Acclaimed authors Mary Higgins Clark, Lawrence Block, Harlan Coben, Nelson DeMille, head of Killer Films Christine Vachon, and musician Joe Hurley will join the witty and entertaining author, BBC host and Booker Prize judge Frank Delaney for the fifth bi-annual Pen, Paper and Palate literary salon at the Half King Bar, New York City.

Curated by Ruda Beresford Dauphin in association with Irish Arts Center this Pen, Paper and Palate will take on the entertaining topic of crime writing and outlaw stories with Mr. Delaney leading the diverse group of writers in a spirited and insightful panel discussion, in the style of a literary salon.

As well as food and libations Pen, Paper and Palate will feature live music from the great musician, singer-songwriter and bandleader Joe Hurley, known for his story-telling quality of lyrics and characters who would be “at home in an Elmore Leonard novel” (Irish American Magazine), and for his striking collaborations with a wide-range of musicians, actors and authors including the likes of Johnny Depp, and Keith Richards. The delightful, energetic Ellen McCourt (wife of the late Frank McCourt) will also join in the musical accompaniment.

About the Panel

Lawrence Block is a Mystery Writers of America Grand Master and has won multiple Edgar and Shamus Awards and countless international prizes. The author of more than fifty books, he lives in New York City where his novel “A Walk Among the Tombstones” is currently being filmed, directed by Scott Frank and featuring Downton Abbey’s Dan Stevens and Liam Neeson playing the role of Matthew Scudder.

Mary Higgins Clark’s books are worldwide bestsellers. In the U.S. alone, her books have sold over 80 million copies. She is the author of twenty-four previous suspense novels, three collections of short stories, and co-author, with her daughter Carol Higgins Clark, of three suspense novels. Two of her novels were made into feature films, “Where Are the Children?” and “A Stranger Is Watching”. Many of her other works, novels and short stories, were made into television films and she has received the Gold Medal of Honor from the American-Irish Historical Society (1993), the Spirit of Achievement Award from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University (1994) and many more.

Harlan Coben has over 50 million books in print worldwide, and his last six consecutive novels, “Six Years”, “Stay Close”, “Live Wire”, “Caught”, “Long Lost” and “Hold Tight” all debuted at number one on The New York Times bestseller list and lists around the world. Winner of the Edgar Award, Shamus Award and Anthony Award – the first author to win all three – Coben’s books are published in 41 languages around the globe and have been #1 bestsellers in over a dozen countries. His novel “Tell No One” has been turned into the commercial and critical smash hit French film of the same name, starring Francois Cluzet and Kristin Scott Thomas. He now lives in New Jersey with his wife and their four children.

Nelson DeMille is a member of The Authors Guild, the Mystery Writers of America, and American Mensa. He holds three honorary doctorates: Doctor of Humane Letters from Hofstra University, Doctor of Literature from Long Island University, and Doctor of Humane Letters from Dowling College. He is the author of “By the Rivers of Babylon”, “Cathedral”, “The Talbot Odyssey”, “Word of Honor”, “The Charm School”, “The Gold Coast”, “The General's Daughter”, “Spencerville”, “Plum Island”, “The Lion's Game”, “Up Country”, “Night Fall”, “Wild Fire”, “The Gate House”, “The Lion” and “The Panther”. He also co-authored “Mayday” with Thomas Block and has contributed short stories, book reviews, and articles to magazines and newspapers.

Christine Vachon, Independent Spirit Award and Gotham Award-winner, co-founded indie powerhouse Killer Films in 1995 with producing partner Pamela Koffler. Based out of New York, Killer has produced more than 45 acclaimed independent films including Todd Haynes' Venice Film Festival Award-winning “I’m Not There” and the 2009 Best Canadian Feature at TIFF, Cairo Time.

Over the past decade and a half the two have produced some of the most celebrated American indie features including Academy Award-winning films “Far From Heaven”, “Boys Don’t Cry”, “One Hour Photo”, “Hedwig” and the “Angry Inch”, “Happiness” and “Safe”. In television, Vachon executive produced the Emmy-winning program, “This American Life”, for Showtime and more recently the two have collaborated on the Emmy and Golden Globe-winning miniseries “Mildred Pierce” for HBO. Killer Films was honored with a 10-year retrospective at the New York Museum of Modern Art in 2005.

After the event, all writers will be free to sign books. Tickets are $15 and can be booked online at irishartscenter.org or by calling 866-811-4111.

This, the fifth Pen, Paper and Palate follows on a successful line-up of panels that has included Sebastian Junger, Andrew McCarthy, Edmund White, Colum McCann, Pete Hamill, Joseph O’Neill, Drew Nieporent, Mary Gordon, Susan Eisenhower and more.

May 14 | Doors Open at 6:30 pm | Panel begins at 7 pm

at The Half King | 505 W. 23rd Street at 10th Avenue, New York, NY 10011

Tickets: $15, available online at irishartscenter.org or 866-811-4111