Val McDermid wishes she made character whisky drinker because fans keep sending her gin
dailyrecord.co.ukTop crime writer Val McDermid says she wishes she'd made the main character in her books a whisky drinker.The Kirkcaldy based writer revealed that fans often send her bottles of gin because it was her character Karen Pirie's favourite drink - but she actually can't stand the taste of it.
While first writing the books, McDermid was impressed by the growing gin industry and thought it would be interesting to make Pirie’s drink of choice a gin and tonic.
Readers assume she must have made her cold case-solving protagonist a gin drinker because of her own appreciation of the spirit.But the 68-year-old revealed that she is actually unable to drink, or even smell, Pirie's favourite tipple due to a boozy drinking session that left her throwing up for three days straight while studying at university.
Whisky-lover Val said: “I do feel that I made a tactical error in making Karen a gin drinker. I still think it suits her personality, but as a result, I've generously been given quite a few bottles of gin.“My partner and her colleagues assure me these are lovely, but I can't drink any as I over-indulged to the point of being sick for three days back when I was a student.
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