Critical Mick

August 2010: Mountains to Sea Book Festival in September 2010

Mountains to Sea Lit Fest. Want to meet Eoin McNamee, Stuart Neville, Declan Hughes, Patrick McCabe, Roddy Doyle, Benny Blanco, Claire Kilroy, Kevin Stevens, DBC Pierre, Kate Atkinson and Hugo "Huggy Bear" Hamilton? Your chance is coming up 7-12 September in Dún Laoghaire. Highly Recommended for all Irish Crime Fic Fans!

May 2010: New Interview!

Like Test-Driving your Imagination Jim Kelly, author of Death Watch, on the blessing of having a strange mind, on whether people really wake up in a hotel bath full of ice with a banging hangover and a kidney missing, on the cabbie with a prostitute in the car boot, on what's next for his series, on which of his detectives he finds easiest to write, on garlic, coffee, and the runner beans that guests should avoid like death.

April 2010: Mark Your Calendars!

Paul Garrigan: Last Escape author Paul Garrigan has travelled form Thailand to Dublin to launch his new book, and to ask "Does Wat Thamkrabok Offer a Wonder Cure for Addiction?" Find out at the Irish Writer's Centre on Parnell Square; Tuesday May 4th at 7 PM.

Declan Hughes & Alan Glynn: Two of Ireland’s leading exponents of noir crime writing read from their latest novels. County Hall, Marine Road, Dun Laoghaire; Wednesday, May 12th 2010, at 7.30pm. Tickets €5 from Pavilion Box Office. Call (01) 2312929.

March 2010: New Interview!

Let Go and Share John Burdett, author of The Godfather of Kathmandu discusses pop-eyed aggressive giant maniacs in top hats, prescribes a means for developing the most honest police force in Southeast Asia, describes why Mario Puzo is a personal hero and lets Mick know what's even better than good sex.

January 2010: New Interview!

Interesting Times Ahead Winner of the award (Best Book Mick Read) in 2009 for The Twelve / The Ghosts of Belfast, Stuart Neville tells Mick what skills are vital, what he does to think, the importance of new online media outlets, about his famous hands and the recent Invasion of Northern Ireland.

December 2009: Tis the Fa La La La Laing Season

Merry Christmas, everyone! Many thanks for the fun and friendship in 2009, and may 2010 be a great year for all!

November 2009: New Interview!

The Gut-Bucket Blues Question roundup time! Mick grills Edgar winner C.J. Box on the source of his new novel Three Weeks to Say Goodbye, on the hunting tradition in America's Mountain West, on writing novels without Wyoming game warden Joe Pickett, and on what one can do after jumping off a cliff. Plus, what sorry fate awaits Stetson hats that visit Ireland.

October 2009: New Interview!

Like Guinness, Only Darker Critical Mick and The Dark Place author Sam Millar discuss why Millar's places are darker than most, how he writes his crime fiction, Brendan Behan, Brian Moore and the great James M. Cain, plus, How to Speak Belfast-ese.

September 2009: Two New Interviews!

1! Paul Charles, author of Family Life, sets Mick straight on the music industry, on why he created the Inspector Starrett series based in Ireland when he had a perfectly well-respected DI Christy Kennedy one going in London, on writing music vs. fiction, on the favorite three lines he has ever written and on a detail he almost used in his latest novel.

2! "The new Michael Crichton," Karen Dionne, on the top five writing lessons she learned from the original MC, on how her debut novel Freezing Point was completed, on Backspace, on a Chilean volcano, and on whether some marketing drone at Berkley / Penguin should be fed to a carnivorous rat.

Critical Mick's Charity Auction 2009

In the past four years of unruly reviewing and author interviewing, Mick has collected a groaning bookshelf of Irish fiction and non-fiction titles signed by their authors. Starting with six well-known works, these will be auctioned into the hands of fellow book fans in March 2009, all in aid of The Alzheimer Society of Ireland.

February 2009: New Interview!

Writing at the Extremes. Susan DiPlacido, author of American Cool and 24/7, on New Jersey, Las Vegas, what that same personality would do in different situations, and boob jobs.

December 2008: New Interview!

