Crime in the Spotlight 2016 (part two)
Every year Bloody Scotland supports new writers by pairing established authors with ‘support’ acts just starting out on their career - Crime in the Spotlight.
Last year, Jake Kerridge, crime fiction reviewer for The Daily Telegraph discovered current Man Booker long-listed title His Bloody Project by Graeme Macrae Burnet ‘In the Spotlight’ when he visited Bloody Scotland. Kerridge described the initiative as:
'Such a simple and effective idea that nobody seems to have thought of before. I was able to get a flavour of the work of writers new to me such as Philip Miller, Margot McCuig and the now celebrated Graeme Macrae Burnet. A lot of people I spoke to enjoyed these brief bursts from unfamiliar writers before hearing from the superstars they had travelled to see.’
Here are the next six spotlighters.
Amanda Fleet - The Wrong Kind of Clouds - Matador
Amanda Fleet is a physiologist by training and a writer at heart. She spent 18 years teaching science and medicine undergraduates at St Andrews University, but now uses her knowledge to work out how to kill people (in her books!). She completed her first degree at St Andrews University and her doctorate at University College, London. Amanda lives in Scotland with her husband, where she can be found writing, walking and running. The Wrong Kind of Clouds is her début novel and was published by Matador in early 2016.
Les Wood - Dark Side of the Moon - Freight
Les Wood's writing has been widely anthologised. He has a Masters in creative writing from the University of Glasgow and a doctorate in Physiotherapy. Les teaches at Glasgow Caledonian University.
https://leswoodwriting.com/
Jackie Baldwin - Dead Man's Prayer - Killer Reads
Jackie Baldwin practiced as a solicitor in a rural town for twenty years specialising in family and criminal law. She then trained as a hypnotherapist and now works from home. She is married with two grown up children and loves to walk with her two dogs in local forests. She is an active member of her local crime writing group.
https://twitter.com/JackieMBaldwin1
Tom O Keenan - The Father - McNidder & Grace Crime
Born and raised in Glasgow this is Tom's critically acclaimed debut novel. His experience as an independent social worker in the mental health field, writing expert reports for solicitors and Glasgow Sheriff Court informs and underpins his writing. Tom is now working on the second Sean Rooney crime novel.
https://www.tom-odgen-keenan.co.uk/me/
Liz Mistry - Unquiet Souls - Bloodhound Books
Liz is an ex teacher who has taught in inner city Bradford schools for over twenty years. Her husband of 27 years is Indian and they have three children. They live in inner city Bradford and Liz likes to use the rich tapestry of her life in Bradford, combined with her Scottish heritage, in her writing.
She is currently completing her dissertation for an MA in creative writing at Leeds Trinity University and hopes to graduate in December with a distinction.
https://twitter.com/lizcrimewarp
Eva Holland - The Daughter's Secret – Orion
A lifelong lover of words and stories, Eva Holland was the winner of the 2014 Good Housekeeping novel writing competition. She grew up in Gloucestershire and studied in Leeds before moving to London. When not writing or reading fiction she works as a freelance PR consultant and copywriter.
The Daughter’s Secret is Eva’s first novel.
View full details in our press release.
Crime in the Spotlight 2016 (part one)
Every year Bloody Scotland supports new writers by pairing established authors with ‘support’ acts just starting out on their career - Crime in the Spotlight.
Last year, Jake Kerridge, crime fiction reviewer for The Daily Telegraph discovered current Man Booker long-listed title His Bloody Project by Graeme Macrae Burnet ‘In the Spotlight’ when he visited Bloody Scotland. Kerridge described the initiative as:
'Such a simple and effective idea that nobody seems to have thought of before. I was able to get a flavour of the work of writers new to me such as Philip Miller, Margot McCuig and the now celebrated Graeme Macrae Burnet. A lot of people I spoke to enjoyed these brief bursts from unfamiliar writers before hearing from the superstars they had travelled to see.’
We thought we'd introduce you to six of the selected Spotlighters. The next six will come tomorrow.
