Episode 3

What it means to be experienced with Kate Young

Kate Young is a writer and cook. Her award-winning Little Library Cookbooks feature food inspired by beloved works of literature. After a sunny Australian childhood, spent indoors reading books, she moved to London, which suited her much better. She now lives in a converted mill in a Gloucestershire town. Today we're discussing her debut novel, a queer rom-com called Experienced.

Our interview begins at  30.00

We've got a Substack publication now! On the last day of the month, we share recommendations for two things we reckon you should read/watch/listen to. The beauty of Substack is you can revisit all our old editions and comment on our episode updates to share your thoughts. Come say hi!

Mini book club: How to Kill Your Family by Bella Mackie

A book we both missed when it was published in 2021. This is a witty and wickedly funny crime novel about a young woman working through a plan to kill off the members of her extended family. Grace is such an anti-hero we couldn't help but fall in love with her. We give plenty of spoilers in this chat but we give lots of warnings if you want to skip them.

In this interview, we chat about:

  • Why Kate lives in the UK even though she grew up in Australia
  • Kate's amazing New Year's tradition
  • Queer adolescence and working out what you need in relationships
  • Kate's scientific study of rom-com (and what it reveals about writing them)
  • Writing cookbooks and Kate's journey into writing fiction

Books and other things mentioned:

Follow Kate @kateyoungwrites

Experienced is now available in the UK and Australia. Michelle bought the book in preparation for the interview, but Caitlin accessed a copy through work as Kate is published by Harper Collins.

Connect with us on Instagram: @betterwordspod

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About your hosts

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Caitlin Toohey

Hi, I'm Caitlin! I've been on bookstagram since 2016, a podcaster since 2017, and worked in publishing since 2019. So books and reading are my entire life. When I'm not reading, I like listening to Taylor Swift, watching sitcoms, and generally being a theatre kid.
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Michelle Gately

Hi, I'm Michelle! I'm an Aussie living in the UK, working as a bookseller. I'm obsessed with storytelling in all its forms – I spend as much time watching TV or listening to podcasts as I do reading. Other hobbies include bouldering, hiking and generally obsessing about my pug Percy.