Longlist for 2025 McIlvanney Prize Scottish Crime Novel of the Year

 

Whispers of the Dead, by Lin Anderson (Macmillan)
The Midnight King, by Tariq Ashkanani (Viper)
The Dying Light, by Daniel Aubrey (HarperNorth)
Carnival of Lies, by D.V. Bishop (Macmillan)
Unsound, by Heather Critchlow (Canelo)
The Moon’s More Feeble Fire, by Allan Gaw (Polygon)
The Good Father, by Liam McIlvanney (Bonnier)
Paperboy, by Callum McSorley (Pushkin Press)
The Good Liar, by Denise Mina (Vintage)
Gunner, by Alan Parks (John Murray)
Death of Shame, by Ambrose Parry (Canongate)
Midnight and Blue, by Ian Rankin (Orion)
A Thief’s Blood, by Douglas Skelton (Canelo

The McIlvanney Prize, named in honor of William McIlvanney, author of the novel Laidlaw, will be presented on Friday, September 12, during this year’s Bloody Scotland International Crime Writing Festival. Previous winners include Chris Brookmyre, Craig Russell, Francine Toon, Peter May, and Charles Cumming.

Forthcoming books from Canelo Crime

 

January 2024

Unburied is by Heather Critchlow. The police. They’re digging in the scrapyard.’ Cal Lovett has spent half his life telling other people’s stories on his true crime podcast. But the police are close to solving the mystery of his sister’s disappearance – now he might finally get to tell Margot’s story. A desperate relative begs for his help. Cal seeks respite on a holiday in the Scottish Highlands, but is dragged into a new cold case: an unsolved murder that shattered a family fourteen years ago. An isolated community wary of outsiders. Eyes follow Cal everywhere. And someone makes it very clear that they don’t want him snooping around… How far will he go to find justice? And how far is far enough?

Directions for a Dark Thing is by Stephanie Sowden. There was a history in this house, secrets he hadn’t even got close to scratching the surface of…’ Something peculiar is going on at The Lloyd Estate. The enormous house and its vast grounds are rarely seen by outsiders. Only Audrey Lloyd – the cantankerous elderly owner and only daughter to the famed movie mogul who built the mansion – knows of the suffocating darkness that has settled on the place. Property developers have come to Audrey over the decades. Countless times they have been rebuffed. Now, she agrees to sell to ambitious broker Terri Nicholls. But Terri has to trade something of her own in return. Detective Don Vernon is on the brink of retirement. Instead, he is about to be caught in a web of lies; one which Audrey has been spinning for decades. Can those who cross the threshold make it out again intact?

February 2024

England, 1716. The only certainty in a thief’s life… is death. Christopher Templeton is a lawyer whose conscience troubles him. He knows many of the secrets of The Fellowship, the shadowy group profiting from the civil unrest in the nation, and has intimated to the Company of Rogues that he is willing to share them. The problem is, he has vanished. Jonas Flynt – thief, gambler, killer – still recovering from a duel with death upon the frozen Thames, is tasked with finding him. The trail takes him from the dark slums of London to a quiet village in the north of England, where all is not as it seems. But while he hunts for the missing man, someone else may be stalking him… someone with murder in their heart. A Grave for a Thief is by Douglas Skelton.

March 2024

As the Nazis roll into Warsaw, a serial killer is unleashed… September 1939. A city ruled by fear. A population brutalised by restrictions and reprisals. Amid the devastation, another hunter begins to prowl. What are a few more deaths amid scores of daily executions? Former chief investigator Jan Kalisz lives a dangerous double life, forced to work with the occupiers as he gathers information for the fledgling Polish resistance. Even his family cannot be told his true allegiance. When the niece of a Wehrmacht general is found terribly mutilated, Jan links the murder to other killings that are of less interest to his new overlords. Soon, he finds himself on the trail of a psychopathic killer known as The Artist. But, shunned as a Nazi collaborator, can he solve the case before another innocent girl is taken? Blood Roses is by Douglas Jackson.

