Val McDermid and Jo Sharp Write Their First Book Together: This Door of the Seas

What did Val McDermid and Jo Sharp write together?

This Door of the Seas is a novella about the Darien scheme, Scotland's disastrous attempt to found a colony in Central America at the end of the seventeenth century. The book is the couple's first joint work of fiction. Polygon, an imprint of Edinburgh publisher Birlinn, published in August 2026 by Polygon, an imprint of the Edinburgh publisher Birlinn, as part of its Darkland Tales series (Birlinn announcement).

The history behind the book

In 1698, ships left Scotland carrying settlers to the isthmus of Darien, in present-day Panama, under the Company of Scotland. The plan was to build a trading colony linking the Atlantic and Pacific. It collapsed amid disease, poor supplies, Spanish hostility and a lack of English support, and a second expedition fared no better. Scots of every class had invested heavily, and the losses are widely seen as one of the pressures that led to the 1707 Union with England. The episode is therefore a natural subject for Darkland Tales, which retells dark moments from Scottish history through fiction.

How they wrote it

In a Guardian interview published at launch, McDermid and Sharp said they had long been cautious about collaborating. For this project they researched and wrote as a team, taking turns to draft sections and edit each other's work. Sharp led much of the historical research. The Scotsman reported on their goal to rethink the legacy of the scheme ahead of an Edinburgh festival appearance.

Who they are

Val McDermid is one of Britain's best-selling crime writers, known for the Tony Hill and Carol Jordan novels and the Karen Pirie series. Her books have sold in the tens of millions worldwide. Jo Sharp is a professor of geography at the University of St Andrews whose academic work deals with political geography and postcolonial questions, which makes a story about a colonial venture squarely within her field. The two married in 2016.

Why it matters to writers

Co-writing between partners is common in genre fiction, but it is rare for an author of McDermid's standing to share a byline on fiction. The account of how they divided the work, alternating drafts with one partner leading research, is a practical model for writers considering a collaboration. Further details are available on McDermid's site.

Book details

• Title: This Door of the Seas
• Authors: Val McDermid and Jo Sharp
• Publisher: Polygon (Birlinn), Darkland Tales series
• Published: August 2026
• Form: novella