- This is what the blurb for my first book will say:
- Claire McGowan grew up in a small village in Northern Ireland. After a degree in English and French from Oxford University she moved to London and worked in the charity sector. She is currently the Director of the Crime Writers’ Association. THE FALL is her first novel.
- I think that makes me sound either like the kind of country-bumpkin rube who’d drink from the fingerbowl in 80s restaurants, or a charmingly fresh ingenue to the literary scene. Take your pick.
- I was indeed born in a small village in Ireland, at the tail-end of 1981, which means I’m 31 this year (still get IDed in pubs though) (or older if I forget to update this bit and you’re reading in the future). After spells in exciting places like France, Oxford, China, and Kentish Town, I now live in Tunbridge Wells where I try to pretend I’m not midde-class by laughing at the middle-class things I overhear and putting them on Twitter.
- I’m represented by Oliver Munson at Blake Friedmann. My first book THE FALL was published by Headline Books in 2012 and The Lost is out in April 2013. Please drop me a line on here or on Twitter – like many writers, I’ll do anything for a distraction. And I always write back!
You can get signed first edition hardbacks of my books from No Alibis in Belfast and Goldsboro Books in London.
Hi Claire,
It was great to meet you yesterday at the lunch.My wife was very interested to hear about Peter James and the Brighton connection, and also your forthcoming book – she likes crime fiction with a different twist!
Fascinating to meet so many writers in different genres – a real experience for me who has spent so much time mixing only with lawyers.
Wishing you great success with both books!
Robert Seymour (Charles Courtley is a pen-name).
Hi Claire,
I know your mum through work. She told me about your book. I shall be buying it. Best of Luck with the book. regards sanjeev
Dear Claire,
So dreams really do come true?!
I was delighted to hear on the grapevine that your first book, The Fall, is due to be published early next year. I remember a very dedicated and determined young writer who couldn’t leave a good book down!
As for country-bumpkin rube versus charmingly fresh ingenue: it is a tough one. I would have to say ‘charmingly fresh ingenue from a country-bumpkin village that never had an 80s restaurant’!
Can’t wait for my copy to arrive!
Bronagh
Hi! Lovely to hear from you. Yes, sometimes you do get to be what you wanted to be when you grew up, aged ten! Thanks for ordering, I hope you enjoy.
Hi Claire
I’m a close friend of Rob Naylor’s. He’s been enthusing about you today. Just wanted to wish you well for The Fall, I’m really looking forward to it.
Thanks Nick!
Hi Claire
Congratulations on the book’s publication from the Lough book club. Two copies ordered already by members – will past the news on to the others this Thursday. My daughter tells me word is already spreading around Sacred Heart about it We are all so excited to be connected. Wishing you every success
Maeve
Thanks Maeve! That’s great to hear. It should be in Waterstone’s Newry too.
Hi Claire
Emma’s mum here. Best wishes on The Fall. Just ordered it today and really looking forward to the read. I’m so delighted that your dream of writing and having a book published has come true for you. You deserve it so much.
Maeve Cole
Rostrevor
Hi Maeve! Nice to hear from you and thanks. See you soon hopefully.
Any plans for a US edition?
Hi Chris, not at the moment sadly, but it’s always a possibility.
Congrats on THE FALL. Found aout about it from the CAP interview. Best of luck, and I look forward to giving it a read!
Thanks Sean!
Hi Claire – Bronagh Vos (Williamson) sent me a link on the Rostrevor News facebook page, we are doing some promo work free of charge for local businesses and local people in business, so I think your book definitely counts! Could you send me through some info on yourself, the usual stuff so that we can put it up and promote your success and remind people who you are and what you have been upto since you left us to become middle-class (lol)
Thanks
Adele
Hi Adele, thanks so much. I’ll email you tomorrow.
Hi Claire
Congratulations on your first book ‘The Fall’. Have just finished reading it and really enjoyed it. An excellent read with great twists. Looking forward to reading the next one. Keep up the good work, so proud of you.
Hi Claire, Liz nominated The Fall for our book group (Red Deer Readers) and we’ll be discussing it in April. Really looking forward to reading it.
Oops, We’ll be reading The Fall in April and discussing it at our meeting on May 1st. My mistake – apologies if Red Deer Readers saw the date aove and panicked
Hi Claire,
I don’t think we have met since Mark and Margaret’s wedding many, many years ago when you were one of a host of gorgeous flower girls and I was bridesmaid along with your mum – it seems like a lifetime ago. Congratulations on your first novel. I read it on a trip home recently and thoroughly enjoyed it. Well done and I look forward to the next one.
Kind Regards
Helen Langhammer
Lough Book club has fallen for “The Fall” – could’t get anyone to say a bad word about it even in private when your mother couldn’t hear “Brilliant title” “Vivid scenes” “Wonderful characters” “pulled you into a vortex” “accomplished first book” “must have been scary to live with she is so observant” “was that your mother’s quote – “If you don’t know the price of anything you know the value of nothing” (apologies if that is a misquote my husband has taken the book off to read it). Made me cry at the end (and moreso at the dedication) which hasn’t happened in a long time but really want to know do Barbara and Peter bring their own Bran Flakes??? We are all looking forward to the TV version. Any chance of reading the unpublished first novel???
Thank you Maeve (though I suspect they couldn’t be 100% honest!) Really glad you enjoyed it. I’ll very happily send you the first one if you like, send me your email. They don’t bring Bran Flakes but have been known to bring their own coffee and teabags.
