Crime Fiction in the news and on the 'Net: Weekly Round-up

There have been some more great crime fiction stories on the Web this past week - from newspapers, magazines, and fellow bloggers. Hopefully you will all find an interesting article or two linked here, that you enjoy reading.

Just a quick reminder for those readers in the south of the South Island that this coming week Vanda Symon's excellent fourth Sam Shephard novel, BOUND, will be launched at the University Book Shop in Dunedin. All Crime Watch readers are invited to the event, which will be held at 6pm on Wednesday 2 February 2011 at the UBS store, which is located at 378 King Street, Dunedin. RSVP to bronwynw@unibooks.co.nz.

Onto the round-up.

Crime Watch Weekly Round-Up: In the News and on the 'Net

• Speaking at the Jaipur Literature Festival this past week, Swedish crime writing superstar Henning Mankell discussed the end of Kurt Wallander, that he is inspired by Greek Tragedy, and that Shakespeare's MacBeth is the "best crime story" that he's ever read.
• Deadline Hollywood reports that ABC has greenlit a pilot for "Poe", a new crime prodcedural that would see author Edgar Allan Poe as a detective using unconventional methods to investigate dark mysteries in 1840s Boston.
• On the Books South Africa website, acclaimed South African crime writer Margie Orford discusses the desire to write 'a proper book', the flexibility of crime writing, and the trope of feminity and death. In another post Orford discusses the "devilish details" so vital for good crime writing.
• The Waikato Times interviews local short story writer Stephen Ross, who has been shortlisted for a prestigious Edgar Award, a rare feat for a New Zealand writer.
• Jeff Pierce, editor of the excellent website The Rap Sheet, is on the lookout for "any authors or critics out there would like to contribute an essay to The Rap Sheet’s regular 'forgotten books' series" - see here for more details.
• The Parkridge Herald-Advocate takes a look at the upcoming "Love is Murder Mystery Conference," the premiere Midwest gathering of mystery authors, readers, publishers, and agents which returns this year on 4-6 February after a hiatus in 2010 (this is the thirteenth instalment in 14 years).
• Scott Eyman of the Palm Beach Post grabs a few moments with a very busy Robert Crais, currently touring in support of his latest novel THE SENTRY, for an interesting Q&A.
• Star News Online reports that wo mystery writers, Judy Nichols and Joyce Lavene, have helped revive the defunct and once-popular Cape Fear Crime Festival, which ran in Wilmington, North Carolina from 2001 to 2007. You can read the news story about the new festival, which will be on Saturday 5 February, here, and check out the festival website here.
• Ngaio Marsh Award judge and acclaimed book blogger Graham Beattie comments on the latest thrillers from British author Robert Goddard and Norwegian Ann Holt here.
• The Kansas City Star reviews MR HOOLIGAN, a crime novel by Florida journalist Ian Vasquez set in his native Belize (perhaps a good option for some of the readers undertaking Dorte Jakobsen's excellent 2011 Global Reading Challenge).

What are the roots of crime fiction - do you agree that Greek tragedies and Shakespearean plays are also crime fiction, at least in part? Does the modern focus on 'detective fiction' unnecessarily constrain many critics from realising crime fiction is much wider and longstanding than that? Do you like attending crime fiction festivals and meeting authors? Are you taking part in the 2011 Global Reading Challenge? Comments welcome.

Crime Fiction in the news and on the 'Net: Weekly Round-up

Kia ora everyone. I hope you've all had a great week. It's been another busy one here, as we gear up to finally present the inaugural Ngaio Marsh Award for Best Crime Novel (only ten days to go now!).

For those in or around the Canterbury region, I do urge you to come along to Whodunnit and Whowunnit? on 30 November. It will be a fun night - more low key than the festival event would have been, but very enjoyable nonetheless. If you do come along, feel free to come up and say hi. As you'll be aware, I'm more than happy to chat to anyone about crime fiction, especially the terrific and overlooked stuff we have here in New Zealand.

Once again there have been some more great crime fiction stories on the Internet this past week - from newspapers, magazines, and several of my fellow bloggers. As usual, I've listed a few that have caught my eye below. Hopefully you will all find an interesting article or post or two linked here, that you enjoy reading.

Onto the round-up.

