Brash Blog

Big Ideas and Big Names in suspense from Brash Books

Get the big ideas from the biggest names in suspense on the Brash Books blog. Here, you'll find posts by some of your favorite mystery authors sharing their views on crime fiction - along with inside stories about everything from how they wrote their bestselling thrillers to what inspires them.

You'll also hear from experts in the mystery and suspense genre, along with fans, publishing insiders, and of course, Brash Books. Posts will range from informative to controversial - but you can bet every one will be a compelling read. This is your destination to explore great crime fiction writing - past, present and future - from the authors, readers, and publishers who keep it alive.

Writing THE LEMON MAN

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After majoring in marketing while completing my four-year degree at D.I.T. in Business & Management, I thought that I would work at a marketing firm in Dublin, like Don Draper out of Madmen, but that wasn’t the case. After university, I worked at an accounting firm with little experience before soon moving onto my next job at a nursing home, helping the company promote their new building. But, that didn’t last too long either. In 2014, I met my partner Rachel on Tinder, who’s from Canada and we clicked right away. One of the biggest things we had in common was our shared love for the arts. She listened to some of my ideas and pushed me to write about them. In 2016, we moved... more

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WRITING OLD ANGER: The Heart of the Matter in a Southern Crime Story

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Phillip Thompson's crime novel Outside the Law scored wide acclaim from critics and major league authors like David Morrell, Linwood Barclay and Reed Farrel Coleman. Now the long-awaited sequel, Old Anger, is now available and is already scoring raves from Publishers Weekly, and authors like Joe R. Lansdale and S.A. Cosby. Phillip stopped by to share with us the story behind the story.... Writing about race in the Deep South is never easy. Especially during the tumult of 2020. I am white. Born and raised in Mississippi. I was a youngster growing up when the state was going through the painful ending of the American apartheid called “segregation” or “separate but equal.” And... more

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Brash News: All Kinds of Praise

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We have a bunch of hot new releases, scores of great reviews, and a lot of breaking news this month... so here we go. ALL KINDS OF PRAISE Our discovery and publication this month of Ralph Dennis' lost manuscript ALL KINDS OF UGLY is big news in the publishing industry, making headlines in this week's issue of Publishers Weekly, who reported that "the story behind the discovery of the manuscript by Brash copublisher Lee Goldberg could have been lifted from the pages of a detective novel...." You can read all about it here. The critics at Publishers Weekly also loved ALL KINDS OF UGLY, saying in their review that Ralph's "strong prose and well-paced storytelling place him alongside... more

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Uncovering the “DUST IN THE HEART”

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We've just published Ralph Dennis' crime novel DUST IN THE HEART , a haunting police procedural set in a small, North Carolina town  It was the final, typewritten manuscript that Ralph wrote before his death and was discovered by Brash co-founder Lee Goldberg, who took on the task of editing the novel for publication. Lee talked about the editing process this week with The Rap Sheet, one of our favorite blogs and sources of information on the crime fiction scene. Here is an excerpt: I struggled over whether to publish Dust in the Heart or to keep it in a drawer. The original manuscript was nearly 100,000 words and it was a mess … and yet, there was still something... more

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Barbara Neely Named Mystery Writers of America Grandmaster

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Barbara Neely Mystery Author

We have big news! Brash author Barbara Neely has been named this year's Grandmaster by the Mystery Writers of America, the organization's highest honor. Here is their announcement: "Mystery Writers of America is thrilled that Barbara Neely is MWA's 2020 Grand Master," MWA board president Meg Gardiner said. "Neely is a groundbreaking author, and MWA is delighted to recognize her work, in which she tackles tough social issues with an unflinching eye and a wry sense of humor." MWA's Grand Master Award represents the pinnacle of achievement in mystery writing and was established to acknowledge important contributions to this genre, as well as for a body of work that is both significant and... more

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FIREBALL – Long Lost, Unpublished Jimmy Sangster Novel Found

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BIG NEWS! We've found a long-lost, never-before-published Jimmy Sangster novel! It's called Fireball...and here is the incredible story behind the major, literary discovery.   Jimmy Sangster, who died in 2011, was an acclaimed screenwriter (Curse of Frankenstein, Deadlier Than the Male, The Legacy,etc), director (Lust for a Vampire, Banacek, etc), TV writer (Wonder Woman, Cannon, Movin’ On, BJ and The Bear, The Magician, Kolchak: The Night Stalker, etc) and novelist (Touchfeather, Touchfeather Too, The Spy Killer and Foreign Exchange).   He was also the author of three James Reed crime novels... more

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