Words and Nerds: Authors, books and literature.

Words and Nerds: Authors, books and literature.

Words and Nerds Podcast is an entertaining and co…

  • 1 hour 19 minutes
    QWS S4E11 Troy Hunter and Holden Sheppard - ADULTS ONLY EPISODE
    In QWS S4E11, Troy sits down with his mate Holden Sheppard and they go deep into some meaty topics, from masculinity, drinking and trauma, through to YA vs adult writing and writing gay sex. Buckle up! They dive into the fascinating origin stories behind Holden’s three acclaimed novels - Invisible Boys, The Brink and King of Dirt - as well as exploring unpublished YA fantasy novel and his gay bogan novella and how they informed his path to publication. Of course the recent Invisible Boy hit tv series on Stan gets looked at too. (Also see Words and Nerds ep 727 with Dani Vee for a dedicated discussion of this series.) Things that Holden recommends: - Gus and the Burning Stones by Troy Hunter - Wrong Answers Only by Toby Madden - Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie by Alanis Morisette Other media referenced includes: - Cat on a Hot Tin Roof by Tennessee Williams - Brokeback Mountain directed by Ang Lee - The Language or the Kiss by the Indigo Girls Trigger warnings: this episode covers depression, suicidal ideation, alcohol abuse and violence. If these topics raise any issues for you, here are some support resources to consider: - Life line 131114 - Beyond Blue 1300 22 4636 - MensLine 1300789978 Hosted by Troy Hunter who you can find at www.troyhuntwriter.com Troy is the author of Gus and the Missing Boy and Gus and the Burning Stones Follow Troy on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/troyhunterwriter/ #QWSPodcast #LoveOzYA #Gayauthor #Queerwriting #adultfiction #WordsandNerds #LGBTQIABooks #YoungAdult #bromosexual
    23 December 2025, 6:34 am
  • 1 hour 9 minutes
    3. RADELAIDE READS - Dymocks Adelaide YA SPECTACULAR Panel “Why YA is Here To Stay”
    A Recording of the Dymocks Adelaide YA SPECTACULAR Panel “Why YA is Here To Stay” on Wednesday 14th November 2025. Episode Description: We’ve got something a bit different and a bit special for Radelaide Reads this month: a recording from the Dymocks Adelaide YA SPECTACULAR event - on Wednesday 14th November 2025 a panel of seven (yes, SEVEN) YA authors, assembled at Dymocks Rundle Mall to discuss the topic of why “YA Is Here to Stay”. It was a phenomenal event, in front of a huge crowd, and many people who couldn’t attend asked whether there was any chance it was recorded. Well lo and behold I did strategically position a microphone to capture the brilliance. Here’s a list of the authors (Instagram handles and latest book titles) who made up the panel: @vikkiwakefield (moderator) This Is How We Change The Ending @allaynewebster Maisy Hayes is Not for Sale @lkclipstone Tenderly I Am Devoured @mikelucasauthor One By One They Dissappear @sharonkernot Birdy @margot.mcgovern This Stays Between Us And me @ceceadam The Locked Room With special guest appearance by Becky Lucas ( @beckybookingagent )
    21 December 2025, 8:00 pm
  • 1 hour 20 minutes
    S3E24 -Debut Revisited -Nick Wasiliev and Jane Harper breaks down her career
    Debut Revisited is a special series hosted by ‘Date with a Debut’ host Nick Wasiliev, where established authors sit down to discuss their entire writing journey, from debut to the present day. In our third and final episode of this miniseries - and the final episode for 2025 - Nick sits down with Jane Harper, discussing her career from The Dry all the way to the latest release, Last One Out. Enjoy this show or Date with a Debut? Drop us a review, it really helps the show out! You can also support and follow Nick on Substack: https://nickwasiliev.substack.com/ Subscribe on Podbean to never miss an episode: https://www.podbean.com/site/podcatcher/index/blog/3mRME5IMoSJx Date with a Debut is featured as part of the Australian literary platform Words & Nerds. Check out all shows on the platform here: https://danivee.com.au/podcasts/ BOOKS: Author Bibliography: The Dry / Jane Harper: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/194mv9 Force of Nature / Jane Harper: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/Z6gZMX