Inaugural McDermid Debut Award launched.

                              

Harrogate International Festivals launches inaugural 

McDermid Debut Award 

to spotlight new generation of crime writing talent 

Festival Dates: 18 – 21 July 2024 

www.harrogateinternationalfestivals.com 

#Theakstons Awards 

14th March 2024 : Submissions have opened for Harrogate International Festivals ’ new award, the McDermid Debut Award for new writers, offering a unique opportunity to be recognised among the best in the crime fiction genre . The Award will be presented on the opening night of the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival ,the world’s largest and most prestigious celebration of crime fiction. 

Named in recognition of world-famous crime writer,Val McDermid, who co- founded the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival in 2003 and whose dedication to fostering new voices in crime fiction through the New Blood panel is legendary, this new Award seeks to continue her legacy, celebrating and platforming the best debut crime writers in the UK. 

Val McDermid said: ‘Curating the New Blood panel over twenty years exposed me to an extraordinary range of crime fiction I might otherwise have missed. I’m hoping that this new a ward will do the same for the army of avid readers out there looking for new talent.’ 

The McDermid Debut Award is open to full- length debut crime novels by UK and Irish authors published for the first time in hardback or paperback original between 1 May 2023 and 30 April 2024, with submission s closing on the 21st March . A shortlist of six titles, selected by an academy of established crime and thriller authors, will be announced on Thursday 13th June, with the winner determined by a judging panel of industry experts, including literary, broadcasting and media figures. All shortlisted authors will receive a full weekend pass to the Festival. The Award will be presented at the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Awards event on Thursday 18th July , the opening night of the Festival , with the winner receiving a £500 cash prize. 

Chief Executive of Harrogate International Festivals, Sharon Canavar, said: ‘We are delighted to announce this new award honouring Val McDermid, one of the icons of the genre, and we can’t wait to discover the stars of the future, be they writers of psychological thrillers or murder mysteries.’ 

Simon Theakston, Chairman of T&R Theakston Ltd, commented: ‘The Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival has always highlighted the best in crime fiction and the new McDermid Debut Award will help readers discover the next generation of crime fiction authors. I am sure this new award will attract even more of the best of crime writing talent and I very much looking forward to welcoming them along with all our friends t o this year’s Harrogate gathering.’ 

Submissions are also now open for the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year , the UK and Ireland’s most prestigious crime and thriller writing award. Previous winners include Mick Herron, Lee Child, Stef Penney, Val McDermid, Clare Mackintosh, Mark Billingham, Chris Brookmyre, Steve Cavanagh and Denise Mina. 

KEY AWARD DATES: 

• The McDermid Debut Award and the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year are currently open for submissions . The deadline for receipt of entries is 23.59 (GMT) Thursday, 21st March . 

•The Shortlists of the McDermid Debut Award and the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year will be announced on Thursday 13^th June . 

• Both Awards, along with the Award for Outstanding Contribution to Crime Fiction will be presented at the opening n ight of the Festival on Thursday 18^th July. 

The Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival , which celebrates its 21^st year in 2024, is delivered by the north of England’s leading arts Festival organisation, Harrogate International Festivals, and forms part of their diverse year- round portfolio of events, which aims to bring immersive cultural experiences to as many people as possible. 

This year’s event is curated by bestselling crime writer and 2024 Festival Programming Chair Ruth Ware, with the programming committee, and Special Guests include global bestsellers and fan favourites Chris Carter, Jane Casey, Elly Griffiths, Erin Kelly, Vaseem Khan, Dorothy Koomson, Shari Lapena, Abir Mukherjee, Liz Nugent and Richard Osman. Classic Weekend Break Packages, Author Dinners and tickets for Creative Thursday are on sale now. 

To book tickets, please call +44(0)1423 562 303 or email:- info@harrogate- festival.org.uk . More information about tickets and packages can be found here. The full programme for this year’s Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival will be announced in April 2024 . 

Harrogate's New Blood authors

Harrogate, Thursday 18 June 2020: The undisputed ‘Queen of Crime’ Val McDermid has unveiled the hotly tipped ‘New Blood’ authors for 2020, showcasing the year’s best breakout crime writing talent:

Deepa Anappara – Djinn Patrol on the Purple Line (Chatto & Windus)

Elizabeth Kay – Seven Lies (Sphere)

Jessica Moor – Keeper (Penguin)

Trevor Wood – The Man on the Street (Quercus)

Since 2004, the best-selling Scottish author of the Tony Hill & Carol Jordan series has curated an annual celebration of the most formidable debuts taking the crime and thriller genre by storm, with an invitation to join the line-up of the world’s largest and most prestigious crime fiction festival: Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival.

