Interviews with Rhian Davies, Sophie Hannah, David Hewson, Zoë Sharp, Chris Wakling and Jenny Williams

I thought it was time I rounded up my interviews with crime writers (and reviewers), partly for ease of access, partly in preparation for the next batch (see below).

I became a bit bored with some of the bestselling authors and the production of too much “same old”.  I scouted around for new authors to read and found some great talents in both the midlist and the debut camps  Rhian Davies on the joy of new books

A great story is what every novel needs, the sort with twists and turns that make readers’ hair stand on end, stories with intriguing beginnings and surprising endings. If I feel an author cares less about story than about making a socio-political point, I’m afraid my first reaction is ‘Please bog off with your worthy agenda’  Sophie Hannah tells it like it is

TV has a visceral immediacy and the ability to mix the visual, the auditory and the dramatic in a way that can root you to the spot. Books are more subtle it seems to me, and ultimately more memorable  David Hewson on novelising The Killing

I do enjoy putting Charlie in tricky situations. Someone once described it as putting your character up a tree and throwing rocks at them, and that’s what I do. I love to play with preconceptions  Zoë Sharp shoots from the hip

Mist and cobbles. It’s surprisingly tempting to throw them into scenes set in the past  Chris Wakling warns of the perils for historical novelists

I thought I’d learnt most of the key points of surveillance – it was raining and without thinking I turned up in a bright red mac. My training officer was not impressed  Jenny Williams on the difference between fictional cops and the real thing

Future interviews include Neil Cross (Luther creator), Emlyn Rees (author and editor of Exhibit A), Katy Wild (editorial director of Titan Books) and Richard Fee (series editor, Scott and Bailey, Exiles, Hit and Miss). Watch this space...

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Pangea blog tour over at Women Rule Writer

I'm interviewed about my stories in Pangea by the lovely Nuala Ní Chonchúir today, over here. I've been a fan of Nuala's writing for yonks, and talked about her novel, You, here on Crawl Space when it first came out. Her latest collection, Mother America, has just been published and is picking up rave reviews both side of the pond. Thanks, Nuala, for hosting this latest leg of the Pangea tour!

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The Coward's Tale on Not the Booker longlist

I've blogged before about the debt I owe to Vanessa Gebbie, a terrific writer and a generous friend. In 2008, when we'd really only just met, she persuaded me to travel to West Cork for the Fish anthology launch, providing transport and her companionship. One of the most memorable trips of my writing life, and I loved every minute of it. She subsequently invited me to join her online writing group, where I learnt a tremendous amount, and never stinted in her encouragement - of me and other aspiring writers. When I signed with Jane Gregory, she was one of the first to cheer (and she blogged about it).

In November 2011, Vanessa's tender and original novel, The Coward's Tale, was published by Bloomsbury. Since then, it's been named Novel of the Year by AN Wilson in the Financial Times, published in paperback and in the US. Now it's up for the Guardian's Not the Booker prize, which is designed to celebrate the many great novels that miss out on the Booker.

If, like me, you've read and enjoyed The Coward's Tale, you'll want to dash over there and vote for Vanessa to be on the shortlist, which will be announced next week. To vote, you will need to register (free) with the Guardian and be signed in to your account there. Then you need to post a 100 word review here (where you can also buy the book, if you haven't already) and link to it on the voting page. Let's get Vanessa on the shortlist!

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