Mr Dickens and Me, by J C BriggsClaire Tomalin observed that: ‘everyone finds their own version of Charles Dickens.’ Mine is Detective Dickens, the amateur sleuth who teams up with the Superintendent from Bow Street to investigate...
Why reviews are so important (although not for the reasons you might think), by Dougie BrimsonOver the last decade, it cannot have escaped your attention that ebooks have changed the world of publishing significantly. This is especially true for mid-list authors such as myself. No longer alway...
Dagger Winners Announced OnlineCWA Dagger Awards 2020 Winners Announced – Michael Robotham, Lou Berney, Trevor Wood, Casey Cep, and Abir Mukherjee win 2020 CWA Dagger awards. The winners of the 2020 CWA Daggers, which honour the ve...
Location, location, location by Candy DenmanWhen I was working on the long-running drama series, Heartbeat, we were often told that the biggest character we wrote for was the setting. How true that was. Whenever I tell people that I used to be...
Research – So Much More Than Just The Facts, by Jay FormanI did more research for No Return than I’ve ever had to do before for a book. I knew it wasn’t going to be easy. What I didn’t know was how ignorant I was. The basic spark of an idea for the story was...
‘To F or not to F… that is the question’ by David JewellSo it’s finally out and in print. Death Rattle. The debut novel of a new and nervous crime writing author. So what happens now? Well… Next come the reviews. I begin to feel like the writer of a new p...
‘Battling with the Muse’ by Diane M. DicksonI believe in The Muse. I am one hundred per cent convinced that there is a magic force that guides artistic endeavour. For interest mine is female, taller than me with longer, curlier, blonder hair, f...
‘Doing the homework’ by Andrew BibbyYou mean, you do research for your novels? I understand very well why some readers may pose this question. Non-fiction books, fairly obviously, need to be carefully researched. Nobody, I’m sure, woul...
A new short story anthology with a difference celebrates short stories from the archives of the Crime Writers’ Association (CWA). Vintage Crime gathers gems from the mid 1950s, when the CWA began, unt...
Battling with the Muse, by Diane M DicksonI believe in The Muse. I am one hundred per cent convinced that there is a magic force that guides artistic endeavour. For interest mine is female, taller than me with longer, curlier, blonder hair, f...
Author in Lockdown: Merryn AllinghamPlease tell us a little about yourself and the books you write. I currently write what might be called traditional crime. It’s historical—the Tremayne Mysteries Series is set in the 1950s—and I have a...
We are Spartacus: the Publishing Industry and Race, by Vaseem KhanAs one of only a handful of non-white authors on the British crime fiction map, I thought it might be worthwhile spending a moment reflecting on the worldwide rebalancing touched off by the George Flo...
Location, Location, Location by Graham MinettJust recently I read CJ Carver’s latest (and highly enjoyable) thriller The Snow Thief, which is set in Tibet. On the sleeve of the book was a note to the effect that she had been inspired to write th...
CWA authors contribute to NHS charity anthologyA dozen CWA authors have joined forces with Newcastle-Upon-Tyne based literary group, Noir at the Bar, to publish a collection of short, fictional crime stories to raise funds for NHS Charities Togeth...
The Pleasure of Rereading, by Sheila MitchellH.R.F. Keating was one of the great pillars of British crime writing in the twentieth century; he was a crime fiction critic for decades, President of the Detection Club, Chairman of the CWA, Fellow o...
Lemonade, With A Cherry On Top , by Cathy Ace(Or, How Lockdown Celebrations Can Be “Fun”!) 2020 was always going to be a Big Year for me. I was going to celebrate my 60th birthday in style: husband and I would relax on a cruise around the Caribb...
Book Clubs and Covid-19, by Andy GriffeeTiller Thriller author Andy Griffee describes a close encounter with a book club. In the year BC (Before Coronavirus) a neighbour ambushed me at our farm shop. Would I join her and her lady friends at...
Golden Inspiration, by Victoria DowdThe so-called cosy mystery is a staple of crime fiction. From Agatha Christie to M.C. Beaton, we can’t get enough of village life with the occasional body thrown in. For me, the Golden Age shone with...
The 2020 CWA Diamond Dagger Winner InterviewAward-winning historical novelist Andrew Taylor, holder of the Diamond Dagger himself in 2009, interviews the CWA’s Diamond Dagger in 2020: renowned editor, versatile writer of fiction and non-fiction...
What Did You Do in the Crisis, Detective? – by Jason MonaghanI’m currently writing a novel set in the 1930s. An immediate question in creating a character is ‘what did they do in the Great War?’ A man over the age of 30 would have seen military service or have...
Joining the CRA is FREE. There are no lengthy forms to fill out and we need nothing but your email. You will receive a regular newsletter but no spam.
The CRA Newsletter: August 2020
Case Files 45
The CRA Newsletter: July 2020