Words that Skinny Dip. Geraldine McMenamin, author of The Same Cloth sets Mick straight on identity, truth and betrayal. on the Oscar Wilde Centre at Trinity College, and on reading gravestone epitaths and shunning works of literary genius. Also! The coolest former occupation of any writer ever interviewed.

November 2008: New Interview!

Playing Along. RJ McDonnell, author of Rock & Roll Homicide jams with Critical Mick on "The Irish Mafia," The Dufus Detective, the escape tunnel and the seventeen sub-genres of HEAVY METAL.

October 2008: New Interview!

Writing with Honesty and Humility. Critical Mick discusses karma and vomiting with Irish Ex-Pat Paul Garrigan, author of Last Escape: Recovering from Addiction at Wat Thamkrabok.

September 2008: New Interview!

Evil stuff, hunh?. Hunting the King author Peter Clenott on the tomb of Jesus, the failings of Dan Brown, the years of rejection slips, and Anne Hathaway.

6 September 2008: Forty Shades of Grey: Real Fiction, Real Ireland

A panel discussion with Gene Kerrigan, Ruth Dudley Edwards, Brian McGilloway, Arlene Hunt, and Declan Burke. Moderator Mick Halpin! See www.bookevents.ie for tickets and full details.

June 2008: The Writing Show's 2008 First Chapter of a Novel Contest!

First prize $1000, another $1000 in additional prizes awarded. Entry fee $32, deadline 20 June. See writingshow.com for full details!

May 2008: (Three Years of Reviews Free of Rules!) New interview:

Tale Spinner. Fourtold author Michael Stone on the construction of his first book, the importance of online communities, his fantasies of a Honda Fireblade, and that red-skinned guy with the horns and cloven hooves.

April 2008: Two New Interviews!

What the Butler Never Saw. The Cat Trap author K.T. McCaffrey tells Critical Mick secrets about a woman trapped within police tape, about why writing each installment of a series does not get easier, about fear of Tarantino and a story he will never write.

The Difference is Devotion. Possession, Obsession and a Diesel Compression Engine author Gerard Brennan on what sets Northern Irish crime fiction apart, on horror versus chick-lit, and how a writing career began with getting beat up in a pub in Wexford.

March 2008: New Northern Irish Crime Fic Site

NI author Gerard Brennan's new site about criminal activity, post-Troubles, Up Da North.

February 2008: Two Yokes!

Proving There Are No Limits: Laura Lippman Interview

The Last Place author Laura Lippman sets Critical Mick straight on the real advantage of not having a day job, on identity theft, on why she writes (kick ass!) crime fiction, and what it is NOT a normal smell for Baltimore.

Best Book Read in

The winner is announced, plus the year in unruly review...

December 2007: Fr. Walter Macken Jr Interview

A Writer's Legacy: Walter Macken

To mark the 40th anniversary of Walter Macken's death, the son of Ireland's most popular historical novelist discusses his father's life and legacy, motivations and methods. Interview with Rafael Guzman for The Writing Show.

December 2007: R. Scott Taylor Interview

Go With Your Imagination.

Stingy Jack author R. Scott Taylor hands down the coconuts on New Orleans, new novels, booze and thieving. Also mentioned: book marketing, diplomatic immunity, legends, lawyers and sheep droppings.

Many Thanks!

Cheers to all who have used Critical Mick's amazon.com link to make their purchases in 2007! My stocking don't need no more stuffing. Send a present to the third world instead via Concern.

November 2007: It's Very Quiet Around Here

Congrats to Sarah Maurer, Gustavo Florentin and Lewis Reade, winners of The Writing Show's 2007 contest!

Mick is still devoting time to a personal project.

New reviews of about ten books soon.

HEY!! Support for a Good Cause II

The Christmas season is coming. Send a present to the third world via Concern.

September 2007: Philip Henry Interview

The Bastard Child of Stephen King and Douglas Adams.

Critical Mick quizzes Mind's Eye author Philip Henry on monsters, Booker Prize winners, John Hughes movies and surviving high school in Portstewart, Northern Ireland.

HEY!! Support for a Good Cause

The long-awaited Do the 'Write' Thing anthology of new Irish fiction is now available. It contains work by Kate Dempsey, so it should be good! All royalties support the National Breast Cancer Research Institute.

