Mysteriouser And Mysteriouser ...

All going well - which isn’t always the case for yours truly when it comes to airports - I’ll be in New York as you’re reading this, all sweaty-palmed with excitement at the prospect of wandering along to the Mysterious Bookshop at 6pm, there to join with John Connolly, Arlene Hunt, Declan Hughes, Stuart Neville, Alex Barclay, Colin Bateman and Professor Ian Ross as the quasi-mythical Otto Penzler hosts a coteries of Irish crime writers who may or may not be the first wave of what might prove to be a tsunami of Irish crime writers breaking on US shores. For all the details of what should prove to be a very enjoyable evening indeed, clickety-click here …
  The following day, as I’ve mentioned before, said writers will be joined by their Irish-American peers Pete Hamill and Peter Quinn as John Waters hosts a day-long symposium on the Irish crime novel at Ireland House, NYU. I’ve been looking forward to this one for quite some time now, particularly as it will mark the official launch of DOWN THESE GREEN STREETS in the North American territory. There’s a terrific day’s schedule lined up - again, for all the details, clickety-click here …
  And that’s pretty much it for now. In theory I’d like to blog about the events as they happen, but I may well be self-sabotaged by the desperate need for sleep whenever I’m not actually talking or eating. It’s been a hell of a six months, what with two books being published, and juggling all that goes with that with a day-job, all the while trying to write a new novel. Still, a weekend like the one in prospect makes all the long hours worthwhile, especially as it’ll be spent in some very fine company indeed. Normal-ish service will very probably be resumed on Monday, jet-lag permitting; until then, folks, I’m outta here …