Ian Rankin
Ian Rankin
Ian James Rankin, OBE, DL, FRSEis a Scottish crime writer, best known for his Inspector Rebus novels...
NationalityScottish
ProfessionNovelist
Date of Birth28 April 1960
almost beasts closed crime harvey jack novels sex wrote
Jack Harvey wrote thrillers, which are very different beasts to crime novels: lavish, almost pornographic descriptions of weaponry; sex scenes; world travel. These things were closed to me in the kind of crime novels I was writing.
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When a murder is satisfied, it isn't the beginning of the story; it's the middle. We shouldn't forget that fact because murder has ripples. You never go back to being the same. The people that investigate these crimes never go back to being the same as they were before they started the investigation. The people's whose lives have been affected, the victim's families, even the murderer themselves are profoundly changed. That's why murder is still the most interesting crime for us to write about, because it is the only crime where something unique is taken away from the world, something that can't be replaced.
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Whether Rebus's 'skills' are ones his bosses would wish retained is a moot point, but it seems I have my 'get-in' clause should I need one.
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He is a big fan of pulp fiction/American private-eye stories. He writes very tough, amoral tales of urban life with very few good cops, and usually it is the villains who are the heroes of his books. It is a very interesting take.
lighting months nine pub
I have him going into a pub and lighting up, and then being told by a barman that he has got only nine months to go before he has to stop.
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By that time, Rebus will be 59 and, for a CID officer, he is getting fairly long in the tooth. They will have brought in the smoking ban by 2007, so he will definitely want to retire to somewhere in the sun for a drink and a smoke.
short-love reading writing
I love short stories - reading and writing them. The best short stories distill all the potency of a novel into a small but heady draught. They are perfect reading material for the bus or train or for a lunchtime break. Everything extraneous has been strained off by the author. The best short stories pack the heft of any novel, yet resonate like poetry.
hard-work ideas luck
You need a great idea, but then you've got to carry it through. If you get it right, you're going to be a critical success. But not everyone who works hard gets it right, or has the success they deserve: there's an element of luck.
albums should holism
A good album should be more than the sum of its parts.
dad reading home
I took the first James Kelman novel, 'The Bus Conductor Hines', home to my dad. I thought, 'My dad will like this; it's written in Scots.' But my dad said: 'I can't read that.' He was reading James Bond and John le Carre. That was part of what attracted me to crime - the idea of getting a wide audience.
book adventure writing
I don't have many friends. It's not because I'm a misanthrope. It's because I'm reserved. I'm self-contained. I get all my adventures in my head when I'm writing my books.
technology opportunity thinking
I think writers have to be proactive: they've got to use new technology and social media. Yes, it's hard to get noticed by traditional publishers, but there's a great deal of opportunity out there if you've got the right story.
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War created bizarre allies, while peace itself could be divisive.
laughter pockets found
It was the laughter of birthdays, of money found in an old pocket.