• Margaret Cannon of Canada's Globe and Mail gives another great round-up of some interesting new mystery titles, including SHE FELT NO PAIN, the latest Holly Martin novel from Ngaio Marsh Award judge Lou Allin (way to go Lou!).
• The always-entertaining Ali Karim shares his second extensive post-mortem on the recent Bouchercon festivities - 'It's all about friendships' - on The Rap Sheet (part one, part two).
• Renowned writer, editor and crime fiction aficianado Maxim Jakubowski talked about the importance of setting in crime fiction, and listed his ten favourite settings and novels that evoked them most distinctively, in an intriguing article for The Guardian. You can also join the discussion about the article and other great crime fiction settings here.
• The New Jersey Star-Ledger has a Q&A with acclaimed crime writer Dennis Lehane, while Lehane's latest novel MOONLIGHT MILE is reviewed in The Philadelphia Enquirer, the Seattle Times, and the Dubluque Telegraph Herald, amongst others.
• Movie Geeks takes a look at INTERIORS, a documentary about murderess turned historical mystery writer Anne Perry, who is fairly well-known in New Zealand because of her pre-writing life, that showed at the St Louis International Film Festival this past week.
• The Mystery Writers of America names the legendary Sarah Paretsky as the deserved recipient of its next Grand Master Award.
• While it's getting sunny here in New Zealand (and for our neighbours in Australia), the winter weather is rapidly approaching for our northern hemisphere friends. Vit Wagner of The Toronto Star takes a look at ten books to curl up with by the fire, including a "short but informative biography" of Stieg Larsson by one of his closest friends.
• Gail Pennington of the St Louis Post-Dispatch takes a look at new books 'written' by fictional TV characters from a variety of popular TV shows, including the very successful Nikki Heat novels by titular crime writer 'Richard Castle' - harkening back to the days of the 'Jessica Fletcher' mysteries inspired by Murder She Wrote.

What do you think of this week's round-up? Which articles caught your eye? Have you read any of Ngaio Marsh Award judge Lou Allin's acclaimed mysteries? What do you think of the latest Lehane? Of the 'Richard Castle' books? What fictional TV characters/writers would you like to see books from (my personal fave would have to be 'Robin' from Magnum PI - how cool would it have been to have some books out by a character that was always present but never seen in such a popular and long-repeated show?) Thoughts welcome.

Crime Fiction in the news and on the 'Net: Weekly Round-up

There have been some more great crime fiction stories on the Web this past week - from newspapers, magazines, and fellow bloggers. Hopefully you will all find an interesting article or two linked here, that you enjoy reading.

Just a quick reminder that those in and around the Canterbury region in New Zealand's South Island should strongly consider heading along to the "Whodunnit and Whowunnit" event in a couple of weeks time (Tuesday 30 November). I will be MC-ing a crime fiction panel discussion with finalists Neil Cross and Vanda Symon, and Christchurch-based international bestseller Paul Cleave, followed by the presentation of the first-ever Ngaio Marsh Award for Best Crime Novel. It should be a great night. You can read more about the evening here. Contact Ruth Todd on 03 384 4721 or ruth.todd@xtra.co.nz for tickets ($10, includes a glass of wine and nibbles).

Onto the round-up.

Crime Watch Weekly Round-Up: In the News and on the 'Net

• Bruce Ward of The Ottawa Citizen asks whether Canadian writers need to set their books south of the border to get well-deserved attention as he takes a look at the latest mystery novel from the Citizen's own poltical columnist Randall Denley, ONE DEAD SISTER, "a beguiling tale of a powerful political family and an unsolved murder that happened 30 years ago in a town in the Adirondacks".
• Bestselling British crime writer Peter James shares insights from his personal battle with Type 2 diabetes - causes and effective management - in an article for the Mail Online.
• The Southwest Riverside News Network profiles author Jeri Westerson, who lives in a small Southern California town but sets her Shamus Award-winning mystery series in medieval England, with a former knight as the whodunnit hero. Westerson talks about the power of persistence and following your heart rather than publishing trends.
• Norman at Crime Scraps revisits one of the most influential and all-time great crime fiction series, the Martin Beck books by Maj Sjowall and Per Wahloo, to see if the novels are still as good as he remembers.
• Jonathan Segura profiles legendary US crime writer and "the coolest man in America", 85-year-old Elmore Leonard, in an interesting feature for Publishers Weekly.
• While reviewing John Banville's latest novel under his well-known Benjamin Black semi-pseudonym, Rosemary Goring of Herald Scotland asks what pushes an author to write under a pen name? An interesting question, as one of the finalists for the inaugural Ngaio Marsh Award for Best Crime Novel is the unknown writer who goes by Alix Bosco.
• Diane Makovsky of Fredericksburg.com takes a look at COLLUSION, the sophmore effort from Irish thriller writer Stuart Neville, whose debut THE TWELVE (aka THE GHOSTS OF BELFAST in the United States) received widespread raves all around the world.
• Joe Nimmo of the Portsmouth News reports on the mysteries of crime fiction and the realities of crime-fighting were revealed during Portsmouth BookFest's recent Crime and the City event, where internationally-acclaimed crime writers were joined by police and forensic experts to uncover the facts behind the fiction.

