Tony O'Neill (born 1978,

Blackburn Blackburn () is an industrial town and the administrative centre of the Blackburn with Darwen borough in Lancashire, England. The town is north of the West Pennine Moors on the southern edge of the Ribble Valley, east of Preston and north-n ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

) is an English writer based in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. A one-time musician with

Kenickie Kenickie were an English four-piece pop punk band from Sunderland. The band was formed in 1994 and consisted of lead vocalist, guitarist and lyricist Lauren Laverne (b. Lauren Gofton), drummer Johnny X (real name Pete Gofton, Lauren's brother ...

(1997–98),

Marc Almond Peter Mark Sinclair "Marc" Almond, (born 9 July 1957) is an English singer. Almond first began performing and recording in the synthpop/ new wave duo Soft Cell where he became known for his distinctive soulful voice and androgynous image. He ...

(1997–98),

The Brian Jonestown Massacre The Brian Jonestown Massacre is an American musical project and band led and started by Anton Newcombe. It was formed in San Francisco in 1990. The group was the subject of the 2004 documentary film called '' Dig!'', and have gained media noto ...

(1999) and

Kelli Ali Kelli Ali, also known as Kelli Dayton (born 30 June 1974), is a British vocalist, who was formerly the lead singer of the trip hop group Sneaker Pimps before going on to a solo career. Career Before Sneaker Pimps, Ali was part of a group called ...

(2001–04), O'Neill is also the author of several books including ''Digging the Vein'' (2006), ''Down and Out on Murder Mile'' (2008) and ''Sick City'' (2010).

Literary career

''Digging the Vein'' was a novel based on O'Neill's years as a

heroin Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a potent opioid mainly used as a recreational drug for its euphoric effects. Medical grade diamorphine is used as a pure hydrochloride salt. Various white and brow ...

and crack addict as well as his experiences in the music industry, while the sequel, ''Down and Out on Murder Mile'' was released by

Harper Perennial Harper Perennial is a paperback imprint of the publishing house HarperCollins Publishers. Overview Harper Perennial has divisions located in New York, London, Toronto, and Sydney. The imprint is descended from the Perennial Library imprint foun ...

as a mass market paperback in November 2008. ''Sick City'' was released by

in July 2010. The plot revolves around two

addicts who try to sell a legendary

sex tape Amateur pornography is a category of pornography that features models, actors or non-professionals performing without pay, or actors for whom this material is not their only paid modeling work. Reality pornography is made porn that seeks to em ...

starring

Sharon Tate Sharon Marie Tate Polanski (January 24, 1943 – August 9, 1969) was an American actress and model. During the 1960s, she played small television roles before appearing in films and was regularly featured in fashion magazines as a model and cover ...

. The book earned praise from Barry Gifford,

Sebastian Horsley Sebastian Horsley (born Marcus A. Horsley; 8 August 1962 – 17 June 2010) was an English artist and writer. Horsley's writing often revolved around his dysfunctional family, his flamboyant and eccentric behavior, his drug addictions, sex, and ...

, and

Tom McCarthy Thomas McCarthy (also Tom and Tommy) may refer to: Academia *Thomas A. McCarthy (born 1940), American professor of philosophy *Thomas J. McCarthy (born 1956), American professor of polymer chemistry at the University of Massachusetts *J. Thomas Mc ...

among others. In 2012 the novel was optioned for the screen by screenwriter Jayson Rothwell. A sequel to ''Sick City'', ''Black Neon'' was published by Walde and Graf in German in August 2012. It follows the further adventures of ''Sick City''s protagonists Randal and Jeffrey, and their adventures in the world of Santaria,

art-house cinema An art film (or arthouse film) is typically an independent film, aimed at a niche market rather than a mass market audience. It is "intended to be a serious, artistic work, often experimental and not designed for mass appeal", "made primarily f ...

and a their run-ins with a pair of

lesbian A lesbian is a Homosexuality, homosexual woman.Zimmerman, p. 453. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate n ...

pharmacy bandits. He also co-wrote the memoirs of NFL player

Jason Peter Jason Michael Peter (born September 13, 1974) is a former American college and professional football player who was a defensive end in the National Football League (NFL) for four seasons. Peter was a college football All-American at the Unive ...

