of violence against women and her determination to push back against the misogynist age she believes we have been living in for decades. John details the litany of crimes committed against women in the third Strike novel and suggests that in time, when we have the series as a whole, appreciation of the artistry involved will counter-balance the shock first-time readers feel on entering this boucherie.New to the Lake and Shed Kanreki Birthday series? Here's what we're doing:On 31 July 2025, Joanne Murray, aka J. K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, will be celebrating her 60th birthday. This celebration is considered a ‘second birth' in Japan or Kanreki because it is the completion of the oriental astrological cycle. To mark JKR's Kanreki, Dr John Granger and Nick Jeffery, both Nipponophiles, are reading through Rowling's twenty-one published works and reviewing them in light of the author's writing process, her ‘Lake and Shed' metaphor. The ‘Lake' is the biographical source of her inspiration; the ‘Shed' is the alocal place of her intentional artistry, in which garage she transforms the biographical stuff provided by her subconscious mind into the archetypal stories that have made her the most important author of her age. You can hear Nick and John discuss this process and their birthday project at the first entry in this series of posts: Happy Birthday, JKR! A Lake and Shed Celebration of her Life and Work.The ten HogwartsProfessor birthday videos posted thus far in this series can be read at the links below:* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows* A Lake and Shed Reading of Casual Vacancy* A Lake and Shed Reading of Cuckoo's Calling* A Lake and Shed Reading of The SilkwormTomorrow? It's Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, the play written by Jack Thorne “based on an original new story by Rowling, John Tiffany, and Thorne. Neither John nor Nick has seen the play but both have some thoughts about its place in the oeuvre and about its virtues and failings.Links to posts mentioned in today's Lake and Shed conversation for further reading:Ian Rankin's Rebus novel Black and Blue and Galbraith's Career of EvilThe Transabled Characters in Career of EvilRowling Discusses the Planning of Career of EvilDay of Publication Review at HogwartsProfessorThe Willy Wonka Golden Ticket Purchase of Career of EvilThe Ranking of the First Six Strike Novels:* John Granger's Choices of the Best and Worst* Nick Jeffery's Choices of Best to Worst* The Final Survey Tally Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

Today's Lake and Shed framed conversation is about J. K. Rowling's second Cormoran Strike novel, The Silkworm. Nick and John discuss the date Rowling claims to have had her Lake inspiration for Silkworm, the first book idea she had for the series, and what that would mean, if true. The ‘Lake' point that Nick reveals is the probable identity of ‘Jenkins,' the mystery person to whom Strike 2 is dedicated, a revelation consequent to no little detective work (and a very close reading of Louisa May Alcott!). He also discusses some real-life literary infighting in contemporary London that might have been lifted from the pages of Silkworm. John argues that this ur-novel of the series, its point of conception, is Rowling's not especially opaque guide to how to understand a novelist's life and to appreciate their work, in short, her first ‘Lake and Shed' discussion (albeit one embedded in story). He explores Kathryn Kent's blog entry about Plot and Narrative as Rowling's pointer to the syuzhet and Fabula distinction of the Russian Formalists, the key to understanding what writers do and create.New to the Lake and Shed Kanreki Birthday series? Here's what we're doing:On 31 July 2025, Joanne Murray, aka J. K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, will be celebrating her 60th birthday. This celebration is considered a ‘second birth' in Japan or Kanreki because it is the completion of the oriental astrological cycle. To mark JKR's Kanreki, Dr John Granger and Nick Jeffery, both Nipponophiles, are reading through Rowling's twenty-one published works and reviewing them in light of the author's writing process, her ‘Lake and Shed' metaphor. The ‘Lake' is the biographical source of her inspiration; the ‘Shed' is the alocal place of her intentional artistry, in which garage she transforms the biographical stuff provided by her subconscious mind into the archetypal stories that have made her the most important author of her age. You can hear Nick and John discuss this process and their birthday project at the first entry in this series of posts: Happy Birthday, JKR! A Lake and Shed Celebration of her Life and Work.The nine HogwartsProfessor birthday videos posted thus far in this series can be read at the links below:* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows* A Lake and Shed Reading of Casual Vacancy* A Lake and Shed Reading of Cuckoo's CallingTomorrow? It's Career of Evil, the Comoran Strike novel unlike all others and one which Serious Strikers either love or love to hate. Links to posts mentioned in today's Lake and Shed conversation for further reading:Does Rowling Merit the Nobel Prize in Literature?* Syuzhet and Fabula* Poeima, Genre, and Influence* LiterarinessKathryn Kent's Plot-Narrative DistinctionFirst Thoughts on The SilkwormBeatrice Groves on Early Modern Revenge Drama and The Silkworm* John's Thoughts on the Poisoned Skeleton in The Silkworm Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

Today's Lake and Shed framed conversation is about J. K. Rowling's first Cormoran Strike novel, The Cuckoo's Calling. Nick and John debate the degree of Rowling's dishonesty about writing a detective series before she was outed as ‘Robert Galbraith' to include whether she really had any other plan than for the book to be published by the company and edited by the editor who handled Casual Vacancy. The ‘Lake' point that Nick explores is the identity of the real Deeby Mac, namely, Di Brooks, Rowling's former security director and currently her office manager, a veteran with years of experience in the SIB. John's ‘Shed' point is his pushback against the idea that Calling wasn't really the first book in the series because Rowling has said she had the idea for it after Silkworm and only chose it because the case would make her detective famous. John argues that the many echoes that connect the first, fourth, and seventh books but especially Calling and Running Grave mean that Calling is the point of origin around which the ring of the first seven novels was constructed.New to the Lake and Shed Kanreki Birthday series? Here's what we're doing:On 31 July 2025, Joanne Murray, aka J. K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, will be celebrating her 60th birthday. This celebration is considered a ‘second birth' in Japan or Kanreki because it is the completion of the oriental astrological cycle. To mark JKR's Kanreki, Dr John Granger and Nick Jeffery, both Nipponophiles, are reading through Rowling's twenty-one published works and reviewing them in light of the author's writing process, her ‘Lake and Shed' metaphor. The ‘Lake' is the biographical source of her inspiration; the ‘Shed' is the alocal place of her intentional artistry, in which garage she transforms the biographical stuff provided by her subconscious mind into the archetypal stories that have made her the most important author of her age. You can hear Nick and John discuss this process and their birthday project at the first entry in this series of posts: Happy Birthday, JKR! A Lake and Shed Celebration of her Life and Work.The eight HogwartsProfessor birthday videos posted thus far in this series can be read at the links below:* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows* A Lake and Shed Reading of The Casual VacancyTomorrow? It's The Silkworm, the first Comoran Strike novel by conception, not publication, in Rowling's oeuvre (or ‘in Robert Galbraith's, if you prefer the second of Mrs. Murray's pseudonyms), in which Nick reveals the real-life feuding authors behind the Strike2 bitter battles between book-men (and Jenkins!) while John talks about the metaliterary heft of Silkworm's “novel inside a novel about novels.” See you then!Links to posts mentioned in today's Lake and Shed conversation for further reading:* Meet the Real ‘Deeby Mac:' Evidence from the Amanda Donaldson Lawsuit * Cuckoo's Calling and Running Grave: The Essential Echoes and Parallels Between the First and Seventh Strike Mysteries* Did Charlotte Campbell Commit Suicide or Was She Murdered? The Argument from the Faked Suicide-Murders in Cuckoo, Lethal White, and Running Grave* Rowling Says The Silkworm was the First Cormoran Strike Novel Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

