Was it all inevitable, John?" Reeve was pushing his fingers across the floor of the cell, seated on his haunches. I was lying on the mattress. Yes," …

- Ian Rankin

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…

- Ian Rankin

The most difficult part of any crime novel is the plotting. It all begins simply enough, but soon you're dealing with a multitude of linked character…

- Ian Rankin

I've always written. At the age of six or seven, I would get sheets of A4 paper and fold them in half, cut the edges to make a little eight-page book…

- Ian Rankin

Rebus was eating breakfast in the canteen and wishing there was more caffeine in the coffee, or more coffee in the coffee come to that.

- Ian Rankin

My first novel was turned down by half a dozen publishers. And even after having published five or six books, I wasn't making enough money to live on…

- Ian Rankin

I wrote my first short story for a competition and won second prize. Another competition came up and I won first prize. The first story was published…

- Ian Rankin

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 p…

- Ian Rankin

I am, of course, a frustrated rock star - I'd much rather be a rock star than a writer. Or own a record shop. Still, it's not a bad life, is it? You …

- Ian Rankin