Ian Rankin, William McIlvanney and Val McDermid are among the names on the bill for Scotland's first literary festival dedicated to crime writing.
The programme for Bloody Scotland, which will be held in Stirling from September 14 to 16, will bring together more than 40 of the nation's best crime writers.
Two prizes will be announced for the Scottish crime book of the year and the winner of the Glengoyne short story competition.
The festival will also mark the 125th anniversary of the publication of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's first Sherlock Holmes story, the 35th anniversary of William McIlvanney's landmark novel Laidlaw and the 25th anniversary of Inspector Rebus.
The University of Stirling will run a programme of workshops and masterclasses, while there will be debates on the ethics of crime writing and the question of whether a crime novel should win the Man Booker prize.
The programme was launched at Stirling's Old Town Jail at an event attended by authors Quintin Jardine and Christopher Brookmyre.
Ms McDermid said: "If Scotland does go for independence, there's one thing we won't be short of. We've already got more than our fair share of top-class crime writers, and plenty of them will be on show at Bloody Scotland."
Peter Jibson, managing partner of accounting and business advisory firm Mazars, the festival's main sponsor, said: "Today's launch of the festival programme for Bloody Scotland marks the official start to the build-up of what promises to be a groundbreaking literary event."
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