We’re off to Harrogate this week for a festival of criminal goodness. It’s the eleventh annual Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival, and we are super excited to have several of our talented authors taking part…
Friday 18th July:
2pm: In Space, No-one Can Hear You Scream…
When is a crime novel not a crime novel? While the genre is closely associated with the drawing room and the dark alley, a new generation of writers are finding crime stories in more unusual places and producing work that laughs in the face of easy shelving. 2014 programming chair Steve Mosby discusses cross-genre crime fiction with Lauren Beukes, James Smythe, Sharon Bolton, and Lavie Tidhar.
10pm: Let’s Twist Again…
Plot twists are a staple of the crime genre, but how essential are they and what makes for a really memorable one? Alex Barclay, S. J. Parris, Simon Kernick, and Nick Stone discuss how important and effective a last-minute (or midway) reversal can be, how they go about developing the rug-pulls in their own fiction, and some of their favourite famous twists and turns.
Saturday 19th July:
2pm: The New Wave of Forensics
Modern methods of detection have transformed the crime genre, and readers are a savvy bunch – so how vital is research for today’s crime writers, and how do they go about it? David Hewson talks to Paul Finch, Dave Barclay, Elizabeth Haynes and Tony Thompson about their experiences with forensics, gangsters and police procedure.
3.30pm: How Safe Is Your Smartphone?
From Wikileaks to Edward Snowden, the public has been given glimpses into a world of international espionage that increasingly resembles the most hi-tech of thrillers, raising issues of privacy, security and trust. Chair Hilary Bonner asks Charles Cumming, Terry Hayes, Alan Judd and Tom Wood, four writers of globe-trotting, spy-filled thrillers, to discuss their work, their research, and how they maintain their fictional footing on such ever-advancing technological terrain.
We’d love to see you there, but if you can’t make it, fear not – we’ll be live-tweeting from the festival, and taking lots of pics! Hope you enjoy the show…
