‘Queen of Crime’ Val McDermid shares the secrets of her writing success with Falmouth students

Celebrated crime writer Val McDermid gave students studying writing and journalism courses a glimpse into her experience at a special on-campus visit during the Falmouth Book Festival.

In conversation with Senior Lecturer in Creative Writing Dr Adrian Markle, the Fife-born author charted her journey from her working-class roots to international publishing fame, with 20 million sales and 36 novels to her name.

She told the audience of staff and students that she had wanted to be a writer since childhood. “When people asked me what I wanted to be, I would always say, ‘a writer’. And everyone laughed,” she recalled.

After early success in getting a play published and establishing a successful career in journalism, she was inspired to specialise in crime by memories of reading and re-reading Agatha Christie while staying with her grandparents.

She went on to create such iconic characters as Tony Hill, featured in her Wire in the Blood series.

McDermid revealed that her writing routine uses the ‘Pomodoro Technique’, which involves 20-minute bursts of intense work punctuated by short breaks. “My partner says, ‘Whenever I come into your room, you’re not working,’” she joked.

However, she advised students to find routines that work best for them, as every writer is different. The key is to have a passion and drive to write.

The event on 16 October was one of three guest sessions arising from the book festival, with which the Writing & Journalism department has close ties. Comic and satirist Rosie Holt shared the secrets of her viral success with her alter ego ‘Rosie Holt MP’ on 14 October, while Chief Rock & Pop Critic of The Times, Will Hodgkinson, shared tips from his career at an event in The Lighthouse on Falmouth campus on 21 October. All three were also among the star turns at major events in the festival itself.

Dr Adrian Markle commented, “It was a delight to have Val with us here on campus, but most importantly, it was an extraordinary opportunity for students to hear first-hand how this woman from a working-class background built her incredibly successful literary career. It was a great insight into what it takes to develop a sustainable practice. As she said, ‘If you really want this badly enough, you’ll do it.’ Students learn a lot from us in the classroom, but it’s important that we also bring in guests from industry to provide additional perspectives and insights, and they’re rarely going to be more valuable than this.”