Today's Lake and Shed framed conversation is about J. K. Rowling's first adult novel and one Nick and John think she may have been writing before she was inspired to write Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. It's that autobiographical, a transparency of sorts for the several unhappy women Jo Rowling Murray has been. Nick explains all the projects we now know she was working on between 2007 and 2012, the dates of Deathly Hallows and Casual Vacancy's respective publication dates, as well as the degree to which readers can assume that the novel's Simon Price is a fictional portrait of her father, Peter Rowling. John describes the three Gospel parables embedded in Casual Vacancy and why he thinks the book was a project the author was working on before the Hogwarts Saga as well as why it reflects a religious crisis akin to Harry's ‘struggle to believe' in Deathly Hallows.New to the Lake and Shed Kanreki Birthday series? Here's what we're doing:On 31 July 2025, Joanne Murray, aka J. K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, will be celebrating her 60th birthday. This celebration is considered a ‘second birth' in Japan or Kanreki because it is the completion of the oriental astrological cycle. To mark JKR's Kanreki, Dr John Granger and Nick Jeffery, both Nipponophiles, are reading through Rowling's twenty-one published works and reviewing them in light of the author's writing process, her ‘Lake and Shed' metaphor. The ‘Lake' is the biographical source of her inspiration; the ‘Shed' is the alocal place of her intentional artistry, in which garage she transforms the biographical stuff provided by her subconscious mind into the archetypal stories that have made her the most important author of her age. You can hear Nick and John discuss this process and their birthday project at the first entry in this series of posts: Happy Birthday, JKR! A Lake and Shed Celebration of her Life and Work.The seven HogwartsProfessor birthday videos posted thus far in this series can be read at the links below:* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Deathly HallowsTomorrow? It's Cuckoo's Calling, the first Comoran Strike publication in Rowling's oeuvre (or ‘in Robert Galbraith's, if you prefer the second of Mrs. Murray's pseudonyms), in which Nick reveals the real-life Deeby Mac to whom the book is dedicated and John talks about the parallels between the first and seventh Strike novels. See you then!Links from today's Lake and Shed conversation for further reading:* ‘Bad Dad:' A History of Rowling's Relationship with Peter Rowling, Her Father; * ‘Christmas Pig 1: Jack Jones, Peter, and John,' Rowling's Use of the Names ‘Peter' and ‘Simon' for Bad Guys in Her Stories;* ‘Exceptions to the Peter-John Rule: John Bristow, Dolores Umbridge, Matt Cunliffe;'* Casual Vacancy: The Characters Derived from Rowling's Life and Why the Book Should Not Be Read through a Biographical Lens;* The Christian Hypocrites and Sympathetic Sikhs in Casual Vacancy;* The Review of Casual Vacancy in Christianity Today (2012);* The Casual Vacancy and the ‘Good Samaritan' Gospel Parable; and* J. K. Rowling on the ‘Good Samaritan' Event in Casual Vacancy Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

Today's Lake and Shed framed conversation is about the seventh and final Harry Potter novels Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. John and Nick discuss the ‘Deathly Hallows' symbol, a triangulated and vertically bisected circle, from both its biographical point of inspiration to its anagogical or sublime depths. Nick reveals Rowling's story about how she was watching the 1975 John Huston film ‘The Man Who Would Be King' the night her mother died and that believes the “Masonic tag” of the story-line was her sub-conscious source for the Deathly Hallows '“triangular eye.” John thinks Rowling is really reaching here, akin to her claim that the name ‘Hogwarts' came from a trip to a public garden rather than the Molesworth books. He reviews the five eyes of Deathly Hallows and explains how Rowling embeds both a key to the four-level interpretation of symbols in how characters respond to that image and a model of how we are to interpret and understand her ‘transformed vision' mission as a writer.New to the Lake and Shed Kanreki Birthday series? Here's what we're doing:On 31 July 2025, Joanne Murray, aka J. K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, will be celebrating her 60th birthday. This celebration is considered a ‘second birth' in Japan or Kanreki because it is the completion of the oriental astrological cycle. To mark JKR's Kanreki, Dr John Granger and Nick Jeffery, both Nipponophiles, are reading through Rowling's twenty-one published works and reviewing them in light of the author's writing process, her ‘Lake and Shed' metaphor. The ‘Lake' is the biographical source of her inspiration; the ‘Shed' is the alocal place of her intentional artistry, in which garage she transforms the biographical stuff provided by her subconscious mind into the archetypal stories that have made her the most important author of her age. You can hear Nick and John discuss this process and their birthday project at the first entry in this series of post: Happy Birthday, JKR! A Lake and Shed Celebration of her Life and Work.The six HogwartsProfessor birthday videos posted thus far in this series can be read here:* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood PrinceTomorrow? It's Casual Vacancy, the first post-Potter publication in Rowling's oeuvre, the most transparently auto-biographical, and the book Rowling Readers with few exceptions (I'm one!) deny ever re-reading. See you then! Links from today's Lake and Shed conversation:* “The Crimes of Grindelwald,” Kipling, and the Origins of the Deathly Hallows Symbol (Beatrice Groves)* Beatrice Groves Archive at HogwartsProfessor.com* The Deathly Hallows Lectures (John Granger)* ‘The Eyes of Deathly Hallows' Lecture in NYC, 2010Hogwarts Professor is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

Today's Lake and Shed framed conversation is about the sixth of the seven Harry Potter novels, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Nick reveals the real life model for Severus Snape, Rowling's Chemistry teacher at Wydean Comprehensive, and his remarkable story and melancholy end. John reviews Rowling's version of the so-called ‘Hero's Journey,' how she re-makes it into a life-after-death ‘Harry's Journey' ten step dance we see in every book — except for Half-Blood Prince with its two chapters before we begin at Privet Drive and its ending without a Dumbledore Denouement or trip to King's Cross.New to the Lake and Shed Kanreki Birthday series? Here's what we're doing:On 31 July 2025, Joanne Murray, aka J. K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, will be celebrating her 60th birthday. This celebration is considered a ‘second birth' in Japan or Kanreki because it is the completion of the oriental astrological cycle. To mark JKR's Kanreki, Dr John Granger and Nick Jeffery, both Nipponophiles, are reading through Rowling's twenty-one published works and reviewing them in light of the author's writing process, her ‘Lake and Shed' metaphor. The ‘Lake' is the biographical source of her inspiration; the ‘Shed' is the alocal place of her intentional artistry, in which garage she transforms the biographical stuff provided by her subconscious mind into the archetypal stories that have made her the most important author of her age. You can hear Nick and John discuss this process and their birthday project at the first entry in this series of post: Happy Birthday, JKR! A Lake and Shed Celebration of her Life and Work.The five HogwartsProfessor birthday videos posted thus far in this series can be read here:* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Order of the PhoenixTomorrow? It's Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the penultimate novel and alchemical Rubedo of that series. See you then! Links from today's Lake and Shed conversation:Much more on John Nettleship, the ‘Real Life' Severus SnapeHow Harry Cast His Spell (John Granger)Hogwarts Professor is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

