From a parenting email to being a US bestseller with Emma Grey

Emma Grey is a novelist, feature writer, photographer, professional speaker and accountability coach. She wrote her first adult novel, The Last Love Note, in the wake of her husband’s death. It’s a fictional tribute to their love, an attempt to articulate the magnitude of her loss and a life-affirming commitment to hope, which has gone on to win hearts around the world. In the US, it was selected as a featured title for the Book of the Month and Target Book Clubs, a Washington Post noteworthy book and listed in the top 25 new releases by the American Bookseller’s Association. Emma lives near Canberra, where her world centres on her family, writing, photography and endlessly chasing the Aurora Australis.

Our interview begins at  33.00

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Mini (film) club: Wicked

Of course, we had to hold space and discuss the movie of the moment. In short: we loved it.

In this interview, we chat about:

• How can we tell stories about complex issues like violence against women in fiction?
• Why Emma also wanted to explore amnesia through the story
• The experience of having an American bestseller
• The parenting email that launched Emma's writing career
• Exploring grief in her first adult novel and the interesting journey to publication via a YA novel inspired by Harry Styles
• How Emma dealt with the way the book was received in the UK given the difficult subject matter

Books and other things mentioned:

• Pulp Kitchen (podcast)
• Deadpool and Wolverine (film)
• It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover
• National Women's Safety Organisation
• Tuesday Evenings at the Copeton Craft Resistance by Kate Solly
• Moms Don't Have Time to Read Books Podcast by Zibby Owens

Follow @emmagreyauthor on Instagram

Pictures of You is available now. The publisher provided us with copies of the book in preparation for the interview. 

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