. The resulting book, ''Hero of the Underground'', was a ''New York Times'' bestseller published in July 2008 by St Martins Press. Other non-fiction works includes the memoir of the lead singer of

The Runaways The Runaways were an all-female American rock band who recorded and performed from 1975 to 1979. The band released four studio albums and one live album during its run. Among their best-known songs are "Cherry Bomb", " Hollywood", "Queens of N ...

Cherie Currie Cherie Ann Currie (born November 30, 1959) is an American singer, musician, actress and artist. Currie was the lead vocalist of The Runaways, a rock band from Los Angeles, in the mid-to-late 1970s. After The Runaways, she became a solo artist. ...

– ''Neon Angel: A Memoir of The Runaways'' (2010, It Books / Harper Collins). A short story anthology, ''Notre Dame Du Vide'', was published in France, June 2009, by 13e Note Editions. ''Down and Out on Murder Mile'' and ''Sick City'' have also been translated into French, and ''Sick City'' was scheduled to be published in Germany, Switzerland and Austria in 2011. He has written short stories for '' 3:AM Magazine'' and

Laura Hird Laura Hird (born 1966) is a Scottish novelist and short story writer. Hird studied Contemporary Writing at Middlesex Polytechnic and is the author of two novels, ''Nail and Other Stories'' (1997) and ''Born Free'' (1999). ''Hope and Other Ur ...

's fiction showcase, among others. A short story collection, ''Seizure Wet Dreams'', was published by Social Disease in the UK, also in 2006. In 2007 ''Songs From The Shooting Gallery'', his first book of poetry, was published by Burning Shore Press of Long Beach, California. His short story "Fragments of Joe" was featured in ''The Heroin Chronicles'' ed.

Jerry Stahl Jerry Stahl (born September 28, 1953) is an American novelist and screenwriter. His works include the 1995 memoir of addiction ''Permanent Midnight''. A 1998 film adaptation followed with Ben Stiller in the lead role. Stahl has worked extensivel ...

, on

Akashic Books Akashic Books is a Brooklyn-based independent publisher. Akashic Books' collection began with Arthur Nersesian's ''The Fuck Up'' in 1997, and has since expanded to include Dennis Cooper's "Little House on the Bowery" series, Chris Abani's Black ...

. He is a founding member of the

Brutalists Brutalism is a literary movement formed in 2006 by three writers from the north of England (Tony O'Neill, Adelle Stripe and Ben Myers). The Brutalists are affiliated with the Offbeat generation, a loose association of like-minded writers wo ...

, a literary collective including authors

Adelle Stripe Adelle Stripe (born 1976) is an English writer and journalist. Work Stripe's writing is rooted in the non-fiction novel form and explores working-class culture, untold histories of Northern England, popular music, and small-town life. ''Bla ...

and

Ben Myers Benjamin Myers (born January 1976) is an English writer and journalist. Early life Myers grew up in Belmont, County Durham, and was a pupil at the estate's local comprehensive school where he become interested in reading and skateboarding. M ...

Works

Fiction

*''Digging The Vein'' (2006) *''Down and Out on Murder Mile'' (2008) *''Sick City'' (2010) *''Black Neon'' (2012) *''La Vie Sauvage / The Savage Life'' (2016)

Short fiction

*''Seizure Wet Dreams'' Social Disease (2006) *''Notre Dame du Vide'' 13eNote Editions Paris (2009) *''The Loose Canon'' Vol. 1 Siren Song, Montreal (2009), *''The Heroin Chronicles''

(2012) *''Dirty Hits: Stories 2005-2015'' Vicon Editions (2015)

Poetry

*''Songs from the Shooting Gallery'' (2007)

Non-fiction

*''Hero of the Underground'' (2008), co-writer with

*''Neon Angel: A Memoir of The Runaways'' (2010), co-writer with

External links

*
3:AM interview
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oneill, Tony 1978 births Living people 21st-century British novelists 21st-century British short story writers 21st-century English male writers English expatriates in the United States English male novelists English male short story writers English people of Irish descent English short story writers