Tickets on sale for one-day crime fiction event in the heart of Vera country

Hi, crime lovers!

Have you heard about Bay Tales Live yet? You should have...

The team behind Virtual Noir at the Bar have released tickets for their first physical event - in their hometown of Whitley Bay, North Tyneside. Bay Tales Live, a one-day crime fiction festival for readers and writers, will be held at Whitley Bay Playhouse on Saturday 12th February 2022 and will feature some of the most successful UK crime writers, as well as introducing audience members to the brightest rising stars of 2022. Featured authors have had their books optioned by BBC, ITV and Netflix. 

Keen to continue their habit of hosting the biggest names in crime fiction alongside new writers, Vic Watson and Simon Bewick - shortlisted for FutureBook’s Event of the Year last year - have collaborated with some of the UK’s biggest publishers to put together a programme of six panels featuring award-winning authors like Louise Candlish and Vaseem Khan as well as successful local authors Ann Cleeves and Trevor Wood. And, just like their virtual shows, the pair couldn’t resist throwing a wildcard into the mix: inviting Dr Richard Shepherd, forensic pathologist and author of the Sunday Times bestseller Unnatural Causes, to speak at the event. “This event is perfect for both readers and writers of crime fiction, with a little forensic pathology thrown in for good measure,” said Vic Watson who, prior to the pandemic, had been responsible for events in Newcastle and Harrogate. "The events I’ve hosted in the past, whether online or in real life, have always given audience members to connect with the featured writers. Bay Tales Live may be in a more formal setting but there will still be opportunities for people to meet the writers and get their books signed as well as to ask questions towards the end of each panel.” 

After bringing hundreds of authors and readers together during the pandemic, Watson and Bewick would like them to connect in their hometown which also happens to be the setting for ITV’s smash hit TV show, Vera. Local author Ann Cleeves, author of the Vera and Shetland series said: "I can't wait to meet fellow readers and writers in Whitley Bay in February. I know it'll be a brilliant day.” Whitley Bay, a seaside town ten miles east of Newcastle, has seen significant investment and regeneration in recent years and the Bay Tales team are keen to raise the town’s profile by enticing crime fiction fans with a reasonably-priced day pass, leaving guests with plenty of money to spend while in the town. 

Simon Bewick, who edited the NHS charity fund raising crime fiction anthology featuring Virtual Noir at the Bar authors, Noir from the Bar said: “We want to make this event truly affordable for everyone. At £30 for a full day festival featuring six panels and over twenty authors, we believe it’s the best value of its kind around.” More information regarding the full line-up and where to buy tickets can be found here.

I don't know about you, but this sounds so exciting! And the best news? I'm giving away my ticket to a low-income reader or writer who would love to attend this event, as I can no longer go (I'm gutted but it's great news for you!). To enter, please retweet this tweet and comment with which panel you're most excited to see. I'll pick an entrant at random and notify you if you're the lucky winner.

Roxie

@RoxieAdelleKey

Montague Island Books with Chris McDonald

Montague Island is a fictional island off the coast of Cumbria that was created by M.W. Craven for his book The Curator. Bookends Book Club invite one author and one reader each week to do a desert island discs style session but with a book-themed twist. 

Chris McDonald and I were invited to choose our favourite 7 books, an album, a film, a meal and of course, a luxury item each to take on the island with us. 

Find out all about Chris's latest book launches, why he cries at musicals, who's going to be cooking our daily roast dinner and a little bit about my current work in progress. This was a really fun session with lots of laughs, and we hope you enjoy it! There are lots more sessions to come, so please join Bookends Book Club or visit Montague Island Books on Facebook to find out more.

Roxie

@RoxieAdelleKey

Virtual Noir at the Bar: The Christmas Edition

It's the most wonderful time of the year... and Virtual Noir at the Bar is coming back for one night of festive noir!

They can't promise mulled wine or mistletoe, but maybe a little murder, all neatly wrapped up in the sort of evening you've come to expect from the VNatB team - Vic 'Ho-Ho-Woo' Watson as your host, and Simon 'Helper Elf' Bewick pushing the buttons.

If you don't know what VNatB is, it was an online event run by Vic Watson and Simon Bewick, where crime and mystery authors read something they've written via live video. This was originally a physical event in Newcastle, in a bar, and these virtual events recreated a slice of what that experience was like. Soon, Wednesday became the new Friday (including hangovers all round). Much like all good things, it had to come to an end, but after a brilliant Halloween special, they're back on Wednesday 16th December with a Christmas edition and we're so ready for it.