Today's Lake and Shed framed conversation is about the fifth Harry Potter novel, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Nick talks about the darkest period in Jo Rowling's life, namely, her return to the UK from Portugal as a single mother in Edinburgh. John reviews Rowling's tagging Goblet as a “crucial” and “pivotal” part of the seven book series and introduces how the ‘story turn' in a ring composition reflects the beginning and end of the story. This involves, believe it or not, an explanation of why Harry meets with Sirius on 22 November between midnight and 1 AM, the dragons of Philosopher's Stone, Goblet, and Deathly Hallows, and five of the twenty-five points of correspondence between the first, the fourth, and the seventh Harry Potter novels.New to the Lake and Shed Kanreki Birthday series? Here's what we're doing:On 31 July 2025, Joanne Murray, aka J. K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, will be celebrating her 60th birthday. This celebration is considered a ‘second birth' in Japan or Kanreki because it is the completion of the oriental astrological cycle. To mark JKR's Kanreki, Dr John Granger and Nick Jeffery, both Nipponophiles, are reading through Rowling's twenty-one published works and reviewing them in light of the author's writing process, her ‘Lake and Shed' metaphor. The ‘Lake' is the biographical source of her inspiration; the ‘Shed' is the alocal place of her intentional artistry, in which garage she transforms the biographical stuff provided by her subconscious mind into the archetypal stories that have made her the most important author of her age. You can hear Nick and John discuss this process and their birthday project at the first entry in this series of post: Happy Birthday, JKR! A Lake and Shed Celebration of her Life and Work.The three HogwartsProfessor birthday videos posted thus far in this series can be read here:* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Goblet of FireTomorrow? It's Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, the penultimate novel and alchemical Albedo of that series. See you then!Hogwarts Professor is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

On 31 July 2025, Joanne Murray, aka J. K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, will be celebrating her 60th birthday. This celebration is considered a ‘second birth' in Japan or Kanreki because it is the completion of the oriental astrological cycle. To mark JKR's Kanreki, Dr John Granger and Nick Jeffery, both Nipponophiles, are reading through Rowling's twenty-one published works and reviewing them in light of the author's writing process, her ‘Lake and Shed' metaphor. The ‘Lake' is the source of her inspiration and the ‘Shed' is the alocal place of her intentional artistry, in which garage she transforms the biographical stuff provided by her subconscious mind into the archetypal stories that have made her the most important author of her age. You can hear Nick and John discuss this process and this birthday project at the first entry in this series of post: Happy Birthday, JKR! A Lake and Shed Celebration of her Life and Work.Today's video conversation is about the fourth Harry Potter novel, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Nick talks about the trip Rowling made as a teenager to Cornwall as a young woman in which some Quidditch World Cup camping may have been involved and about her core beliefs about bigotry and prejudice. John reviews Rowling's tagging Goblet as a “crucial” and “pivotal” part of the seven book series and introduces how the ‘story turn' in a ring composition reflects the beginning and end of the story. This involves, believe it or not, an explanation of why Harry meets with Sirius on 22 November between midnight and 1 AM, the dragons of Philosopher's Stone, Goblet, and Deathly Hallows, and five of the twenty-five points of correspondence between the first, the fourth, and the seventh Harry Potter novels.The three HogwartsProfessor birthday videos posted thus far in this series can be read here:* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets* A Lake and Shed Reading of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of AzkabanTomorrow? It's Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, the Big Blue Book and alchemical Nigredo. See you then! Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