It took 10 bus trips back and forth to Edinburgh last week and a Saturday morning to read “The Fall”. Glorious characterisation, detail and more detail. eg “falling out of Kilburn Wetherspoons any day of the week you wanted to walk past”. Will Hegarty come back, we need to be told! Thank You
Hi Doug, thanks for getting in touch, glad you enjoyed it! He won’t be back in the immediate future, but I have some ideas that could see him return another time!
Hi Claire
Just fiinished reading your book which I really enjoyed. Congratulations on your first publication. I hear you are working away on another book. Look forward to reading it.
Aidan Cole
Congratulations on your release! I saw the pictures on Mystery People. You must be well chuffed!
Hello and thank you. I throughly enjoyed your book ‘The Fall which I found myself making time to read during the day. (I tend to only get time to read at bed time.)Fantastic story line, easy to read yet captivating. Your surname first attracted me to your book as it was my maiden name. My family are also from a nice part of Ireland. I wonder it its the same. It is a ver popular name in those neck of the woods. We also have the same hound dog, I hope yours is a little quiter than ours. Anyway, I wish you every success and look forward to reading your next book.
Hi Colette, thank you for getting in touch and really glad you enjoyed it. I’m from Newry though I think the name i is originally from Sligo. Our beagle is very naughty! Thanks again, Claire
Hi Claire,
I’m going to try to make your signing at No Alibis on Saturday. Good luck with that! (I have one there in a month’s time, for my debut novel HARMATTAN.) Best. Gavin Weston
Hope to see you there Gavin!
Hi Claire, I just want to say how much I enjoyed “the Fall” I couldn’t put it down, it was such an insite to how other people have to live, and how privileged some are. It really made me think, I can’t wait for the next book.
Hello Claire, I have just finished “the fall” and absolutely loved every page of it. Found it almost impossible to put down and yes, a couple of tears squeezed out at the end. Can’t wait for your next book!!
Hi Claire! Just finished ‘the fall’ and having withdrawal symptoms. Sad to be leaving the characters behind – they have been part of my life for the last week or so! A terrific read. Not just an original plot well crafted but we get to really care about the characters and understand their complexity.
We lived beside you in Rostrevor and I remember you growing up – you were the same age as our daughter Catherine. Lovely to see what an interesting life you’ve had so far and how much your story draws on experiences from so many other worlds. With parents like yours I’m not surprised.
You clearly love what you do and have a real gift for writing, so I know there’ll be lots more books to enjoy. Thanks for this one
I came across your Writing.ie guest post and new book following a link that Louise Phillips posted at the Irish Crime Fiction Facebook group. I can identify with needing to keep the momentum going and get everything onto the page before allowing distractions to take over. I joined an informal peer review group when I first started writing my M.A. thesis and quickly learned it was more productive to leave and come back to the group for the final editing stage. There are so many great books to read in this genre, but I will be adding The Fall to the top end of my list.
Who can resist bbb\’s (badly behaved beagles)! Our beagle is ten years old and has only mellowed out in the last few years.
Hi Amy, thanks for that. Not good news on the beagle! Mine is only one year old and crazy. Best of luck with your writing!
Hi Claire,
I don’t use twitter, but wanted to take this opportunity to let you know….I ABSOLUTELY LOVED “THE FALL” AND CAN’T WAIT UNTIL YOUR NEW BOOK COMES OUT IN 2013. I loved your book so much, I re-read parts of it to slow down the end of it.
Warm regards,
Bev Begnal
Hi Claire,
During a recent chat about books by local authors, I was told about a book written by the daughter of a former work colleague. I had worked with the your mum some years ago. I love crime writing and your book was so enjoyable,covering many challenging aspects of everyday life! Looking forward to reading your second book. Regards Cathrine Reid.
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Just finished The Fall. couldn’t put it down! Felt you captured the environment exactly as I imagine it to be. Looking forward to your next novel.
Hi Claire, I just wanted to say that I’ve just finished reading ‘The Fall’ and I had to drop you a line and tell you how much I enjoyed reading it. I am very much looking forward to reading your next book! I have struggled for a long time to get my work published as a writer and so I appreciate what you must have gone through to turn your idea into reality.
Wishing you all the best for the future
Sarah Jane
Just read your post on deodorant advertisements on Vagenda. Snorted and giggled all the way through it. Brilliant.
Rattling good story written in a clear, simple language – but only in the way that say, Gray’s “Elegy” is simple language, not clever, clever stylistic bumph. But consider ( and I open a page at random) ” Charlotte shook her head to chase away the ghost of the laughing polished girl, encircled with love”. No need to linger over these images though – the story surges on, wave after wave. The complex thoughts and feelings of the characters made them so real, that afterwards I could not believe they were not still here! I must say that I nearly did not continue with the book after reading the prologue as it sounded a bit too creative-writing-class- grab-your-reader sort of opening. That was the only thing I tripped over and I’m glad I carried on. I was surprised, and delighted, at the ending. Keep writing, Claire, that was just wonderful.
What a great second novel. I can’t remember reading a book that was so intense all the way through. Loved Paula. Can see- as you point out- she will eventually cross one boundary line too far. Nice touch that the boyfriend comes to save Paula, but fails miserably. Can we expect to see Paula again? Will we ever learn what was in the envelope about Paula’s Mother? With a novel so intense, was it hard to step away from at the end of every writing session? Thank you so much for the great read. Kent Schroder
Hi I just read The Fall it is Am Rande des Abgrunds in German. I liked it very much, I read it in two days. I look forward for your second book. I think I will read it in English. there is always something missing in the translation. Kind regards from Germany Annette