You can find the posts weekly, I post every Wednesday, usually early evening.
Check out the posts here: Emma Finlayson-Palmer | Substack
Wednesday, 29 April 2026
NOTES FROM THE GRAVEYARD SHIFT
I've been writing my weekly Substack, NOTES FROM THE GRAVEYARD SHIFT, for around six months now, and it's been such a joy to write.
Tuesday, 3 March 2026
#ukteenchat Q&A with Helen Price - author of Kill Me Now
Hello, and welcome to this week's #ukteenchat, where YA Thriller author, Helen Price tells us all about her writing and debut, KILL ME NOW.
1. Could you
tell us a little bit about your new YA Thriller, Kill Me Now, please?
School golden boy Riley North had
it all: talent, charm, and a stellar future. Now he’s dead.
Guy 'Reaper' Mortimer, the funeral
director’s son, stands accused of his murder.
Keen to clear his name, Reaper
teams up with cute new girl, Samira; sweet but naïve Betty; and Riley’s two
best mates, Bunsen and Snake. Together, they unravel the twisted layers of
school, where secrets hide and deception is rife. But what starts as a search
for answers soon becomes a fight for survival.
Because the killer knows the truth
and is determined to expose it – one deadly sin at a time.
Pitched
as Riverdale x One of is Lying, Kill Me Now is about the
deeply personal reasons we all have for keeping secrets. It subverts
expectations, exploring death honestly and faith in ways readers won’t see
coming. It’s a story about secrets, lies, and the seductive promise that
dragging the truth into the light will set you free.
But what if it doesn’t?
What if, in the end, the truth isn’t salvation at all . . . but a weapon?
2. Was there
anything in particular that inspired Kill Me Now?
Yes. Contradiction.
A stranger I met told me she’d found faith
but had been rejected by her local church. That stayed with me. Around the same
time, I watched a news feature on young people being radicalised, and it struck
me how faith, something designed to guide and protect, can be manipulated in
the wrong hands.
That’s when the idea began to form. Not as a
story about religion, but about control. About who gets to shape young people’s
narratives today and what happens when that belief is weaponised.
From there, I
layered in the everyday pressures of teenage life: hierarchies, power dynamics,
loyalties, betrayal, first loves, first heartbreaks, identity, reputations, and
secrets. The story quickly became about truth: who’s hiding it, who wants it,
and what they’re willing to do to keep or expose it.
3. What three
or four words would best describe Kill Me Now?
They’re on the back of the book!
Secrets, Lies & Murder. All my favourite things! Not forgetting
consequences, of course.
4. Did you
know from the beginning who the murderer(s) would be, or did the identity shift
as you wrote?
Yes. I always know the who and the
why before I start writing. I can’t construct a mystery unless I understand its
spine. For me, knowing the ending is like knowing the final destination on a road
trip. I might detour en route, but I do need to know where I’m headed.
That said, the editorial process sharpened
everything. My editor challenged me to “invest in the evil,” which I absolutely
loved. The killer’s identity didn’t change, but the depth of their motivations
did. They became more layered and more unsettling. The result is a twist that I
hope feels both inevitable and shocking.
5. Without
being too spoilery, is there a scene or moment, or character in Kill Me Now
that you particularly enjoyed writing?
There’s a pivotal moment at the midpoint
where the stakes really rise for Guy Mortimer, KMN’s unlikely hero. Poor thing.
I really put him through it!
Up until that moment, the danger feels
slightly distant. But in the chapters leading up to and just past the midpoint,
it suddenly becomes all too immediate, personal, and inescapable for Guy.
He’s forced to face something that up until
this point he’s only feared. So, both the emotional and physical stakes
collide, and I absolutely loved writing these scenes.
And in the middle of all that tension,
there’s a surprising exchange between Guy and Samira, which was especially fun
to write, and I know made him very happy. A cute, quiet moment in the eye of
the storm. That kind of contrast in a YA thriller is so important, both for
your characters and your readers. It gives them a moment to breathe before
jumping straight back in.
6. How
important is the setting in your stories?
Massively!
In Kill Me Now, Langbury, its fictional town,
isn’t just a backdrop; it’s an active character in its own right. I wanted a place
that felt beautiful and historic on the surface but hugely claustrophobic
underneath. A town steeped in ritual and reputation, where everyone knows
everyone. But someone is always watching.
Creating a fictional pilgrimage town allowed
me to amplify that sense of scrutiny and expectation. It’s insular, morally
conscious, and quietly suffocating. And that atmosphere naturally shapes the
characters’ choices – both good and bad.
YA thrillers often centre around schools. But
I wanted the tension to bleed way beyond the school gates. And so, in Langbury,
there is no escape. The pressure to conform is everywhere.
7. Are you a
plotter or pantser?
Haha!
