Tuesday, October 23, 2007

“Ya Wanna Do It Here Or Down The Station, Punk?” # 694: Mia Gallagher

Yep, it’s rubber-hose time, folks: a rapid-fire Q&A for those shifty-looking usual suspects ...
What crime novel would you most like to have written?
THE LONG GOODBYE by Raymond Chandler.
Who do you read for guilty pleasures?
John Connolly, John Grisham, Jonathan Kellerman, Lee Child, Patricia Cornwell, Minette Walters, The Preacher graphic novels, any graphic novel by Neil Gaiman, Robert Jordan (fantasy), Marian Keyes.
Most satisfying writing moment?
Reaching the end of a chapter when it’s finally right.
The best Irish crime novel is …?
Tough question, there are so many good ones. I recently read Declan Hughes’ THE WRONG KIND OF BLOOD and loved it. Very Ed McBain. Claire Kilroy’s TENDERWIRE is also brilliant; not strictly genre crime, but a wonderful tale of suspense and loss. And Cormac Millar’s AN IRISH SOLUTION featured a bad boy villain who I fell completely in love with.
What Irish crime novel would make a great movie?
I'd love to see Declan Hughes’ psychopath Podge in the flesh. The Irish actor Owen Roe would play him really well if he squeaked up his voice. If Hollywood did it they could cast Joe Pesci.
Worst / best thing about being a writer?
Not being able to write / writing.
The pitch for your next novel is …?
Still working on it. Something about war, guilt, shame and families.
Who are you reading right now?
A sci-fi writer called Stephen Baxter. His book EVOLUTION is a fictional journey through major evolutionary periods in the earth’s history. Incredible and surprisingly readable. Like a mixture of Meercat Manor and The Sopranos.
The three best words to describe your own writing are …?
Playful. Visceral. Edgy.

Mia Gallagher’s HELLFIRE is available in all good bookshops.

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Declan Burke has published a number of novels, the most recent of which is ABSOLUTE ZERO COOL. As a journalist and critic, he writes and broadcasts on books and film for a variety of media outlets, including the Irish Times, RTE, the Irish Examiner and the Sunday Independent. He has an unfortunate habit of speaking about himself in the third person. All views expressed here are his own and are very likely to be contrary.