Scottish crime authors open new chapter in India…
By Kirsteen Paterson @kapaterson
KILLER writers are heading for India to sell “tartan noir” to a new audience.
Major names in crime fiction will launch a “thrilling” anthology of “dark Scottish tales” at the Kolkata Literary Festival (KLF) next month.
Celebrated author Val McDermid, Man Booker Prize nominee Graeme Macrae Burnet and bestseller Abir Mukherjee will travel to the city – which has a population almost as big as Scotland’s – for the event.
The collection, titled Bloody Scotland after the annual crime fiction festival held in Stirling, features 12 stories from authors including Ann Cleeves, Denise Mina and Lin Anderson and comes as the literary event seeks to increase the reach of Scottish novelists.
It will also be published in America, with Kolkata-based literature house BEE Books handling the Indian release.
The firm has also set up deals to publish two works by Macrae Burnet – The Disappearance of Adele Bedeau and The Accident on the A35.
The Glasgow-based author said: “I’m completely thrilled to be travelling to Kolkata for the first time, particularly in the company of two such renowned writers as Val and Abir.
“It promises to be a very exciting and enlightening trip. And I’m particularly pleased that through the partnership with BEE Books, two of my novels will be made available to local audiences at an affordable price.”
The move is part of a project supported by the British Council
to “grow the global reach” of Scottish literature and follows previous work to introduce more readers to classic crime fiction.
Jenny Brown, chair of Bloody Scotland, said: “We’re delighted to be working with BEE Books on this innovative partnership to introduce Indian readers to Scottish crime fiction by bringing writers to the Kolkata Literary Festival, and by making their work more accessible in Indian-published editions.
“We know from our visit to KLF last year that there is a huge appetite for Scottish classics including the Sherlock Holmes mysteries and Strange Case of Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde.
“Now we want readers to try contemporary writing.”
