Episode 2519

Ep. 2519 Wine and Crime at Venice Noir with David Hewson and Philip Gwynne Jones | Book Club with Richard Hough

Book Club with Richard Hough

November 7, 2025

3743.1902

David Hewson and Philip Gwynne Jones

Literature/Crime

Episode Summary

<think> I need to create a concise content analysis of the provided text, which is a podcast transcript about the Venice Noir literary festival featuring David Hewson and Philip Gwynne Jones. I'll follow the specified format with Key Themes, Summary, Key Takeaways, Notable Quotes, and Follow-up Questions. First, let me understand what this text is about: This is a transcript of an episode of "Book Club with the Italian Wine Podcast" hosted by Richard Hough. The guests are crime writers David Hewson and Philip Gwynne Jones, who both write mystery novels set in Italy (particularly Venice). They discuss: 1. Their backgrounds as writers 2. Their writing processes and characters 3. How they incorporate Italian food and wine into their work 4. The upcoming Venice Noir literary festival they're involved with organizing The main focus seems to be on the Venice Noir festival, which is a new literary event focused on noir/mystery literature set in Venice. They discuss the origins of the festival, its vision, and what attendees can expect. Let me analyze the key themes: 1. The Venice Noir Festival: The podcast focuses heavily on this new literary festival that's being launched in Venice, with details about its origins, format, and goals. 2. Writing about Italy: Both authors discuss how they incorporate Italian settings, culture, food, and wine into their mystery novels. 3. The evolution of crime writing careers: Both authors share their different paths to becoming crime writers, with interesting stories about how they transitioned from other careers. 4. Venice as a literary setting: They discuss why Venice makes such a compelling backdrop for mystery and noir fiction. 5. The relationship between food/drink and storytelling: There's significant discussion about how food and wine serve as important cultural elements in their writing that help create atmosphere and authenticity. Now for the summary (max 200 words): The podcast features crime writers David Hewson and Philip Gwynne Jones discussing their Italian-set mystery novels and the upcoming Venice Noir literary festival. Both authors share their unique paths to becoming writers - Hewson transitioned from journalism, while Jones moved from IT to teaching English in Venice before writing. They explain how Venice's atmosphere, history, and culture inspire their work, with particular emphasis on how food and drink serve as narrative devices that create authenticity and social context. The conversation centers on Venice Noir, a new boutique literary festival launching in November 2024 that aims to be "compact" rather than massive, focusing on intimate author-reader interactions. Organized with Libreria Studium bookstore, the festival will feature panels on unique topics (like putting Casanova on trial), discussions about films like "Don't Look Now," and special food/drink events. The festival deliberately avoids typical "where do you get your ideas" panels in favor of substantive discussions about Venice's relationship with noir literature. Both authors emphasize their goal of creating a community-focused event where attendees can mingle with authors over food and drinks in Venice's historic venues. Key Takeaways (max 6 points): - Venice Noir is a new, intentionally small-scale literary festival focused on mystery/noir literature set in Venice - The festival aims to create intimate author-reader interactions rather than being a massive commercial event - Food and drink are integral to both the festival experience and the authors' writing process as cultural touchpoints - Venice's unique atmosphere, history, and waterways make it an ideal setting for mystery fiction - The festival features innovative programming like putting Casanova on trial rather than standard author panels - Both authors emphasize the importance of authenticity in capturing Italian life through details of food, wine, and local customs Notable Quotes (max 3): - "We're not trying to be an event that has thousands and thousands of visitors. We want to be compact. We want to be a kind of a boutique festival where people get to meet and mingle and leaders and authors get to chat, and there's a social side to it." - "You don't really understand what this book is about. But it's a wonderful way of introducing local color and introducing shorthand. And you know, you can write very sensually about food and its smells and the aroma of things cooking." - "No matter how long I live in Venice, the place will always offer up some surprise out of nowhere." Follow-up Questions (max 3): 1. How does the Venice Noir festival plan to balance celebrating Venice's literary heritage while addressing contemporary challenges like overtourism? 