When I was starting out, I was definitely a pantser, all the way. But after
studying the craft, I now plot more. Though not so extensively, I can’t still
be surprised by my characters. I love it when they say or do things I’m not
expecting.
Working with an agent and a publisher now means I have to produce pitches and full story synopses for new story proposals. Up until now, that’s been something I’ve usually done after I’ve finished a story, never before. So it’s definitely encouraged me to plot more. But I still think it’s important to leave space for discovery, so these days, I think I’d probably say I now wear my pants half-mast.
8. Do you
have any writing rituals or a favourite place to write?
Ha! I wish I could say I light a candle at
dawn and write for long, uninterrupted hours . . . but the truth is far less glamorous.
I write when I can and fret when I can’t. Unfortunately,
there’s no pause button on life (I wish), even with a deadline.
That said, I do like silence. No music or
background distractions. In summer, I like to write outside in a quiet corner
beneath a cluster of apple trees that form the perfect shady canopy. It’s
peaceful, private, and feels almost secret. There is a downside, though. Come autumn,
dodging the falling apples becomes a dangerous game of survival.
9. Can you
tell us anything about what you’re currently working on?
Right now, I’m preparing for school visits
and workshops, which is incredibly exciting. Taking Kill Me Now on the
road, and directly to readers, feels nothing short of surreal.
On the writing side, I have three projects in
progress: a new standalone thriller, a sequel, and a spin-off. So there are
definitely more secrets, lies, and morally complex characters to come. I can’t
say too much yet – sorry – but I can promise
a body count is always on the cards.
10. Do you
have any writing advice or tips you’d like to share?
Advice: Failure is not the end. Sadly, in this business, rejection is part of the
process. The only real failure is deciding to stop. So, please, no matter how
hard it gets . . . keep going.
Tips: Pacing is more than just sentence length. Thrillers aren’t about
breakneck speed. Yes, they rely on constant suspense, tension, and escalating
stakes, but those only work if there’s contrast. Allow your reader to catch
their breath between the action, twists, and shocks.
Drip-feed the clues. And play fair. Give readers
at least one twist they can guess but several more that make them gasp.
And, above
all, invest in your antagonist. Give them layers and motives that make sense.
The more they believe they’re right, the more terrifying they become.
You can read an extract on the Chicken House website: Chicken House Books - Kill Me Now
Now available to buy: Kill Me
Now: Helen Price: 9781917171144: hive.co.uk
Tuesday, 9 December 2025
Featured Author - Stories 4 You
It's my turn on the Stories 4 You blog today, I'll paste the link below so you can check it out🙂
Saturday, 8 November 2025
Grimogen Darkstar Bat-Cat-Tastrophe and #ukteenchat
October was a very busy month for me, with lots of writing and art each day. It was also a strange switch round of roles on my chat - #ukteenchat - where I became the guest rather than host. The lovely Emma Bradley was kind enough to host my chat, and you can see our questions and answers below...
1, Could you tell us a little bit about your new book, Grimogen
Darkstar Bat-Cat-Tastrophe, please?
It’s a story about a little grim reaper, with a wild
imagination who loves animals and really wants her first pet. But she’s got to
prove that she’s ready for the responsibility, which leads to chaos and fun at
Howler’s Rescue Centre. It’s a bit of a magical version of The Boy Who Cried
Wolf.
2, Was there anything in particular that inspired Grimogen
Darkstar?
Grimogen was inspired by my love of all things spooky and
gothic, combined with a passion for animals, and the fun you can have when you
bring magic into the mix, and magical animal combinations, for example: Bat-Cats
and Unipugs.
3, Did you need to research anything for Grimogen
Darkstar?
The main research I had to do for Grimogen was looking at
different mythical creatures, and also non magical creatures that would likely
be in Grimogen’s world. Of course, this meant getting distracted by pictures of
cute cats and dogs!
4, Bat-Cats are obviously a favourite magical creature of
yours, but if you could foster a magical pet what would it be?
Ever since I was at junior school and discovered them in a
story, I have wanted my own phoenix. I’ve been absolutely obsessed with them
ever since. Though weirdly they don’t actually feature in any of my stories so
far…
5, You’ve written for both younger and older children, do
you find changing between the age groups tricky or have a preference between
them?
I like the freedom that comes from having very different and
distinct voices to write in. The younger books are fun and hopeful with plenty
of magic and sparkle, and also incredibly tight on the word count. Then my
older stories, whilst usually still have magic, they are much darker in tone,
and it’s nice to write in quite a lyrical way and have more words to play with,
and also bring a little romance to stories too.
6, This is your first book where you’re also the
illustrator, how did you find the process?
