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 Subscribe to John's mailing list to receive emailed news and information concerning new books, ghost stories, book signings, websites of interest and any other updates. This mailing list is private—your e-mail address will not be shared.   September 2009
Dear Folks,Hi, it's John Connolly. You may remember me from such books as Bad Men, and Every Dead Thing. With The Gates about to appear, I may be coming to a town near you, so if you've been putting off taking a vacation, now's your chance to get far away... THE GATES The Gates, the story of Samuel Johnson (the boy, not the writer) and his battle against the hordes of Hell, will be published in the UK on October 1st, and in the US on October 6th. An early chapter is available to read on the website, and the wonderful cover is by Rob Ryan, who also designed the covers for The Book of Lost Things and the new edition of Nocturnes. A slightly different cover, also by Rob, will be used for a special Ireland-only children's edition. You can view more of Rob's work at www.misterrob.co.uk. TOUR DATES I'll be touring The Gates in the UK and US through October and November. As it's a book designed to be read by young adult readers (although I hope adults will enjoy it too), people should feel free to bring their kids along. For tour dates click here. ANTHOLOGIES Oddly enough, this was supposed to be the year in which I took it a bit easier, but in addition to publishing The Lovers during the summer, and The Gates in October, two short stories and an essay will also have been published by the start of November, with a further story to come early in the new year. Readers should feel free to bring any of these anthologies to tour events if they'd like them signed. In order of publication, they are: 
DARK DELICACIES III: HauntedEdited by Del Howison and Jeff Gelb, Dark Delicacies III, which has just been published, contains a story by me entitled "A Haunting", the first time this story has appeared in print. The book also includes tales by Chuck Palahniuk, Heather Graham, David Morrell and Mick Garris. I know that some copies were signed by a number of the contributors at the Dark Delicacies bookstore in Burbank, California, where I'll be signing in October, so collectors might want to see if any are still available. 
FROM THE REPUBLIC OF CONSCIENCE: Stories Inspired By The Universal Declaration Of Human RightsThe story "On The Anatomisation of an Unknown Man (1637) by Frans Mier" will be anthologised for the first time in this collection, to be published on November 4th, proceeds from which will benefit Amnesty International. Given that it includes contributions from writers as varied as Seamus Heaney, Neil Jordan, Eoin Colfer, Anne Enright, and Roddy Doyle, it represents the cream of Irish writers (and me), and by buying it you're contributing to a great cause. The book will be available direct from libertiespress.com and amnesty.ie, as well as bookstores. Incidentally, my story is one of a number that will be accompanied by a specially commissioned illustration, in this case from the Irish artist Jim Fitzpatrick, a source of particular pleasure to me as Jim designed the cover for Thin Lizzy's 1976 album, Johnny the Fox, still probably the most beautiful Irish album cover ever, and one that's framed on my bathroom wall. You can see the illustration below, and Jim's website, which is incredibly comprehensive and well worth visiting, is jimfitzpatrick.ie. 
THE LINEUP: The World's Greatest Mystery Writers Tell The Inside Story Of Their Greatest DetectivesEdited by Otto Penzler, and due to be published on November 10th by Little Brown in the US and the UK, this anthology contains contributions from 22 mystery writers on how their most famous characters came into being, including Michael Connelly on Harry Bosch, Lee Child on Jack Reacher, David Morrell on John Rambo, Colin Dexter on Inspector Morse, Laura Lippman on Tess Monaghan, Ian Rankin on John Rebus, and Alexander McCall Smith on Precious Ramotswe. I've contributed an essay that deals with Charlie Parker, but also covers the slow development of Irish crime writing, and the collision between the rational and the supernatural in my books. It's a lovely anthology for mystery fans: I was lucky enough to receive an advance copy, and I've thoroughly enjoyed reading through the contributions. A special limited edition, signed by all of the authors, is available from the Mysterious Bookstore in New York. 