So what can you expect? Like all the other VNatB events, this promises to be an evening full of fantastic author readings, great chat, and lots of laughs. The line up is, as always, phenomenal, so brace yourself for some of the very best writers in crime... with a festive twist.

The Line-Up

Catherine Cooper
Author of The Chalet, one of the most talked-about debuts of 2020.

Gytha Lodge
Author of Watching from the Dark and She Lies in Wait (Richard and Judy Book Club, Sunday Times and New York Times crime pick).

Hayley Webster
Author of One Christmas Night – described as ‘a heart-warming story mixing mystery with humour’ (I Newspaper).

Emma Christie
Whose debut The Silent Daughter, a tale of deceit and secrets, is getting rave reviews.

Danny Marshall
VNatB favourite whose debut thriller Anthrax Island has been announced for early 2021!

Nell Pattison
Creator of the sign language interpreter Paige Northwood series.

Derek Farrell
The Danny Bird Mysteries author and VNatB top contributor.

Trevor Wood
Author of CWA’s debut of the year novel The Man on the Street and sequel One Way Street.

Allie Reynolds
Author of Shiver, coming January 2021, described as 'a truly gripping chiller of a thriller' by Peter James.

Andrew Cotto
Award-winning author of three novels, and New York Times and Rolling Stone writer.

Gregg Hurwitz
International bestselling author of I See You, We Know, Or She Dies and the Orphan X series.

Plus the winner of the first Bay Tales Christmas Crime story competition, reading their winning entry!

It's going to be a great night, so register now. And did I mention, it's totally free?

Merry Christmas!

Roxie

@RoxieAdelleKey

PS. Vic, Simon and a whole host of VNatB readers released Noir From The Bar at the beginning of lockdown, an anthology of crime fiction that's raising a tonne of money for the NHS. Available in paperback and on Kindle, you'd be mad not to.

Virtual Noir at the Bar: The Halloween Edition

Guess what? Virtual Noir at the Bar is coming back for one night of frightfully good noir!

If you don't know what VNatB is, it was an online weekly event run by Vic Watson and Simon Bewick, where crime and mystery authors read something they've written via live video. This was originally a physical event in Newcastle, in a bar, and these virtual events recreated a slice of what that experience was like. Soon, Wednesday became the new Friday (including hangovers all round). Much like all good things, it had to come to an end, but they're back on Wednesday 28th October with a Halloween edition and we're so ready for it.

So what can you expect? Like all the other VNatB events, this promises to be an evening full of fantastic author readings, great chat, and lots of laughs. I'm not surprised the attendee list has broken all their previous records. The line up is phenomenal, so brace yourself for some of the very best writers in crime, mystery... and the darker side of writing.

Ramsey Campbell
"Britain's most respected living horror writer" (Oxford Companion to English Literature).

CJ Tudor
Best Selling Author of The Chalk Man and The Other People.

Max Seeck
"If you only read one Nordic noir novel this autumn, make it The Witch Hunter" (Culture Fly).

Matt Wesolowski
The Six Stories series author and Bloody Scotland Pitch Perfect Winner.

Alison Belsham
Joining just days before her latest Sullivan and Mullins thriller hits the charts.

Vanessa Savage
Author of The Woods, which is getting rave reviews from readers and critics alike.

Laura Purcell
Author of The Silent Companions - W H Smith Thumping Good Read Award 2018.

Suzy Aspley
Winner of Bloody Scotland's Pitch Perfect and VNatB favourite.

Ian Skewis
Such a hit at the last VNatB they had to bring him back for Halloween!

CJ Cooper
Author of the bestselling The Book Club.

Catriona Ward
Author of Little Eve - Shirley Jackson Best Novel Winner.

Ian Rankin
Who, quite frankly, needs no introductions!

It's going to be a hell of a night... register now. And did I mention, it's totally free?

Happy Halloween!

Roxie

@RoxieAdelleKey

PS. Vic, Simon and a whole host of VNATB readers released Noir From The Bar at the beginning of lockdown, an anthology of crime fiction that's raising a tonne of money for the NHS. Available in paperback and on Kindle, you'd be mad not to.

Lockdown: a blessing and a curse

It's been a while since I whipped up a generic, writing-related blog post. And what better time to do the honours than at 2am when, as usual, I'm painfully awake with thoughts ricocheting around my head like someone tipped a shitload of bouncy balls in there?