Bridges to Burn is by Marian Todd How can DI Clare Mackay uncover the facts if nothing is what it seems? DI Clare Mackay is called to Albany High, where the body of a girl has been found. A suspected suicide – yet Sophie Bakewell was by all accounts a cheerful, talented student. Could she really have been hiding a darker side? It’s not the only disturbing case to land on Clare’s desk. Across town, an elderly man is in danger. Yet before the police can determine the facts, everything changes and they are presented with two suspicious deaths to investigate. As Clare and her team face the possibility that anything they believe to be true about the deaths is wrong, they might find that a killer can lurk behind the most innocent of faces…

Ten years ago, in the pine-shaded town of Savage Ridge, Nick, Emmy, and Pete murder their high school classmate, Sammy Saint John. His body is never found, and no arrests are made. The three friends make a pact to leave Savage Ridge and never return… Now, each is drawn home, seemingly by chance or fate. But it’s neither: Private Investigator Sloane Yo has brought them back to finally answer for their crime. The noose begins to tighten. But with each stone turned over in pursuit of justice, the long-buried secrets of Savage Ridge, and Sloane’s employers – the ruthless Saint John family – start to come to light. What aren’t they telling Sloane? Is Sammy Saint John the only victim? And when the truth is finally revealed, whose side will she choose? Savage Ridge is by Morgan Greene.

On The Run is by Max Luther. Framed for murder. Out for revenge. Private bodyguard Alex Drayce is on assignment in the States, tasked with protecting a wealthy businessman under threat of assassination. He is presented with the opportunity to make some quick cash for a week’s work, aiding one Carlos Garcia in finding his daughter, who has gone missing in Las Vegas. A seemingly simple task... As events soon spiral out of control, Alex must go on the run, hunted down by the combined might of the Las Vegas police department, fronted by Detective Naomi Ocean, and a ruthless gang out for blood. But his pursuers should be wary. Alex Drayce is not a man to be taken lightly…

Walking the Mean Streets of Historical Noir

‘So, Douglas, why yet another new direction?’

I was asked this question recently in relation to my new book, An Honourable Thief (Canelo), an historical adventure/crime/espionage thriller (I think that just about covers it) set between London and Edinburgh in 1715.

It is true that my writing career appears to have encompassed more changes of direction than an indecisive sat-nav – from true crime, to non-fiction history, to biography, to gritty Glasgow underworld fiction, wisecracking private eye novels, a fast-paced New York set conspiracy thriller and dark – may I say lyrical? Yes, I may – crime novels set in the Scottish highlands.

Okay, so why?

Well, I believe authors should always stretch themselves, step out of their comfort zone. But is this new one really THAT much of a change of direction?

Look at the list above. I’ve written historical books before. In fact, that’s how the plot for AHT – as we in the know call it – came about. I was researching Dark Heart, which told the story of Edinburgh’s Tolbooth, a building that played a major role in the city’s blood spattered history, and came across a line about a certain document that old Queen Anne may, or may not, have penned. The story was that the letter may have suggested she favoured her half-brother James Edward Stuart to succeed her to the throne over George of Hanover, of whom she was apparently none-too-enamoured.

That notion stuck in my mind and over the next 20 years or so I added bits and pieces of plot, set-pieces and a protagonist named Jonas Flynt rubbing shoulders with real-life characters of the period. One of those set-pieces features the aforementioned Tolbooth. 

Of the non-fiction books with my name on them, I am very proud of Indian Peter, a true-life tale of adventure and legal shenanigans in Scotland and the American Colonies of the mid-18th century.

And the four Davie McCall books are set between 1980 and the millennium. Apparently that’s deemed as historical, although I can remember those years so, frankly, I don’t see it that way. 

Then came A Rattle of Bones, the third in my Rebecca Connolly series. The opening chapter was set in 1752 and that prompted crime writer Denzil Meyrick to suggest that I try my hand at historical fiction. I resisted but secretly the idea took root. After all, I’d already done most of the research over the years. Why not give it the old college try?

Fully expecting to abandon it before it was halfway done, I set to the task.

Three months later I had a complete draft, so perhaps all that had gone before was paving the way for the new book.

The words literally fell onto the screen. Yes, they needed work – it was a first draft, remember – but I don’t think I’ve ever written a novel quite so quickly, but then, the narrative style is very much in my ball-park. I think if there had to be a label put onto the series, and there ALWAYS has to be a label, it would be Historical Noir.

