{"podcast":{"title":"Writer's Routine","slug":"writer-s-routine-435324","podcast_index_feed_id":435324,"rss_url":"https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/8dbb4cae-1b0e-4001-b986-bd956560c6b9","website_url":"http://www.writersroutine.com","image_url":"https://assets.pippa.io/shows/60ef0dd059ecdb1bc24de1e1/show-cover.jpg","author":"Dan Simpson","episode_count":412,"summary":"How do the best writers get to work? In every episode, we'll chat to an author about their writing day. Where do they work? What time do they start? How do they plan their time and maximise their creativity, in order to plot and publish a bestseller? Some are frantic night-owls, others roll out of bed into their desks, and a few lock themselves away in the woods - but none have a regular 9 to 5, and we'll find out how they've managed it. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.","last_synced_at":"2026-07-10T10:19:51.726280+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/writer-s-routine-435324"},"episode":{"title":"Shen Tao, author of 'The Poet Empress' - Debut author discusses magical mystery, changing routines, and 9 failed manuscripts","slug":"shen-tao-author-of-the-poet-empress-debut-author-discusses-magical-mystery-changing-routines-and-9-failed-manuscripts","published_at":"2026-02-20T00:30:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/writer-s-routine-435324/shen-tao-author-of-the-poet-empress-debut-author-discusses-magical-mystery-changing-routines-and-9-failed-manuscripts","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/writer-s-routine-435324","url":"https://shows.acast.com/writersroutine/episodes/shen-tao-author-of-the-poet-empress-debut-author-discusses-m","audio_url":"https://sphinx.acast.com/p/acast/s/writersroutine/e/6995c7eb4a6b6137bf24bfdb/media.mp3","summary":"Shen Tao has always wanted to be a writer. For as long as she can remember, she's had ideas, developed characters, and written stories. It took her 9 attempts, 9 manuscripts, to finally get it done. Her debut is 'The Poet Empress'. It's a Chinese historical fantasy, blended with a love story and a murder mystery. It tells the story of a young woman, who enters the Imperial Court as a concubine, and learns poetry-magic to try and kill the heir to the tale. We talk about how she pushed on, through the failed manuscripts, and had an idea she knew would be a winner. A winner it was, eventually being bought in a 6-way auction. You can hear why she's prepared to chuck words away, why she writes a '0th draft', and how her routine has changed since going full-time. We chat about the pressure of getting it right, her unique inspiration blending both Chinese and Western myths and stories, and Shen shares her strong font opinions. Get a copy of the book - uk.bookshop.org/shop/writersroutine Read the newsletter - writersroutine.substack.com Support the show - patreon.com/writersroutine ko-fi.com/writersroutine @writerspod writersroutine.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.","meta_description":"Shen Tao has always wanted to be a writer. For as long as she can remember, she's had ideas, developed characters, and written stories. It took her 9 atte…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":2948,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/writer-s-routine-435324/episodes/shen-tao-author-of-the-poet-empress-debut-author-discusses-magical-mystery-changing-routines-and-9-failed-manuscripts/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/writer-s-routine-435324/shen-tao-author-of-the-poet-empress-debut-author-discusses-magical-mystery-changing-routines-and-9-failed-manuscripts.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}