Have you read Elmore Leonard? Is he the coolest guy in America? Do Canadian writers need to consider US settings to get more attention? What are your thoughts on pseudonyms? Have you read Stuart Neville? Do you enjoy historical mysteries? Thoughts and comments welcome.

Crime Fiction in the news and on the 'Net: Weekly Round-up

There have been some more great crime fiction stories on the Web this past week - from newspapers, magazines, and fellow bloggers. Hopefully you will all find an interesting article or two linked here, that you enjoy reading.

Of course down this way the big crime fiction news of the week is that a new date has at last been set for the presentation of the first-ever Ngaio Marsh Award for Best Crime Novel, after the Canterbury earthquake (which happened a few days before the Christchurch Writers' Festival was due to start) put the kibosh on the original plans. The Award will now be presented on Tuesday 30 November, following an author panel discussion. I heartily recommend anyone in the Canterbury region or nearby to head along for what should be a great night. You can read more about the evening here. Contact Ruth Todd on 03 384 4721 or ruth.todd@xtra.co.nz for tickets ($10, includes a glass of wine and nibbles).

Onto the round-up.

Crime Watch Weekly Round-Up: In the News and on the 'Net

• In The Independent, crime fiction afficianado Barry Forshaw takes a look at the latest Swedish thriller to be getting wider international attention, THREE SECONDS by Roslund and Hellström, an "ill-assorted" writing partnership that includes both sides of the real crime world.
• The Sydney Morning Herald examines a new work of scholarship that might be of interest to crime fiction fans - Women Writers and Detectives in 19th-Century Crime Fiction by Lucy Sussex, which reportedly upends some of the conventional thinking about the development of the genre over the past two hundred years.
• In a review of Elena Forbes's EVIL IN RETURN for the London Free Press, reviewer Joan Barfoot makes the interesting claim that the standard of crime fiction in Britain is "unusually high", and that British crime novels that are merely above average would be considered "stellar" in some other countries.
• While reviewing some recent mysteries and thrillers in the New York Times, Marilyn Stasio notes that the troubles caused by the economic recession are starting to come through in crime fiction - a comment that reiterates Crime Watch's long-held belief that crime fiction has, at times, become the modern social or sociological novel, dealing with contemporary realities, issues, and places (through the prism of a page-turning story) as well, if not better, than many other types of writing.
• Andrew Shaw of the Melbourne Community Voice interviews Australian crime writer Lindy Cameron (the Melbourne-set Kit O'Malley series), who has also recently started her own publishing company, Clan Destine Press, to better promote genre writing in Australia.
• The Examiner.com previews Sarah Paretsky's appearance on TV show Hardcover Mysteries on this coming Monday night (the series features some of America's most popular writers of thrillers and whodunits, exploring the crossover from fact to fiction), where Paretsky will talk about homicide of a faculty wife that made headlines near her childhood hometown of Lawrence, Kansas.
• Sue Freeman Culverhouse of Clarksville Online takes a look at the writing of Dame Ngaio Marsh for the "Writers You Should Know" series.

What do you think of this week's round-up? Have you heard of/read Roslund and Hellstrom? Is the standard of British crime writing notably superior to that from other countries? What are your thoughts on the historic roots of crime/detective fiction? Does (some) crime fiction do a good job at examining contemporary issues?

Crime Fiction in the news and on the 'Net: Weekly Round-up

There have been some more great crime fiction stories on the Web this past week - from newspapers, magazines, and fellow bloggers. Hopefully you will all find an interesting article or two linked here, that you enjoy reading.

Of course the finalists for the second annual edition of the Ireland AM Crime Fiction Award were announced this week too. It was great to see Ireland begin to recognise and celebrate its crime fiction in this way in 2009, and long may it continue. Of course here in New Zealand we are also looking to start appreciating our own crime and thriller fiction more as well, via our own new award. I hope to have confirmed details about the (earthquake-delayed) event to announce the inaugural winner for you in the next day or so. It's probable the event will be in mid/late November.