THE NEW DEADEdited by Christopher Golden, this marks new territory for me, as it's an anthology of zombie fiction. My story, "Lazarus", opens the collection, and I'm keeping good company as the other contributors include David Liss, Joe Hill, Max Brooks, and Joe Landsale, among others. It's due to be published in February 2010 by St Martin's in the US, and Piatkus in the UK. THE NEW DAUGHTER The New Daughter, the movie based on the short story of the same name in the Nocturnes collection, and starring Kevin Costner and Ivana Baquero, is at last edited and finished. With luck, we'll have news on distribution and release dates in the next newsletter. THE WHISPERERS The next Charlie Parker novel, which should be published next summer, is entitled The Whisperers. As I'm still in the process of writing it, I don't want to say too much about it, but the first chapter will be posted on the website early next year. That's it for now. At least I can't be accused of slacking off. Best wishes, John
July 2009
FILM FESTIVAL NEWS! 'OF BLOOD AND LOST THINGS', an hour-long documentary on John's work filmed on location in Ireland and the US, and featuring contributions from Laura Lippman, David Simon, George Pelecanos, and Declan Hughes, will be screened as part of the Maine International Film Festival in Waterville on July 10th at 6.45pm, with John in attendance. This will be the only screening prior to its broadcast on Irish television in 2010... further details: Maine International Film Festival AND... THE GATES Read about John's upcoming book (coming this October!), THE GATES, including an excerpt.
June 2009
Dear Folks, I know what you're thinking: he doesn't write, he doesn't call, then suddenly you get two newsletters in one month and you start wondering if I'm going to be bothering you all the time. "Hi, it's John. Whatcha doing...?", that kind of thing. Never fear, this is just a short note to clear up some tour stuff because we just don't see one another often enough...
A couple of extra events have been added to the Irish and UK schedules. They are: Tuesday June 23rd, 1pm Signing at Hughes & Hughes bookstore, Bank Place, Ennis, Co Clare (tel: 0656897900) or ennis@hughesbooks.com Tuesday July 21, 2:30pm Talk at Brookwood Library, 166 Drymen Road, Bearsden, Glasgow G61 3RJ. Tickets from: 0141 942 6811 Tuesday July 21, 7:30pm Waterstones, 83 George Street, Edinburgh EH2 3ES. Tel: 0131 225 3436 Wednesday 22, 3.00pm Talk at the Library, High Street, Macduff, AB44 1LR. Tickets from 01261-833289
Following the very successful event at the Great Lost Bear in Portland (all book events should take place in bars!) we have some of the limited edition t-shirts left over. So, in a spirit of generosity and good fellowship, we will be giving one of the t-shirts away at every bookstore event on the tour. To be in with a chance of winning one, you just have to buy a copy of The Lovers at the event in question, and your name will be entered into a draw. At the end of the event, I'll pick out a name, and the lucky person in question will get a shirt. Simple as that. Oh, and because I'm a giver, and Dave Evans at the Great Lost Bear is a good man, everyone who buys a copy of the book will get a special Great Lost Bear bumper sticker, signed by me if you wish, to make the book or, indeed, your car a little bit special. THE BIG CLEAN-UP As I've realized over the years, I am human, perhaps more human than most when it comes to mistakes. Anyway, despite my best efforts and those of my editors and copy editors, small errors inevitably creep into every book. With that in mind, I've decided to embark on a big clean-up, correcting those errors for the next paperback editions of the books. If you think that you've spotted something amiss during your reading of the books, then we'd like to hear about it. Please send the query in question, mentioning the edition of the book (UK or US, paperback or hardback) and a page reference as well, to charlieparker@eircom.net. To thank people for their help with this, anyone who submits a correction will be entered into a draw for a nice signed print from The Book Of Lost Things. I had a Facebook meltdown and would like to call on you to friend me yet again. It's simple—log into your Facebook account FIRST, then click here to get to my page, where you click on Add John Connolly as Friend. That's it. Thanks! See, that wasn't so bad, was it? Best wishes, John
May 2009
Dear Folks, I hope you're all happy and well, and that life is treating you gently. It's that time of year again when a man's thoughts turn to publishing, and whether or not all of his readers have moved on to other writers or are simply saving their pennies for the new Dan Brown book. For those of you who remain loyal and are surviving the recession, some news . . .
