A group of crime writers collaborated on a new thriller on Wednesday while travelling at 125 miles per hour.
Novelists Gordon Brown, Natalie Jayne Clark and Douglas Skelton travelled from Edinburgh to London and back by train to promote the announcement of a new Lumo route to Scotland.
The authors are all taking part in the Bloody Scotland International Crime Writing Festival, which takes place in Stirling this weekend.
The rail operator Lumo is a partner in the crime fiction event, and is soon to launch direct services between London Euston and Stirling.
The group boarded the 9.24am Lumo service from Edinburgh to London King’s Cross, taking turns to craft an original short story inspired by the East Coast Main Line, the characters they met onboard and suggestions from online crime fans.
The authors also held a high-speed book signing during the journey.
The finished story will be released in written and audiobook form for Lumo customers to enjoy in the coming weeks.
Brown, a Bloody Scotland board member and co-founder, who also writes as Morgan Cry, said: “It’s amazing how many ideas come to you when you’re in a real-world travel environment.
“You experience and hear things first hand that can spark inspiration, and then your creative mind takes over.
“To work alongside the other authors was a real honour, and I hope some of the customers we met today might join us at Bloody Scotland this weekend.”
Richard Salkeld, Head of Communications and Partnerships at Lumo, said: “At Lumo we’re all about creating memorable journeys, so what better way than to have three of the UK’s top crime writers dream up a brand-new thriller live on board?
“Our partnership with Bloody Scotland is about celebrating creativity and connecting communities, and today our customers got to be part of a story that started at 125 miles an hour on the East Coast Main Line.”
All three authors are appearing at this year’s Bloody Scotland, Scotland’s International Crime Writing Festival, which takes place in Stirling beginning from tomorrow 12 September.
Bob McDevitt, Director of Bloody Scotland, said: “We can’t wait to see how this high speed crime story turns out — will the authors stay on the right track or will they go off the rails?”
