What are you doing this Saturday night? Going to see James Ellroy in Belfast, of course.
This Saturday evening, I'll be talking with a certain James Ellroy on stage at Belfast Waterfront. By sheer coincidence, Mr. Ellroy just happened to be reading at the Tattered Cover bookstore in Denver, Colorado, on the day I flew in to see Betsy Dornbusch. So Betsy, her husband Carlin and I all trooped over that evening to se

My Big American Adventure, Part I: New York and Indianapolis
So, it’s been a while. As you may be aware, I’ve been on a jaunt across the United States of America to promote THE GHOSTS OF BELFAST, and as of this writing I find myself in the lobby of the Hyatt Regency Tech Center in Denver, Colorado. Outside it’s snowing, and inside there is an entire world of bizarre. But I’ll come back to that... I landed in New York just less than two weeks ago, and I’ve intended on blogging ever since then, but just haven’t had the opportunity. Nor have I answered many of the emails I’ve received since then. Frankly, every spare moment I’ve had has been spent trying to catch up on some sleep. So, here is a summary of my adventures so far

#GhostOfBelfast: The Contest that Took on a Life of its Own
Just a very quick post to say that I am amazed at some of entries to the #GhostsOfBelfast contest. The way some people can paint a picture in those 124 characters is really something to behold.And I'm not just saying that. Seriously, use this link to search Twitter, and use the "more" button to see all the entries. There is some very, very good writing going on there. I already have some favourites, and to be honest, that shortlist of ten is going to be tough...Come and have a go if you think you're hard enou

This time next week, I'll be...
...in Indianapolis, attending Bouchercon 2009, and getting ready to debate Irish fiction and nonfiction with the lovely Ruth Dudley Edwards, whose AFTERMATH is one of the most powerful, disturbing and uplifting books you'll ever read. On the following Saturday, I'll be partaking in some speed dating of the literary kind - I, and bunch of other fresh-faced newbie novelists, will have just a few minutes to impress several tables of discerning crime readers.After that, there's th

Today's the Day: THE GHOSTS OF BELFAST Published in the USA
So, today is October 1st, and by debut novel THE GHOSTS OF BELFAST is officially published in the USA by Soho Crime, the respected independent New York press. I'd like to thank all at Soho, including my editor Laura Hruska, marketing director Ailen Lujo, and publicist Justin Hargett - yo