With the exception of the Rebecca Connolly series, I’m a believer in the Raymond Chandler dictum that whenever the story seems to slow down, have two guys with guns kick in the door.

In fact, Jonas Flynt is introduced limbering up to do just that, only it’s a brace of flintlock pistols he wields. The streets of Georgian London and Edinburgh are ideal for the genre. They were mean. And dark. And dirty. And far from fragrant. 

Oh, and no CCTV or mobile phones and no real forensics to speak of. My goodness, that sure does free things up for the writer. Think about it – Flynt doesn’t need to worry about fingerprints, DNA, contact traces, or disguising his digital footprint when getting up to anything murky. He may be on the side of the angels but he sure as hell ain’t one.

He does have demons because I seem to have a thing for people being haunted by dark pasts. I don’t know why such characters attract me, because I am such a sunny, carefree fellow.

I’ll pause here to let those who know me hoot with laughter.

So, in the end, how much of a departure is AHT? Well, linguistically, chronologically, geographically and other words ending with -cally, it is different. 

Otherwise, it’s business as usual. Only with added research!

The second book in the series to feature Jonas Flynt, A Thief's Justice is due to be published in May 2023.

A Thief's Justice by Douglas Skelton. (Canelo Crime) Out May 2023

London, 1716. Revenge is a dish best served ice-cold… The city is caught in the vice-like grip of a savage winter. Even the Thames has frozen over. But for Jonas Flynt– thief, gambler, killer – the chilling elements are the least of his worries… Justice Geoffrey Dumont has been found dead at the base of St Paul’s cathedral, and a young male sex-worker, Sam Yates, has been taken into custody for the murder. Yates denies all charges, claiming he had received a message to meet the judge at the exact time of death. The young man is a friend of courtesan Belle St Clair, and she asks Flynt to investigate. As Sam endures the horrors of Newgate prison, they must do everything in their power to uncover the truth and save an innocent life, before the bodies begin to pile up. But time is running out. And the gallows are beckoning...

More information about Douglas Skelton can be found on his website.  You can also follow him on Twitter @DouglasSkeleton1 and on FaceBook.

Books to Look Forward to from Canelo

 January 2023

For DCI Gillard, sometimes old sins cast long shadows…Under a motorway flyover lies the body of a young man. Days earlier, he had been involved in an altercation with DCI Craig Gillard’s pregnant partner Sam. Now he’s dead…Meanwhile, something is brewing in the criminal underworld. Whispers of a big job have reached the Met’s Flying Squad. Something is going to be stolen, and soon. Something worth £500m. But what? And where? And how does it relate to the body under the overpass? It should be a simple case: stop the burglary, crack the gang, find the murderer – but for Gillard, once again it’s personal… The Body in The Shadows is by Nick Louth.

The Investigator is by John Sandford. By twenty-four, Letty Davenport has seen more action than most law enforcement professionals. Working a desk job for US Senator Christopher Colles, she’s bored and ready to quit. But when her skills catch Colles’ attention, she is offered a lifeline: real investigative work. Texas oil companies are reporting thefts of crude. Rumour has it that a sinister militia is involved. Who is selling the oil? And what are they doing with the profits? Letty is partnered with a Department of Homeland Security investigator, John Kaiser. When the case turns deadly, they know they're onto something big. The militia has an explosive plan… and the clock is ticking down.

February 2023

A Terrible Village Poisioning is by Hannah Hendy. The local mayor has a dinner date with death…With school out for the summer, Margery and Clementine Butcher-Baker are taking advantage of the break to go on holiday. They plan to explore the village of St-Martins-on-the-Water and rest before the chaos of Mrs Smith's impending hen do. By the end of their first night, the local mayor lies dead on the floor of the hotel restaurant, having been poisoned by his meal. The villagers are convinced: The Poisoner is back. As the residents turn to the duo with suspicion and begin to freeze them out, Margery and Clementine are left with more questions than answers. Everyone is convinced that the pair – and Clementine in particular – are bad news, but why? And as more people in the village start to become unwell, the question remains, is The Poisoner back, or is this the work of a new killer? And will they strike again?

