July: Podcast for Writers
This month The Bournemouth Journal begins the first in a new series of podcasts for writers. We talk to the series author and host, Dale Hurst.
This month The Bournemouth Journal starts a new series of podcasts by author, journalist and broadcaster, Dale Hurst. In our special feature interview, we speak to Dale and take a sneak preview into his latest podcasts. He gives his advice on writing a first novel and extends an invitation to writers keen to be featured in his future podcasts. It could be you!
Our Substack newsletter also chalks up a first as we go multi-media!
The Dale Hurst Writing Show
The Dale Hurst Writing Show is a fortnightly podcast that runs from July to December and it’s a fantastic resource for anyone who wants to learn more about the writer’s craft. As well as a podcast host, Dale is a self-published novelist. I asked him how his own writing journey began.
A: I’ve been “writing” from a very young age; I was always good at English in school, and I guess it always seemed innate for me to be a writer. I wrote my first piece of original work when I was 10, an adventure story about a French vampire. It took a few more years to discover that my real callings were in historical fiction, crime and mystery.
Q: How has your background informed your writing?
A: Professionally, my background is in journalism – I started off in this vein wanting to be a restaurant critic. I ran a blog called Expensive Tastes for nine years (sadly no longer with us) and had a career in the hotel trade. Hotels are great places to work to discover and research character, because you see the best and worst sides of human nature! My current work in progress is set in a hotel, so my own experiences have informed some of the story and characters there.
Q: You’ve written two historical crime novels. How much of a challenge was it to get your first one published?
A: Because I published my two books, The Berylford Scandals, with Amazon KDP, there wasn’t too much of a challenge there. Getting them to the stage where they were ready for publication – that’s where the challenge was. I began writing them in 2008, so I’d been sitting on them for years, not really knowing what I was going to do with them, all the while coming up with new things I wanted to write.
And I thought, I’m never going to be able to start anything new while the Berylford books were there. So, I got a lot of advice from another Amazon-published author, knuckled down, polished them up, commissioned the cover, and got them out. Listing it like that makes it sound easy. There were many long, unsociable, late nights reading through, editing, changing my mind, etc., before we got to that stage.
The Berylford Scandals can be found in Amazon on the historical thrillers shelves. Here in one of Dale’s podcasts, Canadian-born spy novelist Collin Glavac gives Dale his take on the idea that thrillers might be the hardest genre to write:
Q: What advice would you give writers working on their first novel?
A: It depends on what stage they’re at. If it’s the first draft, don’t overthink it: just get it down on the page. If it’s the re-draft or polishing process, still don’t overthink it, but make sure everything is consistent. Story, tone, and especially character. Don’t suddenly make ludicrous changes unless there’s a good, clear reason!
Q: What are you working on currently, Dale?
A: My third novel, that I mentioned, is set in a Berlin hotel in the middle of World War II, viewed through the eyes of three staff members, each trying to fulfil their own agendas while war rages around them. I’m also releasing my first short story and poetry collection, Silhouettes, later this year – again, publishing with Amazon.
Q: How much has the publishing world changed, in your opinion, since your first novel was published?
Like a lot of things, the publishing world has shifted since 2020 when I last released something. Everything is more expensive, the profit margin for authors in general has narrowed, and the battle against digital and technological is still ongoing, whether that’s trying to work out what the social media algorithms will do next, or whether we’re all going to be swallowed up by AI.
On that note, I will say, AI is not the problem, and I’m sure there’s a way in which authors can co-exist peacefully with it. The problem is the people who are misusing it at the expense of other people’s livelihoods. But that’s a conversation for another time. Publishing a work has never been easier, but making a living from it is as hard as it’s ever been. But like all the best things, it comes off the back of hard work!
Q: Tell me about your podcasts; what inspired you to start them up?
A: I used to run a satirical current affairs-style podcast with a couple of friends, partnered with an online magazine I was running at the time. Sadly, the pandemic shut both things down in 2021, coinciding with my finishing the MA Creative Writing and Publishing course at Bournemouth University.
I had this podcast-shaped hole in my life, and I discovered I liked talking with other writers about the theory AND practice of creative writing, so I thought, why not do a podcast about that? At first it was just a bit of fun, but the first series proved popular, so I carried on doing them, developing it into something I hope can be a resource for new and aspiring writers.
Here’s Dale Hurst explaining why he started up his writing show in the first place:
Q: What can writers listening to the podcasts expect from them, in terms of themes, duration, interviews, etc.
A: The show is part-discussion, part-interview, generally around 45 minutes long (give or take 10 minutes), and the topics are always different. I explore different formats and media within writing, publishing and storytelling as a whole, discussing anything from the basics of poetry to more specific things like writing about knife crime. I wanted there to be something for every kind of writer or storyteller – not just the novelists and poets, but the playwrights, screenwriters and filmmakers as well!
