Welcome to The Re-Read: bonus episodes where we chat with previous Better Words guests and catch up on what's happened since they joined us on the pod.

Lauren Draper is a Melbourne-based writer and marketing professional. She is a graduate of RMIT's Professional Writing and Editing program and now works in publishing - she loves nothing more than a story infused with magic, hijinks and a touch of nostalgia. Her debut novel, The Museum of Broken Things, was acquired after it was shortlisted in the 2020 Text Prize, and went on to be shortlisted for The Readings Prize and Indie Book Awards, and longlisted for the CBCA Book of the Year (Older Readers). She grew up in Western Australia, mostly on land but often in water. She now lives in Melbourne, where she can be found almost exclusively complaining about the weather.

Listen to our previous chat with Lauren here.

You can follow @laurendraperwrites on Instagram

In this interview, we chat about:

• Dead letter offices, abandoned buildings and the inspiration for Return to Sender
• Dual timelines and choosing to keep technology to a minimum
• Lauren on skipping 'second book syndrome' by starting to write Return to Sender before the publication of her debut
• The effect of critical acclaim on Lauren as a writer
• Different covers in different markets and prepping for a US release

Books and other things mentioned:

• Feed by Mira Grant
• 10 Things I Hate About You (film)

Return to Sender is available now in Australia and from August 13 in the US and UK. Thank you to the publishers for providing copies of the book in preparation for the interview.

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