Blood and Fireflies is by B M Howard. A Dark Murder. A secret brought to light … June, 1797. From his headquarters at the Villa Mombello near Milan, the French revolutionary army’s young general, one Napoleon Bonaparte, dictates peace terms to Europe’s monarchies with breath-taking ease and arrogance. But when a series of malicious events at Mombello threaten to set Italy ablaze once again, and talk of a ghoul stalking in the night committing atrocities spreads like wildfire among the assembled guests, Napoleon forces failed magistrate Felix Gracchus out of retirement to solve the puzzling murders. But when a series of malicious events at Mombello threaten to set Italy ablaze once again, and talk of a ghoul stalking in the night committing atrocities spreads like wildfire among the assembled guests, Napoleon forces failed magistrate Felix Gracchus out of retirement to solve the puzzling murders. Gracchus’s unwilling escort in this military world is ambitious but underachieving young cavalry officer Dermide Vanderville. Aided by Napoleon’s unruly tomboy sister Paolette, they set about unravelling the twisted skeins of intrigue and terrible secrets clogging the mansion’s shadowy corridors.

Having just completed a complex recovery assignment, covert salvage specialist Korso is in no mood to take on another job so soon, but he has little choice when he’s contacted by Cole Ashcroft, an ex-colleague who’s calling in a debt. An official at the US Embassy in Bulgaria has approached Cole with a well-paying salvage job, but only if he can persuade Korso to plan the whole operation. A chemist for a pharmaceutical company has secretly developed a revolutionary glaucoma pill, one with an unexpected side effect that could make it the discovery of the century. But the chemist has since been found dead, and the prototypes are missing... Aware that ownership of these pills could shift the balance of military power overnight, the embassy man offers to pay Korso handsomely to locate and recover them using any means necessary. But with a job this big Korso also knows he’ll have to assemble a team to help him, and that brings its own set of problems. Because with potential profits in the billions, can he really trust anyone...? The Prototype is by Jason Dean.

Agent in the Shadows is by Alex Gerlis. There's a traitor in the pack... Who can you trust? The extraordinary final instalment of the Wolf Pack series. June, 1943. In Lyon, the capital of the French resistance, a secret meeting is held under orders from General de Gaulle. The objective is to unite all resistance factions. The future of France is on the line. But when the meeting is raided by the Gestapo under Klaus Barbie, the 'Butcher of Lyon', the plan disintegrates and the leaders are captured. The movement has been betrayed. There is a traitor in Lyon. British undercover agents Jack Miller and Sophia von Naundorf are sent to France. They must find the informer and save the resistance. But the Gestapo is on the hunt. More traitors emerging from the shadows. The net is closing.

March 2023

What The Shadows Hide is by M J Lee. To love and to cherish, till death did them part... Two desiccated bodies are found in each other's arms in the bricked up room of a derelict Victorian warehouse. After six months of work, the police have nothing and Ridpath is finally called in to investigate. Dubbed the Romeo and Juliet murders by the press, so many questions remain unanswered. Who are they? Why were they there? Who killed them? And why was the coroner so keen for him to work on this particular case? Ridpath is plunged into his most difficult investigation yet, in a race against time to discover the truth. Has an unknown serial killer been operating in Manchester for the last twenty years? 

All The Grey Cats is by Craig Thomas. Despite nearing the end of his intelligence career, spymaster Kenneth Aubrey is given yet another critical mission: he must arrange the defection of an East German officer, Kurt Winterbach, who holds important Soviet and East German military secrets. Under Aubrey’s authority, Winterbach is brutally interrogated by British Intelligence, and dies whilst trying to escape. His mother, the vengeful senior KGB officer Brigitte Winterbach, blames Aubrey and seeks retribution, with the power of the Stasi at her disposal. Meanwhile in Nepal, Tim Gardiner,Aubrey’s adoptive son and ex-Ghurkha, finds himself hunted down by an East German wet squad. He knows something he shouldn’t: the KGB are planning a coup in the wake of the death of the king. But what he doesn’t yet know, is that his life is intended to be a forfeit for Kurt Winterbach’s. With Russian war planes poised to invade and riots breaking out as the king approaches his death, Gardiner will be the bait to lure Aubrey into a fateful meeting with Bridgitte Winterbach only hours before the Soviet takeover, in which the future of Nepal hangs explosively in the balance…