I have had mixed emotions lately. I've been shielding with my immunocompromised wife since the beginning of the UK lockdown, and I'm not going to lie, I miss hugs... yep, even awkward ones. I miss dragging my wife around bookshops. I miss geeking out at writing-related events. I was so looking forward to losing my Harrogate festival virginity. And there's a gaping hole in my big gay heart for Pride celebrations. But I've realised I do have a lot to be thankful for. 

I've got to know my neighbours a bit better. And more importantly, experienced their kindness when we needed them. I've learned to appreciate my home and my garden and understood how lucky I am to have them. I've started paying attention to wildlife that I didn't even know visited my garden. I probably phone my friends and family more often than I ever saw them in pre-Covid life.

Were it not for everything going digital, I wouldn't have stumbled upon awesome online events such as Virtual Noir at the Bar. Not only for doing my own reading, but sitting back each Wednesday and watching some truly fantastic authors doing their thing (and I live for the afterparty banter).

I've relied heavily on Twitter for a large chunk of my social life, and as sad as that sounds, it's been a bit of a lifeline. And, as a socially awkward person through and through, I don't miss the pressure of social events. You know, the 'I-should-really-show-my-face-but-quite-frankly-I-would-rather-be-in-my-PJs' kind of events. You know the ones.

I've had the opportunity to read several of my friends' novels, all of which were so great in their own special ways, I felt honoured to be given them to read and critique. I had a few 'pinch-me' moments, firstly when I was shortlisted for Penguin WriteNow, and then again when I was signed by David Higham Associates. I have read SO. MANY. BOOKS from my TBR pile. I finished the first draft of my second book.

I don't know what's yet to come; no one does. But I desperately hope the good stuff born out of the shitstorm that is Covid-19 doesn't eventually fizzle away into nothing, leaving me bereft of the things I'm loving right now.

But for now, if someone could just bottle that book-shop scent and drench me in it, I'd be a very happy woman. 

Roxie 

@RoxieAdelleKey

Virtual Noir at the Bar

I did a rather fun thing this week. Something that is not like me at all. Anyone who knows me will know I'm not a fan of public speaking in any way, shape or form. But for some reason, unbeknown to me, I applied to read at Virtual Noir at the Bar. And they said... yes. 

If you don't know what VNATB is (where have you been?) it's an online weekly event run by the fabulous Vic Watson and Simon Bewick, where crime and mystery authors read something they've written via live video. This was originally a physical event in Newcastle, in a bar (remember those?). The hope is that these events recreate a slice of what that experience was like. 

I've been dipping in and out of VNATB since the launch on the 1st of April, and what I love most is that it's a glorious mix of authors we know and love, and authors who are yet to be discovered. Some of the highlights for me have been readings from Ruth Ware, Christie Newport, Gillian McAllister, Amer Anwar, Phoebe Morgan, C L Taylor, Susi Holliday, and Suzy Aspley but honestly, you should see some of the line ups. 

This week I had the pleasure of reading alongside Adam Hamdy, Elizabeth Haynes, Anna Mazzola, Cara Hunter, Kate Hamer, Louise Candlish, Nikki Smith, Elly Griffiths and Amanda Robson. As many said on Twitter this week, what a lineup! Watch episode 14 here.

I really enjoyed doing my reading. I'm not great at pushing myself out of my comfort zone, but the comments in the chatbox after my reading left me with a little glow inside that I hope will keep me going. And to the person who commented on my eyebrows... THANK YOU. 

If you're yet to check out VNATB, sign up for next week's session here. The lineup will be announced on Saturday and I can't wait to see what Vic and Simon have in store for us.

These events are totally FREE but if you can spare a small donation to help keep the bar running, there's a whole bunch of people who'll really appreciate it.

See you at the bar!

Roxie Key

@RoxieAdelleKey

PS. Vic, Simon and a whole host of VNATB readers have released Noir From The Bar, an anthology of crime fiction that's raising a tonne of money for the NHS. Available in paperback and on Kindle, you'd be mad not to. I repeat, mad. 

PPS. My mother's cats were NOT arsed about my big moment. 

An Evening with Cally Taylor, Lucy Foley and Olivia Kiernan

If you saw my recent blog post about the Thriller event at Waterstones Milton Keynes, you can probably take a wild stab at just how excited I was (hint: VERY) when I found out about the Crime and Wine night at Waterstones Oxford, with Cally Taylor, Lucy Foley and Olivia Kiernan, a trio of criminally excellent authors. I'm already a big Cally Taylor fan, and I'm always excited to discover new crime and thriller authors. It's the reason I keep running out of money.

Olivia led the discussion with tonnes of insightful questions for Cally and Lucy, discussing their highly-acclaimed books Sleep and The Hunting Party. I wrote way too many notes to share them all, but here are my highlights.