THE LOVERS The new Parker novel, THE LOVERS, will be published on June 2nd in the US, and on July 9th in the UK, although Irish readers will get to buy it from June 18th or, if they pop into Murder Ink on Dawson Street, they can pick up the US edition even earlier than that. The book has already received a starred review from Publishers Weekly in the US, which is always nice, and concerns Parker's search for the truth about his father's death. From Publishers Weekly: Bestseller Connolly once again expertly melds a hard-boiled plot with the supernatural in his eighth Charlie Parker crime novel (after THE REAPERS). While previous books in the series explored the trauma at the heart of Parker's backstory, the murder of the PI's wife and daughter, this one examines an equally devastating family trauma--
TOUR DATES FOR THE LOVERS-- AND FREE T-SHIRTS! USA As I've mentioned before, I won't be doing a big US tour for THE LOVERS, although signed copies will be available from most independent mystery stores. I am doing one big special event for the book, though, which will take place in Portland, Maine on Tuesday June 2nd. In THE LOVERS, Parker is working as bar manager in The Great Lost Bear, a fabulous Portland bar on Forrest Avenue so, to celebrate, the bar is hosting a special reading at 7.00P.M. on June 2nd, the day of publication. Books Etc will be selling books on the night. The collectors among you should note that everyone who buys a copy of THE LOVERS at the event will receive a free special limited edition "Charlie Parker Served Here" Great Lost Bear t-shirt. Any remaining t-shirts will be given to those who order a signed copy of the book through the store, but strictly on a first come, first served basis. Once the shirts are gone, they're gone. Every book sold by the store, or ordered from it, will be specially stamped as "Signed at The Great Lost Bear". We'll also try to include a bumper sticker from the bar, as an added bonus, so even if you don't get a t-shirt you'll have something to make the book a little distinctive. Further details are available from bookhappenings@gmail.com or from 1-207-781-3784. IRELAND The official Dublin launch and signing for THE LOVERS will take place at the Dublin Bookshop, 36 Grafton Street, Dublin 2 on Wednesday June 24th at 6.30pm. All are welcome. On Friday June 26th, I'll be at No Alibis, 83 Botanic Avenue, Belfast at 7.oopm for an event with Stuart Neville, the author of the very excellent debut novel, The Twelve (or Ghosts of Belfast, as it's titled in the US). Further details are available at www.noalibis.com, or by calling +44 28 9031 9601 There will be semi-formal signings in Cork, Limerick, Ennis, and Galway on Monday 22nd June and Tuesday 23rd June. We'll provide times and venues as soon as possible. ENGLAND AND SCOTLAND Dates and events are still being finalised and more are still to be added so please check back. Sunday July 12 Possible London event (to be confirmed) Monday July 13, 4.30pm Formal signing at The Bookstore, 15 Bury Street, Abingdon, OX14 3QT. Contact: L 01235 539200 Tuesday July 14, 12.00pm Signing at Borders, 9 Magdalen Street, Oxford, OX1 3AD. Reservations from 01865 203901 Tuesday July 14, 7.15pm Event at The Drill Hall, Lower Church Street, Chepstow. Tickets #2 redeemable against book available from The Chepstow Bookshop, 13 St Mary Street, Chepstow, Monmouthshire, NP16 5EW. Tel: 01291 625011, email shop@chepstowbooks.co.uk, website www.chepstowbooks.co.uk Wednesday July 15, 12.30pm Signing at Waterstones, 24-26 High Street, Birmingham B4 7SL. Reservations from 0121 633 4353 Wednesday July 15, 6.30pm Event at Waterstones, Bridlesmithgate, Nottingham. #3 tickets redeemable against the book from 0115 948 4499 Thursday July 16, 1.00pm Signing at Waterstones, 24-26 Orchard Square, Sheffield S1 2FB. manager@sheffield-orchard-square.waterstones.co.uk 0114 2728971 Thursday July 16, 7.00pm Event at Waterstones, 91 Deansgate, Manchester M3 2BW Manchester events@manchester-deansgate.waterstones.co.uk. 0161 837 3000 Friday July 17, 12.30pm Signing at Waterstones, 14-16 Bold Street, Liverpool L1 4DS. Reservations from 0151 708 6861 Friday July 17, 3.00pm Formal stock signing at Borders, Unit 2, Geldered Road Retail Park, Birstall WF17 9DT. Reservations from 01924 474914 Friday July 17, 6.30pm Event at Borders, 94-96 Briggate, Leeds LS1 6NP. Free tickets from 0113 242 4400 Saturday July 18, 12.30pm Signing at WHS, Victoria Shopping Centre, Cambridge Street, Harrogate, HG 1 1AE. Reservations from 01423 566351 Saturday July 18, 7.00pm Talk at Kendal Library, Stricklandgate, Kendal, LA9 4PY. Tickets from 01539 773520. Tickets #3. Monday July 20, 12.30pm Signing at Waterstones, 38A The Plaza, East Kilbride, G74 1LW. Reservations on 01355 271835 Monday July 20, 6.00pm Talk at Borders, 99 Buchanan Street, Glasgow G1 3HA. Free tickets from 0141 222 7700 Tuesday July 21, Evening Event (to be confirmed) Waterstones, George