Picture of Mick's to-read stack updated, September 2007!

August 2007: Check These Out, Online and In-Person...

Detectives Beyond Borders does for the best of worldwide crime fiction what Crime Always Pays does for Irish. Why? "Because Murder Is More Fun Away From Home"

Chulrua, the Irish Trad band featuring crime novelist Erin Hart's husband Paddy O'Brien, amazed all in The Cobblestone on Monday, August 20. Come one! Come all!
[said the original news item... Irish crime writers Erin Hart and Declan Burke did just that. That evening there resounded was much sinister chuckling, and the normal kind too... ]

June 2007: New! THREE Interviews!

An Alluring Sort of Freedom. The Machine Man Letters author Monte Davis on identity, aspirations, inspirations, determination. Swimps and villains, journeys of fear, love, and self-actualization. Rush! Oh, and mimes.

Because It's Huge Fun. The Big O author Declan Burke on 30-something gals who can't get married and like to rob banks, calls out the blue, writing thrillers, indie publishing and trading karate kicks with Westlife.

Where the Bodies are Buried. Murder Off the Books author Eveyln David on long-distance collaboration, promoting a first novel, Irish wolfhounds, and that Santa Claus suit beside the coffin display.

May 2007: Hurrah! Two Years of Critical Mick!

125 webpages of hard work, and then along comes a last-minute gurrier who does it all better.

For author interviews, reviews, information, gossip and all great things related to Irish Crime, check out Crime Always Pays at http://crimealwayspays.blogspot.com. Declan Burke, who runs the site, is author of a quality tome balancing atop my nightstand. If his novel is written with the same humor as his blog, it'll be a cracker.

April 2007: New Writing Show Interview

This Ain't Written Like The Hardy Boys. Mick chats with Chion author Darryl Sloan about his novels, the do-it-yourself approach to filmmaking and publishing, and zombies!

Writing Contest Makes Every Entrant a Winner with a 750-word Critique! April, '07

First prize for this "best first chapter of an unpublished novel" competition is $500, the two-volume print version of Literary Market Place, and an interview on the popular podcast The Writing Show. Two second prizes comprise $100 each.
Rules, instructions for entering, and more detail can be found on The Writing Show Web site.

March 2007: Two New Interviews!

Committing Oneself to Writing. One Hand Screaming author Mark Leslie.
Uncommon and Great. Critical Mick's interview with The Editors of Greatest Uncommon Denominator Magazine.

February 2007: The Mac Daddy.

Check out the newly-launched www.waltermacken.com.

January 2007: Thrillsville

Happy New Year! As promised, the winner of the Critical Mick Best Book Read in 2006 has been announced. The literary world can now officially stop holding its breath.

December 2006: A Villain Named After Mick!

YES!! The incredible Michael Stone has named a villain after me in his short story "Speaking in Forked Tongues", available now (free!) in Issue 2 of the the exciting new webzine Down in the Cellar. To be a literary villain has been my heart's eighth fondest wish for many years.

October 2006: criticalmick.com finally updated

Please offer an unruly welcome to Conor Michael Halpin, born 23 September!
"Get ready for BIG changes, Mick-o!" promises the new Junior Editor.

September 2006: Irish Crime

Though criticalmick.com has reviewed History, Guidebooks, Poetry, Booker prize winners, literary events and even Romance, the site's focus remains "Mainly Irish fiction. Mainly crime." A new page on Irish Crime collects all crime crits with an Irish connection in one handy place, plus brand-new essays on real crime, true crime, and Irish crime cinema. Visit Irish Crime.

July 2006: Excerpt from December's Children

Michael Loyd Gray, author of the Best'06-nominated Confederate Nation: Special Appearance by Elvis Presley, presents criticalmick.com with an exclusive excerpt from his forthcoming novel December's Children.

March 2006: John MacKenna Interview Posted

In association with writingshow.com, Mick interviews poet/novelist/journalist/biographer John MacKenna

January 2006: The Critical Mick Interviews

Mick speaks with Kevin Stevens in the first of a new series of Author Interviews