While discussing the basics of screenwriting, with Dale in one of his podcasts, filmmaker and scriptwriter Daniel Riccio reveals what should and should not be on the page:
Q: Can you give us a sneak preview of the podcasts you’ll be posting over the summer months?
A: I think you can expect another good mix of subjects this series. To list a few, I look into World War II stories (as we’ve marked 80 years since the end of WW2), the do’s and don’ts of character development, how magic and politics mix in fantasy fiction, and how social media influencers are portrayed in fiction. I’m also celebrating my 50th episode this year, so we have something a bit different planned for that!
In an exclusive preview from the upcoming Season 5, Dale and novelist Iqbal Hussain talk character development and how to define the process:
Q: Dale, would you recommend other writers starting up podcasts to raise their social profiles?
A: Absolutely! Podcasts are a great way to give a new dimension to your brand. They make for great content and allow people to put a voice (and/or face) to a name. It’s very easy to set one up, but like everything else online, they should be pre-planned, organised and consistent.
However, if you’d rather not start your own show, you’re more than welcome to pitch yourself to mine. I’m always happy to talk with writers about writing at any stage of their career!
Q: Do you have any other helpful tips for the readers of The Bournemouth Journal who want to develop their writing profiles or skills further; things you might have learnt along the way?
A: Don’t write what you know; write what interests you. And be interested in a lot! If you stick to what you know, you’ll never explore outside that bubble. Whereas when writing what interests you, you’ll give 110% to research and development and discover so much more storytelling potential.
For building your profile, I say don’t be afraid to ask for help. It’s an old cliché: writing is a lonely business. If you try to do everything yourself, you’ll burn out and lose your passion. If you need a cover designer, or help with social media marketing, ask around. You may have friends who have the knack for increasing your Instagram reach, or there may be an illustrator in your contacts who’s looking for their next project. There’s no shame in asking people if it will help you achieve your goals. Just remember to include them in the acknowledgements!
The first episode of Dale’s new series of The Dale Hurst Writing Show will be released on The Bournemouth Journal website on Thu 31 July. In the meantime, for some summer listening on the beach, you can catch up with his earlier podcasts here.
Editor’s Thoughts on AI:
Dale Hurst mentioned AI and I know many writers feel, at best, ambivalent about it. However, today, I typed into ChatGPT what’s your Best Tip for being a Writer? and it answered as follows:
“Write like you’re talking to one person who truly needs to hear it. This keeps your voice authentic, your purpose clear, and your message focused. It cuts through the noise, quiets perfectionism, and turns writing from a performance into a connection. Whether you’re crafting a memoir or a single post, write for that one person – and the rest will come.”
This struck a chord with me because when I first trained as a radio journalist I remember being told, ‘Talk to the audience as if you were talking just to one person.’ I continued to do that throughout my career, have used it in poetry, novel and memoir writing and I apply it when writing this newsletter for you, obviously! It just makes writing a more intimate thing. Do you do this too?
On the AI front, I think we can make use of it to help us in our writing, potentially structurally and editorially - but never to replace our own words! If you’ve ever asked it to write a poem for you, you’ll know what I mean! Anyway, send me your thoughts on our Substack chat. Tell me about your experiences of using it as a writer.
How’s Your Writing Going?
Now, how is your entry going for the 2026 Bournemouth Writing Prize?
If you need a motivational nudge, just remember it’s the contest’s 10th anniversary, so we’re offering £3,000 total in prize money, publication in three places, including Dorset magazine, and your work will be featured at the 2026 Bournemouth Writing Festival.
You have until Fri 15 August 2025 at 11:59pm to enter your work, so let’s do it!
It’s the same deadline for Issue Two of The Bournemouth Journal which comes out in the autumn. So, please send us your short stories and poetry!
We have a new interface called ‘Submittable’ to make submitting easier! The submittable buttons are here for the writing prize and The Bournemouth Journal.
Diary Dates:
If you have time for anything else after all that, here are some more dates for you to keep in mind:
Fri 1 Aug: The Outsider’s Project Anthology is published
Fri 15 August: The 2026 Bournemouth Writing Prize closes for submissions
Fri 15 August: The Bournemouth Journal, Issue Two closes for submissions
Mon 1 Sept: The Bournemouth Journal announces the names of writers to be featured in Issue Two of its review.
Wed 1 Oct: The Bournemouth Journal, Issue Two is due for publication
Sat 18 October: Romance Writing Festival takes place in Bournemouth
Check out our socials for more regular updates:
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Here’s wishing you summer days full of writing, reading and submitting - and maybe even a soupçon of idleness to nourish your beautiful creativity.
Julie Salt
Newsletter Editor