HOWZAT

SATURDAY

Plenty of fans are up early to see Jeffery Deaver give a solo presentation. Jeffery makes a diary whilst writing his novels and chose to read parts of this out, giving an intimate insight into his creative process. Quietly observant and witty, he tells of that common experience of setting down to work and then immediately remembering that something else needs doing- any excuse, in fact, not to have to sit there and actually write. I know that feeling all too well. I suspect plenty of other writers in the room do too.

It also becomes clear as the weekend progresses the very different way that we writers set about producing our books. In one corner you have the ‘Deavers’ who write a long extended outline and know exactly where they are going with unsettling conviction. In the other, you have the ‘Robinsons’ and the ‘Gerritsens’ who take an exciting premise and dive straight in, letting the characters speak for themselves. All this gives me a rather troubling reminder that I’m only a third way through writing my new novel, Target, and rather than ponder on that any longer I go up to my room to do some work, only to promptly fall asleep. Chairing the biggest crime festival in Europe can be hard work.

One of the most eagerly awaited panel discussions is ‘Bloody Women’. Stuart MacBride expertly referees an animated panel including such stalwarts as Val McDermid and Mark Billingham. The question is ‘Who writes the more violent crime, men or women?’ I’m not sure we get an answer, but the journey to not getting an answer is a lively one. MacBride finally poses the question “So what’s the argument going to be next year? Big vs small?” The responses to this from the other panelists are frankly unprintable, but if we do end up with a panel on this subject, I’ll certainly attend.

In the evening we host special guest Andy McNab, who’s interviewed by Laura Wilson. I meet Andy beforehand in the Green Room and am mildly surprised to find he doesn’t have a blacked-out face. He’s a great talker, though, and, thanks to Laura’s expert prompting, and plenty of questions from the audience, we get a fascinating insight, not only into his background and his books, but also his views on our current military involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan.

After Andy’s talk, Laura and I host the hugely popular pub quiz, a raucous affair where pretty much everyone at the festival- writers and readers alike- form teams and take part. It’s not easy keeping order in a room of four hundred people where the drinks are flowing, but somehow we manage it and, amidst congratulatory cries of ‘cheats’ and ‘fix’, a team containing Mark Lawson, Mark Billingham and Robert Crais, wins the coveted cup.

SUNDAY

The star of Sunday’s schedule is bestselling American crime writer, Tess Gerritsen, who gives a highly entertaining talk about the doors that opened to her as a result of the research she does for her novels. These include exclusive access to the Johnson Space Centre, and an invitation to attend the CT scanning of an Egyptian mummy, which is where she got the inspiration for her next Maura Isles novel, Keeping the Dead. What, Tess thought, if the scanning of an ancient mummy revealed the corpse to be a modern victim? It’s an exciting premise, and, judging by their reaction, the audience think so too. I get the feeling Tess is going to get quite a few advance orders on Amazon.

And now it’s over, having gone all too fast. I’m getting some really positive feedback from the attendees, though, and it seems everyone enjoyed themselves. Ticket sales were up, international attendance was up, and the organisers and I give a sigh of relief. Programming this year’s festival has been like being asked who you’d invite to your fantasy dinner party. A rush of names flood your head and then you suddenly realise they might actually come. It’s a real honour that so many of those I asked did, and that when they arrived, they performed such a great job of entertaining the audiences who attended their panels.

And so for now, happy and tired, I drive back down the M1, and back to the day job, and the next two thirds of Target.

Explore Books

• Book Extracts

• Book Reviews

• Books Group

• Audio Books

Times Recommends

• The 100 Best Books of the Decade
• The Times picks the 50 best paperbacks of 2009
• The conversation: James Ellroy