A. J. Kirby

Featuring "cinematic imagery" (The Reading List), "astonishing prose" (The Guardian), "naturalistic, boisterous dialogue" (Leeds Student Newspaper), and "genuine intensity" (Gorezone Magazine), A.J. Kirby's writing "constantly keeps you on your toes" (Speculative Book Review).

This graduate from the University of Leeds' School of English hails from the north of England and he writes fiction from the darker side of the street.

He is the multi-award-winning author of twelve published novels ('I Am Just Going Outside and May Be Some Time', 2018; 'The Lost Boys of Prometheus City', 2016; 'Small Man Syndrome', 2015; 'The Sleep of Reason Produces Monsters', 2015; 'Things Won't Fix', 2015; 'A Man Could Lose Himself', 2015; 'Sharkways', 2012; 'Paint this Town Red', 2012; 'Perfect World', 2011; 'Bully', 2009; 'The Magpie Trap', 2008; 'When Elephants Walk through the Gorbals', 2007), two collections of short stories ('The Art of Ventriloquism', a collection of crime shorts, August 2012, and 'Mix Tape' 2010), eleven novellas ('The Policy of Truth', 2015; 'The Gavel', 2015; 'Hangingstone', 2014; 'Nu-Gen', 2014; 'Blink', 2013; 'Teeth', 2013; 'Shouting into an Empty Cave', 2013; 'Ace Cameron and the Red Peril', 2013; 'The Haunting of Annie Nicol', 2012; 'The Black Book', 2011; 'Call of the Sea', 2010; Bed Peace, 2010), and over sixty published short stories, which can be found widely in print anthologies, magazines and journals and across the web in zines, writing sites and more.

'Paint this town Red' was shortlisted for the Guardian's Not the Booker Prize 2012, and his short fiction has won numerous awards at UK literary festivals. He is also a reviewer for The Short Review and The New York Journal of Books.

In addition AJ Kirby is a sportswriter. He writes for the Professional Footballers' Association and is the author of four books on Manchester United - 'Fergie's Finest' (2013), 'The Pride of All Europe' (2014), 'Louis van Gaal: Dutch Courage' (2014), and 'Jose Mourinho: The Art of Winning' (2016).

Anna L Stephens on 'Sharkways': "Kirby has written horror before, horror that has made me uneasy and twitchy. He's never before made me nearly bite my own tongue off in broad daylight on a crowded bus. Sharkways did. Sharkways made me want to pull my legs up onto the chair in case insects crawled out from the gloom beneath my seat and up my legs. The middle part of Sharkways stopped me sleeping."

Ginger Nuts of Horror on 'Paint this town Red': "an all action blockbuster novel of survival, that will keep you reading in the edge of your seat."

Cassandra Parkin on 'Perfect World': "From this fantastic opening, the book gallops along with the speed and dizzying swerves of a racehorse on acid."

Leeds Student Newspaper on 'Bully': "Reading this book is like trying to get to sleep after drinking too many vodka red bulls"