St, Edinburgh Wednesday July 22, 7.00pm Formal signing Waterstones, 3-7 Union Street, Aberdeen AB11 6BG. Tickets from 01224 592440 At the moment, we're also still working on possible dates for South Africa, and another tour will follow for THE GATES in October which will, if things work out, include Australia and New Zealand. THE GATES As those of you who visit the website, or read my occasional blog, will be aware, I'll be publishing a second book, THE GATES, in October of this year, which is one of the reasons why I'm not touring quite so much for THE LOVERS, as two big tours in one year would prevent me from getting work done on the next book, as well as run me into the grave. THE GATES concerns a young boy named Samuel Johnson, and his dachshund, Boswell, who discover that their new neighbours are Satanists who are trying to open the gates of Hell. It's subtitled "A Strange Book for Strange Young People", but the adults who've read it seem to have enjoyed it as much as younger readers. It's much lighter in tone than my usual novels, and filled with little footnotes about science, art, and history. It's scheduled for publication on October 1st, and I'll be posting an early chapter on the website shortly. We'll also be giving away advance copies before publication, so keep an eye on the website and, if you haven't already done so, please make sure that you've signed up to receive this newsletter regularly, as it's the best way we have of staying in touch with readers and letting them know about competitions and new books. LOTS OF NEW STUFF BEING PUBLISHED Somehow, despite my best efforts to do as little as possible, I seem to be publishing rather a lot of new material this year, in addition to the two novels. For those interested, here's a summary of what will appear, and where, over the course of the next eighteen months... SHORT STORIES "A Haunting" will appear in Dark Delicacies III: Haunted, edited by Del Howison and Jeff Gelb, to be published by Running Dog on August 24th. Other contributors to the volume include Chuck Palahniuk, Heather Graham, and Clive Barker. The short story entitled "On the Anatomisation of an Unknown Man (1637) by Frans Mier" which was written in response to the article 11 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and published in The Irish Times last year, is to be anthologised along with all of the other contributions later this year. Each story will be illustrated by a noted Irish artist, and I'm delighted to say that Jim Fitzpatrick, one of my favourite Irish artists (he designed the great cover for Thin Lizzy's album Johnny The Fox, which I have framed on my wall at home) is creating the artwork for my story. All proceeds from the sale of the book will go to Amnesty International, and we'll let you know the publication date as soon as it's confirmed. "Lazarus" will appear in The New Dead, an anthology edited by the very lovely Christopher Golden. The New Dead will be published by St. Martin's Griffin early in 2010, and includes stories by Joe Hill, Joe R. Lansdale and Kelley Armstrong. ESSAYS I've written a lengthy introduction (seriously, it's long) to Uncage Me, an anthology of new stories edited by Jennifer Jordan, which will be published on July 24th by Bleak House Books. Declan Hughes, Nick Stone, Christa Faust, and Scott Phillips are among the luminaries who have written stories in which they are allowed to push the limits a little more than they might usually be permitted to in their novels. Otto Penzler has edited a wonderful volume entitled The Lineup, in which 21 mystery authors, including Lee Child, Laura Lippman, Michael Connelly, Ian Rankin, Robert Crais, and Jeffery Deaver, have written profiles of their main characters, explaining their genesis and development. I've contributed an essay on Charlie Parker, and the book is to be published on November 10th by Little Brown. A special signed limited edition will also be available from Otto's store, the Mysterious Bookshop, in New York. Further details are available from info@mysteriousbookshop.com. Finally, Declan Burke, the writer and critic whose blog www.crimealwayspays.blogspot.com is essential reading for anyone with an interest in Irish mystery fiction and, indeed, mystery fiction in general, is editing a collection called Green Streets, to be published later this year. This is an unusual book as it's based around essays rather than short stories, although one or two authors have opted to write stories instead. Almost every Irish mystery writer has contributed something to the collection, including Colin Bateman, Ken Bruen, Declan Hughes, Gene Kerrigan and others, and I've written an essay provisionally titled "No Blacks, No Dogs, No Crime Writers: The Slow Evolution of the Irish Crime Novel". Again, we'll provide further details as publication draws near. OF BLOOD AND LOST THINGS The RTE Arts Lives documentary, "Of Blood and Lost Things", which examines my work and was filmed in Dublin and the USA earlier this year, has now been completed. Among those contributing to it are Laura Lippman, George Pelecanos, David Simon (creator of The Wire) and - there's that man again - Declan Hughes. I've seen it, and it's beautifully done. It will be broadcast on Irish television early next year. As RTE has a facility to allow its programmes to be viewed through its website for a week or so after they've been broadcast, the documentary should be accessible to all. As soon as a transmission date is confirmed, we'll let you know. That's it. I hope to see some of you when I tour and thank you, as always, for your continued kindness, and your support for my odd books. Best wishes, John