It's the 250th episode of The Pulp Writer Show! To celebrate this occasion, this episode takes a look at the expectations people have of a full-time writer's life and contrasts them with the reality. This coupon code will get you 50% off the audiobook of Dragonskull: Talons of the Sorcerer, Book #6 in the Dragonskull series (as excellently narrated by Brad Wills), at my Payhip store: TALONS50 The coupon code is valid through May 27, 2025. So if you need a new audiobook for spring, we've got you covered! TRANSCRIPT 00:00:00 Introduction and Writing Updates   Hello, everyone. Welcome to Episode 250 of The Pulp Writer Show. My name is Jonathan Moeller. Today is May 2, 2025, and today we're looking at what it is really like to be a full-time writer. This is also the 250th episode of the podcast, so thank you all for listening to the podcast over these last six years. Before I started recording, I totaled up the total length of previous podcast episodes and came to about 78 hours, give or take. That's like three days of continuous talking, which sounds less impressive when you realize it was recorded over the last six years.   Thank you all for listening and here's hoping you can stick around with the next 250 episodes. Before we get to our main topic, which is the expectations versus reality of being a full-time writer, we are going to do Coupon of the Week, a progress update my current writing projects, and then Question of the Week. So let's kick off with Coupon of the Week. This week's coupon code will get you 50% off the audiobook of Dragonskull: Talons of the Sorcerer, Book Six in the Dragonskull series (as excellently narrated by Brad Wills) at my Payhip store. That code is TALONS50. As always, you can get that coupon code and the links to my Payhip store in the show notes. This coupon code is valid through May 27th, 2025. So if you need a new audiobook for spring, we have got you covered.   Now an update on my current writing projects. I am 60,000 words into Ghost in the Corruption, which puts me on chapter 13 of 21, so I'm about two thirds of the way through. I think the rough draft will be between 90-100,000 words long, so hopefully I can have that out before the end of May, if all goes well. I also just finished Chapter One of Shield of Power, which will be the final book of the Shield War series and that'll be my main project once Ghost in the Corruption is finished. I'm also 87,000 words into Stealth and Spells Online: The Final Quest, and that will be my main project once Shield of Power comes out. I expect Final Quest should come out pretty soon after Shield of Power just because I've been chipping away at it for so long and I'm getting close to the end.   In audiobook news, recording is almost done for Ghost in the Assembly and that'll be narrated by Hollis McCarthy. Recording is totally done for Shield of Deception (as narrated by Brad Wills) and that is working its way through processing at the various audiobook platforms, so hopefully we'll not be too much longer before we can get that to you.   00:02:26 Question of the Week So that is where I'm at with my current writing projects. And now let's move on to Question of the Week. Question of the Week is intended to inspire enjoyable discussions of interesting topics. This week's question, what is your favorite Jonathan Moeller book? The reason for this question is that this is the 250th podcast episode, so it seems like a good topic for that particular milestone. And as you might expect, we had an array of different opinions.   Joachim says: You are kidding us! By the end of the week? How long did you think about your own answer? Let me mirror you: for my own answer, the question is a bit difficult because I spent money on all your books, which meant I thought all of them a good buy. So let me split my answer into male and female protagonists. The best female book was Ghost Exile: Omnibus One because it prompted me to continue with Ghost Exile and fill in the Ghost series later. The Ghosts Omnibus One and Ghost Exile: Omnibus One were my first two books from you. The best male book was the one with Jack March where Thunderbolt said, “males are ogling breasts which never existed”, especially as such AI generated videos are now all over the place on YouTube.   I have to admit that I first came up with the character of Thunderbolt back in early 2021 when I was working on Silent Order: Rust Hand (that was before the AI boom really took off), so she turned out to be a very prescient character for the AI era in a number of ways.   Joe B. says: That is a tough question as there are many contenders. I'm going to go with one that is a little different, Sevenfold Sword Online: Creation, but now known as Stealth and Spells Online: Creation.   Justin says: I nominate Soul of Swords, an excellent end to an excellent series.   Perry says: There can only be one! Demonsouled. Paul says: For me, I think my favorite female protagonist  book is Cloak Games: Truth Chain. Such a dramatic change to Nadia, sets up the series in her struggles with self and enemies so well.   Brad Wills (who as you know narrated the Frostborn, Dragonskull, Malison, and Shield War series for me) says: Does a three book arc count?  Excalibur, The Dragon Knight, and The Shadow Prison made for a fantastic lead-up and finale of the Frostborn series.   Hollis McCarthy (who as you know, narrated the Ghosts and Cloak Mage audiobooks) says: Ghost in the Storm, when Caina and Kylon meet in the Battle for Marsis. Nonstop action, incredible chase scenes, and a great intro to their combative relationship.   Fred says: It's hard for me to say which book is my favorite. All your book series were all great.   Juana says: Frostborn: Excalibur with Ridmark. I happen to love stories about Excalibur, odd but true. Caina in Cloak and Ghost: Rebel Cell because Caina and Nadia are an incendiary team. So there! Randy says: Frostborn: The Dragon Knight. This whole series is great, but that is one of the high points.   Dennis says: I couldn't name my favorite as I enjoy everything you write. I probably enjoyed the Frostborn series best at the time, but having bought and read every one of your books it's now impossible.   Kevin says: There's no way on earth that I could put one book above another, so I would've to take the coward's way out and say Frostborn: The Gray Knight simply because it has a book that drew me to the worlds of Jonathan Moeller back in the spring of 2017, since which time I have bought 117 of his books, including a few omnibus editions, so a few more actual books, I suppose. I avidly read them all as they're published these days, except the Silent Order series (just doesn't grab me and pull me in like the others). Jesse says: Cloak Games: Sky Hammer. Damaged Nadia at her best, epic action the whole way. And yeah, the chapter The Last Death of Nadia Moran was viscerally cinematic and probably the biggest emotional payoff you've written in my opinion, tied her entire journey together. In my head, I cast Castle-era Stana Katic as Nadia, and it worked better than I expected it might.   Morgan says: I can't narrow it down to just one. So top three in no particular order, Sevenfold Swords: Swordbearer, Dragontiarna: Gates, and Stealth and Spells Online: Leveling. That being said, I think Niara might be my favorite character of all your books I have read.   Jonathan T says: I too am torn though only between two books, Frostborn: The Eightfold Knife and Frostborn: The Shadow Prison.   [Side note/addition from The Transcriptionist: My vote is for Half-Elven Thief!]   So thank you everyone for the kind words about all those books. For my own answer, the question is a bit difficult because I've written them all, which meant I thought all of them were good idea at the time. I suppose the glib answer would be the one that made me the most money, which was Frostborn: The Iron Tower, but it really depends on the category, like my favorite heist book, my favorite mystery book, my favorite dungeon crawl, my favorite first in series. So I think I'll go for the most basic level of categorization and split it up by male and female protagonists.   My favorite book of mine with a female protagonist would probably be Cloak Games: Rebel Fist, since it's such a turning point for Nadia and starts the trajectory of the rest of her character arc. It's the first time she really has to save the day instead of just trying to save herself and shows that her brother Russell can also handle himself, which as you know, comes up again later. My favorite book of mine with a male protagonist would probably be Dragontiarna: Defenders, since it has the Battle of Shadow Crown Hill, which was one of my favorite sequences to write. Four different characters have plans and they all crash into each other at the same time, which was a lot of fun to write and set up, which was a real highlight for me in 2020 because as we all know, 2020 was a fun year.   00:07:35 Main Topic of the Week: Writing Full Time: Expectations Versus Reality   So that is it for Question of the Week. Now let's move on to our main topic this week, writing full-time: expectations versus reality (admittedly from the perspective of a self-published author). If you spent any time around the writing community on the Internet at all, you know that many people dream of becoming a full-time writer, and sometimes people think that the only way to be successful as a writer is to write full-time. There are many expectations that people have about what it means to be a full-time writer. Now that I've been a full-time indie writer for nearly nine years at this point, I can provide some lived perspective. In this episode, I will talk about five of those expectations that people have about full-time writing and the way those expectations might be skewed.   So before we get to those, I should mention how I actually became a full-time writer. In 2016 (which seems like a really long time ago now), the Frostborn series was doing really well, and at the time I was also working full time and I realized that summer I was going to have to move for family reasons. I wasn't very enthusiastic about the idea of moving at first, but I decided to embrace the idea and try to make the best of it. This would involve moving a considerable distance to a different state and all the different problems that entails. So I thought about it and I thought I could look for a new job, but any job I would be qualified for in the area I was moving to would make less money than I was actually making from writing part-time. So I thought, why not try and make a go of full-time writing and see what happens?   Since that was nine years ago, I think I can safely say it's worked out pretty well. And I will say that it's been a pretty good experience and I am very fortunate and very grateful and very blessed to have been able to do this because not everyone has the opportunity to pursue a full-time creative job like I have been able to for these last nine years. That said, while it has been pretty great, it comes with a lot of flexibility and I've gotten to write a lot of great books that many people have enjoyed, it's not always all wine and roses, so to speak, which is part of the reason why I wanted to do this episode to let people more in what the reality of being a full-time writer for this long has been like. So with that introduction out of the way, let's move on to our five expectations versus reality.   Expectation #1: Full-time authors make a lot of money. The reality is that even full-time authors generally don't make that much money. A survey from The Author's Guild showed that the median amount that full-time authors make was just about $20,000, though full-time romance writers had a higher median income of about $37,000. Remember that this amount is before any health insurance costs, benefits, retirement contributions, and of course taxes that a traditional job might be able to provide or help with. In the United States, buying even fairly basic health insurance can easily be a thousand dollars per month for a family, and that doesn't include any costs related to deductibles, prescriptions, or additional dental or vision insurance. Authors are either on their own for healthcare in the US or have to rely on a spouse or partner's healthcare coverage. In other words, you either have to pony up a lot of money to buy your own health insurance or you have to rely on your spouse or partner's healthcare coverage.   And at least in the US, taxes are also much higher on the self-employed. Uncle Sam really does not like the self-employed. If you are self-employed, it is in your best interest to essentially form a small corporation and work for yourself (though for details on how to do that, you should consult with an accountant licensed to practice in your region). Now all these costs can add up pretty quickly, and they make the amount of money that you'll earn from writing much less than you think based on raw earnings before taxes and all the other expenses we were talking about. You also have business expenses like cover design, site hosting, editors, narrators, advertising, et cetera, that take even more pieces out of those earnings. You can duck some of those, but not all of them.   So it boils down to that you have to make a significant amount of money as an author to make an actual living after taxes, healthcare costs, and business expenses are taken out of your earnings, which is one of the reasons that writing part-time as you have a full-time job is not the worst idea in the world and can in fact be a very good idea.   Expectation #2: My next book will make as much or more than the last one did. The reality is that your next book or series might not make you as much money as the previous ones did. In fact, you can reliably predict that most book series will have a certain amount of reader drop off as a series goes on, which is why these days I tend to want to keep my series under nine to ten books or so. Budgeting based on your current income levels is not wise, especially with the current economic climate (which for a variety of reasons is very unpredictable) and with increased competition in the ebook market. Most authors have a peak at some point in their career. For example, Stephen King is still obviously making a great living as a writer putting out new books, but his new books don't sell nearly as well as the ones he put out in the ‘80s. J.K. Rowling's novels for adults (she writes as Robert Galbraith the Cormoran Strike series) don't sell anywhere near the number of copies as her Harry Potter series did at its peak.   For myself, my peak years in terms of writing income were 2016 and 2017, and I've never quite been able to recapture that level. In fact, in 2024, I only did about two thirds of what I did in 2017 (my peak year), which can be a little nerve wracking as you watch those numbers move up and down. That is why it is important for a writer (like many other creatives like actors) to anticipate that they might only have a limited window of peak success and to save aggressively rather than living large on the amount you're earning in that peak era. And I am pleased to report that I was fortunate enough and sensible enough to do that, so that even if my income has varied from year to year (2017 onward), it hasn't been a crippling loss and I haven't been out in the street or lost the house or anything like that.   Expectation #3: You will be happier if you write full-time. The reality is that is not true for everyone. Some people actually do better creatively and emotionally with the time restrictions placed on them by having a full-time job. Many famous writers, including Trollope and Kafka, kept their full-time jobs. Even Tolkien was never a full-time writer. He was a professor of philology until he retired. That was interesting to me because personally, I haven't had much in terms of emotional trouble being a full-time writer. I've always kind of had the ability to hyperfocus on a task, and I've been doing that for almost nine years now, and it's worked out well for me.   I've since realized that is not true for many people. One of the things that demonstrated it to me, believe it or not, was insurance actuarial tables. One thing that I tried to do after I became a full-time writer was try and get disability insurance in case I had an accident or severe illness and could not write anymore. I learned that it's extremely difficult for full-time writers to get disability insurance due to their high rates of substance abuse and mental illness. I was astonished by this because I've never had problems with substance abuse or mental illness myself, but given the number of writers and other creatives I've known who have had those issues, perhaps that's not that surprising, but I was still baffled to learn that.   For example, in my area there are a number of tree management companies (because it's a heavily wooded area) and it's a lot easier for an arborist who works with a chainsaw all day to get disability insurance than it is for a writer, which is somewhat crazy to think about because as a writer, I'm mostly sitting in a chair all day pressing buttons on a keyboard while an arborist is climbing a tree or in a crane with a chainsaw, which is a much more physically dangerous thing. But because of the rates of substance abuse and mental illness among full-time writers, apparently it is very difficult for full-time writers to get disability insurance. Some people struggle with the lack of structure and outward accountability that comes from being a full-time writer and find that actually decreases their productivity and leads them to fall into substance abuse or sink deeper into mental health problems. Very few people have the self-discipline and mental resilience required to be a full-time writer for years on end. And that's not me tooting my own horn so to speak, but apparently it is just the facts. Some writers even go back to full-time work just because they find it less stressful or better for their wellbeing. So I think this is an excellent example of having to know yourself and know what is best for you. For example, if you're a very extroverted person who enjoys talking to people at the office, becoming a full-time writer where you spend most of your time by yourself typing might not be the best for your long-term mental and physical health. Expectation #4: Writing full-time will make me more productive. The reality is having more time does not necessarily mean that you'll be more productive. Writers are notorious for falling prey to time wasters, such as social media scrolling, research spirals, and writing adjacent activities (of which there is a whole series about on this podcast already). It does take a lot of a self-discipline, focus, and determination to be a full-time writer. If you are a full-time writer, especially a full-time indie writer, you also have to balance writing time with various administrative tasks, marketing and ads, social media, fan correspondence, and the various tasks involved in the self-publishing process. Writing is not the only thing that writers actually do, and the other tasks often make finding time for writing more difficult than you might expect. Even traditionally published writers still have to carve out time for administrative work and assisting with marketing and social media work.   As your writing career scales up, so does the behind the scenes workload. This is true in my case. Up until 2023, I basically did everything myself, but I did have COVID pretty badly for a while in 2023 and it just knocked out my energy for a while and I realized that I can't keep trying to do everything by myself. I basically had a choice, either cut some tasks or get some help. So I have some people now, some contractors who help me with things like listening to audiobook proofs (I used to do that all myself), doing the podcast transcript, and Excel record keeping (which I used to do myself). While that is an expense, I don't regret it because it really has taken a lot off my plate and freed up more time for writing, which of course is the entire point.   Expectation #5: I admit this one made me laugh. I will have more free time as a full-time writer. I can attest firsthand that that is not true. What you have as a full-time writer is flexibility. The reality is, although there is flexibility on the job, the hours can be more than for a full-time job. There's a joke that full-time writers can work any 12 hours they want every day.   Most indie authors are putting out far more than one book a year in order to make a full-time income, and that requires a fairly demanding pace that most people don't have the self-discipline to maintain as a lifestyle for years and years on end. The majority of full-time writers right now are either romance or erotica writers who are putting out at least a book a month, sometimes even more. As I mentioned in an earlier point in the show, the administrative task can take far more time than most people would imagine. They could, depending on the circumstances, be easily 40 hours a week on their own before you have time to do a single word of writing on the page. I found you really have to guard your writing time well and find ways to keep administrative tasks, distractions, and necessary tasks such as home maintenance or childcare separate from writing.   Anyone who has ever worked from home is familiar with how difficult that can be because home comes with a wide set of distractions. Granted, that's often fewer distractions than the office, but home can have its own set of distractions. I've mentioned before that you need a bit of tunnel vision to produce the quantity of writing I do month after month. I do keep to a pretty rigid schedule. I have daily word count goals I always try to meet and I use the Pomodoro Method to make sure that I'm prioritizing my writing time.   If you are self-employed and working for yourself, that means there are no allocated vacation or sick days and no paid sick leave in the writing world. Taking a couple of weeks off usually means anticipating a loss in income, such as a month without a book being released. Sometimes, especially in the case of illness, family emergencies, and so forth, that just can't be helped. However, the long vacations people imagine writers being able to take mean either a loss of income or a couple of weeks beforehand of working extra hours to make up for it. For example, Brandon Sanderson, who is probably the most famous fantasy author right now, still works and writes on his vacations and does extra work before leaving for a vacation (such as pre-recording videos).   So as you can see, most of the expectations people have about what it's like to write full-time come from the hope that it will change their productivity or make it easier to write. In reality, if you manage your time well, you can often meet all your writing goals even while working another full-time job. Some people are even more productive under the time pressure of only having an hour or so available to write each day. You don't have to wait until you are a full-time writer for your writing career to start. I wrote for decades and published for years before I was a full-time writer.   Frankly, the idea that you need to be a full-time writer in order to be taken seriously or make money exists only in your own mind. Whether you are a full-time writer or not, what matters is having the discipline to shut out distractions and write with absolute consistency regardless of the circumstances. Even writing 250 to 300 words every single day can add up very quickly, even if you don't do it in 15 minute bursts like Anthony Trollope did.   Finally, I suppose this makes it sound like I'm painting a very bleak picture here, but I'm not. As I said before, I'm very fortunate to be able to do what I do, and I'm very grateful to all my readers that I'm able to write full-time and even hire on contractors for narration and behind the scenes work. I appreciate and am very grateful to all the readers who have supported me by continuing to buy my work and access it through subscription services like Kindle Unlimited or Kobo Plus or library options like Libby and Hoopla.   So that is it for this week. I hope it provided some insight into what it's like to be a full-time writer. Thanks for listening to The Pulp Writer Show and all 250 episodes. I hope you found the show and all 250 episodes useful. A reminder that you can listen to all the back episodes on https://thepulpwritershow.com. If you enjoyed the podcast, please leave your review on your podcasting platform of choice. Stay safe and stay healthy and see you all next week.  

