‘I wanted to write a suburban Reacher’: Richard Osman talks to Lee Child about class, success and the secret to great crime writing

The two bestselling authors who both started in TV discuss writing as a second career, natural justice – and what they really think of literary fictionIn the four years since Richard Osman published his first Thursday Murder Club novel he has consistently topped the bestseller lists, and now his quartet of retirement-age detectives will be portrayed on screen by a cast including Helen Mirren and Pierce Brosnan. Having grown up in Sussex, Osman started out in TV, where he created and co-hosted the gameshow Pointless. His forthcoming novel We Solve Murders – the start of a new series – features a writer billed as the world’s bestselling novelist, “if you don’t count Lee Child”. Child, the creator of former military police officer Jack Reacher, has enjoyed phenomenal popularity since he left his career – also in TV, where he worked on shows including Brideshead Revisited, The Jewel in the Crown and Cracker – and started writing, with his first novel published in 1997. Raised in Birmingham, he moved to the US in 1998 and now lives between Manhattan and rural Wyoming. He wrote 24 Reacher novels before announcing in 2020 that he would be handing the series to his brother Andrew.Lee Child I feel that writing is always a second-phase career, or at least should be. It’s that rare thing that not only can you do it when you’re older, but you should do it when you’re older. Pick your cliche: your gas tank is full, your database is compiled. You are a person. You are ready to write.... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2024-09-14 09:00:23 UTC ]

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Center for Fiction Names 2019 First Novel Prize Longlist

The Center for Fiction announced its 2019 First Novel Prize Longlist yesterday. The award is given to the “best debut novel published between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31 of the award year,” and the prize-winning author receives $10,000. Here is the 2019 longlist (featuring many titles from our 2019 Book... Continue reading at The Millions

[ The Millions | 2019-07-25 17:22:45 UTC ]
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Here’s the Center for Fiction’s 2019 First Novel Prize longlist.

The Center for Fiction just announced the longlist for this year’s best debut novel. The shortlist will be announced in September and the winner will be announced in December at The Center for Fiction’s Annual Benefit and Awards Dinner at its new, spacious, happening location in Brooklyn.... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2019-07-25 16:41:15 UTC ]
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Girl, Haunted

A drowning haunts Susan Steinberg’s dark first novel about teenagers’ summer adventures. Continue reading at The Atlantic

[ The Atlantic | 2019-07-23 10:00:00 UTC ]
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Dolly Alderton's first novel goes to Fig Tree

Fig Tree will publish journalist and author Dolly Alderton’s debut novel, Ghosts, about a food writer with a dedicated online following whose personal life is falling apart. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2019-07-10 16:29:40 UTC ]
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The New National Literature of Canada Is Being Written by Women

As an American-born literature scholar and writer who became a permanent resident of Canada last year, I’ve spent a lot of time recently wondering how to differentiate between American literature and Canadian literature. Growing up in the 1980s, I saw these two nations as not just contiguous but... Continue reading at Electric Literature

[ Electric Literature | 2019-07-10 11:00:48 UTC ]
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Tochi Onyebuchi Recommends African Visions of the Future by Women and Nonbinary Authors

Tochi Onyebuchi’s young adult books, the duology Beasts Made of Night and Crown of Thunder, are fantasy novels with a Nigeria-influenced setting. His upcoming War Girls is set in a post-nuclear, post-climate change Nigeria of 2172. Riot Baby, his first novel for adults (also forthcoming), is a... Continue reading at Electric Literature

[ Electric Literature | 2019-07-04 11:00:10 UTC ]
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Judith Krantz, Whose Tales of Sex and Shopping Sold Millions, Dies at 91

She published her first novel at 50, and her heroines were invariably rich, savvy, ambitious and preternaturally beautiful. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2019-06-24 20:37:23 UTC ]
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Looking Back, Moving Forward: ReShonda Tate Billingsley Reflects on Her 50 Novels

As she celebrates a series of career milestones—which coincide with the 20th anniversary of her publisher, Dafina Books—the author starts a new chapter by revisiting classic characters in the long-awaited sequel to her first novel, My Brother’s Keeper. (Sponsored) Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2019-06-24 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Why nonfiction books dominate bestseller lists in South Africa

Political books touches a certain chord in South African society that makes them bestsellers. Continue reading at The Conversation

[ The Conversation | 2019-04-24 13:50:30 UTC ]
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What We're Reading – April 2019

Her Body and Other Parties, by Carmen Maria Machado I've absolutely loved this collection of short stories, which floats between the weird and the queer, passing horror, black comedy and feminism along the way. Doubles and others are especially important: a wife enters her wife’s dream when they... Continue reading at British Council global

[ British Council global | 2019-04-11 08:49:28 UTC ]
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Scholastic to publish Wonky Donkey sequel

Scholastic will this autumn publish a new picture book by the creators of The Wonky Donkey, which hit the bestseller lists after a video of a Scottish grandmother reading the book went viral. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2019-04-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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China Bestsellers for February: ‘Paid-For Content’ in the Chinese Market

Movie-driven science fiction tops China's bestseller lists in February, and we have news on the fast rise of 'paid-for content' in China. The post China Bestsellers for February: ‘Paid-For Content’ in the Chinese Market appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2019-03-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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New Thrillers Crown European Charts

New thrillers from well-known authors topped the bestseller lists across Europe in late October. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2018-11-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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After his death, John McCain's last book climbs bestseller lists

John McCain's book “The Restless Wave” appeared on bestseller lists following the Arizona senator's death on Saturday. The book, which was released in May by Simon & Schuster, was ranked No. 2 on Amazon's list of bestselling books, and No. 3 on the Barnes & Noble website as of Monday... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2018-08-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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China’s Book Market in the First Half of 2018: Slower Growth, Rising Prices

As book prices rise and children's books show new energy, the number of new titles on China's bestseller lists has decreased, with older hits lingering on sales charts. The post China’s Book Market in the First Half of 2018: Slower Growth, Rising Prices appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2018-08-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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How the ‘brainy’ book became a publishing phenomenon

These uncertain times have seen a renewed interest in serious nonfiction, as people try to make sense of an unstable world• The best ‘brainy’ books of the last 10 yearsThis is a story about a book that just kept selling, catching publishers, booksellers and even its author off guard. In seeking... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2018-07-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Fiction sales lead Ireland’s domestic market to recovery

Ireland’s Nielsen-measured market has enjoyed strong, UK-beating growth this year to date, with a grass-roots author campaign propelling the late Emma Hannigan to the top of the bestseller lists. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2018-07-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Industry Notes: Politics Power Print, Says NPD: Category Soars 32 Percent

Teaser text Image By Porter Anderson, Editor-in-Chief | @Porter_Anderson subhed f you’ve spent any time lately thinking that the political nightmares of the day surely have been good for some book sales–you take your silver linings where you can find them, right?–a new report from the NPD... Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2018-06-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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This Week's Bestsellers: June 18, 2018

Bill Clinton and James Patterson have the #1 book in the country with 'The President Is Missing' and more in our analysis of this week's bestseller lists. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2018-06-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Telegraph Media Group reveals 35% gender pay gap

Pay gap is the biggest of any UK media organisation to have reported official figures to dateWomen working at Telegraph Media Group (TMG) get paid 35% less than men on average, the biggest gender pay gap of any UK newspaper publisher or broadcaster to have reported official figures to date.Nick... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2018-03-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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