Description

Our Guest of Honour is Simon Brett. Simon Brett has published over a hundred books, including the Charles Paris, Mrs Pargeter, Fethering, Blotto & Twinks and Decluttering series. In 2014 he was presented with the Crime Writers? Association?s highest award, the Diamond Dagger, and in 2016 he was made an O.B.E. ?for services to literature?.

Our expert witnesses is Paul Smith and his team from the University of Portsmouth talking about the work of CSIs. This promises to be a fascinating talk.

They are joined by a stellar line up of crime authors:

Jeff Dowson: Jeff is a screenwriter and novelist. A member of BAFTA and The Crime Writers Association. He writes contemporary thrillers featuring Bristol private eye Jack Shepherd, and a series set in 1950s Bristol, featuring American GI Ed Grover.
Visit www.jeffdowson.co.uk

Graham Donnelly: Graham's professional background was in government service, merchant and international banking and lecturing in economics, politics and management. While a lecturer he had several books in economics published. When turning to fiction he did not cast around for a genre; he just started writing but, after four books set in time more than fifty years ago and with crimes occurring in all of them, he is happy to be considered a writer of historical thrillers. Born in London, he now lives on Mersea Island, Essex.

Nick Everard served as a cavalry officer in the British Army from 1977 - 99, including as Commanding Officer of his Regiment in Bosnia. He has worked since in the City; schools adventure travel (he was a director of World Challenge) and Recruitment / Executive Search.
Since July 2021 he has been Regimental Secretary of The Royal Lancers (Queen Elizabeths? Own) ? apostrophe correct: thus his career has come full circle. His first novel, ?Clean Kill?, (a lockdown project), was published by The Book Guild in May 2022, and his second, ?Past Unbecoming? a year later.
Nick lives on the Leicestershire / Northamptonshire border with his wife Kiki and a menagerie of animals.

Dot Marshall-Gent worked in the emergency services for twenty years before training to teach English. She worked at schools in Kent and London and holds an MA in Special and Inclusive Education from The Institute of Education along with an MA in English from Canterbury Christ Church University. Dot is a qualified watchkeeper with The National Coastwatch Institution and works part-time with GCSE students as part of the National Tutoring Programme. She performs with a swing band, writes and records music, songs and poems, and enjoys reading crime fiction novels as a reviewer for Mystery People.

Leigh Russell: There are over 20 titles in Leigh Russell?s popular GERALDINE STEEL crime series. She also writes a cosy crime series featuring a small dog, Poppy. Shortlisted for two Dagger Awards, Leigh is Chair of Judges for the Debut Dagger Award, and Advisory Fellow for the Royal Literary Fund.
http://leighrussell.co.uk

Richard Salsbury's work has appeared in Artificium, Flash Fiction Magazine, World Wide Writers, Portsmouth News, the Fairlight Books website and on BBC Radio. He is an editor and website designer for environmental writing project Pens of the Earth. He also plays the guitar and brews his own beer.

William Sutton is a novelist, musician and teacher. His historical mysteries are published by Titan Books: Lawless and the Flowers of Sin was a Book of the year in Mail on Sunday and Morning Star. His writing workshops help writers take their novels to the next stage. He?s involved with Portsmouth Writers Hub and has appeared in festivals from Subaquatic Steampunk to Holmes Fest, and from Edinburgh Book Festival to Crimefest. He ran Bookfest events Day of the Dead, Valentine?s Day Massacre and Typewriter Tales. He sings in Southsea Community Choir and plays bass for Jamie and the Jets.

Peter Tickler has written several contemporary crime novels in the city of Oxford, most recently The Oxford Murders . However his next whodunit is set in 1919, draws on his family history as suppliers of jam to the British troops in the trenches, and is called The Ticklers? Jam Murders.

Lesley Thomson was born in 1958 and grew up in London. She went to Holland Park Comprehensive and the Universities of Brighton and Sussex. Her novel A Kind of Vanishing won The People's Book Prize in 2010. Lesley combines writing with teaching creative writing. She lives in Lewes with her partner.

Carol Westron is the author of crime fiction novels in a variety of sub-genres. She also writes articles, short stories and is a reviewer for Mystery People. She is the founder and organiser of Mystery Fest and, as an expert on the Golden Age of Detective Fiction, has given papers at several conferences.

Bring your own sandwiches or purchase lunch at one of the cafes or pubs nearby in Guildhall Walk.

Description

Winston Churchill Avenue,

Portsmouth,

Hampshire,

England,

PO1 2DJ.