It’s fair to say that the first Noireland International Crime Fiction Festival went off with a bang.

If you’re a fan of the crime genre, whether you enjoy reading the books or aspire to be an author, then Belfast’s debut crime festival is a must attendance.

I’m wary of offering advice because every writer has a different approach and a different set of rules, but the one thing I would suggest is quite simply –to read. Read as much as you can in as many genres as you can. Read fact, fiction, history, biography, the classics, children’s etc.