John Dean – Crime Writer

Readers are being given the opportunity to learn about the dark side of the human imagination at three events to be staged as part of the forthcoming Kirkcudbright Book Festival.

Crime fiction has always been well represented in the annual celebration of books held in the South West Scotland town and the 2026 festival, due to be held between March 5-8, will include three events featuring five crime writers, a fantasy novelist and an author who writes horror, all of them fascinated by the darker side of the human psyche.

The first of the events, which are among more than twenty to be held during the festival, taking in a wide range of genres, will see Philip Miller introduce his audience to his character, the investigative reporter Shona Sandison.

During the event, which will start at 2.30pm on Friday March 6 at Kirkcudbright Parish Hall, in St Mary Street, Philip will talk about Diary of Lies, the third novel in the series featuring the Edinburgh-based investigator, in which she delves into a conspiracy within the UK’s most powerful institutions.

The Saturday of the festival (March 7) will include four very different authors at the same event. Three Scribblers – Same Passion, Different Genres, at 10am in the Kirkcudbright Scout Hut, Soaperie Gardens, Parish Church Grounds, in St Mary Street, will be chaired by crime writer LP Mennock and feature Moffat Writers Ink members Ann Bloxwich, Sarah Burchett Cook and Iain Alexander, who will talk about their writing, the power of storytelling and why their chosen genres fascinate  a wide audience.

Chair LP Mennock was founder of Moffat Writers, has edited a crime short story anthology titled Wish You Weren’t Here; and mentors new writers.

Ann Bloxwich, pictured at the top of this article, started writing after attending her first crime writing festival in Harrogate and draws on her experience of bringing up a disabled child and working as a promoter for a group of male strippers, which has provided a backdrop for her character DI Alex Peachey. Ann’s novels include What Goes Around and Goodnight, God Bless.

Sarah Burchett Cook is originally from Kent but after 28 years living in Devon in the South-West of England, she now lives in Scotland. She writes fantasy and literary fiction blended with a touch of history, myth and legend. She is author of The Rosa Chronicles.

Iain Alexander writes dark psychological thrillers laced with gothic horror. At the 2025 Scottish Association of Writers’ awards, he took first place for his novel Dark Necessities, from which he will be reading at the festival.

The final day of the festival (Sunday March 8) will see more crime fiction with an event at 4.00pm. New Voices on Crime and Modern Life, at Feast Cafe, 32 St Cuthbert St, Kirkcudbright DG6 4HZ, will see two emerging, and award-winning, writers talking about their first books to be published.

The first novel by Samantha Dooey-Miles was a winner of the Scottish Book Trust New Writer Award. Under the Hammer explores the housing crisis, murdering landlords and female rage with Hamilton as the backdrop. Her work focuses on the significance that seemingly small moments can have and how characters react in times of high emotion. Her stories have been published in New Writing Scotland, Gutter and Postbox.

May Rinaldi, a crime writer based in Dumfries and the winner of the Black Spring Press New Crime Writer Award, will talk about her first novel Liar Thief ,a psychological suspense thriller. She is involved in several writer networks and was one of the organisers of the inaugural Moffat Crime Writing Festival in 2025.

More details about the programme, including how to buy tickets, can be found at the festival website at https://kbtbookfestival.org The website also has details of the festival’s new gift voucher scheme, which allows people to buy tickets for festival events for friends and family.