Both of these books were set in the beautiful but remote Scottish Highlands, and involve the characters being trapped there due to extreme weather. There's something about being trapped somewhere that gives a book that Agatha Christie edge. Nowadays, the challenge is to find a setting with zero phone signal!

When asked what comes first, for Lucy it is the characters, with the setting being the spark that lights the touch paper.
"In the event of heavy snowfall, you may find you aren't able to leave the estate." 
The words that inspired the premise for The Hunting Party. Unintentionally chilling...

And where do ideas typically form? In the shower, apparently. Cally doesn't always plan out the twists straight away, and once added a plot twist during a round of edits... and yes, it came to her in the shower. Writing tip: take lots of showers!

When asked about becoming an "overnight success", Cally says it only took 10 years to achieve that (eek!), and advises it takes 10 books to make a career. I'd like to share with you Cally's bucket list because I think I'll be adding these to my own...

1. Become a Richard and Judy book club read
2. Have posters on the London Underground
3. Release a hardback book

... all of which were achieved in 2019. What a woman!

Here's a little more about these inspiring women.
Cally Taylor is the Sunday Times bestselling author of 6 psychological thrillers including Sleep, which I reviewed here.
Lucy Foley's first crime novel, The Hunting Party, was a Sunday Times bestseller and her second, The Guest List, lands February 2020.
Olivia Kiernan's second novel in her series, The Killer in Me, was published in April (and I cannot wait to read it!).

The Crime and Wine night was well worth the drive from sunny Northampton, and I came away with three gorgeous signed books that I'm having as a little early Christmas present to myself.

Thanks Waterstones for putting on such a great event!

Roxie Key

@RoxieAdelleKey

An Evening with Sarah Pinborough and Louise Jensen

I've loved bookshops since forever. I was that 15-year-old who, when given the opportunity at school to go on work experience, chose Waterstones. I spent two weeks working in my favourite shop and I loved every moment. And anyone who knows me at all would tell you Sarah Pinborough is one of the authors I admire the most, so when I saw Waterstones advertising an evening with Sarah Pinborough and Louise Jensen (who I can just tell will be one of my new favourite authors), no one could have stopped me buying that ticket if they'd tried. No one.

Ask me if I want to spend a couple of hours in a bookshop with two best-selling thriller authors and a glass of wine, and take home a signed book. Go on, ask me. Um, YES. Naturally I was sat in the middle of the front row (how else do you soak up all that awesomeness?). And it. Was. So. Good. And I got another author selfie to add to my collection...

Sarah and Louise covered so much ground, including the difference between a plot twist and a great reveal, how they plan and draft their novels, their differing writing processes, trying not to get caught up in the daily word count battle and the joy of writing in PJs.

They also discussed their best author moments so far. Louise's best moment was when her son said he wanted to be an author just like her (cue us all getting emotional) and Sarah's was when Stephen King (yes, STEPHEN KING!) wrote a rave review of one of her books. I hope I'll get my moment one day when one of these wonderful authors tweets how much they love my book (the dream).

If you want to know a little more about these bloody brilliant authors, Louise has sold over a million books and her thrillers have been published in 25 languages. I've just bought a signed copy of The Family which has fast-tracked its way to the top of my TBR pile, and I will share my thoughts here on the blog soon. Sarah, with over 20 books published in 27 languages, is also a screenwriter with her previous novel Behind Her Eyes (one of my all-time favourite books) is coming out on Netflix next year and I am beyond excited. That's what you call author goals.

Thanks for the inspo, ladies!

I'll be heading over to Waterstones in Oxford to hear from the amazing C. L. Taylor in a couple of weeks. Watch this space!

Roxie Key

@RoxieAdelleKey

Finding your people

Writing. It’s a pretty isolating thing to do, isn’t it? You hole yourself up and block out the world, and then emerge days later, blinking in the sunlight and wondering what the hell happened while you were out cold. Unless you’re very lucky indeed, you probably don’t naturally have an abundance of writers in your life… unless you seek them out. And my god, its fantastic when you do. Not that my brilliant friends and family aren’t enthusiastic about my writing, but I feel guilty if I harp on about it too much. I worry about boring them to tears. When you have writer friends, you will talk about little else for hours on end and it’s fine. It’s great, in fact. They get it.

