🎙 INTERVIEW: Beyond Curious: Mark Haddon on Writing, Creativity & Breaking Boundaries (in partnership with Arvon)
​** This is a LIVE interview with author Mark Haddon about the craft of writing and reality of building a writing career. Attendees will be sent a recording after the interview. **
​How can we let curiosity drive our creative work? What happens when we break the rules of storytelling?Â
​Mark Haddon is an award-winning author best known for his globally beloved novel The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. But his creative career is far from conventional—spanning genres, forms, and disciplines. From magazine illustration to fiction, from poetry to plays, Haddon has embraced experimentation, persistence, and a fearless approach to storytelling. His latest collection, Dogs and Monsters, showcases his bold imagination and belief that anything is possible on the page.
​Join us for a conversation with Mark Haddon as we explore the creative life, pushing artistic boundaries, and thinking big—even in short stories.Â
​We’ll discuss:
​Hitting fame with The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time and how it shaped his creative journey
​Experimentation across genres and artistic mediumsÂ
​Thinking big when writing short stories—why brevity doesn’t mean small
​The idea that "anything is possible in fiction"—pushing creative boundaries
​ How to push yourself to write better, take risks, and stay inspired
​About Mark HaddonÂ
​Mark Haddon is the author of the bestselling novels The Red House and A Spot of Bother. His novel The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time won the Whitbread Book of the Year Award and the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for First Fiction and is the basis for the Tony Award–winning play. He is the author of a collection of poetry, The Talking Horse and the Sad Girl and the Village Under the Sea, has written and illustrated numerous children’s books, and has won awards for both his radio dramas and his television screenplays. He teaches creative writing for the Arvon Foundation and lives in Oxford, England.Â
​About Arvon
​Arvon is the UK’s leading creative writing charity. For over 55 years, Arvon’s creative writing courses have been linking aspiring writers with successful authors, and they are a significant and celebrated part of the British literary landscape. Arvon passionately believes that everyone can benefit from the transformative power of creative writing. It hosts residential, online and community-based writing courses and events, embracing over 6,000 people each year, tutored by some of the most respected writers in the UK today.Â
​Your London Writers' Salon Hosts:
​
​Parul Bavishi and Matt Trinetti are the co-founders of the London Writers' Salon, creators of the webby-nominated Writers' Hour daily writing sessions, and hosts of the London Writers' Salon podcast.
​Parul Bavishi has been an editor for over a decade. In addition to running LWS she helps thriller, YA and non-fiction writers level up their craft and get published. She writes and edits for the Story Grid. She has worked as an editor and literary scout at Random House, Quercus & Eccles Fisher. She analyses TV hit shows (Killing Eve, Ozark, Game of Thrones) on the Story Grid Showrunners Podcast.
​Matt Trinetti is a writer, publisher, TEDx speaker, and facilitator. In addition to running LWS, Matt designs programs to help unfulfilled professionals pursue creative work, start businesses, and reinvent their careers. Matt's work has appeared in Quartz, Observer, Creative Mornings, and on his blog GiveLiveExplore.
​
​✍️ Daily Writing. Inspiring Interviews. Creative Friends.
​Join the London Writers' Salon from the comfort of your home.
​Join our free daily Writers' Hour writing sessions, intimate interviews and workshops with world-class writers, or become a member to connect with fellow novelists, bloggers, screenwriters, playwrights, poets & more around the world.
​Attend Salon Interviews for Free. Become a Member.
​By becoming a member of London Writers' Salon, you'll get free access to interviews like this every week. Plus, you'll join our cosy online community and get expert support and accountability to enhance your craft and publish your best work.