April 2023

Welcome to Eldey, an island with deadly secrets. Mona is a carefree artist, staying at The Cloister to work on her illustrations. Beth is the harried mother of a toddler, on the remote Welsh island for a weekend escape with her family. Charlotte wanted a romantic getaway with her husband, not a trip with his troubled teenage stepdaughter. One of them is a serial killer who poisoned four of her friends at her eleventh birthday party. When one of the hotel guests is found dead, it becomes clear to Mallory Dawson – the night manager of the boutique island hotel and former police detective – that The Birthday Girl is among them. Three guests who fit the profile, but which of them would risk everything to kill again? The Birthday Girl is by Sarah Ward.

Dark Angel is by John Sandford. Letty Davenport’s days working a desk job are behind her. Her previous actions at a gunfight in Texas – and her incredible skills with firearms – draw the attention of several branches of the US government, and make her a perfect fit for even more dangerous work. The Department of Homeland Security tasks her with infiltrating a hacker group that is intent on wreaking havoc nationwide. Letty and her reluctant partner from the NSA pose as free-spirited programmers for hire and embark on a cross country road trip to the group’s California headquarters. But soon they begin to suspect that the hackers are not their only enemy. Someone within their own circle may have betrayed them, and has ulterior motives that place their mission – and their lives – in grave danger.

May 2023

A Thief's Justice is by Douglas Skelton. London, 1716. Revenge is a dish best served ice-cold… The city is caught in the vice-like grip of a savage winter. Even the Thames has frozen over. But for Jonas Flynt– thief, gambler, killer – the chilling elements are the least of his worries… Justice Geoffrey Dumont has been found dead at the base of St Paul’s cathedral, and a young male sex-worker, Sam Yates, has been taken into custody for the murder. Yates denies all charges, claiming he had received a message to meet the judge at the exact time of death. The young man is a friend of courtesan Belle St Clair, and she asks Flynt to investigate. As Sam endures the horrors of Newgate prison, they must do everything in their power to uncover the truth and save an innocent life, before the bodies begin to pile up. But time is running out. And the gallows are beckoning...

June 2023

Black Valley Farm is by Sheila Bugler. She tells everyone her name is Clare Brown. She's twenty-seven years old. She's an only child. Her parents were killed in a car crash. She used to have a black cat called Ollie. None of these things are true. Ten years ago, nine people were found dead at Black Valley Farm. The only suspect was never found. Clare has spent a decade living a lie but a new podcast on the murders threatens to bring her carefully built life crashing down. But Clare isn’t the only one hiding something. Somebody knows she’s lying, and they’ll stop at nothing to ensure the truth never comes to light. 

Bloody Scotland announce the Longlist for the McIlvanney Prize 2022

We are delighted to announce the longlist for the McIlvanney Prize 2022. In Bloody Scotland’s 10th Anniversary year, it seems very fitting that a clear longlist of ten books emerged after the prize readers scores were tallied. Six years ago, the Scottish Crime Book of the Year Award was renamed the McIlvanney Prize in memory of William McIlvanney. The Prize recognises excellence in Scottish crime writing, and includes a prize of £1,000 and nationwide promotion in Waterstones.

The longlisted titles are:
May God Forgive by Alan Parks (Canongate)
The Second Cut by Louise Welsh (Canongate)
A Rattle of Bones by Douglas Skelton (Polygon)
From the Ashes by Deborah Masson (Transworld)
A Matter of Time by Claire Askew (Hodder)
A Corruption of Blood by Ambrose Parry (Canongate)
The Heretic by Liam McIlvanney (Harpercollins)
Rizzio by Denise Mina (Polygon)
The Sound of Sirens by Ewan Gault (Leamington Books)
The Blood Tide by Neil Lancaster (Harpercollins)

The McIlvanney Prize will be judged by Ayo Onatade, winner of the CWA Red Herring Award and freelance crime fiction critic, Janice Forsyth, presenter of the Afternoon Show on BBC Radio Scotland and Ewan Wilson, crime fiction buyer from Waterstones Glasgow. The Glencairn Glass, the world’s favourite whisky glass, is again sponsoring both The McIlvanney Prize and The Bloody Scotland Debut Crime Novel of the Year for 2022.