But how do you meet them? I met my first group of writing friends through workshops. In my little corner of the world, there is a beautiful historical house and gardens called Delapré Abbey (they also have a second hand book shop with an honesty box!). They often hold events, and one particular week last spring, they organised a festival of writing. A festival of writing, right near my home! I attended two sessions with successful authors Menna Van Praag and Sue Bentley. Not only did I get to soak up the wisdom of these wonderful ladies, but I met some brilliant writers, who I have remained friends with. Occasionally we meet for lunch or a coffee, and talk about our writing. We email, and share our writing amongst ourselves. We encourage each other to keep writing. It’s just lovely to know they are there, and they understand.

As you may have read from my most recent blog post, I recently attended my first writing festival. A crime writing festival, to be more specific. I was blown away by the amount of fantastic people I met and plan to stay in touch with. If a writing festival is within your reach, I would encourage you to reach out and grab it with both hands. Introverted like me? Just make one extroverted friend and they will bring the interesting people to you. Or, you know, pretend to be an extrovert (like I need to learn how to do). My summary of the event: Beneath all the panels, book signings and alcohol, there was an underlying sense of togetherness, of excitement and of anticipation. I met so many people, ranging from unpublished authors to international best sellers and I can't say I've ever been in a situation where strangers are so damn nice to each other (although the appropriate amount of piss-taking was duly given and received).

Where else? My latest discovery is Twitter. I have used it sporadically for years, mainly to complain to companies about bad service and to enter competitions, with little success (I won a small tent once). But my view of Twitter changed dramatically when I discovered the #WritingCommunity (or #WritersCommunity). Thousands of other writers, all procrastinating together, is a beautiful thing indeed. Never have I ever seen such a solid community full of encouragement, support, advice and kind words (and funny gifs).  

So I conclude that writers are a pretty awesome breed of human, and you should incorporate as many of them into your life as possible.

Roxie

@RoxieAdelleKey

Capital Crime 2019 - the verdict

Earlier this year, I discovered crime writing festivals are, in actual fact, a thing. This weekend, I discovered how much joy they could bring me. Enter: Capital Crime 2019.

Talk about hitting me between the eyes with line up after jaw-dropping line up. Apologies for briefly switching genres, but never in my life have I needed Hermione's time turner more than I did this weekend. I'll talk briefly about my own personal highlights, but I know from the people I spoke to that thousands of memories have been made in the course of three days.

I arrived on Thursday evening after much internal thought-wrangling and was immediately hit with the same thoughts that pummelled me on my first day of university. "Look at all those witty, clever people. You're nothing like them. Fraud! Leave!" No, thank you. I'm a Remainer in every sense of the word. After wandering around trying to look nonchalant but spectacularly failing, my knights in shining armour appeared in the form of Adam Hamdy and David Headley, who introduced me to a group of fellow authors and suddenly I didn't feel so lost.

The quality of the panels was phenomenal. My personal highlight was sitting on the front row for Truth in Pieces, a panel of bestselling authors including my all-time favourite author and inspiration for my crime writing Jane Casey who I was thrilled to be able to meet in person. Excellent tips were shared and absorbed!

As a woman, a feminist and a lesbian author, two panels I couldn't miss were: Is Crime Fiction a Problem for Feminists? and Changing Times. The former a group of astounding Killer Women including Sarah Hilary, Kate Rhodes, Julia Crouch, Colette McBeth and Amanda Jennings, and the latter discussing writing LGBTQ and ethnic minority characters within fiction, and the lack thereof. Mari Hannah almost reduced me to tears (in the best possible way) and was bloody wonderful to meet afterwards. After such a brilliant conversation, I came out feeling inspired and buzzing.

The most useful panel for me as an author at the beginning of my writing career was the Craft of Writing, with the aforementioned knights in shining armour and Vicki Mellor. I learnt a lot, and despite the scary statistics I left the room feeling fired up and ready to go for it. I will beat the statistics.

One of the things I loved most about Capital Crime was the unexpected infusion of humour. The Interrogation of Mark Billingham by former detective Graham Bartlett had me in stitches and the combined hilarity of Sarah Pinborough, Stuart Turton and Ben Aaronovitch in Fantastic Crime was pure comedy gold.

But beneath all the panels, book signings and alcohol, there was an underlying sense of togetherness, of excitement and of anticipation. I met so many people, ranging from unpublished authors to international best sellers and I can't say I've ever been in a situation where strangers are so damn nice to each other (although the appropriate amount of piss-taking was duly given and received).

I'd heard crime writers are a friendly bunch... I can happily confirm that is true beyond all doubt.

Are you a fellow Capital Criminal- sorry, Crimer? Please comment, I'd love to chat.

Roxie

@RoxieAdelleKey