Today I\u2019m delighted to feature crime author Frances Crawford whose novel A Bad, Bad Place<\/strong> is lauded as a crime debut of the year having won the McDermid Debut Award<\/em> at this year\u2019s Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival<\/em>. In addition it\u2019s also shortlisted for the Bloody Scotland Debut Prize<\/em> as well as the prestigious (Bloody Scotland) McIlvanney Prize for Scottish Crime Novel of the Year<\/em>. The winners for both are announced this evening, so good luck Frances! A Bad, Bad Place<\/strong> set in 1970\u2019s Glasgow, has been described as a murder mystery unlike any other. <\/p>\n <\/p>\n As a passionate advocate of lifelong learning, Frances was delighted to graduate in 2022, age 60, with MLitt (Distinction) Creative Writing from Glasgow University. She signed with literary agents A.M.Heath in 2024, and after a ten-way auction, her debut novel A Bad, Bad Place<\/strong> was published by Transworld at Penguin in February 2026. <\/p>\n Frances grew up in North Glasgow and credits the good people of Possilpark and Milton as her writing inspiration. She still lives in Glasgow with her family and likes libraries and punk rock.\u00a0<\/p>\n Over to Frances <\/em><\/strong>:<\/p>\n I grew up in a family of eight, all of whom loved music. So many different tastes and obsessions and as a childhood memory I\u2019ve chosen \u2018Let It Be\u2019<\/em><\/strong> because The Beatles were one band that everyone liked.<\/p>\n \n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/jillsbookcafe.blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/frances-crawford-photo-2024.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n<\/div>\nWhich five pieces of music\/songs would you include in the soundtrack to your life and why?<\/strong><\/mark><\/h3>\n