This year, Deepa Anappara has been selected for her part coming-of-age, part detective mystery Djinn Patrol on the Purple Line, a heart-breaking and thought-provoking social commentary of modern India’s slums that has been recognised for the Women’s Prize. Elizabeth Kay is on the list for her explosive Seven Lies, taking domestic noir to a whole new level in a deliciously dark blurring of truth and lies, and Jessica Moore is recognised for her brutal and beautiful Keeper, the addictive literary thriller that has had everyone talking. Concluding this year’s New Blood contingent is Trevor Wood and his debut The Man on the Street, a gritty thriller set on the streets of Newcastle.

Val McDermid said: “I have been hosting the New Blood showcase since the festival began in 2003 and, in my book, discovering and sharing new talent with an eager audience is the best job in crime fiction. I know exactly what I’m looking for on my quest: fresh and distinctive voices, a well-told, convincing story and the almost indefinable sense that these authors all have much more to say. Deepa, Elizabeth, Jessica and Trevor tick all of these boxes and more, and if this year’s debuts share a theme, it is the irresistible and devastating way in which crime fiction shines a light on our times: homelessness, domestic violence, child trafficking and mental health are all dissected with an unflinching gaze. Whilst we can’t gather en masse at the Old Swan Hotel in Harrogate this year, I hope that readers will enjoy our virtual introduction to these brilliant new writers.”

The unveiling of McDermid’s selection has become one of the most anticipated moments of the publishing calendar, with readers on the lookout to uncover their new favourite author and add the ‘next big thing’ to their bookshelves.

Former ‘New Blood’ alumni include Clare Mackintosh, SJ Watson, Stuart MacBride, Liam McIlvanney and Belinda Bauer, as well as three authors on this year’s shortlist for the UK’s most prestigious crime writing award – Theakston Old Peculier: Abir Mukherjee, Jane Harper and Oyinkan Braithwaite, who was chosen just last year for her Booker longlisted My Sister, the Serial Killer.

As part Harrogate International Festivals’ year round programme of events, each year the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival welcomes the world’s famous authors each year to Harrogate’s Old Swan Hotel – the scene of Agatha Christie's mysterious disappearance in 1926 – for a celebration of the crime genre like no other.

This year’s instalment – which formed part of Harrogate International Festival Summer Season – was cancelled, with much sadness, due to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, and so the 2020 ‘New Blood’ showcase will be streamed on the festival’s HIF Player on what would have been the legendary weekender on Saturday 25 July 2020.

Val McDermid will also interviewed by Mark Lawson about the legacy of the New Blood panel, discussing the vital role of the showcase in giving a platform to new writers in the industry and the crime community, and giving a peek behind the scenes into how and why she chooses the books.

Trevor Wood said: “As a kid I dreamt of playing in the cup final. I’m a fraction older now but being chosen for Harrogate’s New Blood panel feels exactly like that did.”

Jessica Moor said: "To have been chosen for this panel, which has included some of my favourite new authors of the last decade, and to have been chosen by the legendary Val McDermid, is a such an honour."

Deepa Anappara said: “I am thrilled and honoured to be picked for the New Blood panel, and grateful to Val McDermid for her immense generosity and support of debut novelists.”

Elizabeth Kay said: “I’m absolutely thrilled to have been selected for such a prestigious event. The ‘New Blood’ panel has an incredible history, and I’m delighted to be participating this year alongside three really exciting other authors.”

New Blood Showcase: Criminally Good Class of 2017

2017’s debut crime authors were celebrated at a new event designed to showcase and support new writing talent.

Hosted by the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival and sponsor, HW Fisher, at Carmelite House in London on 16 March, the New Blood Drinks Reception, invited authors from across the crime genre who have a debut coming in 2017.
 

Revealed on the night were the four authors hand-picked by Val McDermid to feature at the Festival’s 2017 New Blood panel. Since 2004, McDermid has hosted her annual New Blood panel, which has become one of the most anticipated events on the publishing calendar. It is always a sell-out and the New Blood authors’ books are the best-selling titles in the Festival bookshop.

Val’s 2017 New Blood authors were revealed as: Fiona Cummins, Rattle; Jane Harper, The Dry; Joseph Knox, Sirens; Kristen Lepionka, The Last Place You Look.

Val McDermid said: “I have the best job in the world of crime fiction. Almost every year since the event began more than a decade ago, I have chaired the New Blood panel at the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival. Some people might be daunted by the prospect of working their way through fifty-plus novels, but I was a fan of crime fiction long before I was a published author – and I’m as excited now as I was then to discover new talent to keep me reading into the small hours.”

New Blood authors Val has picked to date include SJ Watson, Stuart MacBride, Clare Mackintosh, Belinda Bauer and Dreda Say Mitchell. Dreda said: “Being invited onto the New Blood panel hosted by the amazing and legendary Val McDermid was one of the key springboards that launched my career.”

Val added: “Over the years, I’ve been able to introduce some formidable new talents to the Harrogate audience, and through them to a wider readership.”

Andrew Subramaniam, partner and head of the Authors and Journalists team at HW Fisher & Company, said: “We are delighted to support the New Blood reception and continue our long standing sponsorship of new crime writing talent.”