Finalists for the McIlvanney Prize will be revealed at the beginning of September. The winner will be revealed in Stirling on Thursday 15 September.The McIlvanney Prize recognises excellence in Scottish crime writing, includes a prize of £1000 and nationwide promotion in Waterstones. Previous winners are Craig Russell with Hyde in 2021, Francine Toon with Pine in 2020, Manda Scott with A Treachery of Spies in 2019 (who chose to share her prize with all the finalists), Liam McIlvanney with The Quaker in 2018, Denise Mina with The Long Drop 2017, Chris Brookmyre with Black Widow 2016, Craig Russell with The Ghosts of Altona in 2015, Peter May with Entry Island in 2014, Malcolm Mackay with How A Gunman Says Goodbye in 2013 and Charles Cumming with A Foreign Country in 2012

The initial longlisting is handled by over 100 crime fiction readers from all over Scotland including booksellers, bloggers, librarians and festival-goers and the longlist is then handed to the high-profile team of judges to decide on the eventual winner.

McIlvanney long and shortlists revealed!

McIlvanney Prize Longlist 2019

It's that time of year again where Bloody Scotland reveal the McIlvanney Prize longlist for Scottish Crime Book of the Year.

A Breath on Dying Embers by Denzil Meyrick (Polygon)
A Treachery of Spies by Manda Scott (Transworld)
All That’s Dead by Stuart MacBride (Harper Collins)
All the Hidden Truths by Claire Askew (Hodder)
Breakers by Doug Johnstone (Orenda)
Broken Ground byVal McDermid (Little, Brown)
Conviction by Denise Mina (Vintage)
Fallen Angel by Chris Brookmyre (Little, Brown)
In a House of Lies by Ian Rankin (Orion)
In the Silence by M R Mackenzie (Bloodhound Books)
No Man’s Land by Neil Broadfoot (Little, Brown)
The Way of All Flesh by Ambrose Parry (Canongate) aka Chris Brookmyre and Marisa Haetzman
Thunder Bay by Douglas Skelton (Polygon)

McIlvanney Debut Shortlist 2019

They also have a prize for best Scottish crime debut book this year for the first time and here's the shortlist.

All the Hidden Truths by Claire Askew (Hodder)
Black Camp 21 by Bill Jones (Polygon)
From the Shadows by G R Halliday (Vintage)
In the Silence by M R Mackenzie (Bloodhound)
The Peat Dead by Allan Martin (Thunderpoint)

Congratulations to all he nominated authors.

LONGLIST ANNOUNCED FOR THE McILVANNEY PRIZE SCOTTISH CRIME BOOK OF THE YEAR AWARD 2016

I went to Bloody Scotland and I was just knocked out.... I’ve been at literary events where a lot of people have knives sticking out their back that they don’t know are there and this event was so friendly, so supportive I was honestly overwhelmed’

William McIlvanney speaking on BBC Scotland 2012

This year’s Bloody Scotland International Crime Writing festival is the first since the death of the great William McIlvanney, the man who, more than anyone, established the tradition of Scottish detective fiction. Bloody Scotland 2016 is dedicated in his honour and the winner of the Scottish Crime Book of the Year will now be awarded The McIlvanney Prize at an awards ceremony on the opening evening, Friday 9 September, in Stirling. The award recognises excellence in Scottish crime writing, includes a prize of £1000 and nationwide promotion in Waterstones.

The longlist which has been chosen by an independent panel of readers and features 6 male and 4 female writers, established authors and debut writers, small Scottish publishers and large London conglomerates, is released today.

Even Dogs in the Wild (Orion) Ian Rankin
Open Wounds (Luath) Douglas Skelton
The Damage Done (Michael Joseph) James Oswald
The Special Dead (Macmillan) Lin Anderson
In the Cold Dark Ground (Harper Collins) Stuart MacBride
Black Widow (Little, Brown) Chris Brookmyre
The Jump (Faber) Doug Johnstone
Splinter the Silence (Little, Brown) Val McDermid
Beloved Poison (Little, Brown) E. S. Thomson
A Fine House in Trinity (Sandstone) Lesley Kelly

The judges will be journalist, Lee Randall, award-winning librarian, Stewart Bain and former editor of The Scotsman and The Times Scotland, Magnus Linklater. Hugh McIlvanney OBE, brother of Willie, will travel from London to present the award.