Onto the round-up.

Crime Watch Weekly Round-Up: In the News and on the 'Net

• Anna Maria Basquez of the Daily Camera talks to Colorado author Blake Crouch about his latest crime novel SNOWBOUND, which deals with the issue of human trafficking.
• In a very interesting article Alan Rinzler of The Book Deal (an inside look at publishing) talks about how "mystery fiction and crime fiction is bloody booming", and outlines some of the reasons for the success of the genre, including cross-gender popularity.
• Brian Tallerico of HollywoodChicago.com takes a closer look at the latest crime novel from legendary octogenarian Elmore Leonard, DJIBOUTI, which shows plenty of the trademark Leonard themes despite being set halfway around the world from his usual haunts.
• Adrian Jawort of Indian Country Today reports on Arapaho historian and mystery author Margaret Coel being inspired by Tony Hillerman, and now being honoured for her own Wind River mystery series that weaves in "Plains Indians" culture.
• The Irish Times takes a look at the opening of National Anthem, the debut play from acclaimed comic crime writer Colin Bateman.
• In the first of TV show The Hour's new new Hour Book segments, viewer Jessica Bazinet gave her opinion of "the world's best selling mystery novel" (100 million copies sold), Agatha Christie's AND THEN THERE WERE NONE (originally entitled TEN LITTLE NIGGERS, it has also been published under the name TEN LITTLE INDIANS).
• Crime and thriller fiction is featured amongst the shortlists for the Galaxy National Book Awards, which "showcase the best of British publishing, celebrating books with wide popular appeal, critical acclaim and commercial success", with Lee Child's WORTH DYING FOR and Peter James's DEAD LIKE YOU in the running for the popular fiction award.
• Matthew Reisz of The Times Higher Education takes a look at how creative writing courses are now increasingly looking to teach "more varied and potentially lucrative kinds of writing" (ie popular or genre fiction as well as literary or 'highbrow' fiction and poetry).

Is mystery and crime fiction booming, or has it always been strong? Do you like the sound of an Elmore Leonard tale set in Africa? Have you read the Native American-influenced mysteries of Tony Hillerman or Margaret Coel? Have you ever read the world's most popular mystery novel ever (under whichever of the three titles)? Should creative writing courses be more open to those wanting to write popular fiction?

Crime Fiction in the news and on the 'Net: Weekly Round-up

There have been some more great crime fiction stories on the Web this past week - from newspapers, magazines, and fellow bloggers. Hopefully you will all like finding an interesting article or two linked here, that you enjoy reading.

Onto the round-up.

Crime Watch Weekly Round-Up: In the News and on the 'Net

• The Portsmouth News takes a look at a a unique new event lined up for this month's Portsmouth BookFest, where forensic and crime scene experts from Hampshire Constabulary and the University of Portsmouth will team up with top crime writers to look at how much fact is behind the fiction of your favourite crime novel.
• Margaret Cannon of the Globe and Mail reviews some of the latest crime fiction to hit booksellers' shelves, including FROM THE DEAD by Mark Billingham, EVIL IN RETURN by Elena Forbes, and SAINTS OF NEW YORK by RJ Ellory.
• The Berkshire Eagle takes a look at a busy theatre company, and a new Egyptian mummy-themed murder mystery play they're showcasing, where audience members get a chance to 'guess the murderer'.
• Luaine Lee of the McClatchy-Tribune News Service reports on how eight of the most prominent US mystery writers (including Harlan Coben, David Baldacci, Sandra Brown and Sarah Paretsky) will discuss how real-life cases inspired them to pen their best-selling books in the TV show "Hardcover Mysteries," which began this week and will air on Monday nights.
• New York Times Bestseller Tess Gerritsen chats to Susan Fogwell of the Huffington Post about Camden, Maine, Ice Cold & the TNT series based on her books.
• The Hollywood Reporter notes that legendary actor Robert De Niro and gritty crime writer Richard Price are teaming for a new police drama for CBS television, "Rookies," about a team of six freshman cops who are sent into high-crime trouble spots.
• Children’s book publisher Albert Whitman & Co. has reached an agreement with Open Road Integrated Media to publish all 150 titles of Whitman’s Boxcar Children Mysteries series in e-book format, reports Publishers Weekly.