Harrogate International Festivals is the leading arts charity that delivers the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival, now considered the biggest event of its kind in the world.

Gemma Rowland, Operations Manager at HIF, said: “For over 50 years our arts charity has proudly given a platform to new talent, with a number of initiatives including our Young Musicians’ series and Creative Thursday programmes designed to nurture upcoming artists and writers.”

More than 150 authors and publishing professionals attended the New Blood event.

The New Blood panel takes place during the 2017 Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival on Saturday 22 July, 12 noon, at the Old Swan Hotel, Harrogate. Tickets now on sale. Box Office: 01423 562 303, harrogetinternationalfestivals.com

New Blood authors are available for interview. For further media Info, photos or interview requests please contact Ann, ann@causeuk.com M: 07534 892715.

Unexpected Inspiration by David Mark

Today’s guest blog is by David Mark whose third novel, SORROW BOUND, has just been released to critical acclaim. The novelist explains how inspiration can strike in the unlikeliest of places and at unexpected times.

I think I was on my way to Bridlington. Life gets you like that, sometimes. You’ll be at home, watching a Poirot for the umpteenth time, and your brain hands you the suggestion “go to Bridlington”. So we did. Me, my partner, and a couple of dogs. Set off up the coast road in the Suzuki with a pint of coffee and a Kit-Kat. We didn’t make it, of course. You never make it to Bridlington. A tractor breaks down or a boy-racer has a crash or another part of the East Coast tumbles into the sea before you’ve got halfway. In many ways, trying to get to Bridlington is a metaphor for life.

On this particular day, we’d got tired of sitting in traffic. We weren’t even halfway. One of the dogs was whining for a pee. So we turned inland. Drove down a few country roads and tried to find somewhere vaguely pretty to go for a walk. We failed. So we scaled back on our ambitious criteria, and instead we stopped at the first lay-by that offered a place for the dogs (and me) to relieve ourselves.

That place was the tiny little village of Watton, a mile or two from the teeming metropolis of Hutton Cranswick, which is not too far from the Capitalist emblems of Driffield and Wetwang. Remote? A tad. But it has a bloody good lay-by.

We took a walk down a little footpath. I remember there were trees on either side that met above our heads, making it feel a little like walking through a green tunnel. There were a lot of flies. My partner nettled her ankles. There was dog muck. And then we were in a field and I was looking at an abandoned building with its roof open to the sky and barbed wire snaking around its crumbling remains. It half obscured the stunning manor house behind it. I could hear the sound of water trickling over stones. There was a little church to my right and the ground was damp and tangled.

About thirty seconds later, I had a plot.

It happens that way, sometimes. Writers carry snippets of stories in our heads all the time,

but there’s a big difference between a story and a book. At that time, and in that place, Sorrow Bound crashed into my skull like a fist. It sent me reeling. I saw the whole damn thing. Saw the manor house transformed into an expensive mental hospital. Saw the red-brick building beneath the lime trees burning at the hands of an escaped patient. I saw a family screaming. Saw a showdown in the darkness beneath a sky teeming with rain.

I managed to get a signal on my mobile phone and Googled my location. Serendipity smiled. This place had seen blood. An abbey had stood here, home to both nuns and monks. It had seen scandal when two of the residents fell in love. A monk had been dealt with by the nuns in an eye-water manner and left to bleed to death while the unborn baby miraculously disappeared. It had been a site of pilgrimage for centuries. And the big manor house belonged to a Tory MP. Oh I could have some fun with this ….

So I wrote it. I went home, opened up a Word document, and started writing. Five months later, I put the final full-stop and realised it has been a while since I’d had a pee or a sandwich. But I’d written the third in the McAvoy series. That was about 18 months ago. It’s on shelves now. It’s being downloaded. People are picking up copies with their groceries and I’m talking about it in bookshops and libraries and on radio stations.

Surreal? I’m way past that. My whole life has been decidedly peculiar since the moment my friend and agent Oli Munson broke the news that people were decidedly interested in my first book, Dark Winter. It got weirder when Richard and Judy picked it for their book club and Val McDermid picked me for the New Blood panel at Harrogate. I’m on the organising committee now. My heroes are my friends. My first book is being adapted for TV and I just saw a bus go past with a huge banner on the side advertising my second paperback, Original Skin.

Right now I’m sitting in my office at my house in North Lincolnshire and trying to decide whether I should sketch out a character background for the villain in the fifth McAvoy book (Dead Pretty, out in 2016) or go and watch a cowboy film on Channel 4. Inspiration has already hit me for that one. I’ll fill you in on the mad story behind book four when it comes out next year. For now, I can only suggest that you read Sorrow Bound and remember that it all started with an abortive trip to Bridlington and a dog that needed a pee.

David Mark’s SORROW BOUND was published by Quercus on 3 April, hardback £16.99

More information about David Mark and his writing can be found on his website.  He can also be found on Facebook or on Twitter @DavidMarkwriter