Industry Insider – What makes a successful audio play?

If you love the escape of listening to audio drama, the freedom of writing audio drama, or you just want to find out more about the medium, join industry experts as we unpick what makes a truly great audio play.  

SoA Scriptwriters (SWG) Committee Member Imogen Church hosts this year’s Imison and Tinniswood Audio Drama Award winners Isley Lynn and Edson Burton, fellow SWG committee member Robin Mukherjee and independent audio drama maker Boz Temple-Morris.

This event is in conjunction with our Scriptwriters Group (SWG).

#SoAatHome Industry Insider events – free for all + donation

As of Feb 2025, our #SoAatHome industry insider events will be free for all but with a donation option when registering for the event.

All donations made go towards the Society of Authors’ Access Fund. The fund is to help provide authors support for travel, subsistence, childcare or access needs for events, residencies, and retreats. If you would like to make a donation with your booking, please do so when registering for the event below.

Programme

• Welcome, introductions and housekeeping from Imogen Church (3 mins)
• Panel discussion with Dr Edson Burton, Imogen Church (Chair), Isley Lynn, Robin Mukherjee, and Boz Temple-Morris, (60 mins)
• Comfort Break (5 mins)
• Q&A with audience (20 mins)
• Summary and closing comments (2 mins)
• This event will be moderated by Sophia A Jackson – Head of Events & Scriptwriters Group coordinator, SoA

What will this session cover?

• • Meet the panel
  • What made each panellist fall in love with audio drama?
  • The importance and impact of scripting for audio, sound design, acting, direction
  • What would the panel like to hear more of, in audio drama?
  • What makes the medium unique?
  • Advice for aspiring audio drama writers…
  • Where to find great audio drama!

Who is this session for? 

Scriptwriters, lovers of audio drama, those new to the medium and looking to find out more, actors, producers, sound designers, anyone who wants to spend time with writers!

About Scriptwriters Groups (SWG)

The Scriptwriters Group (SWG) is a community of scriptwriters and broadcasters. It represents writers and makers across digital, broadcast, AV and theatre.

We support members and associates by providing professional, individual advice, negotiating collective minimum terms agreements with organisations such the BBC, and lobby on policy and legislation to promote the interests and protect the rights of scriptwriters. In addition, we manage a series of seminars, panel discussions and ‘in conversation’ style events throughout the year, on matters of concern and interest to members working across these industry sectors. We also publish interviews and develop resources for publication on the SoA website and via our quarterly journal, The Author.

The Group is made up of an elected committee and the Group Chair is Rhiannon Tise. Whilst the committee directs the work of the group, the day-to-day administration is handled by Co-Administrators Sophia A Jackson and Theo Jones. Contact either Sophia or Theo with any scriptwriting-related topics, concerns or suggestions that you might wish to raise with the committee.

The Line up

Dr Edson Burton

Dr Edson Burton is a writer, storyteller and historian.

Edson began his writing career in 2005 having completed his PhD thesis. Since then he has become a prolific writer of audio, live drama and poetry. Edson won the 2025 Tinniswood Prize for Man an adaption of Daniel Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe. His previous audio dramas include the acclaimed R4 series Deacon starring Don Warrington. Recent live work includes the listening journey Duppy Hunter produced by Tamasha Theatre, Coney and the Trinity Centre Bristol and the theatrical promenade Destination Old Market. He is the author of the poetry collection, Seasoned. Edson is a board member of Bristol leading poetry festival Lyra festival. He is currently working a new audio drama, a libretto, and various screen writing projects.

Instagram: @eburton70 |

Imogen Church

What makes it even better is the audio version, read by Imogen Church. It makes a good thing even better.” Stephen King (yes, that one). Find her one-woman-full-cast-horror-comedy-audio-dramas  BOOP! and Leave Me Alone on: https://xigxag.co.uk/.

Website: https://imogenchurch.com/   | Instagram: @imogenchurchgobshite  | BlueSky: @theimogenchurch.bsky.social

Isley Lynn

Isley won the 2025 Imison Award for their radio play Tether. They won the Charles Wintour Most Promising Playwright Award at the 2023 Evening Standard Theatre Awards for The Swell, which was also nominated for Outstanding Achievement In An Affiliate Theatre at the 2024 Olivier Awards. Their play Skin A Cat was awarded Pick Of The Year at Vault Festival 2016.

Instagram: @isleyalynn | X: @IsleyLynn

Robin Mukherjee

Robin Mukherjee has contributed extensively to television drama, both returning series (EastEnders, Casualty, The Bill, etc) and serials (including Grushko with Brian Cox and Andy Serkis, and Plastic Man with John Thaw and Frances Barber). He has also written for radio and theatre. His first feature film, Dance of the Wind, won the Audience Prize at the London Film Festival. His most recent film, Lore, was critically acclaimed worldwide, winning Best Adapted Screenplay at the Australian Writers Guild Awards, the Public Prize at Locarno, and many others. It was Australia’s official entry to the Oscars. His original three-part serial, Combat Kids, for CBBC/BBC1 was nominated for a BAFTA. Recent work includes Hetty Feather for CBBC, and a feature film adaptation of Satish Kumar’s memoir No Destination. His current projects include an adaptation of Paul Scott’s (Booker Prize winning) novel Staying On supported by the BFI, and a feature film, Petrichor, also supported by the BFI, co-written with BAFTA winning director Esther May Campbell. His book, The Art of Screenplays – A Writer’s Guide, is published by Kamera Press, and his novel, Hillstation, by Oldcastle Books. He is Course Director of MA Scriptwriting at Bath Spa University.

Boz Temple-Morris

A leading independent maker of audio drama, based in London and working around the world, his work is known as innovative, sound-led and purposeful. Next up is a version of Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard, set in Palestine during Partition, in 1948, for BBC R4.

Website www.holymountain.co.uk

Send us your questions

If you would like to send questions in advance, email Sophia A Jackson on SJackson@societyofauthors.org with ‘What makes a successful audio play’ in the subject header. We will prioritise questions sent in advance but will endeavour to answer as many as we can from the audience on the day.

#SoAatHome Fundraising Bookshop

Browse our virtual Bookshop.org store featuring books by authors and speakers taking part in the #SoAatHome. When you make a purchase using our affiliate links, a percentage will go to the Society of Authors’ Access Fund, giving authors support for travel, subsistence, childcare or access needs for events, residencies, and retreats.

Need to know

Accessibility

• Attendees will have the option to turn on the live transcript, to watch with subtitles.
• If you require BSL interpretation for this event, please email events@societyofauthors.org

Before the event

• Once registered, you will be sent a confirmation email with the Zoom link
• If the confirmation email doesn’t arrive in your inbox, please check your junk/spam email folder
• Please add events@societyofauthors.org to your Safe Senders list so you receive our confirmation and reminder emails

During the event

• This online event will take place on Zoom Webinar. You will not be on screen.
• This event is 90 minutes

After the event

• Hashtag for this event: #SoAatHome
• Attendees will be able to catch the recording on our Vimeo channel

Booking

Please either use the form titled ‘Register – no donation’ or the option of the different ticket options with a donation amount depending on how much you would like to donate towards the Society of Authors Access Fund.