Exiles / Jane Harper: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/zxJ7or The Lost Man / Jane Harper: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/6y4JYq The Survivors / Jane Harper: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/vPA7Jv Last One Out / Jane Harper: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/dO6mMj Other Books Mentioned: Mad Mabel / Sally Hepworth: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/7aYZvg Watermelon / Marian Keyes: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/xL17g1 Killing Floor / Lee Child: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/jeqv9P Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone / Benjamin Stevenson: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/554Vv2 The Hiding Place / Kate Mildenhall: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/Vx1G7O The Forsaken / Matt Rogers: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/raoVZQ Big Feelings / Amy Lovat: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/zxJ7Yr PRODUCTION NOTES: Host: Nick Wasiliev Guest: Jane Harper Editing & Production: Nick Wasiliev Podcast Theme: ‘Chill’ by Sakura Hz Production Code: 3:X3 Episode Number: #58 Additional Credits: Dani Vee (Words & Nerds), Clare Keighery (Pan Macmillan Australia) FOLLOW NICK WASILIEV (+ DATE WITH A DEBUT): A LITTLE IDEA PODCAST: Feed SUBSTACK: nickwasiliev.substack.com WEBSITE: www.nicholaswasiliev.com YOUTUBE: @NickWasiliev_Official INSTAGRAM: @nickwasiliev TWITTER/X: @Nick_Wasiliev FACEBOOK: Nick Wasiliev TIKTOK: @nickwasiliev © 2025 Nick Wasiliev and Breathe Art Holdings ‘Date With A Debut’ is a Words and Nerds and Breathe Art Podcasts co-production recorded and edited on Awabakal Country, and we pay our respects to all elders past and present.
    20 December 2025, 8:00 pm
  • 39 minutes 42 seconds
    Quizzmas - Stuff Your Stockings Episode 4 hosted by Dani Vee and Adrian Beck
    Quizzmas - Stuff Your Stockings Episode 4 hosted by Dani Vee and Adrian Beck
    19 December 2025, 10:42 pm
  • 56 minutes 33 seconds
    S3E23 - Debut Revisited - Nick Wasiliev and Tigest Girma breaks down her career from Immortal Dark to Eternal Ruin
    Debut Revisited is a special series hosted by ‘Date with a Debut’ host Nick Wasiliev, where established authors sit down to discuss their entire writing journey, from debut to the present day. In the second episode of this new miniseries, Nick sits down with Tigest Girma, discussing her career from debut Immortal Dark all the way to the latest release, Eternal Ruin. Enjoy this show or Date with a Debut? Drop us a review, it really helps the show out! You can also support and follow Nick on Substack: https://nickwasiliev.substack.com/ Subscribe on Podbean to never miss an episode: https://www.podbean.com/site/podcatcher/index/blog/3mRME5IMoSJx Date with a Debut is featured as part of the Australian literary platform Words & Nerds. Check out all shows on the platform here: https://danivee.com.au/podcasts/ BOOKS: Author Bibliography: Immortal Dark / Tigest Girma: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/7a66Bd Eternal Ruin / Tigest Girma: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/aOEmgj Other Books Mentioned: Ninth House / Leigh Bardugo: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/Bn4Jg9 Kindred / Octavia E. Butler: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/OePQqA One Dark Window / Rachel Gillig: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/dO60BQ PRODUCTION NOTES: Host: Nick Wasiliev Guest: Tigest Girma Editing & Production: Nick Wasiliev Podcast Theme: ‘Chill’ by Sakura Hz Production Code: 3:X2 Episode Number: #57 Additional Credits: Dani Vee (Words & Nerds), Georgina Harrison (Hachette Australia) FOLLOW NICK WASILIEV (+ DATE WITH A DEBUT): A LITTLE IDEA PODCAST: Feed SUBSTACK: nickwasiliev.substack.com WEBSITE: www.nicholaswasiliev.com YOUTUBE: @NickWasiliev_Official INSTAGRAM: @nickwasiliev TWITTER/X: @Nick_Wasiliev FACEBOOK: Nick Wasiliev TIKTOK: @nickwasiliev © 2025 Nick Wasiliev and Breathe Art Holdings ‘Date With A Debut’ is a Words and Nerds and Breathe Art Podcasts co-production recorded and edited on Awabakal Country, and we pay our respects to all elders past and present.
