Research Diaries #2: Hell is empty & all the devils are here.

Hi. This is me poking my head out of my writing cave, wanting to talk about a work-in-progress for a minute. It’s Schrodinger’s book, as it stands. But with any luck – and a lot more work – perhaps it will one day step out of the box, alive.

What I owe the International Debut Novel Competition

Hey, hey writer – this is me, telling you, to submit to the International Debut Novel Competition. Subs close 14th September 2025!

A Statement on the Oxford Literary Festival

So no one accuses me of burying the lede: AJ West and I have withdrawn from our panel, “Hidden Lives, Forbidden Loves,” which had been scheduled to take place at the Oxford Literary Festival. For me, this was not an easy decision. Surely, that will surprise some people, given that the OLF has decided to platform not one but two anti-trans speakers with headlining events. The situation is different for me because, as I understand it, I was the only out trans person scheduled to speak at the festival.

Lightborne Updates: UK Paperback Sneak Peek

I’m extremely lucky to have exciting things to look forward to in 2025, among them the paperback launch of Lightborne in the UK. Come what may, in March there will be a whole new edition of the book out in the world, with a stunning new cover to rival the old one.

The Historical (Fiction) is Political

On the eve of the US Presidential Election, a historical fiction writer tries to make sense of where we are, how we got here, and how we can possibly move forward.

Lightborne Launches Stateside

A note of thanks to all those who made the US launch of Lightborne a celebration to remember.

Lightborne’s USA Launch Schedule & Event Registration

All the deets on my upcoming trip to Boston, MA for Lightborne’s US launch and other events – will be updated as more info becomes available!

Dublin Event: “From Novel Fair to Novel Debut,” 25 Sept

Join Novel Fair winners Alison Langley (Ilona Gets A Phone), Phyllida Taylor (Across the Ford), Brian Kelly (Murph) and Hesse Phillips (Lightborne) as they read from their debut novels and talk about their publishing journeys, all of which began at the Irish Writers Centre. With Q&A hosted by Cauvery Madhavan, book signing, and a wine reception to follow.

A Lightborne Tour of London

During my recent trip to London, I spent two days visiting some of the sites featured in Lightborne, from St. Helen’s Bishopsgate to Seething Lane, location of the Privy Court (Elizabethan MI5); from the Rose Playhouse to Deptford Strand, and Kit Marlowe’s final resting place.

The Lightborne Chronology

A handy and informative timeline of the events featured in Lightborne, including historical tidbits and excerpts from the novel!

Lightborne Update: A Sunday Times Book of the Month!

“Other works of fiction have been written about the turbulent life and still not fully understood death of the Elizabethan dramatist Christopher Marlowe… Probably none has demonstrated the erudition and the intensity of Hesse Phillips’s debut novel, 20 years in the making… Told in vivid, punchy prose, Lightborne is a brilliantly original take on a familiar story.”

Lightborne Updates: A Book Launch Pilgrimage to Gay’s the Word & The Rose Playhouse

Last week, I traveled to London to see my book off into the world and to revisit a few of the locations from the novel, some of which I hadn’t managed to see in person since the early days of research. Call it a pilgrimage. While there was no particular requirement for me to visit London last week, it felt wrong not to be there when Lightborne finally hit the shelves in the city that had inspired me for the past 20 years.

Lightborne Updates: A Big Box of Books

Last Friday I received the most exciting bookmail any author could ask for: a box full of shiny (very shiny) new copies of my debut novel, hot off the press!

Lightborne Updates: USA Launch Date & Cover Reveal

It’s finally happening: after many months of tireless work from my agent and rights manager, Lightborne has officially found a home in my home country with Pegasus Books!

Research Diary #2: Becoming “Queer”

For LGBTQ+ History Month: Let’s look at how queer-signifying language has changed over the last four centuries in the English-speaking world, and some of the reasons why.

Claiming Christopher Marlowe’s place in Queer History

It’s LGBTQ+ History Month in the UK, which means I’m thinking about Christopher Marlowe – again – even after spending half my earthly existence writing a novel about him. Despite having been a major influence on Shakespeare, an innovator of English poetic form, a writer of numerous homoerotic verses, and the author of (arguably) the 1st English play to feature an explicitly homosexual relationship between men, Marlowe is often left off the Queer Historical Figures roundups that come out around this time of year.

Lightborne Updates: Cover Sneak Peek!

Before we get into the thing you’re actually here for, let me start this one off by saying, if you’re not listening to the 7AM Novelist Podcast with Michelle Hoover, then start now – not just because yours truly makes the occasional appearance on the show, but because I do so in excellent company.