What do you think of the round-up? Which articles do you find interesting? Did have you read RJ Ellory or Mark Billingham's latest? What do you think of the 'reality' of crime writing? have you watched Rizzoli & Isles? What mystery books did you read as a child - Enid Blyton, Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew, something else? Please share your thoughts. I'd love to read what you think.

Crime Fiction in the news and on the 'Net: Weekly Round-up

There have been some more great crime fiction stories on the Web this past week - from newspapers, magazines, and fellow bloggers. Hopefully you will all like finding an interesting article or two linked here, that you enjoy reading.

Before we dive in however, I'll just quickly mention that those of you who don't live in the North Island of New Zealand, and so couldn't get the print version of the Weekend Herald last weekend, can now read the full version of my feature article on award-winning Australian crime writer Michael Robotham here. I had a lot of fun interviewing Robotham, whose most recent book BLEED FOR ME I really enjoyed when I read it earlier this year, and was looking forward to meeting him at the Ngaio Marsh Award evening (since postponed). Hopefully we will now be able to get him over this side of the Tasman next year.

Onto the round-up.

Crime Watch Weekly Round-Up: In the News and on the 'Net

• Award-winning Australian crime writer Kathryn Fox launched her latest book, DEATH MASK ("a chilling novel about sexual violence in a US football team") on Monday. She is interviewed by Judith Kerr of the Bayside Bulletin.
• Publishers Weekly reported on the results of a new Harris Poll that showed, among its other findings, "that mysteries, thrillers, and crime novels beat out chick-lit and romance novels by a large margin; and that more women than men read mysteries, thrillers, and crime novels".
• In sad news, legendary US screenwriter, TV producer and novelist Stephen J. Cannell, a recurring guest star on the crime novelist-centric TV cop show Castle, passed away earlier in the week. There were many articles and tribute pieces, including from Entertainment Weekly and the New York Times, The Rap Sheet has a good list of other tributes here.
• Ulrike Sárkány talks to Scottish crime writer Stuart MacBride for the Inspired Minds show. You can access the broadcast from the Deutsche Welle website here.
• Steve Rogerson at Suite101.com takes a look behind the scenes at the production of the new Thorne TV series, based on the excellent crime novels by award-winning British author Mark Billingham.
• Gail Kerr of The Tennessean talks about the allure of crime fiction, and takes a look at what's happening at this weekend's Southern Festival of Books.
• Acclaimed blogger Jen Forbus of Jen's Book Thoughts had a lengthy and very interesting two-part interview with award-winning crime writer Reed Farrel Coleman, whose latest Moe Prager novel, INNOCENT MONSTER, was released this week. PART ONE. PART TWO.
• 2010 Global Reading Challenge creator Dorte Jakobsen of DJ's Krimiblog reviews WHO KILLED PALOMINO MOLERO?, a Peruvian crime novel from Nobel Prize-winning author Mario Vargas Llosa.

What do you think of this week's round-up? Which articles or posts did you find most interesting? Have you read any Michael Robotham novels? What did you think of my feature? Do you like the sound of fellow Australian crime writer Kathryn Fox's thrillers? Why do you think mystery, crime, and thriller fiction is enjoyed by so many readers (even if it's looked down upon by some in the books world)? Do you like seeing some of your favourite crime fiction characters adapted for the screen? Have you read any South American crime fiction? Thoughts and comments welcome.

Crime Fiction in the news and on the 'Net: Weekly Round-up

There's been some more great crime fiction stories on the Web this past week - from newspapers, magazines, and fellow bloggers. Hopefully you will all like finding an interesting article or two linked here, that you enjoy reading.

Before we dive into it however, I thought I'd just quickly mention again that this week I republished, here on Crime Watch, a great article by Philip Matthews of The Press on the recent growth of Kiwi crime fiction. Philip and Fairfax Magazines were kind enough to let me republish the full 2000-wd article here - and it's the only place you can read it on the Internet. So if you haven't already, please go here and read it, and leave a comment so Philip gets some feedback about the article.

Onto the round-up.

