Fancy a quickie?

Because that's all you're going to get today. I am very behind (does my bum look big in this blog?)

I was at the CWA lunch in Glasgow last week - lovely lunch, even lovelier people. There was a wee bit of chat about the Scottish crime fiction convention Bloody Scots, which is all sounding very exciting. It will be held in mid-September 2012 in Stirling and some top Scottish names have already signed up. More in due course. I'm really looking forward to seeing how it develops.

And now a wee bit of Scottish crime fiction news.

Doug Johnstone's SMOKEHEADS is now out and there's a great article on him in The Skinny. And, in a conversation on Twitter with Russel McLean, Doug mentions that he was asked about swearing in his books. The comment was - can you believe this - "I think your book is disgusting." Actually, if I hadn't already bought the book, that comment would make me rush out and buy it. Incidentally, Russel's response was that someone once spoke to him about his book, without realising he was the author, saying "I couldn't have such filth in my house. So I burned it." Reporting a Twitter conversation makes me feel like some creepy eavesdropper, standing behind a wall, while all the cool kids chat. But there you go.

Talking of Twitter, Ian Rankin gives his views on the subject.

Val McDermid talks about Irish crime fiction.

And Ian Rankin again - this time he's asked 7 questions by Book Page, Crime Watch interviews Liam McIlvanney, and Quercus interviews Peter May.

Alexander Mc Call Smith's THE MEMORY OF LOST THINGS is reviewed in The Herald.

Monday Miscellany of Scotland and Shorts

Thanks to all for your kind comments and e-mails following my recent painful experience.

I thought it was time for more photos of Scotland, so the pictures accompanying this blog post are of a gorgeous place called New Lanark.

Get your Allan Guthrie news here in a profile by Jedidiah Ayres of the marvellous Hardboiled Wonderland. And if you'want to get into Al's shorts, here's a handy post for you.

Talking about short stories, there are a couple of new ones up at the Edinburgh Book Festival site - one from Denise Mina and one from Doug Johnstone.

As well as appearing at the Edinburgh Book Festival, Doug Johnstone will also be appearing at Words Per Minute - at Creation Studios, in the Trongate in Glasgow on 1st August at 4pm. Described by Doug as a "fantastic literary crossover club thingy" it's a mix of poetry, prose, film, music and theatre, with performances of 5-10 minutes. There's also a DJ set from Miaoux Miaoux. Sounds good - I think I'll give that a visit. He's also going to be appearing on a crime writing panel being chaired by Ian Rankin at the Portobello Book Festival on 10th October at 2pm. More details of that when I have them.

And I've mentioned this before, but the lovely people at Glasgow based Cargo Publishing have a rather excellent sounding short story project - The Year of Open Doors - out on 27th July - with stories from Doug Johnstone and Alan Bissett amongst others. I'm not sure how many will have a crime element (if any), but I always love trying out short stories.

A couple of reviews of Philip Kerr's IF THE DEAD RISE NOT - one from Tampa Bay Online and one from the Toronto Star. And a lovely reviewlet of Chris Ewan's most excellent GOOD THIEF'S GUIDE TO LAS VEGAS.

Fancy a signed first edition of Conan Doyle's A STUDY IN SCARLET? Have a spare £400,000? Sorry, I've unfortunately misplaced my wallet - guess I'll have to give that one a miss.

Craig Sisterson over at New Zealand's Crime Watch blog has an interview with Liam McIlvanney and one with Craig Russell.

And, finally, in my Google Alert for Scottish author Alice Thompson, Polishing Peanuts, popped up. I have no idea if it's the same Alice Thompson that the blogger mentions, as I can't find the piece he is referring to online, but I thought it was a lovely post so I'm linking to it anyway.

His experience in Uganda, mirrors my own in the villages in Alaska to some extent. The students there were so bright and funny and creative, I wish they had access to things that I take for granted - gigs, theatre, cinema, being able to go and hear authors talk about their books, go to a comedy show or visit a museum. They put on a wonderful arts festival while I was there and they entertained me no end. If I ever win the lottery I'd love to repay the favour and send over a couple of bands, some authors and a theatre company. That would be fun.

I Wanna Be Sedated

This might be the last post for this week - I have a colonoscopy on Thursday and apparently I'm not allowed to drink alcohol, operate machinery or sign important documents afterwards. The ramblings of a semi-sedated person with a sore bottom would probably not make for entertaining reading...or maybe they would. Either way, I'd better stay away from the computer. I can't say it's something I'm looking forward to - it's not the camera that bothers me, it's the camera crew...

Anyway, I'm sure that comes under the heading of Too Much Information, so back to your regularly scheduled Scottish crime fiction.

First of all, here's Aly Monroe with a lovely post on the inspiration for Peter Cotton.

Karin Slaughter says there isn't a better crime writer writing today than Denise Mina. And a review of STILL MIDNIGHT from Mostly Fiction.

Crime Watch reviews ALL THE COLOURS OF THE TOWN by Liam McIlvanney, the Mystery Maven enjoyed Russel McLean's sweary THE GOOD SON, and the Scottish Sunday Herald with an excellent review of Craig Russell's THE LONG GLASGOW KISS.

The Skinny has a supplement for the new Unbound strand of the Edinburgh Book Festival (pdf document). It looks great.

The Straits Times calls Stuart MacBride's DARK BLOOD "a bleedin' great thriller."

