Joe Abercrombie talks The Devils, Grimdark, Ensemble Casts & More | SFF Addicts Ep. 153

Join co-hosts Adrian M. Gibson, M.J. Kuhn and Greta Kelly as they chat with bestselling author Joe Abercrombie about his new novel The Devils, first attempts at writing, working in film, TV and music video editing, the world of The First Law and gradual success, his opinions on grimdark, writing (absurdist) alternate history Europe, going down historical research rabbit holes, creating an eclectic ensemble cast, writing multiple POVs, giving characters distinct voices and much more. NOTE: This is part one of a two-part chat with Joe. Stayed tuned next week for his writing masterclass on How to Write Unlikable Characters. OUR SPONSOR: Transference by Ian Patterson is a sci-fi dystopia that dissects the medical/pharmaceutical industries, economic inequality, and what it means to be human in a city where diseases can be transferred. Purchase it in eBook and paperback: https://www.amazon.com/Transference-N... SHOUTOUT TO THE 'SFF ADDICT' PATRONS: Thank you Ian Patterson, David Hopkins, Luke F. Shepherd, Christopher R. DuBois, Tai, Luke A. Winch and GavinGuile for supporting us on Patreon at $10+. SUPPORT THE SHOW: Patreon (for exclusive bonus episodes, author readings and more):   / sffaddictspod   Rate and review SFF Addicts, and share us with your friends EMAIL US WITH YOUR QUESTIONS & COMMENTS: [email protected] OUTLINE: 0:00 - Intro 6:33 - Sponsor 8:17 - Joe’s jock (or nerdy?) origins 12:04 - Joe’s first attempts at writing 16:40 - Film and TV editing 24:03 - The First Law and gradual success 30:20 - What is grimdark? 34:56 - The Devils and alternate history Europe 40:01 - Absurdist historical fantasy and research 46:36 - Creating an eclectic ensemble cast 53:43 - Multiple POVs and distinct character voices 1:00:13 - A sequel to The Devils? 1:02:08 - Outro, writing advice & random fact ABOUT OUR GUEST: Joe Abercrombie is the bestselling author of The First Law trilogy, The Age of Madness trilogy and more. His latest release is The Devils, which you can purchase ⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠: https://us.macmillan.com/books/978125... ⁠⁠Twitter: https://x.com/lordgrimdark Amazon⁠⁠: https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/... https://joeabercrombie.com/ ABOUT OUR HOSTS: Adrian M. Gibson is the author of Mushroom Blues, which you can purchase here: https://amzn.to/3Ptg2SH https://adrianmgibson.com/ Greta Kelly is the author of ⁠The Queen of Days⁠, The Frozen Crown and The Seventh Queen. You can purchase her books here: http://www.harpercollins.com/blogs/au... https://gretakkelly.com/ M.J. Kuhn is the author of Among Thieves and Thick as Thieves, which you can buy here: https://www.simonandschuster.com/book... https://www.mjkuhn.com/ FIND US ONLINE: https://linktr.ee/SFFAddicts MUSIC: Intro: "Into The Grid" by MellauSFX: https://www.pond5.com/royalty-free-mu... Outro: “⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Galactic Synthwave⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠” by Divion: https://www.pond5.com/royalty-free-mu... AD ATTRIBUTION: Music: "Corporate Advertising Music" by SigmaMusicArt / "Synthetic Deception" by GioeleFazzeri Svavar Halldorsson: https://www.istockphoto.com/video/wid... Gorodenkoff: https://www.istockphoto.com/video/in-... artlab: https://www.istockphoto.com/video/red... Jacob Wackerhausen: https://www.istockphoto.com/video/iv-... FHP Animation Studio: https://www.istockphoto.com/video/dro... SweetBunFactory: https://www.istockphoto.com/video/clo... shivkantsharma07: https://www.istockphoto.com/video/eye... iLexx: https://www.istockphoto.com/video/hum... circotasu: https://www.istockphoto.com/video/cor... Astragal: https://www.istockphoto.com/video/cyb... Alasabyss: https://www.istockphoto.com/video/blu... #writing #fantasy #grimdark #interview #booktube #writingadvice #podcast #books