The Incident Room

sean.watkin
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Step into The Incident Room - a podcast for crime readers and writers, packed with sharp insights, behind-the-scenes intel, and lively chats. Featuring well-known authors, industry insiders, and the occasional expert witness, all breaking down the craft of crime fiction. Curious, fun, and always on the case.

Episodes

  1. 1D AGO

    Episode 1: Caroline England and Guy Hale

    In this first episode of season two, Sean is joined by two icons of the crime fiction world: Caroline England and Guy Hale. Caroline is the CWA Short Story Dagger shortlisted author of psychological suspense thrillers "Beneath Her Skin", the best-selling "My Husband's Lies", "Betray Her", "Truth Games", "The Sinner", "The Stranger Beside Me". Her new novel, "Behind Her Smile" was released 3 November 2025. And we’ll hear a little more about that in a second. Guy Hale has been a professional golfer, a rugby player, raced motorcycles, runs a record label, and somehow has found the time to create The Comeback Trail Trilogy and The Shakespeare Murders Series, including "The Croaking Raven", "All Our Yesterdays", "Put Out The Light", and more recently, "Sleep No More" on 11 November 11 2025. You can find out more about Caroline England here: Caroline's website Follow her on X Follow her on Facebook Follow her on Instagram Follow her on TikTok You can find out more about Guy Hale here: Guy's website Whitefox Publishing website Gulf Coast Records website Follow him on Instagram Follow him on Facebook

    51 min

  2. 12/01/2025

    Christmas Special: Chris McDonald, Mark Edwards and Chris Willocks from Serenity Booksellers

    Sean introduces the 2025 Christmas Special episode with Chris McDonald (Erika Piper series, the Stonebridge Mysteries, and Little Ghost), Chris also writes as Chris Frost (The Killer's Christmas List and The Christmas Tree Killer). Sean is also joined by Mark Edwards (The Magpie, Follow You Home, The Wasp Trap, and The Christmas Magpie) whose novels have sold over four million copies and have been translated into 12 languages. Rounding off the festive group is Chris Willocks from Serenity Booksellers. Serenity is an independent family-owned bookstore aimed at growing the book-loving community in Romiley, Stockport, Greater Manchester and beyond. They host Noir at the Bookshop and Bar and co-direct Stockport Noir with Christ McDonald. You can find out more about Chris McDonald below: Chris's Amazon author pageChris's DHH Literary Agency pageStockport Noir You can find out more about Mark Edwards below: Mark Edwards's websiteMark Edwards's Amazon author page You can find out more about Chris Willocks and Serenity Booksellers below: Serenity website⁠Stockport Noir⁠

    49 min
  3. Episode 10: Bloody Scotland 2025 take-over, featuring David Goodman, Tariq Ashkanani, and Marco Rinaldi

    11/03/2025

    Episode 10: Bloody Scotland 2025 take-over, featuring David Goodman, Tariq Ashkanani, and Marco Rinaldi

    With an introduction from Bloody Scotland Festival Director Bob McDevitt, Sean Watkin is joined by David Goodman (author of A Reluctant Spy and winner of Bloody Scotland's 2025 Debut Prize), Tariq Ashkanani (author of The Midnight King and winner of Bloody Scotland's 2025 McIlvanney Prize), and Marco Rinaldi (author of Dark Waters and the winner of Bloody Scotland's 2025 Pitch Perfect). With discussions ranging from the Scottish crime writing scene, the pressures of success, and the most writer thing in their homes, this episode is packed in with insights and laughs. You can find out more about David Goodman below: David Goodman's website. David Goodman's Instagram. You can find out more about Tariq Ashkanani below: You can find out more about Marco Rinaldi below: Marco Rinaldi's website. Marco Rinaldi's Instagram. Marco Rinaldi's BlueSky. Page One podcast.

    45 min

  4. 10/27/2025

    Episode 9: Simon McCleave and Cara Hunter

    Sean Watkin is joined by multi-million selling author, Simon McCleave (DI Ruth Hunter Series), and instant New York Times bestselling author Cara Hunter (Murder in the Family), where they talk about how tiny details bring writing to life - and maybe Sean should be on a lifestyle programme instead of writing crime. You can find out more about Simon McCleave below: Simon McCleave's VIP Club. If you sign up, you can get two free novellas! Simon McCleave's The Snowdownia Killings Amazon page. You can find out more about Cara Hunter below: Cara Hunter's website. Cara Hunter's podcast, Watching the Detectives.