Crime Watch Weekly Round-Up: In the News and on the 'Net

• It was the 120th anniversary of the birth of Dame Agatha Christie on Wednesday (15 September), an occasion marked in many different ways all around the world (understandable really, since she is the biggest-selling novelist of all time, with more than a billion books in print - AND THEN THERE WERE NONE, originally entitled TEN LITTLE NIGGERS, has reportedly sold more than 100 million copies by itself). The Guardian had a story on how Google, that ubiquitious company, marked the occasion with a special detective-themed graphic on the day.
• A decade after being told that writing a novel with a lesbian theme would be 'commercial suicide', Val McDermid talks to The Independent about a cultural shift and the recent progress of lesbian fiction.
• The Miami Herald takes a look at whether the next wave in the ongoing crime fiction tsunami might come from books set in Stalinist Russia.
• John Sullivan of the Winnipeg Free Press takes a look at the latest offering from cool Canadian crime writer Giles Blunt's 'John Cardinal' series, which is set in a fictional small Ontario city.
• The Houston Press pays tribute to Murder By The Book's David Thompson, who tragically passed away very suddenly this week, leaving a true void in the crime fiction world.

What do you think of the round-up? Which articles do you find interesting? Did you do anything special to mark Agatha Christie's birthday? Which is your favourite Christie novel? Do you think we are now more accepting of lesbian themes and characters in 'mainstream' fiction? Have you read any Russian set mystery tales? Please share your thoughts. I'd love to read what you think.

Crime Fiction in the news and on the 'Net: Weekly Round-up

There's been some more great crime fiction stories on the Web this past week - from newspapers, magazines, and fellow bloggers. Hopefully you will all like finding an interesting article or two linked here, that you enjoy reading.

Before we dive into it however, I thought I'd just quickly mention a couple of things. As many of you will be aware, down here in New Zealand our second largest city, Christchurch, suffered a huge earthquake last Saturday, causing billions of dollars worth of property and infrastructure damage. Historic buildings and homes have been lost, the University and schools closed (some temporarily, some perhaps permanently), people have been staying in shelters or with friends or neighbours, and plenty of businesses have been shut for days, at a time they were already walking an economic tight-rope thanks to the after-effects of the global financial crisis. By some absolute miracle, no one was killed - meaning that despite all the damage that will take weeks and months to repair (and some things will never be the same), long after the front-page headlines and nightly news soundbites and lead stories have ebbed, generally there is quite the feeling of 'we got lucky'.

There will be plenty of tough times ahead for the city where I went to University however, so if you would like to help, then I'd ask that you consider donating to an appeal that has been established by APN News & Media, who own several newspapers in New Zealand, including the Weekend Herald, who I have written several crime fiction related articles for.

You can go here to read more about this appeal - APN has kickstarted things with a $100,000 donation, and all funds raised will be donated to the Christchurch Mayoral Earthquake Appeal and be administered by the Red Cross, so you can be assured this is all legitimate. Please take a look and consider helping. I will put the link at the top of the sidebar for the next few weeks as well, as a reminder. Please consider helping out - long after the media stops covering the story in such depth and detail, the locals will still be feeling the effects and trying to rebuild the city and 'get back to normal'.

As many of you will know, the Canterbury earthquake also led to the cancellation earlier this week of the 2010 The Press Christchurch Writers Festival, and the postponement of the inaugural Ngaio Marsh Award for Best Crime Novel, which was due to be presented at a marquee event last night. I will keep you informed of what happens moving forward with the Award, as and when decisions are made. Thank you for all the messages of support, I appreciate them - but I would note that I was only a small cog in the larger Festival wheel, and that it's those based in Christchurch who put their heart and soul into Festival planning and preparation for months on end that I really feel for, especially given the tough weeks ahead for their community. Hopefully we will be able to do something with the eventual Award announcement to support the Christchurch community, when the time is right.

Onto the round-up.

Crime Watch Weekly Round-Up: In the News and on the 'Net

• Shane Gilchrist of the Otago Daily Times talks to award-winning British crime writer RJ Ellory, who has been visiting New Zealand this past week, about his long road to publication, setting his tales States-side, and the importance of character in crime writing.
• Blanche Clark of Australia's Herald-Sun interviews Val McDermid about her latest novel, TRICK OF THE DARK, and the ongoing evolution and supreme popularity of crime fiction.
• Jemima Laing of the BBC shares the recipe (and story behind) the 'Delicious Death' chocolate cake that will be part of the Agatha Christie 120th birthday celebrations.
• Linda Fort looks at the terrific line-up for the upcoming Reading Festival of Crime Writing, which kicks off today in the UK (most of the events are later this week and next weekend).
• Pablo Toledo of the Buenos Aires Herald has an interesting interview with Irish crime writer John Connolly.
• STV.tv interviews Scottish osteopath turned crime writer Caro Ramsay about "killing for a living" and her third and latest thriller DARK WATER (video interview and print article).
• Mark Smith of the Moonee Valley Leader talks to Australian crime writer PD Martin, who will be appearing at this month’s north-west Melbourne Business and Professional Women’s Club breakfast in Essendon on 24 September.
• Terence Brown of the Irish Times reviews OUR KIND OF TRAITOR by John le Carré, while also making some interesting observations about the growing 'weight' and respectability of crime and mystery writing.
• Betsy Price of The News Journal in Delaware looks at the part marketing, festivals, author tours etc play in the success of authors, using the experiences of mother and son crime writing team 'Charles Todd' as an example.

