Joanna Penn: Put Black On White

I write thrillers and non-fiction books, and I run my own creative business online.

For non-fiction, I’m listening to The Inevitable by Kevin Kelly on audiobook as it has some prescient discussions on the future for creatives. For fiction, I’ve almost finished Muse of Nightmares by Laini Taylor. I love her dark fantasy books.

Reading to my cuddly seal toy as a child. I also used to take books into my Mum’s bed if I woke up in the night.

It depends on the age group, of course, but I remember loving The Magic Faraway Tree by Enid Blyton. I still love fantasy and travel books.

I would just encourage young people to read whatever they like, the genre doesn’t matter. Forcing children to read certain books is what kills the love of reading. Discovery is part of the fun.

I’ve always been obsessed with atlases. I went to primary school in Malawi, Africa, and at home, we always had world maps on the wall so we could trace our travels. I learned all the capital cities of the world – still good for pub quizzes! I’m sitting here in my office right now next to a world map and I’m currently working on my next Mapwalker novel, so it’s still a big theme of my life.

A fairy dressed in an itchy purple costume outside Santa’s grotto one Christmas holidays with screaming kids high on sugar, unhappy parents, and canned music on repeat all day. I hated that job. [Bah, humbug!]

Schedule time to write. Don’t just say you will but actually get out your calendar and add a time slot for writing.

Then take that meeting as seriously as you would any other meeting and turn up to write. Put black on white. Then repeat.

Yes, I read every day for at least an hour, mostly more and also read by listening to audiobooks as I walk around during the day. I buy and read 3+ books a week, mostly in ebook and audiobook formats and also read non-fiction in hardback. It’s my addiction, my hobby, and my job!

Always read in the genre you want to write in. You can’t satisfy readers of the genre otherwise. In terms of books for writers, then Turning Pro by Steven Pressfield, Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert, and Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott.

The Stand by Stephen King. I love the immersive dark fantasy world. I now have it on audiobook too which is reading in a whole new way.

Unshakeable: Your Financial Freedom Playbook by Tony Robbins. Most people don’t have enough financial education and so Tony’s book helps guide a path to actionable finance. Creative professionals and freelancers, in particular, need to understand how money works as well as save and invest for the future because the money flow is not like being an employee.

Seth Godin for building a creative business based on authenticity. Kevin Kelly for his relentless curiosity and passion for technology. Read WIRED magazine if you want some positive news in your day! Brené Brown for her honesty around the fact that it’s OK to be yourself. The Gifts of Imperfection is a must-read book.

Dark fantasy for fiction – anything that crosses the boundary between thrillers and the supernatural. It’s where I escape for pleasure and then also turn that experience into my own fiction writing.

We’re in it right now. It’s the reality for the millions of people who can’t read or can’t access books, which is why authors and readers are so passionate about literacy, especially for women as they will raise future generations of readers.

Stephen King, and recently I’ve added Jonathan Maberry (see Jonathan Maberry’s interview), whose books are amazing.

If by ‘real’ books, you mean physical paper books, then no. There will always be a place for paper books, but I read 90% digitally these days through ebooks and audiobooks. Consumable fiction and non-fiction that I want to devour and not own works well in digital formats, but for non-fiction that I want as a reference, I also buy in hardback.

I think it will also depend on the market, for example, some countries in Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Latin America are digital and mobile-first markets. Many people can’t get physical books, or they are too expensive. Whereas many people will have a mobile phone, so reading may well flourish digitally first in those areas. That’s why it’s so important for authors and publishers to make sure their books are available in all formats in all markets. My own books are available in 190 countries now as ebooks, but far fewer for print and audio. We live in exciting times!

21 Lessons for the 21st Century by Yuval Noah Harari. His books Sapiens and Homo Deus are also excellent and thought-provoking for considering the scope of history.

The Success Principles: How to get from where you are to where you want to be by Jack Canfield. I read it when I hated my job and didn’t know what to do with my life. I put the steps into action, and within a few years, I was able to leave that job and make a full-time career out of writing.

So many! I’ll add Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World by Cal Newport, as we all need help with deciding how to spend our limited time.

For fiction, I read dark fantasy, thriller, horror and also literary fiction. For non-fiction, I read business and entrepreneurship, travel, self-help, and futurist books.

Untethered by J.F.Penn. It’s more of a memoir about my travels and it’s already started!