Ian Rankin will be appearing at the Galway Arts Festival which starts on July 12th.

Margot Kinberg with an interesting and thoughtful post on sleuths and their backstories.

And, finally, Edinburgh's Saughton Prison gets an award for its library. Excellent stuff.

Sleepy Sunday Summary

A short interview with Alexander McCall Smith. And a Precious Ramotswe prequel, written in Scots. Which seems weird, given that Precious is from Botswana.

Paul Brazill interviews the "darkly handsome" Tony Black over at Pulp Metal Magazine. Having just finished reading the third in the Gus Dury series, LOSS, which made me cry, I am extremely glad to hear that I won't have to wait too long for the next one as LONG TIME DEAD is out in July.

What a great group of tutors for the Arvon Foundation's Scottish location - including Val McDermid, A L Kennedy and Alan Bissett. Nice. And, talking of Val, well done to her for being shortlisted for the LA Times 2009 Book Prize for A Darker Domain. This was another book I read and loved in February.

Sandra Ruttan over at Spinetingler Magazine read and loved Russel McLean's THE LOST SISTER. Yet another one I read in February. And loved it as much as Sandra.

Fancy dinner with Louise Welsh and Zoe Strachan? Better enter this by Tuesday then. Oh, and you have to be in Beijing.

Writing Raw.com asks Karen Campbell 7 questions (pdf file).

Gillian Galbraith will be talking about writing on March 25th in Loch Leven.

Reviewingtheevidence.com's latest reviews include Craig Russell's THE VALKYRIE'S SONG and Liam McIlvanney's ALL THE COLOURS OF THE TOWN.

I'm off to my new screenwriting course tomorrow after work, and very much looking forward to it, so back on Tuesday.

Link Miscellany While Drinking a Dirty Martini

So please excuse any typos...

Craig Sisterson interviews Liam McIlvanney in New Zealand's Weekend Herald.

Tony Black on his excellent Gus Dury series in the Inverness Courier.

This looks fascinating - a joint forensic science and crime fiction event in Edinburgh on 18th November talking about how genetic science is used by contemporary crime writers.

A case of true crime from the Scottish Highlands, with a foreword by Val McDermid.

More of Alexander McCall Smith's 44 SCOTLAND STREET in The Scotsman.

Bookhugger interviews Aly Monroe amongst others.

Rob Kitchin reviews Philip Kerr's IF THE DEAD RISE NOT. As does The Telegraph.

Old News Is Good News

Well, while I was away enjoying myself, the news still kept coming in, so here is a round-up of some stale news. It doesn't smell too bad, in fact, some of it is still quite fragrant.

The Inverness Book Festival may be moved to the summer next year (why? It's still going to pee down).

Gerard Brennan interviews Liam McIlvanney over at Crime Scene NI. And also names Allan Guthrie and Liam McIlvanney in his top 10 for 2009 so far.

Jay Stringer reviews Helen Fitzgerald's THE DEVIL'S STAIRCASE at Do Some Damage.

Allan Guthrie and Stuart MacBride entertain fifty Fifers. No tassels or pasties involved.

And more Fife fun as Christopher Brookmyre visits Inverkeithing on Monday 26th October.

Norm at Crime Scraps reviews THE REDEMPTION OF ALEXANDER SEATON by Shona MacLean.

Val McDermid and Ian Rankin team up for a fundraising event for Raith Rovers. More Ian Rankin - this time at the Biggar Little Fest. And at the Belfast Festival. And, busy bee that he is, he talks to the Ottawa Citizen about his latest book THE COMPLAINTS. And, if you're in Toronto on October 27th you might want to go and see Ian Rankin and Denise Mina.

Aly Monroe launches WASHINGTON SHADOW in Edinburgh on November 18th.

Fancy a job with the Scottish Crime And Drug Enforcement Agency?

And, finally, here's the lovely Christa Faust's telling of The Night Of The Walking Dead in Indianapolis.

Lazy Sunday Afternoon Round-Up

William McIlvanney's son, Liam, publishes his debut novel ALL THE COLOURS OF THE TOWN - a thriller about sectarianism, set in Glasgow and Belfast. Looks interesting

The List asks Helen Fitzgerald Five Questions, and also reminds me that she and Karen Campbell are appearing at the Edinburgh Book Festival on 22nd August. Hmmmmm...I might actually make that event, assuming it's not sold out. And for those of a gentler disposition than me, The Mulgray Twins and Alanna Knight are appearing the next day. This article will tell you everything you need to know about the Mulgray Twins brand of crime fiction.

And, talking of the Edinburgh Book Festival, it seems that Scottish authors are a big draw. While the BBC reports that more than a third of the 700 events are sold out.

A new Scotland on Sunday anthology called HEADSHOOK, which challenged 24 Scottish writers to write stories on the theme of Scotland's future.

Edinburgh band St Jude's Infirmary release their second album This Has Been The Death Of Us on August 22nd, and it features vocals from Ian Rankin. I'm excited to hear the new one as I really loved their first album Happy Healthy Lucky Month. I usually like faster, punkier stuff, but they are an excellent band. Check this one out. Or this one, which is slightly more upbeat.

And, finally, the whole 'a family that reviews together, stays together' thing might be oot the windae - my Mum rang me earlier to tell me off for 'making' her read all of two pages of one of the books I sent her for review. Whoops.