Festivals and this writing lark







It was great craic to be part of the Noireland festival this year, taking Crime Fiction fans on our Belfast Noir tour. Great to have people along not only from various parts of the UK, but the likes of USA and Germany too. The festival had a great atmosphere about it and was a really class weekend. Last week I had a Tourist Board tour, taking international buyers on Belfast Noir too. I love introducing people to Belfast and in particular to writers who they haven't read before. Finishing  up in No Alibis Bookstore is always a great way to end, so folk can have a good old riffle through some awesome books. I've found it's really true that writers aren't competitive with one another, and like nothing more than bigging up other authors  that they enjoy- and that's certainly how I feel. The local scene really is thriving.

What about talking about our own books?

 It's a well discussed contradiction that introverted writers have to get out there and 'perform.' It's a weird thing in a way, but hey sitting night after night for months making up stories that nobody might read is pretty weird too! Personally I enjoy taking part in events. I'm looking forward to this Saturday (13th April) when I'm taking part in an panel event as part of The NI Writing Festival. It's going to be great- it's a crime night where I'm joining Stuart Neville, Gerard Brennan and James Murphy. Tickets are free, so grab yours from their website now!

The festival season appears to be upon us and I've been booked for a few more festivals coming soon- but I can't give out details just yet.

Anyway, I hope to remember to hop on this blog a wee bit more and hopefully I'll have some book reviews and other features coming soon, take care!

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