Esta semana Juan Luis Álvarez comenta las nuevas temporadas de tres de sus series favoritas: La Rueda del Tiempo, Cormoran Strike y Hacks, una fantástica, una detectivesca y una comedia. La rueda del tiempo (3 temporadas, 21 episodios, Prime Video) La rueda del tiempo es una fantasía épica que se basa en las novelas de Robert Jordan. Narra la historia de Moraine, miembro de las Aes Sedai, una poderosa organización de mujeres que pueden canalizar el Poder Único. Moraine junto a su Guardián, Lan, buscan a un grupo de cinco jóvenes aldeanos de la apartada región de Dos Ríos ante la creencia de que uno de ellos es el Dragón Renacido, que salvará el mundo. Lo mejor: Lo bien que se entrecruzan las aventuras de los diferentes grupos de personajes. El atractivo reparto. Lo peor: Que a alguien le preocupe su cercanía con "El señor de los Anillos" Tráiler Cormoran Strike (Max, 4 temporadas, 31 episodios) Cormoran Strike está basada en las novelas de detectives escritas por J. K. Rowling, bajo el seudónimo Robert Galbraith. La serie está protagonizada por Tom Burke como Cormoran Strike, un veterano de guerra que ha perdido una pierna, convertido en detective privado que opera desde una pequeña oficina y donde utiliza su visión única y sus antecedentes como investigador para resolver enrevesados casos. Lo mejor: La atmósfera londinense. La química entre Burke y su compañera (Holliday Grainger) Tráiler Hacks (Temporada 4, 31 episodios en Total Max) Deborah Vance es una diva legendaria de la comedia stand-up de Las Vegas, que intenta mantener su relevancia en el mundo del espectáculo como sea. Ava es una escritora de comedia de la Generación Z que no puede encontrar trabajo debido a que fue "cancelada" por un tuit polémico que publicó. Ambas se unen a regañadientes para refrescar el material de Vance... Lo mejor: La diva Jean Smart; increíble la fusión entre actriz y personaje. Lo peor: Algunas tramas parecen ligeramente alargadas. Tráiler