Previous winners are Craig Russell with The Ghosts of Altona in 2015, Peter May with Entry Island in 2014, Malcolm Mackay with How A Gunman Says Goodbye in 2013 and Charles Cumming with A Foreign Country in 2012.

For further information or to request press tickets please contact 
fiona@brownleedonald.com

Bloody Scotland

My attendance at Bloody Scotland depended on whether or not I managed to catch my overnight train (The Caledonia Sleeper) from Euston to Stirling.  I am please to say that I did and I was she only one who got off at Stirling Station at 5:00am in the morning much to the dismay of the train guard who looked at me rather anxiously and asked if I was going to be okay.  What can I say?  Not much.  It was equally nice that the hotel where I was staying was not very far from the train station and took me less than five minutes to get there.  Though I think that the porter must have been rather surprised when I pressed the doorbell and asked to be let in.

Housekeeping aside, so far Bloody Scotland has been amazing. It is always nice to come to these events and not only hear interesting talks but also catch up with various people.  It is extremely well run and huge thanks must go to the Festival Director Dom Hastings and the Press Officer Kirstin Innes (along with all the volunteers) for the way in which the event is being managed.

My first event was not one that I had intended on going to but I was persuaded by the lovely Karen Sullivan to go with her to the panel on current crime market trends which she had been asked to do at very short notice.  Also on the panel were Al Guthrie who has his fingers in a number of different pies at the moment to very good effect and Jo Dickerson from Simon and Schuster.  The audience was made up of over 50 people who had been on the Bloody Scotland Crime Writing Masterclass earlier in the day.  It was a very informative panel with all three panel members covering various topics such as what they are looking for in the books that are submitted to them, what they are working on, public relations and marketing along with the fact that writers should write what they are interested in and not write on trends. They also touched on short stories; the fact that as a writer you have to accept the fact that sometimes self-publishing might be the way to go for you.  The pros and cons of self publishing and being proactive. As they said, they are looking for passionate writing, writing that will stand out and books that will resonate.  Claire Squires who is the Director of the Stirling Centre for International Publishing & Communication moderated the panel. 

The opening ceremony took place at the Cowane’s Hospital with Ragnar Jonasson giving a brief opening speech along Provost Mike Robins of Stirling and along with Jenny Brown the Chair of Bloody Scotland.

©Eoin Carey

The first event of the evening was a talk between Val McDermid and Peter May which was moderated by Douglas Skelton. With over 600 people it was a fascinating to listen to them both talk about their careers and the way in which they write. It was pointed out that with crime fiction you can accomplish anything and also that the themes that were being written about today were very interesting.  Both Val McDermid and Peter May agreed that the process is always working away in their heads and that it is not a stop and start way of writing as something will always be bubbling a way at the back of your mind even if you are doing something else.  Saying that, most writers always have a love hate relationship with the process and it never gets any easier no matter how long you have been a writer.

One of the issues that came up was research and as Val McDermid pointed out you can get

© Eoin Carey

funny looks when you are doing research.  The example she gave was when she was doing research for The Mermaid Singing and having to do research on torture.  She also praised Professor Sue Black for all the help that she has given her. Peter May likewise indicated that the research help that he has been given has been invaluable.  They both agreed that it had taught them to be fearless about research and that being former journalists it helped.  As Val McDermid commented, “sometimes research buggers you up!”. 

After the event both Val McDermid and Peter May signed books for the huge queue of people that waited patiently inline.

If you didn’t get to see Whose Crime is it Anyway then you missed a treat.  Hosted by comic Hardeep Singh Kohli it saw authors Caro Ramsay, Christopher Brookmyre and Kevin Wignall improvise a new novel on the spot with some help from some props which included a spinning wheel and Katie Price’s biography.  

For my first night at Bloody Scotland I had a wonderful time.  As can be expected after the first two events most people wandered off back to the hotel bar, went and had some supper or just hung around.

I ended up going out to dinner with Craig Robertson and James Oswald which was wonderful.  So what about Saturday? Lots of things to do and the anticipation of seeing The Slice Girls in action for what may turn out to be their one and only performance.