Val McDermid

Infobox Writer
name = Val McDermid

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birthdate = birth date and age|1955|06|04
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nationality = Scottish
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genre = Crime fiction
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website = http://www.valmcdermid.com

Val McDermid (born June 4,1955) is a Scottish crime writer.

Biography

McDermid comes from Kirkcaldy, Fife and was educated at St Hilda's College, Oxford, where she was the first student from a state school in Scotland (Kirkcaldy High School), and became President of the Junior Common Room. After graduation, she became a journalist, and had some success as a dramatist. However, her first success as a novelist, "Report for Murder: The First Lindsay Gordon Mystery", did not appear until 1987.

Work

McDermid's notable characters are a lesbian journalist, Lindsay Gordon; a private investigator, Kate Brannigan; and a psychologist, Tony Hill, who suffers from sexual dysfunction. Her books mainly fall into three series: Lindsay Gordon, Kate Brannigan, and, beginning in 1997, the Tony Hill and Carol Jordan series, the first entry in which, "The Mermaids Singing", won the Crime Writers' Association Gold Dagger for Best Crime Novel of the Year. The Hill/Jordan series has been adapted for television under the name "Wire in the Blood", starring Robson Green.

McDermid considers her work to be Tartan Noir. [cite web
title =Val McDermid - News & Events - Round the World
work =ValMcDermid.com
url =http://www.valmcdermid.com/pages/archivenews2003-4.html
accessdate =2007-07-09 ] As well as her novels, McDermid contributes to several British newspapers and often broadcasts on BBC Radio 4 and BBC Radio Scotland.cite web
title =Val McDermid - Biography
work =ValMcDermid.com
url =http://www.valmcdermid.com/pages/biog.html
accessdate =2007-07-09 ]

Her novels, in particular the Tony Hill series, are known for their graphic depictions of violence and torture.

Personal life

McDermid is a lesbian. She and her former partner share custody of their son Cameron (conceived to McDermid's former partner via donor insemination). cite news
last =Mina
first =Denise
title =Denise Mina talks to Val McDermid
work =Sunday Herald
date =February 2002
url =http://www.valmcdermid.com/pages/interviews4.html
accessdate =2007-07-09 ] She lives in Manchester and Northumberland with three cats.cite news
last =Flockhart
first =Susan
work =Sunday Herald
title =Murder In Mind
date =May 2004
url =http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4156/is_20040530/ai_n12588950
accessdate =2007-07-18 ]

Bibliography

Lindsay Gordon series

*"Report for Murder" (1987)
*"Common Murder" (1989)
*"Final Edition" (1991) US Titles: "Open and Shut", "Deadline for Murder"
*"Union Jack " (1993), US Title: "Conferences are Murder"
*"Booked for Murder" (1996)
*"Hostage to Murder" (2003)

Kate Brannigan series

*"Dead Beat" (1992)
*"Kick Back" (1993)
*"Crack Down" (1994)
*"Clean Break" (1995)
*"Blue Genes" (1996)
*"Star Struck" (1998)

Tony Hill and Carol Jordan series

*"The Mermaids Singing" (1995)
*"The Wire in the Blood" (1997)
*"The Last Temptation" (2002)
*"The Torment of Others" (2004)
*"Beneath the Bleeding" (2007)

Other books

*"A Suitable Job for a Woman" (1994); non-fiction
*"The Writing on the Wall" (1997); short stories, limited edition of 200 copies
*"A Place of Execution" (1999)
*"Killing the Shadows" (2000)
*"The Distant Echo" (2003)
*"Stranded" (2005); short stories
*"The Grave Tattoo" (2006)
*"A Darker Domain" (2008)

References

External links

* [http://www.valmcdermid.com/ Val McDermid's Official Site]
* (British Council)
* [http://www.spanningzoeker.nl/mcdermid/index.html Val McDermid Dutch website with covers]