V nejnovějším díle podcastu Audinovinky se podíváme na slídily, co se Michalovi vloupali do Wishlistu, detektivy, kteří přeskakují mezi knihami, ale i na čarodějky, které se musí v našem světě schovávat. Novinek je spousta, včetně těch v naší aplikaci a audioknižním světě. Poslouchejte a o všem se dozvíte. Probírané audioknihy a další odkazy: Slídil - Tana French Génius zločinu - Andrew Mayne Zelenskyj - Simon Shuster Hnev - Matej Jurášek, Michal Červený Dospělé děti emočně nezralých rodičů - Lindsay C. Gibson Kolem dokola - Lucie Hušková Slzy zítřka - Jiří Hons Přísně tajný spolek svérázných čarodějek - Sangu Mandanna Zákony zločinu - Peter Šloser Hladový hrob - Robert Galbraith Úsvit sklizně - Suzanne Collinsová Šaman - Noah Gordon Na druhý pokus - T. L. Swan Troufalá vášeň - Penelope Douglas Zakázané ovoce - Jodi Ellen Malpas Mílový klub - Liz Tomforde 3x Čtvrteční klub amatérských detektivů - Richard Osman 3x Salanderová & Blomkvist - David Lagercrantz 3x Rhyme a Sachsová - Jeffery Deaver 3x Campbellová a Li - Peter May 3x Poirot - Agatha Christie Michal poslouchá: Carpe Jugulum - Terry Pratchett Petra poslouchá: Konkláve - Robert Harriss Petra poslouchá: Tajná historie - Donna Tartt Finalisté ceny Audiokniha roku 2024 Aplikace Audiolibrix na poslech audioknih Facebooková skupina Společenstvo audiomolů - milujeme audioknihy!

What rule change led to the fast-paced, high-scoring basketball games we love today? And who is Robert Galbraith? Hear the Off Ramp Podcast.

Our main feature is Azrael. We're also reviewing Trap, Daddy's Head, The Mind's Eye, The Revenge of Frankenstein, Carnosaur, It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie, St Johns River Monster by Armand Rosamilia, The Thing in the Woods by Gary Frank, and The Running Grave by Robert Galbraith.

This week on the She Made Me Read It Pod, Gracie and Lydia discuss by The Strike Series by Robert Galbraith and Freida McFadden Books. Spoilers? The Strike Series = Spoiler Free! Freida McFadden = Spoiler Free!

Cet épisode est une présentation de Eros et Compagnie. Obtenez 15% de rabais sur absolument tous les produits de la boutique en ligne et encouragez-nous en utilisant le code promo RAIS15 sur le site ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠erosetcompagnie.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Cet épisode est également une présentation de notre nouveau partenaire Polysleep qui, avec le code promo RAIS30, vous offre pas moins de 30% de rabais sur vos achats au https://polysleep.ca ! Faites comme Niquette et Linda (deux clients satisfaits) et procurez-vous dès maintenant votre matelas et vos accessoires Polysleep! Pour nous encourager tout en protégeant vos précieuses données (ou tout en piratant tout l'Internet), vous pouvez également vous abonner ou renouveler votre abonnement à NordVPN via le ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠nordvpn.com/dsedr⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ pour obtenir 4 mois gratuits et nous donner un petit coup de pouce puisqu'on reçoit 40% de la valeur de votre abonnement et ça, ça fait toute une différence pour nous! Pour nous laisser un message audio qui sera fort probablement joué en ondes, rendez-vous au ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠SpeakPipe.com/DesSiEtDesRais⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ /// JULIEN MANGE SES CROTTES DE NEZ COMME UN PETIT BÉBÉ! Et ne vous inquiétez pas: Maxime Gervais est là pour le bully allègrement dans l'intro et Julien ne s'aide pas en racontant qu'il s'est trompé de direction dans le métro, ce qui nous amène à nous poser des questions sur son instinct. Guillaume Dupuis parle de films noirs et il fait des menaces de mort à tous ceux qui ne se sont jamais trompés de direction dans le métro. Maxime raconte à quel point les gens étaient torchés au lancement de Jay Scott. Murphy Cooper nous annonce qu'il traîne tout le monde en cour (les animateurs, Jo, les membres Patreon, tous nos ex, etc.) et il a bien du mal à gérer son micro. Maxime a l'air d'un moyen niaiseux alors qu'il pense que le mot « yo » veut dire « anus de babouin ». Tom Chicoine nous laisse un message pour dire d'arrêter de bully Julien, mais personne n'est d'accord. Du côté des chroniques: Guillaume s'accroche à l'été en nous racontant la fois où il a trouvé un polar (le livre, pas le manteau) dans un croque-livre à Haldimand et qu'il voulait vraiment en faire sa lecture estivale avant de se rendre compte que c'était un livre écrit par Robert Galbraith, qui est en fait le nom de plume de J.K. Rowling. Tout ça l'amène à raconter l'origine de ce nom d'emprunt et, comme bien des choses autour de Rowling, c'est assez douteux! Maxime, trouvant qu'on a juste parlé de Mario Bros dans notre épisode spécial sur les jeux vidéo, propose ensuite un quiz sur l'ensemble des jeux vidéo, mais finalement ça parle juste de Crash Bandicoot...Après un interlude dans lequel on dit à quel point Le Cobaye est bon, mais que Le Cobaye 2 est poche, on arrive au segment Eros et Compagnie qui rappelle une chronique classique de Maxime à propos d'un homme aux multiples organes! Murphy nous raconte ensuite une autre anecdote à propos de la CONNULIFE qui l'amène à se sortir régulièrement de sa zone de confort et ce, pour le meilleur et pour le pire! Évidemment, son récit décrit le deuxième cas! Des si et des rais : Si votre instinct vous a amené jusqu'ici, il est temps de prendre rendez-vous chez le psy! Avec : Julien Bernatchez, Murphy Cooper, Guillaume Dupuis et Maxime Gervais Captation / Montage / Réalisation : Jonathan Barbe Date d'enregistrement: 7 octobre 2024 Date de diffusion : 17 octobre 2024 /// Abonnez-vous à nos réseaux sociaux via le ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkTree⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Discord⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠TikTok⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠SpeakPipe

