Tony O'Neill (born in 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 River Ribble, Ribble Valley, east of Preston ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...

) is an English writer based in

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. 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 brothe ...

(1997–98),

Marc Almond Peter Mark Almond (born 9 July 1957) is an English singer-songwriter and musician. He is the lead vocalist of the synth-pop/ new wave duo Soft Cell. He has a distinctive soulful voice and androgynous image. He has had a diverse career as a ...

(1997–98),

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(1999), and Kelli Ali (2001–04), O'Neill has written 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 morphinan opioid substance synthesized from the Opium, dried latex of the Papaver somniferum, opium poppy; it is mainly used as a recreational drug for its eupho ...

and crack addict as well as his experiences in the music industry. 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 2008. ''Sick City'' was released by Harper Perennial in 2010. The plot revolves around two

addicts who try to sell a

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showing

Sharon Tate Sharon Marie Tate Polanski (January 24, 1943 – August 9, 1969) was an American actress and model. During the 1960s, she appeared in advertisements and small television roles before appearing in films as well as working as a model. After receiv ...

. A sequel to ''Sick City'', ''Black Neon'', was published by Walde and Graf in German in 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, and their run-ins with two

lesbian A lesbian is a homosexual woman or girl. 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 nouns with female homosexu ...

pharmacy bandits. He also co-wrote the memoirs of NFL player Jason Peter. The book, ''Hero of the Underground'', was a ''New York Times'' bestseller published in July 2008 by St Martins Press. Other non-fiction works include the memoir of the lead singer of

The Runaways The Runaways were an American rock band who recorded and performed from 1975 to 1979. Formed in 1975 in Los Angeles, the band released four studio albums and one live album during its run. Among their best-known songs are " Cherry Bomb", " Holl ...

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. She later became a solo artist. Currie and h ...

– ''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 . ''Down and Out on Murder Mile'' and ''Sick City'' have 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'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. His works include memoirs, ...

, on

Akashic Books Akashic Books is a Brooklyn-based independent publisher, formed in 1997. It was started by Johnny Temple (bassist), Johnny Temple, bassist of Girls Against Boys and mid-'80s Dischord band Soulside, with the mission "to make literature more part ...

. 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 and Ben Myers.

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'' (13e note éditions, 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 Jason Peter *''Neon Angel: A Memoir of The Runaways'' (2010), co-writer with

References

External links

*
3:AM interview
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oneill, Tony 1978 births Living people 21st-century English novelists 21st-century English 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