The Ending Writes Itself with V.E. Schwab & Cat Clarke (Evelyn Clarke) – Part 1

In this first part of a two-part special episode of Quick Book Reviews, host Philippa Hall interviews the collaborative author duo behind the satirical murder mystery The Ending Writes Itself—V.E. Schwab and Cat Clarke, writing together as Evelyn Clark. The conversation dives into the origins of the book, a meta-commentary on the publishing industry, born from a shared idea during a casual kitchen visit. The authors reveal how they co-wrote the novel by building it 'room by room' together, maintaining a pseudonymous identity to preserve the secrecy of their collaboration. They discuss their contrasting writing preferences—Schwab’s love for solitude and Clarke’s aversion to public distractions—while reflecting on the emotional resonance of the book’s themes: professional insecurity, FOMO, and the isolating nature of the literary world. The episode also explores the groundbreaking publicity campaign, which embraced self-aware humor and industry critique, with the authors praising their publisher HQ for matching their tone. The interview concludes with lighthearted banter on biscuit preferences, linguistic differences between British and American English, and the joy of collaboration despite creative differences.