Librarians Desirae and Sarah discuss Kate Atkinson's Jackson Brodie mysteries, including the most recent, Death at the Sign of the Rook. They also chat about other character-driven mysteries and TV series. Works mentioned: Death at the Sign of the Rook; Case Histories; One Good Turn; When Will There Be Good News?; Started Early, Took My Dog; Big Sky and Life After Life by Kate Atkinson; the movie Knives Out; the TV series Case Histories and Downton Abbey; The Hunter by Tana French; the Cormoran Strike series by Robert Galbraith; the TV series Vera and books by Ann Cleeves; the TV series The Chelsea Detective, Professor T and Death in Paradise; and the TV series Dark Winds and books by Tony Hillerman. Check out books, TV shows and movies at countycat.mcfls.org, wplc.overdrive.com, hoopladigital.com and kanopy.com/en/westallis. For more about WAPL, visit westallislibrary.org. Music: Tim Moor via Pixabay

Allison and Sarah discuss the intricacies of bowel movements, the importance of regularity, and how different factors like diet, stress, and travel can affect digestive health. They explain various stool types and provide tips for dealing with constipation and diarrhea, such as using a squatty potty, staying hydrated, and managing stress. They also touch on the connection between bowel health and pelvic floor function. Episode ResourcesClick HERE for the Bowel Massage videoSarah's book recommendation:- Robert Galbraith adult book seriesAllison book recommendation:- Come as you are by Emily Nagoski- The body keeps score by Bessel van der KolkFollow us on IG @thev.movementWatch on YouTube @TheVMovementJoin our newsletter or email us info@thevmove.comMusic provided by POW/Sunset Beach courtesy of www.epidemicsound.comFind a PT near you!

How about a trip into the whimsical universe of made-up writers – characters born purely from the creative minds of storytellers? I'm talking about literary legends who exist only on the pages of fiction, yet have left an unforgettable mark on the world of storytelling. Some people question the existence of Shakespeare himself. Other writers had to hide their personalities for various reasons. Join us for a casual yet captivating exploration of writers that never really existed – it's a literary adventure you won't want to miss! Credit: CC BY 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/... J. K. Rowling: Daniel Ogren - https://flic.kr/p/7SNWXh, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi... George Orwell: Cassowary Colorizations, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi... CC BY-SA 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/... Potter queue: Zack Sheppard from San Francisco, CA - https://flic.kr/p/2jk1sC, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi... JK Rowling: John Mathew Smith & www.celebrity-photos.com from Laurel Maryland, USA, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi... Agatha Christie: Agatha Christie plaque -Torre Abbey, CC BY-SA 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/..., https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi... The Cuckoo's Calling: JK Rowling as Robert Galbraith, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Th... Stephen King: The Long Walk, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Ba... Roadwork, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Ro... The Running Man, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Ru... Thinner, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Th... Valancourt Books - http://www.valancourtbooks.com/, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Va... Animation is created by Bright Side. #brightside Animation is created by Bright Side. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Music from TheSoul Sound: https://thesoul-sound.com/ Listen to Bright Side on: Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/0hUkPxD... Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id... ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Our Social Media: Facebook -   / brightside   Instagram -   / brightside.official   Tik Tok - https://www.tiktok.com/@brightside.of... Snapchat -   / 1866144599336960   Stock materials (photos, footages and other): https://www.depositphotos.com https://www.shutterstock.com https://www.eastnews.ru ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- For more videos and articles visit: http://www.brightside.me Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, Logan and Mary share their favorite books of all time. From personal to professional, they share their top reads over the years and you might just find a new favorite to add to your reading list. SHOW NOTES: In no particular order, here are all the books/series that we mentioned: Mary's Reading List: 1. 2-second lean 2. Feeling Good 3. Harry Potter series 4. The Lunar Chronicles 5. Near Eat Alone 6. The Hiding Place 7. The First Time Manager 8. Never Split the Difference 9. Set Boundaries, Find Peace Treating People Well Logan's Reading List: 1. Profit First 2. 4-Hour Workweek 3. Harry Potter Series 4. Mysteries 1. Nancy Drew Series 2. Robert Galbraith (author) 3. Agatha Christie (author) 4. Jo Nesbo (author) 5. Richard Osman's Thursday Murder Club Series 5. 10% Happier by Dan Harris 6. The Defining Decade: Why your twenties matter and how to make the most of them 7. The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune 8. When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi 9. The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab 10. Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle by Emily & Amelia Naoski Rewatch the replays from the 2023 Better Events Conference: https://bettereventspod.com/conference Buy Us a Coffee Link: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/bettereventspod THANKS FOR THE LOVE! Love this podcast? Please share with your event friends, tag us, and leave a review! Leave us a rating on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/04ivq77TMgF5HhJHJOMe1V Leave us a review on Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/better-events/id1561944117 —— FOLLOW US ON INSTAGRAM: @bettereventspod @loganstrategygroup_events (Logan) @epeventsllc (Mary)

Recorded on Thursday, October 26, 2023 Book Talk starts at 27:53 Our annual Fall Sweater KAL has started!  Knit or crochet a sweater for yourself or another adult.   Here are the rules: Dates - 9/1/2023 - 1/15/24. That's 4 months…plenty of time to knit or crochet an adult-size sweater…or two! We have bundles for inspiration! Beginner sweaters are here. Adventurous Beginners to Advanced sweaters are here Crocheters! Your sweaters are here ANYONE can add sweaters to the bundles! There will be prizes - just post a picture of your lovely finished sweater in our FOs thread. Do you have some sweaters in progress? WIPs count as long as the sweater is less than 50% done on September 1st. Less than 50% done is your call. We don't have to “approve” your project. It must be an adult-sized sweater, and it must have sleeves. Short sleeves are fine. You must be a member of our Ravelry group to win a prize. Virtual Knitting Group via Zoom EVENTS Tracie and Barb will be at: The TKGA Retreat 2023 - November 2-5, 2023 at the Hilton Charlotte University Place Hotel in Charlotte, North Carolina New Year Fiber Retreat - January 4-7, 2024 at the St Francis Retreat Center in San Juan Bautista, CA    KNITTTING Barb Finished: Bears 288 & 189   Tracie finished: Pixelated Pullover by Jennifer Beaumont in madelinetosh Tosh Merino DK, madelinetosh Tosh Sport and Duren Dyeworks Love Sport Hungry Horse Hat #2   Barb continues to work on: Vanilla Socks for Will, using Paton's Kroy Socks in the Route 66 colorway Donner by Elizabeth Doherty using Knit Picks Lindy Chain in the Sage Brush colorway   Barb has cast on: South Shore Cardigan by Kay Hopkins, using madelinetosh Tosh DK in the Tart colorway   Tracie cast on: Hungry Horse Hat 3 in various acrylics Cumulus Blouse by Petite Knit in Countrywide Yarns Windsor 8-ply   She continues to work on: Salty Air Tee by Samantha Guerin in Stitch Sisterz Laceweight Cashmere in Pine Tree and Shaggy Bear Farms Merino with Superwash and Tussah Silk in blue green   BOOKS Barb read: Falling by T.J. Newman - 5 stars Drowning by T.J. Newman - 4 stars You Can't Catch Me by Catherine McKenzie - 3 stars The In-Laws by Laura Wolfe - 4 stars   Tracie read: Mirrorland by Carole Johnstone - 3.5 stars The Running Grave (Cormoran Strike #7) by Robert Galbraith - 5 stars Kill or Be Killed by Robert Scott - 3.5 stars   Barb's recommended podcasts: Were You Raised by Wolves? Out Alive Breakdown: The Trump Indictment  

We discuss the new Robert Galbraith book, an update on Survivor, and Bryn is having a birthday party for his daughter' birthday! 