February 2009
Dear Folks, It's been a while. How are you doing? No, you haven't put on weight. Anyway, I always thought you were too thin. No, really... THE LOVERS The new Charlie Parker novel, THE LOVERS, will be published in the US in the first week of June, and in the UK in the first week of July. The UK cover art has just been posted on the website, and you can also read the prologue and first chapter there. In THE LOVERS, Parker investigates the circumstances surrounding the death of his father, and discovers that, even in the womb, he was being shadowed... There will not be a US tour for THE LOVERS. I know, I know, but I've toured for nine of the last ten books, the only exception being NOCTURNES, and I'm really anxious to get some more writing done. There may still be a couple of events in the US, including a major one in Maine, and we're currently working on way to ensure that stores have signed stock of the book, but there just won't be a major tour this year. A decision has yet to be made on the UK and elsewhere. THE GATES In part, the reason for scaling back lies in a book called THE GATES that I'd been trying to find a way to write for a while. In order to complete it, I took a couple of months out after finishing THE LOVERS to do some work on it, and that set me back a little. I'm not sure if THE GATES will ever see the light of day, but I've very much enjoyed working on it. It will go to my publishers, and my agent, at the start of next month and, if they like it, I'll talk a little more about it on the website. THE REAPERS THE REAPERS is now out in paperback in Ireland, Britain, Australia, and elsewhere. The US/Canadian edition will appear in May. BOOK CLUB Thanks to all those who have continued to participate in the monthly book club. This month will be a little different, as the very wonderful Laura Lippman has agreed to participate in the discussion of her novel WHAT THE DEAD KNOW. If you'd like to join in, just read the book and post your comments in the Book Club section of the forum during the first week in March. THE HONEYCOMB WORLD I've mentioned in my occasional blog that I've spent much of January filming a documentary on my books for RTE, Ireland's national broadcaster. Entitled THE HONEYCOMB WORLD, it is due to be broadcast early in 2010, but there's a possibility that it may be shown before then, perhaps as part of a documentary film festival. We'll keep people posted on its development. RTE's website allows programmes to be viewed for a certain number of days after they have been broadcast, so the documentary should be accessible via the Internet. SOMETHING WICKED I've begun writing a 2000 word quarterly column for the South African magazine Something Wicked, as Joe Vaz, the editor, promised me fame and fortune and the odd beer if I agreed to do so. More details are available from Joe at somethingwicked.co.za. 
THE NEW DAUGHTER
Post-production work is continuing on THE NEW DAUGHTER, the film of the short story from NOCTURNES starring Kevin Costner and Ivana Baquero, the young star of the movie PAN'S LABYRINTH. Another connection has recently been established with Guillermo del Toro's film, as the music for THE NEW DAUGHTER is being composed by Javier Navarrete, who also composed the score for PAN'S LABYRINTH. Costner gave a short interview to Bloody-Disgusting.com about THE NEW DAUGHTER, which you can read at www.bloody-disgusting.com, while director Luis Berdejo spoke to twitchfilm.net at twitchfilm.net. 
THE LOUPS
I recently participated in a radio interview on Portland's WCYY 94.3FM with local band The Loups, who named themselves after the vicious wolf hybrids in THE BOOK OF LOST THINGS, and whose EP is entitled Holding Hands With The Crooked Man. Very nice blokes they were too. You can find out more about them, and listen to their music at www.myspace.com/theloups. So that's it. Apologies about scaling back on the touring, but it really is a matter of trying to get a little more writing done, and of staying on schedule for the next Parker novel, tentatively titled THE WHISPERERS. Hope you understand. With every best wish, and thanks to you all for you kindness and support, John
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