    44 min

  5. 10/19/2025

    Episode 8: Anna Britton, Danielle Devlin, and Sarah Maclennan [Part 2]

    Sean Watkin is joined by Anna Britton (Left in the Ashes), Danielle Devlin (Burnt Offerings), and Sarah Maclennan, programme leader of Creative Writing at Liverpool John Moores University. In the second part of this double-episode, the four discuss crafting that first novel, struggles in writing, building tension, and more! You can find out more about Anna Britton below: Anna Britton's ⁠website⁠ You can find out more about Danielle Devlin below: Danielle Devlin's Amazon ⁠author page⁠ You can find out more about Sarah Maclennan below: Sarah Maclennan's ⁠LJMU profile

    54 min

  6. 10/12/2025

    Episode 7: Anna Britton, Danielle Devlin, and Sarah Maclennan [Part 1]

    Sean Watkin is joined by Anna Britton (Left in the Ashes), Danielle Devlin (Burnt Offerings), and Sarah Maclennan, programme leader of Creative Writing at Liverpool John Moores University. In this first part of this double-episode, the four discuss crafting that first novel, struggles in writing, building tension, and more! You can find out more about Anna Britton below: Anna Britton's website You can find out more about Danielle Devlin below: Danielle Devlin's Amazon author page You can find out more about Sarah Maclennan below: Sarah Maclennan's LJMU profile

    44 min

  7. 10/05/2025

    Episode 6: Daniel Aubrey, R.S. Burnett, and Catherine Yaffe

    Join Sean Watkin as he chats with Daniel Aubrey (Dark Island, The Dying Light), R.S. Burnett (Whiteout) for a chat about their journey to publication, and somehow a conversation about the merits of Alien vs. Aliens. Catherine Yaffe (The Shadow Killer, Catch Me Twice) joins Sean to discuss nature vs. nurture and the importance of that in crime fiction. You can find out more about Daniel Aubrey below: Daniel Aubrey's Amazon author page The Orcadian Bookshop where you can buy copies of The Dying Light You can find out more about RS Burnett below: Whiteout Amazon page RS Burnett's Instagram account RS Burnett's X account You can find out more about Catherine Yaffe below: Catherine Yaffe's website Catherine Yaffe's Instagram account

    1h 16m

  8. 09/28/2025

    Episode 5: Chris Bridges and Kingsley Pearson

    This week, Sean Watkin is joined by 2025 debut authors Christ Bridges (Sick to Death) and Kingsley Pearson (Flat 401) as they discuss their experiences as new authors on the crime scene from getting an agent to publication day and everything in between.

    58 min

  9. 09/21/2025

    Episode 4: Daniel Sellers, Linda Mather, and Francesca Riccardi

    The Incident Room post cast host, Sean Watkin, is joined by authors Daniel Sellers (Murder in Gallowgate, The Lollipop Man), Linda Mather (Forecast Murder, A Future Murder), and Francesca Riccardi, literary agent from Kate Nash for a conversation including trigger warnings, journeys to publication, and much more! You can find out more about Linda Mather below: Zodiac Murder Mysteries Amazon page Linda Mather Instagram Linda Mather Facebook You can find out more about Francesca Riccardi below: Kate Nash Literary Agency website

    1h 7m

  10. 09/14/2025

    Episode 3: Michael Wood, Trevor Wood, and Bookstagrammer, Nick_picksbooks

    The Incident Room post cast host, Sean Watkin, is joined by Michael Wood (The Matilda Darke series), Trevor Wood (The Jack Parker series), and Instagram book blogger, Nick_picksbooks. This week's conversation includes celebrity authors, ghostwriting, and more! You can learn more about Trevor Wood here: Trevor Wood website "The Inside Man" Amazon page

    57 min

  11. 09/07/2025

    Episode 2: Joanna Dodd, Sam Holland, and Louise Cullen

    The Incident Room post cast host, Sean Watkin, is joined by authors Joanna Dodd (The Summer Dare, She Wants You Gone) and Sam Holland (The Echo Man, The Twenty, The Countdown Killer), and who also writes as Louisa Scarr. Louise Cullen, Executive Publisher of Canelo, joins Sean for a chat about her career so far, her thoughts on the future of crime fiction, and more! You can learn more about Joanna Dodd here: Joanna Dodd website The Summer Dare novel She Wants You Gone novel You can learn more about Sam Holland here: Sam Holland website The Countdown Killer novel Broken House novel You can learn more about Louise Cullen and Canelo using the links below: ⁠Louise Cullen Instagram⁠ Canelo Publishing website Canelo Publishing Instagram Canelo Publishing X

    56 min

  12. 08/31/2025

    Episode 1: Heather Critchlow, Sarah Mellor, Rebecca Millar

    The Incident Room post cast host, Sean Watkin, is joined by authors Heather Critchlow (The Cal Lovett Files) and Sarah Mellor (The Departed), and freelance editor, Rebecca Millar as they discuss crime writing. The conversation includes their work to date, their journey to publication, the importance of finding the right agent, thoughts on trigger warnings in fiction, and much more! You can learn more about Heather Critchlow and her work below: Heather Critchlow website Heather Critchlow's books Heather Critchlow Instagram Heather Critchlow X You can find out more about Sarah Mellor and her work below: Sarah Mellor Instagram The Liverpool Literary Agency HarperCollins/Harper North website You can find out more about Rebecca Millar and her services here: Rebecca Millar website Rebecca Millar Instagram

    1h 2m
  • 12 Episodes

About

Step into The Incident Room - a podcast for crime readers and writers, packed with sharp insights, behind-the-scenes intel, and lively chats. Featuring well-known authors, industry insiders, and the occasional expert witness, all breaking down the craft of crime fiction. Curious, fun, and always on the case.

Information

  • Creator
    sean.watkin
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    12
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © sean.watkin
  • Show Website
    The Incident Room