What do you think of the round-up? Which articles do you find interesting? How important is character in crime writing? Why do you think crime fiction is the biggest (best?) genre of all? Do you like the sound (or the taste) of the 'Delicious Death' celebratory chocolate cake? How important are author tours and events to building readership? Please share your thoughts. I'd love to read what you think.

Crime Fiction in the news and on the 'Net: Weekly Round-up

There's been some more great crime fiction stories on the Web this past week - from newspapers, magazines, and fellow bloggers. Hopefully you will all like finding an interesting article or two linked here, that you enjoy reading.

Before I dive into all the fantastic stories out there however, I thought I'd quickly mention my own feature that was in last weekend's Weekend Herald, for those that missed it. You can read my article on bestselling British crime writers Peter James and Peter Robinson, here.

I was fortunate enough to also meet Peter James in person earlier this week, at a great, packed event at Takapuna Library on Tuesday evening. He had the audience in stitches, and is a very funny, interesting, and humble guy. I am currently about two thirds of the way through DEAD LIKE YOU, and enjoying it a lot.

Onto the round-up.

Crime Watch Weekly Round-Up: In the News and on the 'Net

• In his regular slot for the Huffington Post, thriller writer Jason Pinter shares a cool little post from Don Winslow (SAVAGES, THE GENTLEMAN'S HOUR) - whose books Pinter describes jabbing "a fountain pen in the eye of anyone who can read one of his tomes and state with conviction that crime fiction isn't literature" - about using a little poetic license in his latest novel.
• Katie Allan of The Bookseller reveals that Wellington-based crime writer and TV screenwriter - and Ngaio Marsh Award finalist - Neil Cross is to write three spin-off novels for Simon & Schuster, based on his character Luther, made famous by Idris Alba in the recent TV series of the same name.
• In further Neil Cross-related news, it has been announced that Luther will premiere in the United States on 17 October, and that the BBC has also commissioned "a spine-chilling new single drama" from Cross for Christmas - Whistle And I'll Come To You, a "thoroughly modern re-working of the evocative Edwardian ghost story "Oh, Whistle and I'll come to You, My Lad" by M.R. James". Busy man, Mr Cross.
• Echoing a view that I've shared on this blog several times, Justin Peacock of The Daily Beast takes a much more eloquent and lengthy look at how crime fiction really has become the modern social novel. "Tom Wolfe and other writers used to tell us about the state of America, but now if you’re looking for great social novels you’d better turn to crime writers like Richard Price and Dennis Lehane", says Peacock.
• Paul Robinson of the Yorkshire Post talks to actor Stephen Tompkinson about playing Peter Robinson's famous sleuth Inspector Alan Banks in the upcoming "gritty" ITV crime drama, DCI Banks: Aftermath.
• Mike Nicol of Crime Beat SA interviews longstanding South African crime writer Wessel Ebersohn about his latest novel, and much more, as his new political thriller Those Who Love Night, which sees the return of Abigail Bukula, the brilliant young lawyer, is released.
• In a nice little article, "Murder, we read", that seems to have only recently popped up online, Malcolm Jones of Newsweek takes a closer look at our centuries-long preference for crime fiction, a literary trend that dwarfs temporarily 'hot' phenomena like vampires or boy wizards.

What do you think of the round-up? Which articles do you find interesting? Is crime the modern social novel? Is crime fiction the biggest, most longstanding modern literary trend of all? Are you looking forward to DCI Banks: Aftermath? Will you read books centred on the intriguing 'Luther'? Please share your thoughts. I'd love to read what you think.

Crime Fiction in the news and on the 'Net: Weekly Round-up

There's been some more great crime fiction stories on the Web this past week - from newspapers, magazines, and fellow bloggers. Hopefully you will all like finding an interesting article or two linked here, that you enjoy reading.

