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It鈥檚 a Crime Special in this week鈥檚 The Arts Hour, as Nikki Bedi talks to some of the big names taking part in Granite Noir, the crime writing festival that takes place annually in Aberdeen, Scotland.

We hear from Sara Paretsky, who revolutionised the US crime fiction scene when her Private Eye, V. I. Warshawski transformed the role of women from victims to investigators.

Dorothy Koomson is Britain鈥檚 biggest selling black female author of adult fiction. She tells us why she doesn鈥檛 write sequels, but chooses instead to create new characters each time she starts a new novel.

Helen Fitzgerald is known for her emotional thrillers. She grew up in small town Australia and has returned to her roots for her latest novel Ash Mountain.

Scottish writer and Granite Noir Ambassador Stuart MacBride explains why he chose the backdrop of Scottish Independence for his novel All That鈥檚 Dead, the importance of comedy in his works and why he鈥檚 needed a glossary of Scottish terms for both readers and editors of his books.

Sif Sigmarsd贸ttir is an Icelandic writer of young adult fiction. Her latest book, The Sharp Edge of a Snowflake, explores the dark side of social media, inspired by the Me Too movement and the Cambridge Analytica scandal.

And we speak to one of Granite Noir鈥檚 programmers Lee Randall and Jane Spiers, chief executive of Aberdeen Performing Arts.

(Photo: Granite Noir Crime Writing Festival venue Her Majesty's Theatre in Aberdeen, Scotland. Credit: Aberdeen Performing Arts)