2. In what specific ways does Venice's unique geography (waterways, islands, limited space) influence the structure and pacing of noir narratives set there? 3. How might the festival evolve in future years to deepen its connection with Venice's local community beyond the tourist experience? Now I'll compile this into the requested format, making sure to stay within the word limits. </think> **Content Analysis** **Key Themes (max 5 points)** 1. Venice Noir Festival as a boutique literary event focused on intimate author-reader connections 2. Venice as an ideal setting for noir/mystery fiction due to its atmospheric and historical qualities 3. The integration of Italian food and wine as narrative devices that create authenticity and cultural context 4. Authors' career transitions from non-writing professions to crime fiction 5. The importance of community building in literary festivals rather than commercial scale **Summary (max 200 words)** The podcast features crime writers David Hewson and Philip Gwynne Jones discussing their Italian-set mystery novels and the inaugural Venice Noir literary festival. Both authors share their unconventional paths to writing—Hewson from journalism, Jones from IT and teaching English in Venice. They emphasize how Venice's unique atmosphere, history, and waterways inspire their work, with particular focus on how food and drink serve as cultural touchpoints that create authenticity. The conversation centers on Venice Noir, a new compact festival launching in November 2024 at the historic Ateneo Veneto near La Fenice opera house. Organized with Libreria Studium bookstore, the festival deliberately avoids typical "where do you get your ideas" panels in favor of substantive discussions like putting Casanova on trial and analyzing "Don't Look Now." With free entry to all sessions, the festival aims to foster community through intimate author-reader interactions, special food/drink events, and dinners with authors. As Hewson states, they're "not trying to be an event that has thousands of visitors" but rather a "boutique festival where people get to meet and mingle." The festival represents a thoughtful approach to literary events that prioritizes quality interactions over scale while celebrating Venice's rich noir potential. **Key Takeaways (max 6 points)** - Venice Noir is intentionally designed as a small-scale, community-focused festival rather than a massive commercial event - Food and drink serve dual purposes in noir fiction: creating atmosphere and functioning as social connectors in Italian culture - Venice's unique geography (waterways, islands, limited space) creates natural tension ideal for mystery narratives - The festival features innovative programming like historical trials and film analysis rather than conventional author panels - Both authors emphasize authenticity in capturing Italian life through specific cultural details rather than stereotypes - The festival's free admission model challenges the typical high-cost structure of literary events **Notable Quotes (max 3)** - "We're not trying to be an event that has thousands and thousands of visitors. We want to be compact. We want to be a kind of a boutique festival where people get to meet and mingle and leaders and authors get to chat, and there's a social side to it." - "It's a wonderful way of introducing local color and introducing shorthand. And you know, you can write very sensually about food and its smells and the aroma of things cooking." - "No matter how long I live in Venice, the place will always offer up some surprise out of nowhere." **Follow-up Questions (max 3)** 1. How does Venice Noir plan to engage Venice's local residents beyond the tourist experience to ensure the festival benefits the community? 2. In what specific ways does Venice's seasonal transformation (from tourist-filled to quiet post-lockdown periods) influence noir narrative structures? 3. How might the festival's "boutique" model serve as a template for other literary events seeking to balance commercial viability with authentic community connection?