To be honest, I was terrified when Tiny Tree first asked me
to illustrate too. Whilst I created art regularly, I had never tried to
illustrate a book before, so I didn’t know if I even could. But it was really
interesting learning the process and getting requests for specific scenes or
characters and then I’d go off and decide exactly how and what to draw. It’s
amazing to see things that existed in my head go from paper to iPad and then
into a book!
7, Are you a plotter or pantser?
I was once firmly in the pantser camp, and now the more I
write, the more I like to have some sort of roadmap in place before I get
started. But there’s still plenty of room for discovery writing along the way.
8, Do you have any writing rituals or a favourite place
to write?
I actually have a lovely writing desk I got from a charity
shop, but I write more sat on the settee, and I’m always much more productive
with a cup of tea, especially in one of my favourite mugs.
9, Can you tell us anything about what you’re currently
working on?
Currently, I’m not under contract with this one, bit I’m
working on a dark YA, that may or may not feature phoenix in some way.
10, Do you have any writing advice or tips you’d like to
share?
Read as much as you can in all sorts of age groups and
genres, but particularly read books released in recent years to get a feel for
current voices. I know it’s said a lot, but my biggest tip is always going to
be find writing buddies, join a writing group, in person or online, they are
the only people who totally get what you’re going through and will be there on
the rollercoaster with you.
You can get your own copy of Grimogen Darkstar from most bookshops now:
GRIMOGEN DARKSTAR: BAT-CAT-TASTROPHE by Emma Finlayson-Palmer | Waterstones
Wednesday, 1 October 2025
Notes from the Graveyard Shift
Welcome to the graveyard shift!
Finally pressed send on my new Substack and posted my first Notes from the Graveyard Shift, which will hopefully be a regular thing now.
It's something I've been thinking about writing for some time now, and October 1st seems a very fitting day to release the first one.
You can check it out here: NOTES FROM THE GRAVEYARD SHIFT
Thursday, 10 July 2025
Winging it's way to bookshops near you this September!
Finally I can shout about my new book... Grimogen Darkstar - Bat-Cat-Tastrophe
publishing with Tiny Tree Books 
You can pre-order from:
Amazon: https://amzn.to/3G1OxOx
Waterstones: https://bit.ly/3TtNVUO
Monday, 31 March 2025
WriteMentor Summer Mentoring Programme
I'm thrilled to be taking part in WriteMentor's summer mentoring programme this year. Here's some important dates, and information about me and what I'll be looking out for this year.
The key dates:
Mentors announced: 24th March
Applications open: 7-11th April
Mentoring begins: 1st May to 30th August
Submission Package Draw: 1st May
Agent Showcase: 1st September
There will be a chance to ask mentors questions over on Twitter/X and also Instagram on Tues 1st April and Weds 2nd both evenings it will be between 7 and 8pm BST. I'll be at the Tuesday chat, but happy to answer questions anytime about the mentoring scheme, just ask :)
A little about me...
I'm a working class, autistic author and artist who lives in the West Midlands with my partner and a multitude of children and cats! I run #ukteenchat, a writing themed chat on Twitter; I have been a mentor for #WriteMentor since its inauguration, and am one half of Word Witches, an editing and mentoring business. When I'm not writing, I can usually be found painting, watching birds or wandering around graveyards, often all three simultaneously.
I am primarily a writer of fiction for children, including my series for 5-8 year olds, Autumn Moonbeam, reading scheme books for OUP, and an upcoming young fiction story coming out in September 2025, which will be my first time illustrating as well as writing the book. My current MG placed in competitions last year and won third place in the Wells Lit Fest. You can find some of my YA and adult short stories and flash fiction online.
I have been writing and sending my words out into the world for a long, long time, and have learnt a lot over the years. I’ve been very fortunate to get advice and encouragement along the way from some fantastic writers and other writing industry people, and being part of the fantastic writing community both #WriteMentor and beyond, and I would love to share my experience and knowledge with other writers, and help get them get going in the right direction. I’m incredibly positive and optimistic, a silver lining in every cloud sort of writer, and would like to bring that to my mentoring.
I’m looking for a mentee who is keen to learn tips and tricks to help with their writing journey, both the writing side and navigating the rollercoaster ride that is the publishing industry. Someone who is open to edits, and wants to make their words sparkle. Happy to work with pantsers or plotters, but I can definitely help with some tips for the pantsers out there. But mostly, I just would like to work with a writer who is passionate about their story and wants to work together to make it shine!
I've been very lucky to work with some amazing writers in the past who have gone on to win competitions and be published, and to be part of such an amazing writing community with WriteMentor.
Genres: Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Contemporary, Historical, Romance, Thriller, Mystery, Dystopian, Humour/Funny, Horror, Paranormal, Crime, Magical Realism, Time-Travel, Action/Adventure - basically, I love all sorts of genres :)
To find out more about the programme and how you can apply, have a look at the WriteMentor website here: WriteMentor 2025: Meet the Mentors - WriteMentor
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