Episode 18: I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman (with guest Richard Swan)

This month we take a deep dive into the epic speculative sci-fi novel I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman. Released in 1995, this novel follows the story of 'The Child' who has only ever known life locked un in a cage underground with 40 other women. Upon their escape, they discover a desolate landscape and slowly realize they may be the only survivors of an apocalyptic event. 

We have Sunday Times Bestselling author Richard Swan (Empire of the Wolf and Great Silence trilogies) to break down what makes this novel special. Our writing craft focus this month is 'Liminality' - that hard to discern quality of being in between spaces. The empty corridor of a large hotel, a multistory carpark late at night, and most often depicted as semi nightmarish places in popculture like Backrooms and severance. 

So how do you convey this feeling in a less visually aesthetic medium like writing? Well Nicholas and Richard break it down for us, and give us tips on how to include it in our own works. 

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