Elisabeth Easther reviews The Running Grave by Robert Galbraith published by Hachette.

Thanks for listening to Season 4, Episode 3 of Dialogue Alley! In this episode, Erik, and Melanie talk about:News: Juniper Books has some new covers!Cormoran Strike's new book, The Running Grave by Jo's pseudonym, Robert Galbraith, out now.Main Topic: Sean joins us to discuss the Cursed Child book and the translations that have been printed. Translation of the Show: Cursed ChildDialogue Alley is part of the MuggleNet podcast familyCarly @alltheprettybooks on InstagramErik @knockturnerik on InstagramMelanie @theharrypottercollection on InstagramThanks to our special guest, Sean! @mcallister_alaskagrownThanks to our Editor: TommyImages of books that are discussed on this episode will be available on Instagram @dialogueallypodcast, as well as alltheprettybooks.net and theharrypottercollection.comJOIN US ON PATREON!! You can get access to our Discord, ad-free episodes, and our BONUS EPISODES! patreon.com/dialoguealleySend Questions and Listener Mail to: Dialoguealleypodcast@gmail.comVisit our site dialoguealley.com We would love to hear from you!Music:The Magic Shoes

Australian author Kerry McGinnis makes the Australian landscape come alive in suspenseful, best selling rural mysteries that capture the soul and spirit of the Outback. Hi I'm your host Jenny Wheeler and today on The Joys of Binge Reading Kerry McGinnis talks about her childhood in the bush with her father and four siblings – years that helped form her deep understanding of nature, and how she got established as a best selling author while working an outback cattle station with her siblings. This Week's Giveaway Our Giveaway this week is historic fiction freebies for August including Sadie's Vow Book #1 in my Home At Last Series. HISTORICAL FICTION FREEBIES Sadie's Vow, Book #1 in Home At Last INCLUDED A bunch of top authors have got together and offered a great range of historic fiction - Take your pick. ​https://books.bookfunnel.com/historicalfictionfreebiesaugust2023/dm9y0sujx9 download free historic fiction Audio Book Sale Offer AUDIO BOOK SALE Offers are Audio books Galore sale ENJOY BOOKS EVERYWHERE PROMO Poisoned Legacy, Book #1 in Of Gold & Blood INCLUDED ​https://books.bookfunnel.com/audioeverywhereaug2023/kgr0xzcoio​ ENJOY BOOKS EVERYWHERE AUDIO SALE And we also have an Audio Book Sale – Enjoy Books Everywhere – with a range of entertaining fiction – including Poisoned Legacy – Book #1 in Of Gold & Blood series – available at special sale prices for a limited time. Links to follow up on these offers in the show notes for this episode on the website at The Joys of Binge Reading .com. A mention too, that my latest mystery romance Rosie's Rebellion - #3 in the Home At Last series – is on preorder at a special launch price of .99 cents for two weeks. Order online at your favorite E book store.. And remember – if you enjoy the show. Leave us a review so others will find us too. Word of mouth is the best way for others to discover the show and great books they will love to read. Links to things in this episode The Bombing of Darwin: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombing_of_Darwin Katherine:  https://northernterritory.com/katherine-and-surrounds Adelaide River: https://northernterritory.com/darwin-and-surrounds/destinations/adelaide-river-town The Waddi Tree, Kerry McGiness:  https://www.penguin.co.nz/books/the-waddi-tree-9781742280141 Kerry's Two Memoir books: Pieces of Blue: https://www.amazon.com/Pieces-Blue-Kerry-McGinnis/dp/0655632727 and Heart Country: https://www.amazon.com.au/Heart-Country-Kerry-McGinnis/dp/0670899216 Siege of Tobruk:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Tobruk The Renmark Flood: https://monumentaustralia.org.au/themes/disaster/flood/display/51616-the-1956-flood#: Meanjin Quarterly: https://meanjin.com.au/ Charters Towers:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charters_Towers Kerry's Fantasies: Far Seeker: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=far+seeker&i=stripbooks-intl-ship&crid=3EFWXC6Q2YS1V The Burning Mountain; https://www.amazon.com/Burning-Mountain-Far-Seeker-Trilogy/dp/064680667X The Crow Road: https://www.amazon.com/Crow-Road-Kerry-McGinnis/dp/0646833707/ Kerry's Favourite Authors Kate Morton: https://www.katemorton.com/ Robert Galbraith: https://robert-galbraith.com/ Jodie Picoult: https://www.jodipicoult.com/ Reginald Hill: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reginald_Hill Robin Hobb: http://www.robinhobb.com/ Linwood Barclay: Lindwoodbarclay.com Rebecca Yarros:  https://www.rebeccayarros.com/ Mary Stewart:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Stewart_(novelist) Where to find Kerry McGiness https://www.penguin.com.au/authors/kerry-mcginnis Introducing author Kerry McGiness Australian mystery author Kerry McGiness and Outback stories Jenny Wheeler: But now here's Kerry. Hello there, Kerry, and welcome to the show. It's great to have you with us. Kerry McGinnis: Thank you, Jenny. Thank you for asking me. It's great to be here.

John and Craig take a look at ‘writer fingerprints.' They break down how idiosyncratic choices make up an individual's style on-the-page and offer advice on how to mimic someone else's voice. Follow up includes pet rock, a defense of script consultants, the preface page in Tár, and the anti-“actually” mindset. In our bonus segment for premium members, we offer advice to a producer who needs help working with a writer who can't seem to finish — or deliver — a script. Links: Scriptnotes episodes with 2023 Oscar Nominees Sarah Polley, Rian Johnson, Daniels, Pamela Ribon Weekend Read Beta Try it out — now updated with all FYC scripts! Writing in another writer's style on John's blog with advice from Dara Resnick Creasey Algorithms were able to figure out that Robert Galbraith was JK Rowling Good Conversations Have Lots of Doorknobs by Adam Mastroianni The Case of The Golden Idol game Get a Scriptnotes T-shirt! Check out the Inneresting Newsletter Gift a Scriptnotes Subscription or treat yourself to a premium subscription! Craig Mazin on Twitter John August on Twitter John on Instagram Outro by Luke Yoquinto, who discovered it in the score to Coming to America by Nile Rodgers (send us yours!) Scriptnotes is produced by Megana Rao and edited by Matthew Chilelli.   Email us at ask@johnaugust.com You can download the episode here.