There’s a massive review of Smokeheads over at The Crime of it All, courtesy of Cormac O’Siochain. He manages to be both very positive and very negative about it in the same review. My favourite line is:
‘I’m left with a similar feeling to watching a dog eat its own vomit.’
Now THAT’S book reviewing, people!
Aye so, there’s been a wee flurry of Smokeheads-related shite appearing in papers and online over the last few days, what with the sexy, new paperback version coming out. Here’s a quick rundown:
Excellent review in The Independent on Sunday. Choice quote: ‘a ferocious thriller reminiscent of Straw Dogs.’
The prize for the most concise review goes to The Sunday Herald – a 50-word plot summary followed by ‘Nifty thriller.’
Rave review over at Bookgeeks. Choice quote: ‘The foul-mouthed put-downs flow as freely as the single malts.’
In depth interview with the inimitable Len Wanner over on the fantastic The Crime of it All, where you can find out who’s on my ideal dinner party list (including Yoda) and what my favourite word is (take a fucking guess).
Me interviewing myself on the wonderful Nigel Bird’s Sea Minor blog. Reading this back, I have quite a go at myself, suggesting I maybe need to go see a mental health professional or something.
Enjoy, fuckers!
Publication day! Again! Smokeheads is out in its mass market paperback format today, five wee months after it first came into the world as a trade paperback. You can buy it here. It has a new cover:
Which I like very much. I like the typeface. I am a typeface nerd.
To launch the book I’m doing a quick reading and song-playing at Blackwell’s on South Bridge in Edinburgh at 6pm tonight, as part of their Writers on the Fringe thing, alongside Lin Anderson, Fiona Thackeray, Shirley McKay, Ewan Wilkinson.
While I’m here, it’s probably worth me peddling this piece of nonsense again – me and Ewan Morrison ‘promoting’ Smokeheads. Enjoy!
I always find it’s best to do online Q&A interviews when you’re a bit pished. Lately I had a backlog of them, so I had a few whiskies last night and bashed out some suitably erudite answers. The first one is already up, over at Audacious Authors, courtesy of Kyle McCrae. Cheers, Kyle! It seems I swear a lot when drunkenly typing.
Expect a few more sweary, drunken ramblings soon.
Adios, patatas bravas!
Aye so, been away on holiday in France for a while. The one thing I learnt is that Bruno Mars must be coining it in from French radio royalties. Aaaaanyway, there’s been a smattering of Smokeheads action while I was away, namely:
– Smokeheads got a great review all the way from Russia courtesy of Ray Garraty’s excellent blog Endless Falls Up. Cheers Ray!
– A newspaper review of Smokeheads appeared in the Mail on Sunday, courtesy of the inestimable John Williams. It’s short but beautiful and begins ‘Doug Johnstone is one of the most original Scottish novelists around’. Oof.
– I got to do some blah blah over on the Untitled Books website about what books I was taking on holiday. Helen FitzGerald and Cormac McCarthy, as it happens.
– A wee interview with me appeared on Napier University’s alumni website. Here it is in its entirety.
And that’s all for now. Expect a wee flurry of more Smokeheads bullshit soon, as the mass market paperback is coming out 4th August.
Oh, and I’ve also got a whole bunch of new live events coming up. Check out the events page, whydontcha.
A bientot, mes amis!
Just spotted a quite amazing in depth review and discussion of my second novel, The Ossians, over on the Dear Scotland blog, huge thanks to Alistair Braidwood for that. Not bad for a book that came out over three years ago, I guess. Haven’t thought about The Ossians in a long time, and it kinda brought back memories, which is a wee bit weird really. Memories of a bunch of fictional guys I made up in my head? What’s that about?
Anyway, without being too fucking coy about it, I’m probably going to have to think about The Ossians a fair bit more in the near future, as there have been some interesting developments on that front. Nothing massive, just something that will hopefully keep the ball rolling a wee bit longer. Watch this space and all that pish.
Also, the Dear Scotland thing is worth clicking on if only for the King Creosote and Sigur Ros videos posted along with the article. Quality.
Ach so, I was on BBC Radio Scotland’s Book Cafe yesterday. Click here to listen again on iplayer. It was a lot of fun. Started off chatting with author and editor Susie Maguire and presenter Edi Stark about the continuing Scottish fascination for crime fiction, then did a review type thing with Edi discussing Ross Raisin’s Waterline and Aatish Taseer’s Noon.
This is not the Radio Scotland logo, but it should be cos it's cool
We blethered on longer than expected cos their star guest, Pulitzer Prize-winning Michael ‘The Hours’ Cunningham, did a no-show. Tube. Anyway, I didn’t swear or punch anyone, so another live radio experience successfully navigated, I reckon. Lemme know whatcha think. It’s always weird doing live radio – I develop a nervous cough each time I do it. I also talk way too fast. And high. Like one of the mice from Bagpuss. Ho hum.
Folks, one of the many journalism things I do is the weekly books round up for The Big Issue magazine. I also sometimes write the lead reviews and the book features. Anyway, I’m always on the lookout for great new books to include in the round up. I have most of the big publishers’ catalogues, and plenty small ones, but I’m now specifically looking for ebooks to include. If you publish or write ebooks available to buy in the UK, drop me a line at doug.johnstone1@virgin.net and tell me about it.
Naturally I can’t promise to review something, we only have space for four books per week, but if it’s interesting and timely, it’s got a decent chance of getting in. By timely I mean that it has to be initially available for the first time in its current format from about now onwards, as to open myself up to previously published ebooks would sadly be too much of a tidal wave of ebookery.
I realise that there is very little opportunity for ebooks to get review space in traditional print media, and I’m trying to rectify that. The slightly ridiculous thing is that, at the moment anyway, The Big Issue books round up is NOT online. Nothing I can do about that, but if I do review the book I’ll try to alert you in time, or I could always forward on the copy from the review.
Also, if you are a small independent press and you don’t think I have your details, please get in touch on the email address above.
Please don’t send me books or ebooks on spec – just get in touch in the first instance and let me know what you’re up to. I prefer to request specific titles rather than get flooded with random stuff.
All best, and look forward to hearing from y’all.
Well, well. The awesome dudes at Is This Music? have reviewed my EP, ‘Keep it Afloat’. Click on the logo above to read it. Very complimentary, including this seminal line:
like King Creosote fronting Husker Du
After which the reviewer, Donald Bush, writes that as a reviewer myself I might sneer at that cliched description. Not at all, Mr Bush. Not. At. All. It’s a doozy of a line.
If you wanna hear what got Mr Bush excited, check out the EP here, where you can listen, download and/or buy at your leisure. Please do.
OK, got a new cover for the paperback of Smokeheads, out August 4th. Here it is. Whatcha think? I like it.
Doug Johnstone 