Crime Watch Weekly Round-Up: In the News and on the 'Net

• Justine Gerardy of the AFP takes a look at how truth meets fiction for South African crime writers like Deon Meyer and Margie Orford.
• In the Irish Times, Tony Clayton-Lea interviews Irish crime writer Alex Barclay, saying her crime fiction career has "clearly benefitted from her former role as a journalist."
• Dave Walker of the New Orleans The Times-Picayne reports on actor Kenneth Branagh, who plays the lead in Wallander, talking about the 'Swedish crime fiction boom'.
• Rosie Kusunoki Jones of the Wall Street Journal online asks whether now English-language publishers have been awoken to translating foreign-language crime fiction bestsellers, Shuichi Yoshida could end up being the Japanese Stieg Larsson?
• Australian schoolteacher John Tognolini launches his debut crime novel THE MOUNTAIN CITY MURDERS at a wine-fuelled event in Wellington (NSW, not the NZ capital), this Sunday.
• The always-excellent Sarah Weinman of the Los Angeles Times takes a look at Justin Peacock's thriller, "Blind Man's Alley", in her regular Dark Passages column.
• Michael Janairo of the Times Union looks at the benefits of the Bouchercon festival to the towns where it is held.
• Examiner.com takes a look at how international thriller writers are set to tour the Persian Gulf during Fall 2010 as part of USO's 'Operation Thriller'.
• The NPR publishes its audience-voted list of the top 100 thrillers of all time, with Thomas Harris's THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS taking the #1 spot.

What do you think of the round-up? Which articles do you find interesting? Is THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS really the best thriller of all time? What do you think of South African crime? Scandinavian crime? I'd love to read what you think.

Crime Fiction in the news and on the 'Net: Weekly Round-up and PD James special

There's been some more great crime fiction stories on the Web this past week - from newspapers, magazines, and fellow bloggers. Hopefully you will all like finding an interesting article or two linked here, that you enjoy reading.

But before we get into that, the incomparable Phyllis Dorothy James, Baroness James of Holland Park, OBE, FRSA, FRSL turns NINETY this coming week. I was fortunate enough to interview her recently (apparently the only Australian or New Zealand interview she did in the lead-up to her birthday this year), and will share the PD James 9mm interview (which I wove into a larger interview for a feature in the upcoming issue of Good Reading) on Tuesday, her birthday.

In the meantime, I thought I would make this weekly round-up a bit of a PD James special as well, in honour of the Baroness, so I've included several stories (many of them very well-written) about her that have been in the news the past couple of weeks or so, before we get onto a shorter version of the standard weekly round-up...

Crime Watch Round-Up: PD James in the News and on the 'Net

• Carol Memmott in USA Today interviews a "relaxed and ebullient" PD James, who is "in a festive mood" on board the Queen Mary 2.
• PD James "reflects on death, family − and the husband she couldn’t save" to Nigel Farndale of The Telegraph, while noting that she has "lived a very happy and fulfilled life".
• Lauren Mechling of the Wall Street Journal also interviews Baroness James on the Queen Mary 2. opening the Q&A format with "You don’t have a new book out. Why did you decide that you wanted to meet with me?"
• In an article in the Montreal Gazette, Anita Singh of the London Daily Telegraph interviews PD James, who although she uses email and tries to keep apace with the modern world, talks about the "horrifying" pace of technological change brought about by the Internet, and how older people who struggle to use computers are being left behind by society at a time when everything from shopping to booking tickets is being moved online.

Crime Watch Weekly Round-Up: In the News and on the 'Net

• LiveMint.com & the Wall Street Journal ask whether the greatest crime novels of the 21st century will be written by Indians, while taking a look at Vikram Chandra and his 900-page book SACRED GAMES, apparently "a masterpiece of early 21st century literature".
• Helen Carter of The Guardian's book blog takes a deep breath and pitches her crime novel idea to a roomful of "impressive industry names" at the recent Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival in Harrogate.
• The Nidderdale Herald reports on the recent Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival, including the awarding of the first-ever outstanding contribution to crime fiction award to Reginald Hill.
• The Inverness Courier says a new breed of Scottish writers like Tony Black are making Tartan Noir an even darker shade.
• The Minneapolis Star-Tribune takes a look at Finnish crime, with Finnish publisher Jouko Sipila moving to the US and making the mystery series by his brother Jarko, a journalist in Helsinki, more widely available.

What do you think of the round-up? Which articles do you find interesting? What are your thoughts on PD James turning 90, and her impact on crime writing? Have you read any of her books? What do you think? Is India going to take over crime writing? I'd love to read what you think.