Words and Nerds: Authors, books and literature.

Words and Nerds: Authors, books and literature.
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Words and Nerds Podcast is an entertaining and conversational podcast that aims to get inside a writer's mind. We discuss books, the social and political influences of a writer's work and how literature has the power to change the world. The podcast digs deep to bring you an in depth and sometimes humorous analysis of the author's book and its influences. Join us for a new way of looking at literature. Dani Vee your host, English teacher, podcaster, reader, book enthusiast and over-thinker. Dani is joined by various guest co-hosts and has a number of spin off episodes including the Feedback Sessions, Summer Series Takeover, Bite-Size Episodes, livestreams, mash-ups and cross-overs. Subscribe, leave a review and listen now.

  1. 4D AGO

    795. Dani Vee and Frances Whiting - Nostalgia and The Nocturnals

    Dani Vee and Frances Whiting , a senior feature writer and award winning journalism chat about the brilliant The Nocturnals. They chat about: ⭐️ The power of nostalgia. ⭐️ How far would you go to protect the people you love? ⭐️ How does a career in journalism impact writing fiction? ⭐️ Whether they were cool, gla or dangerous as teenagers. ⭐️ Working full time and writing. From the bestselling author of The Best Kind of Beautiful, Frances Whiting, comes an endearing, wise and witty novel of love and friendship, which asks, how far would you go, to protect the people you love?   In the summer of 1997, five high school students meet. Nina, the Good Girl. Beatrice, The Poetess. Harriet, the Ghost. Cosmo, the Professor. And Hunter, the Golden Boy. In their last year of school, they become inseparable, five sides of the same star, until a fault line cracks between them, scattering them to all corners of the globe.   Now, fifteen years later, Hunter has called them with his conch shell lips to return to the place where they lived and laughed and cried together, before secrets were whispered, and promises were broken. No-one knows why he has assembled them, but there is no question they will go. Because to outsiders, they might be, in turns, a little bit weird, a little bit glamorous, and a little bit dangerous. But to each other, they are, and always will be, The Nocturnals.   From bestselling author Frances Whiting comes an irresistible, witty, darkly delightful and utterly endearing novel of friendship - and the lengths we will go to protect those who we love.   ‘Joyous, deep, funny and so bloody gripping. Hooked me, heart and soul. Whiting’s words are so full of life. Aching, puzzling, heartbreaking, magnificent life.’ Trent Dalton, bestselling author of Gravity Let Me Go

    38 min

  2. 5D AGO

    794. Dani Vee and Zoe Gaetjens - Drawing Nudes, Writing Process, Path to publication

    🩷 NEW EPISODE 🩷 Catch this brand new episode with Dani Vee and Zoe Gaetjens, not her first time on the Words and Nerds podcast (she was part of a Takeover with Amy Adeney back in 2024. This time Dani chats to Zoe about her new YA novel Drawing Nudes While Making Other Plans published by Penguin Random House. They chat about: ⭐️ Continuing to reinvent who you are. ⭐️ The path to publication in a career built on rejections. ⭐️ The importance of firsts. ⭐️ The power of art (and drawing nudes!) ⭐️ The writing process. Cleo would have loved to spend the summer before year 12 hanging out with her sister Emmy, who had a plan for dealing with every situation. Instead, Emmy is gone, and Cleo is attending a life drawing class with a bunch of random teenagers. Without Emmy’s plans to guide her, Cleo navigates new friendships, wonky penises and maybe even first love, discovering who she is and what she is capable of. A novel about finding yourself . . . in a room full of strangers, drawing naked people.

    31 min

  3. MAR 21

    793. Dani Vee and Louise Milligan - Multi-generational women, feminism and Shellybanks.

    Dani Vee and award winning investigative journalist Louise Milligan chat about her new book Shellybanks. A novel about buried secrets and unimaginable trauma. Published by Allen and Unwin. They chat about the impact of cross-generational relationships between women, and working through trauma through a feminist lens. Louise chats about her Irish influence, humour and the impact of trauma as an investigative journalist. Listen now!

