The Writers’ Gym Podcast

Jade Robertson, founder and creative director of Little Lies joins Dr Rachel Knightley at the Writers' Gym

Today Dr Rachel Knightley explores a different kind of storytelling that has been part of her exploring and expressing the stories she contains for nearly a decade, and a community she's been part of while also building her own in the Writers' Gym: Jade Robertson is the creative force behind Little Lies, an indie fashion brand rooted in 70s rock ‘n’ roll. Since launching the brand from her bedroom in 2015, Jade has built a loyal global community of customers who resonate with the ethos of creating “future-vintage” pieces—timeless styles designed in small batches with inclusivity in mind. Little Lies has grown from a passion project into a business with a seven-figure turnover and brand known for its authenticity and bold energy. Last year, the world took notice when Taylor Swift was photographed wearing one of their signature designs, further cementing their place in the fashion world. Jade is passionate about sharing her journey and insights, regularly speaking at universities, business groups, and on various podcasts, always bringing a grounded, relatable approach to entrepreneurship, creativity, and building an ethical brand in today’s world. Whether it’s about her love of blending music with fashion, building an independent business, juggling motherhood with business life or leading with purpose in the fast-paced world of retail, her talks resonate with audiences looking for real insights and inspiration.
 
www.little-lies.com
Instagram: @jadelittlelies
 

Ashley Thorpe, award winning animator joins Dr Rachel Knightley at the Writers' Gym

Dr Rachel Knightley's guest at the Writers' Gym today is  Ashley Thorpe. Ashley  is a self taught Devon based animator whose early films (SCAYRECROW, THE SCREAMING SKULL & THE HAIRY HANDS) were a celebration of the neglected aspects of British folklore. His first feature 'BORLEY RECTORY' (a Carrion Film / Glass Eye Pix co-venture) with Reece Shearsmith & Julian Sands was completed late 2017and won 'Best Animated Feature' at Buffalo Dreams Festival New York and a "Special Achievement in Cinema" accolade. After being released on Blu Ray in 2019 the film is now streaming on Netflix, Prime and Talking Pictures. As a freelance animator he has provided animated titles / sequences for such varied films as the multi award winning 'WOODLANDS DARK & DAYS BEWITCHED', Saturn award winning 'TALES OF HALLOWEEN', 'MANCUNIAN MAN', 'NEVERLAND NIGHTMARE' as well as ongoing animated title sequences and graphics for the BBC's hit show 'UNCANNY’.
 
Ashley's website: https://carrionfilms.co.uk
 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ashleycarrionthorpe/?hl=en-gb

Claire Louise Amias, actor and playwright joins Dr Rachel Knightley at the Writers' Gym

Claire Louise Amias is an actor and playwright. She has worked extensively on screen and stage, including feature films, No. 1 touring, West End and regional theatre.She is also Co-Artistic Director of A Monkey With Cymbals Theatre Company andhas written, acted in and produced several projects. The Masks of Aphra Behn is an Offie award-winning one-woman show about the first professional female writer in the English language; the show went on a national tour and helped raise funds for the successful A is for Aphra statue campaign. She wrote a follow-up play, Oranges& Ink, about Behn’s possible friendship with Nell Gwynn; this was Offie-nominated and had a West End run. Her current project is Haunted Shadows: The Gothic Tales of Edith Nesbit, which will begin touring the UK on 24 October, running until May next year. This is an adaptation of three of Edith Nesbit’s creepiest stories.
 
Find out more about Claire and book for Haunted Shadows at https://www.amonkeywithcymbals.co.uk/
 

Kim Morgan MCC, author, speaker and Barefoot Coaching founder joins Dr Rachel Knightley at the Writers' Gym

Dr Rachel Knightley is joined by Kim Morgan MCC, author, speaker, Barefoot Coaching founder and internationally recognised expert in coaching and coach training. Kim’s passion to spread the word about coaching has resulted in two best-selling books, ‘The Coach’s Casebook’ (2015) and ‘The Coach’s Survival Guide (2019). Kim also has a monthly coaching column in Psychologies Magazine, and she is a sought- after conference speaker on all things coaching related.
 