Lesley Kelly - A Fine House in Trinity - Sandstone
Longlisted for the McIlvanney Prize 2016 Lesley Kelly will be reading from her book A Fine House in Trinity. She has worked in the public and voluntary sectors for the past twenty years, dabbling in poetry and stand-up comedy along the way. She has won a number of writing competitions, including the Scotsman’s Short Story award in 2008.
http://lesleykelly7.wixsite.com/author-blog
Stephen Watt - Optograms - Wild Word Press
Born in Dumbarton, Stephen Watt is a Scottish poet and spoken word artist. He is the author of the poetry collection Spit (Bonacia, 2012) and was crowned the Poetry Rivals Slam Champion in Peterborough in 2011. His online video Rubik was awarded the StAnza Digital International Poetry Prize and the Tartan Treasures Award. He has performed widely across the UK, including at Doune The Rabbit Hole, Eden, Wickerman and the Edinburgh Festival.
In 2015, Stephen made his debut in Ireland as part of the unofficial Cuirt Literature Festival fringe show Far From Literature, We Were Reared at the Roisin Dubh in Galway. Optograms was published by Wild Word Press in 2016.
https://twitter.com/stephenwattspit
Sandra Ireland - Beneath the Skin - Polygon/Birlinn
Sandra Ireland was born in Yorkshire, lived for many years in Limerick, and is now based in Carnoustie. She began her writing career as a correspondent on a local newspaper but quickly realised that fiction is much more intriguing than fact. In 2013 Sandra was awarded a Carnegie- Cameron scholarship to study for an MLitt in Writing Practice and Study at the University of Dundee, graduating with a distinction in 2014. Her work has appeared in various publications and women’s magazines. She is currently writing her second novel, another psychological thriller.
https://twitter.com/22_ireland
Daniel Pembrey - The Harbour Master - No Exit Press
DANIEL PEMBREY grew up in Nottinghamshire beside Sherwood Forest. He studied history at Edinburgh University and received an MBA from INSEAD business school. Daniel then spent over a decade working in America and more recently Luxembourg, coming to rest in Amsterdam and London — dividing his time now between these two great maritime cities. He is the author of the Henk van der Pol detective series and several short thriller stories, and he occasionally contributes non-fiction articles to publications including The Financial Times and The Times.
Shelley Day - The Confession of Stella Moon - Saraband
Shelley has been a litigation lawyer, a psychology lecturer and a research professor. These days she mainly writes fiction. Her debut The Confession of Stella Moon won the Andrea Badenoch Award, was long-listed for the Bath Novel Award, and shortlisted for the Charles Pick Fellowship and the Dundee International Book Prize.
Her short stories have also won prizes and have appeared in magazines, newspapers, anthologies and online. She has read at the Hexham Book Festival and the Edinburgh International Book Festival, and on the Edinburgh Fringe. In 2013 she was named as one of Edinburgh UNESCO City of Literature’s emerging writers. In 2015 she won a Northern Writers’ Award.
Michael Grothaus - Epiphany Jones - Orenda
Novelist and journalist Michael Grothaus was born in Saint Louis, Missouri in 1977. He spent his twenties in Chicago where he earned his degree in filmmaking from Columbia and got his start in journalism writing for Screen. After working for institutions including The Art Institute of Chicago, Twentieth Century Fox, and Apple he moved to the United Kingdom where he earned his postgraduate degree in creative writing. His writing has appeared in The Guardian, Litro Magazine, Fast Company, VICE, The Irish Times,Screen, Quartz, and others. His debut novel is EPIPHANY JONES, a story about sex trafficking among the Hollywood elite, based on his experiences at the Cannes Film Festival. It is out now from Orenda Books. Michael is represented worldwide by The Hanbury Agency in London, where he lives when not traveling. His writing is read by millions of people each month.
http://www.michaelgrothaus.com/
For full details on the Crime in the Spotlight and Pitch Perfect initiatives you can view our press release.