    36 min

  4. MAR 20

    792. Dani Vee and Jayne McIntyre - The Feathers of Farwood and fantasy

    Meet Jayne McIntyre, debut author of the trilogy The Feathers of Farwood, published by Riveted Press. In this episode we chat about: ⭐️ The long pathway to publication. ⭐️ Balancing parenting and passions. ⭐️ Why the fantasy genre resonates with readers, and how it’s a great way to explore serious issues in a gentle way. ⭐️ The amount of research needed in a fantasy trilogy. ⭐️ Developing a trilogy and story arc. ⭐️ The importance of kids relating to characters. #podcast #fantasy #fantasygenre #trilogy #publishing

    27 min

  5. MAR 13

    791. Dani Vee and Ian Kemish - Two Islands and finding goodness in characters

    Dani Vee and Ian Kemish chat about Two Islands, balancing fiction and non-fiction and finding the goodness in characters. They talk about inherited trauma, political landscapes and the importance of setting. Two Islands (March 2026) is a debut thriller novel by former Australian diplomat Ian Kemish, focusing on Niko, a Balkan war survivor hiding from pursuers on a remote Scottish island. The story explores themes of trauma, memory, and international conflict through the lens of a quiet community, featuring a plot that involves a, war crimes investigator. Published by UQP.

    29 min

  6. MAR 13

    S5E2 - QWS podcast - Kemper Donovan and Troy Hunter

    QWS S5E2 Kemper Donovan and Troy Hunter 🎙️ New QWS Podcast Episode! 🌈✨ In QWS S5E2, Troy chats with USA crime author Kemper Donovan, creator of the bestselling Ghostwriter mystery series: The Busy Body, Loose Lips, and the upcoming Sweet Spot. Kemper talks about his path to publication with his first novel The Decent Proposal, as well as his move into mystery writing. He also discusses how his queer identity influenced his writing, and the value of being published a little later in life. Kemper and Troy then nerd out on Agatha Christie, discussing Kemper’s wonderful podcast All About Agatha (created with his late friend and co-host Catherine Brobeck) and how Christie continues to influence him today. They also talk about their upcoming appearances at the International Agatha Christie Festival. (Note, we recorded this episode last year before the festival in September 2025.) Books Kemper recommends: - What Belongs to You by Garth Greenwell - Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier You can find links to buy Kemper’s books The Busy Body and Loose Lips (and pre-order Sweet Spot), via his website at https://kemperdonovan.com You can also follow him and his All About Agatha podcast on Instagram at All About Agatha. Visit the podcast on Instagram, and me personally at my author website. Hosted by Troy Hunter who you can find on Insta @troyhunterwriter and at www.troyhuntwriter.com Troy is the author of Gus and the Missing Boy and Gus and the Burning Stones, with a third Gus novel coming in 2027.

    59 min

  7. MAR 7

    790. Dani Vee and Laura Brooke Robson - Love is an Algorithm

    Dani Vee and Laura Brooke Robson chat from Sydney to New York about her new book Love is an Algorithm! They chat about the timely nature of AI interrupting relationships, technology vs chemistry and human connection and how involving AI in your romantic life might just make it more complicated. They talk about red flags, why everyone says relationships are hard work and why there is more chance of getting killed by a vending machine than a wild animal or a plane. Dani and Laura talk about the writing process and what it's like to write fiction. Listen now!

    35 min

  8. MAR 6

    789. TAKEOVER - Rory H Mather with Renae Hayward and Susan Joy Lu - What Can I Get For Mother's Day!

    In this TAKEOVER episode Rory H Mather chats to author Renae Hayward and illustrator Susan Joy Lu about their beautiful new picture book What Can I Get For Mother's Day? They chat about the creative process of picture book development, taking inspiration from reading to their children, unpacking rhyme, the illustrative process and bringing picture books to life. Listen now!

    1h 9m
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4.9
out of 5
14 Ratings

About

Words and Nerds Podcast is an entertaining and conversational podcast that aims to get inside a writer's mind. We discuss books, the social and political influences of a writer's work and how literature has the power to change the world. The podcast digs deep to bring you an in depth and sometimes humorous analysis of the author's book and its influences. Join us for a new way of looking at literature. Dani Vee your host, English teacher, podcaster, reader, book enthusiast and over-thinker. Dani is joined by various guest co-hosts and has a number of spin off episodes including the Feedback Sessions, Summer Series Takeover, Bite-Size Episodes, livestreams, mash-ups and cross-overs. Subscribe, leave a review and listen now.

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