About This Episode

The speakers discuss their writing and writing process, including their past experiences with audio books and their love for Italian language. They express their desire to return to their hometown of Dublin and live in Italy, but are hesitant to discuss their plans for their next novel. Another man preparing for a television show covers everything at a festival is also a fan of The Red Speaker by HP Lovecraft and The Red Speaker by HP Lovecraft, as well as The Red Speaker by HP Lovecraft and The Red Speaker by HP Lovecraft. They also have a love for Italian language and are interested in living in Italy.

Transcript

We're not trying to be, an event that has thousands and thousands of visitors. We want to be compact. We want to be a kind of a boutique festival where people get to meet and mingle and leaders and authors get to chat, and there's a social side to it. And there's a community building over the years. So it's the start. It's the very first one. There'll be a few rough edges, but, you know, the basics are there. We've got the authors. We've got the venues, and I think we've got some great subjects to talk about. So I hope anybody who's listening, if you wanna come along, can't know. You're coming, Richard. So it'd be lovely to see you there. Yeah. There will be food and drink. Don't forget that. There will be food and drink as well. Yes. Yeah. There will be food and drink. Hello, and welcome to book club with the Italian wine podcast. I'm your host, Richard Hoff, and I'm delighted that you're joining us as we get between the vines with some of the best wine writing out there. So sit back, pour yourself a glass, and enjoy the show with the Italian Wine Podcast. This month, our guests are two renowned crime writers who have embraced Italy as the backdrop for their murder mystery thriller, David Hewson and Philip Gwyn Jones. Hi, chaps. Welcome to the Italian Wine Podcast. Thank you so much. It's a pleasure to be here. Yep. Me too. Great. So this is something of a first for the show, because you're not wine writers, but you do have very deep links with Italy, not least its food and wine, which I know you both enjoy. Especially, Negroni's, I think in your case Oh, we'll get around to those, I'm sure. Yes. Okay. So I'm very much, looking forward to exploring some of that with you in our conversation. First though, I just want to understand a little bit more about your your backgrounds and your origins as crime writers. And starting with you, David, your journalistic career began as a 17 year old I did. At the Scarborough Evening News. Yeah. You then went on to work with the Times and the Independent. So can you tell us just a bit about your your life as a journalist, your work as a journalist? What kind of memorable stories did you cover? And how did that background prepare you for being a crime writer? Well, you know, I I went into journalism because I wanted to write, and I couldn't think of anything else to do. Mhmm. I always wanted to write books, but you didn't have an experience as a young person. So, you know, I was literally covering flower shows and and minor car crashes and court cases, when I was 17, and then somehow clawed my way onto the times and then the independent on the Sunday Times. And, you know, I I covered business. I covered foreign reporting. I was the asked correspondent for a while. And then on The Sunday Times, I was a technology columnist, for quite a while. So I did I did lots of different sorts of stuff. In terms of how journalism prepares you for being a writer, in one way, it's a great preparation because you learn that your words need to be edited. You know, you're not precious about what you've written. And, you know, I work with some great journalists over the years and some great editors who taught me stuff that I was able to pass on to other people. And that's really important when you're writing whether you're writing a book or a press release or what everything. You know, you're gonna take feedback. You've got to accept that people can improve your work. And I found that a lot of people who try to become authors later on are just so amazed that they've actually written something that they don't want to change a single word, which is a a real mistake. So that side of being a journalist is very good in that you you understand that editing and rewriting, they're both incredibly important. The bad side of it is that, you know, everything that makes journalism good makes fiction bad because as a journalist, you're trying to tell the absolute truth. And what you're trying to do as a as a novelist is tell a whopping great lie that appears to be the truth. So everything that makes fiction work would get you fired as a journalist. So, you know, I think you can get hooked up. I mean, some journalists who become writers become obsessed with fact and have to get everything absolutely right. And my approach is if something is meant to be factual in a book, and often I will use factual stuff, then I will endeavor to make it right, but I will still feel the freedom to lie big time whenever I feel like it. So it it swings and roundabouts, really. Okay. And when did you make the transition in from journalism to Well, I was I I I knew that I had to find the time to write because there was no way I was gonna write a book if I was commuting into London into an office. So I eventually managed to wangle my way on to be a columnist, a weekly columnist on the Sunday Times, which meant I could work from home. So I was writing the book in the morning and then working as for the Sunday Times in the afternoon and the evenings. And then, eventually, I was able to the the books took up enough, but I can just say terrified my wife. But I said, that's it. I'm giving up journalism for good, and that was over twenty years ago. And with hindsight, I think I should probably have given it up earlier, but I was you know, there were kids and bills to pay, so I didn't. But, but it was always something I I I wanted to do. And it was in, you know, I was in my early forties when it happened. I'd actually given up. I'd stopped thinking about being a writer, and then we had a holiday in Southern Spain, at Easter. And the weather was absolutely terrible, awful. And there was a book on the bookshelf, an Ed McBain, great Ed McBain crime story, 87 Precinct. And I read that, and I just thought I'd forgotten. That's this is what I want to do. And that prompted me into, trying to write a book. And and that's how it all started. Interesting. And how did your career then take shape in those early days of finding an editor, having a story? Well, it very nearly didn't. It very nearly didn't. I wrote, you know, my first book, which I call Samantha Center. I wrote it, and I followed all the things it tells you to do in the the writer's yearbook. You know, like, you write a letter to all the agents explaining who you are and what the book's like. They all came back and said we're not interested. We don't even want to read it. Who wants to read a book set in Spain? And I was spending a lot of time in America at the time, so I thought I'd get myself an agent in New York. I was about to go to New York, and I sent it I faxed because these these are the days of fax. There was no email. I actually faxed these things around to loads of agents. Most of everyone ignored it apart from one agent came back and said, you can't do this. You're English. You need an English agent. My mate in England might be interested. Now her mate in England was a wonderful woman called Vivienne Shuster, who was like the queen of literary agents at the time. She represented everybody. And, she worked for Curtis Brown. Curtis Brown had already said they didn't wanna read the book. But Viv phoned me, and she said, Edith, she'll talk about it. You know? Of course, I didn't say, actually, you've already said you don't want to read the book. But she did the thing saying, I'd like to read the first 10 pages, Then she said, I'd like to read the next 50 pages. Then she wanted to read it all, and then she took it on. And within a space of three months, I had a three book contract with Robert Collins. And six months later, I've got a film deal. And they made the they made a film of it. It's a truly terrible film, but they made a film of it. So, you know, that's that's publishing. You know? I think it's probably even more bizarre than that now. But, but back in those days, you know, it was just your luck and a prayer. And you, Philip, your background is completely different. It's very different to David. Yes. You were