Kim is one of the select band of coaches accredited by the ICF as a Master Certified Coach. She draws extensively on her own experience of what works in practice to make successful individuals, great leaders, productive teams and organisations, and outstanding coaches. Kim designed and launched the Barefoot Flagship Course in 2001. Kim’s passion and curiosity ensure that the course is constantly evolving, refreshed by new ideasand thinking and always remains grounded in ethical and psychological rigour.Under Kim’s leadership Barefoot Coaching has established an international reputation as one of the most trusted and respected providers of coach training. Over 4,000 coaches from 28 different countries have chosen Barefoot to begin or to
build their coaching careers. Kim’s vision remains the same, to make the world a brighter place through exceptional coaching; firstly, by providing world-class training for coaches who want to make a difference, and secondly by delivering Barefoot-quality coaching to individuals and organisations looking for real and lasting change.
 
About Kim:
https://barefootcoaching.co.uk/about/
 
Kim's books at Waterstones:
https://www.waterstones.com/books/search/term/kim+morgan+coach

Tim Lebbon, New York Times-bestselling author joins Dr Rachel Knightley at the Writers' Gym

Tim Lebbon is a New York Times-bestselling writer from South Wales. He’s written over fifty novels, as well as hundreds of novellas and short stories. His latest novel is Secret Lives of the Dead. He has won a World Fantasy Award, four British Fantasy Awards, a Dragon Award and a Scribe Award. His novel The Silence is a movie on Netflix starring Stanley Tucci and Kiernan Shipka. The movie of his novella Pay The Ghost stars Nicolas Cage.
 
Tim has written extensively in existing universes including Alien, Conan the Barbarian, Predator, Star Wars, Firefly and Hellboy novels. He also novelized the movies 30 Days of Night, The Cabin in the Woods, and Kong: Skull Island.
 
He has written computer games, comics, and audio dramas. He is currently developing more novels, and both original and adapted screen projects.
 
He loves the outdoors, and spends a lot of time walking, running, cycling and swimming around the Welsh countryside. He's competed in many Ironman and other triathlons. He's a huge music fan, and believes you're never too old to jump up and down in a mosh pit.
 
Find out more about Tim at www.timlebbon.net

Joanne Harris (OBE, FRSL) joins Dr Rachel Knightley at the Writers' Gym

Joanne was born in Barnsley in 1964, of a French mother and an English father. She studied Modern and Mediaeval Languages at Cambridge and was a teacher for fifteen years, during which time she published three novels, including Chocolat (1999), which was made into an Oscar-nominated film starring Juliette Binoche .
Since then, she has written over 20 more novels, plus novellas, short stories, game scripts, the libretti for two short operas, several screenplays, a stage musical (with Howard Goodall) and three cookbooks. Her books are now published in over 50 countries and have won a number of British and international awards. She is an honorary Fellow of St Catharine’s College, Cambridge, has honorary doctorates in literature from the universities of Sheffield and Huddersfield, and has been a judge for the Whitbread Prize, the Orange Prize, the Desmond Elliott Prize, the Betty Trask Award, the Prima Donna Prize  and the Royal Society Winton Prize for Science, as well as for the Fragrance Foundation awards for perfume and perfume journalism (for which she also received an award in 2017). She was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in 2022.
She is a passionate advocate for authors’ rights, and was the Chair of the Society of Authors (SOA) for four years. She was a member of the Board of the Authors’ Licensing and Collecting Society (ALCS) between 2018 and 2024.
Her hobbies are listed in Who’s Who as: “mooching, lounging, strutting, strumming, priest-baiting and quiet subversion of the system”, although she also enjoys obfuscation, sleaze, rebellion, witchcraft, armed robbery, tea and biscuits. She is not above bribery and would not necessarily refuse an offer involving perfume, diamonds,  foreign travel or pink champagne. She works from a shed in her garden, plays in the band she first joined when she was 16, and lives with her husband in a little wood in Yorkshire.
Joanne's website: https://www.joanne-harris.co.uk
The Society of Authors: https://societyofauthors.org
ALCS: https://www.alcs.co.uk
Vianne/Sarah McCartney scent collaboration: https://www.joanne-harris.co.uk/news/4690/

What makes you write

Build confidence in writing through focus on the inspiration already in your writer's artist palette – with author and coach Dr Rachel Knightley.
 
This week, we're exploring what makes you write.

Plots and protagonists

Build confidence in writing through focus on the inspiration already in your writer's artist palette – with author and coach Dr Rachel Knightley.
 
This week, we're exploring plots and protagonists.

Antagonist exercises

Build confidence in writing through focus on the inspiration already in your writer's artist palette – with author and coach Dr Rachel Knightley.
 
This week, we're exploring antagonist exercises.

Symbols and characters

Build confidence in writing through focus on the inspiration already in your writer's artist palette – with author and coach Dr Rachel Knightley.
 
This week, we're exploring symbols and characters