    19 December 2025, 8:00 pm
  • 38 minutes 4 seconds
    781. Everything I Know About Publishing - Dani Vee and Rory H Mather
    Everything I Know About Publishing is a new series where Dani Vee asks the best of the best in the industry to tell her all the secrets of publishing. Rory H Mather provides honest and candid answers about whether publishers owe writers anything, how to submit, the importance of honing your writing and having a successful career in an impossible industry.
    18 December 2025, 8:00 pm
  • 1 hour 2 minutes
    S3 E22 - Debut Revisited - Nick Wasiliev and Holden Sheppard breaks down his career from Invisible Boys to King of Dirt
    Debut Revisited is a special series hosted by ‘Date with a Debut’ host Nick Wasiliev, where established authors sit down to discuss their entire writing journey, from debut to the present day. In our maiden episode of this new series, Nick sits down with Holden Sheppard, discussing his career from debut Invisible Boys all the way to the latest release, King of Dirt. Enjoy this show or Date with a Debut? Drop us a review, it really helps the show out! You can also support and follow Nick on Substack: https://nickwasiliev.substack.com/ Subscribe on Podbean to never miss an episode: https://www.podbean.com/site/podcatcher/index/blog/3mRME5IMoSJx Date with a Debut is featured as part of the Australian literary platform Words & Nerds. Check out all shows on the platform here: https://danivee.com.au/podcasts/ BOOKS: Author Bibliography: Invisible Boys / Holden Sheppard: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/Bn4AbJ The Brink / Holden Sheppard: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/nXmboM King of Dirt / Holden Sheppard: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/6y4qom Other Books Mentioned: Gus and the Burning Stones / Troy Hunter: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/3J4Oon Breath / Tim Winton: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/vPAbxL Holding The Man / Timothy Conigrave: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/dO6Zn2 PRODUCTION NOTES: Host: Nick Wasiliev Guest: Holden Sheppard Editing & Production: Nick Wasiliev Podcast Theme: ‘Chill’ by Sakura Hz Production Code: 3:X1 Episode Number: #56 Additional Credits: Dani Vee (Words & Nerds), Fremantle Press, Text Publishing, Pantera Press FOLLOW NICK WASILIEV (+ DATE WITH A DEBUT): A LITTLE IDEA PODCAST: Feed SUBSTACK: nickwasiliev.substack.com WEBSITE: www.nicholaswasiliev.com YOUTUBE: @NickWasiliev_Official INSTAGRAM: @nickwasiliev TWITTER/X: @Nick_Wasiliev FACEBOOK: Nick Wasiliev TIKTOK: @nickwasiliev © 2025 Nick Wasiliev and Breathe Art Holdings ‘Date With A Debut’ is a Words and Nerds and Breathe Art Podcasts co-production recorded and edited on Awabakal Country, and we pay our respects to all elders past and present. ____ Let me know if you have any questions.
    17 December 2025, 8:00 pm
  • 59 minutes 49 seconds
    S3 E21 - Date with a Debut - Nick Wasiliev and Emma Clancy - This Dream Will Devour Us
    Date with a Debut is a podcast hosted by writer Nick Wasiliev: shining a light on debut authors, their incredible books, and their journeys to publication. This week, in our final episode of Series 3, Nick sits down with Emma Clancey to discuss her YA fantasy debut, This Dream Will Devour Us. Also, stay tuned for an exciting new miniseries announcement at the end of the podcast! Enjoy the show? Drop us a review, it really helps the show out! You can also support and follow Nick on Substack: https://nickwasiliev.substack.com/ Subscribe on Podbean to never miss an episode: https://www.podbean.com/site/podcatcher/index/blog/3mRME5IMoSJx Date with a Debut is featured as part of the Australian literary platform Words & Nerds. Check out all shows on the platform here: https://danivee.com.au/podcasts/ BOOKS: Debut Feature: This Dream Will Devour Us / Emma Clancey: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/RG7z2g Other Books Mentioned: Bat Eater / Kylie Lee Baker: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/JKAdJ7 Of Flame and Fury / Mikayla Bridge: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/Dy75Bn The Farm / Jessica Mansour-Nahra: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/ramyxv All The Missing Children / Zahid Gamieldien: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/K0gKr9 The Poppy War / R.F. Kuang: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/55oRKN PRODUCTION NOTES: Host: Nick Wasiliev Guest: Emma Clancey Editing & Production: Nick Wasiliev Podcast Theme: ‘Chill’ by Sakura Hz Production Code: 3:21 Episode Number: #55 Additional Credits: Dani Vee (Words & Nerds), Reem Galal (Allen & Unwin Children’s) FOLLOW NICK WASILIEV (+ DATE WITH A DEBUT): A LITTLE IDEA PODCAST: Feed SUBSTACK: nickwasiliev.substack.com WEBSITE: www.nicholaswasiliev.com YOUTUBE: @NickWasiliev_Official INSTAGRAM: @nickwasiliev TWITTER/X: @Nick_Wasiliev FACEBOOK: Nick Wasiliev TIKTOK: @nickwasiliev © 2025 Nick Wasiliev and Breathe Art Holdings ‘Date With A Debut’ is a Words and Nerds and Breathe Art Podcasts co-production recorded and edited on Awabakal Country, and we pay our respects to all elders past and present.
    13 December 2025, 8:00 pm
  • 36 minutes 20 seconds
    780. Dani Vee and Adam Taor - Bodypedia - A Brief Compendium of Human Anatomical Curiosities
    Dani Vee and Adam Taor chat about Bodypedia - A Brief Compendium of Human Anatomical Curiosities. No stone is unturned in this episode and they discuss interesting topics such as which side of the face is better for selfies and engagement, brain glue, travelling sperm, pleasure and shame and why Issa Newton stuck a pin in his eye. Everything you need is right here!
    12 December 2025, 8:00 pm
  • 39 minutes 52 seconds
    Stuff Your Stockings Episode 3 with Adrian Beck, Tina Strachan and Lucie Stevens.
    Stuff Your Stockings Episode 2 with Adrian Beck, Tina Strachan and Lucie Stevens. This pop-up podcast gives 2025’s debut kidlit authors their moment under the Christmas tree!
    12 December 2025, 2:32 am
  • 40 minutes 1 second
    S3 E20 - Date with a Debut - Nick Wasiliev and Nick Croydon - The Turing Protocol
    Date with a Debut is a podcast hosted by writer Nick Wasiliev: shining a light on debut authors, their incredible books, and their journeys to publication. This week, Nick sits down with Nick Croydon to discuss his debut speculative fiction novel, The Turing Protocol. Enjoy the show? Drop us a review, it really helps the show out! You can also support and follow Nick on Substack: https://nickwasiliev.substack.com/ Subscribe on Podbean to never miss an episode: https://www.podbean.com/site/podcatcher/index/blog/3mRME5IMoSJx Date with a Debut is featured as part of the Australian literary platform Words & Nerds. Check out all shows on the platform here: https://danivee.com.au/podcasts/ BOOKS: Debut Feature: The Turing Protocol / Nick Croydon: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/55ozV3 Other Books Mentioned: The Peak / Sam Guthrie: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/N97EZb As I Walked out One Midsummer Morning / Laurie Lee: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/MA7EJ2 Slaughterhouse 5 / Kurt Vonnegut: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/GK71e9 PRODUCTION NOTES: Host: Nick Wasiliev Guest: Nick Croydon Editing & Production: Nick Wasiliev Podcast Theme: ‘Chill’ by Sakura Hz Production Code: 3:20 Episode Number: #54 Additional Credits: Dani Vee (Words & Nerds), Tace Kelly (Affirm Press), Biarta Parnham, Piper Daly (Biased) FOLLOW NICK WASILIEV (+ DATE WITH A DEBUT): A LITTLE IDEA PODCAST: Feed SUBSTACK: nickwasiliev.substack.com WEBSITE: www.nicholaswasiliev.com YOUTUBE: @NickWasiliev_Official INSTAGRAM: @nickwasiliev TWITTER/X: @Nick_Wasiliev FACEBOOK: Nick Wasiliev TIKTOK: @nickwasiliev © 2025 Nick Wasiliev and Breathe Art Holdings ‘Date With A Debut’ is a Words and Nerds and Breathe Art Podcasts co-production recorded and edited on Awabakal Country, and we pay our respects to all elders past and present.
    10 December 2025, 8:00 pm
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