Earlier
this week, I referenced the latest issue of the Sisters
In Crime Magazine and how there were pieces in it from Jan Christensen and
Debra H. Goldstein. Debra contacted me and asked to write about the SIC short
story initiative for our SMFS blog and I eagerly accepted. The result of that
conversation led to her guest post below.
An
Explanation of the Sisters in Crime “We Love Short Stories” Initiative by Debra
H. Goldstein
After Bouchercon 2015, then Sisters
in Crime President Leslie Budewitz commissioned an ad hoc committee to address
concerns being expressed about the health of short story markets. As she noted,
many SinC members “got their first publishing credits with short mysteries. They remain a tremendous avenue for new
writers to break in; for published authors, they provide an opportunity to tell
stories that would not support a novel or to hold reader interest between
books. Other authors simply prefer the form. They’re fun to write, and fun to
read.”
The committee, comprised of Debra H.
Goldstein (chair), Art Taylor, and Deb Lacey, explored the different markets
and found that:
1) The paying market for short stories has been shrinking,
2) The print publications traditionally publishing short
stories have experienced a major decrease in circulation numbers, and
3) Online markets, many of short duration, have increased, but
few provide paying opportunities for writers.
The committee proposed and the
national board adopted the creation of the SinC “We Love Short Stories”
initiative. “We Love Short Stories” was launched at Malice Domestic 2016 via an
announcement from President Budewitz, followed by an e-mail blast and an
article in the inSinC discussing the importance of short stories. To further effectuate
this initiative, partnerships were established with several publishers and
corporations to provide discounts and other subscription incentives to SinC
members.
It was also decided that articles
should appear in each issue of inSinC on writing short stories, finding
markets, promotion, understanding what editors want, differences between single
and multiple author anthologies, and how to publish stories traditionally and
independently. Articles published during the past year include “Why I Write Short
Stories” (Ruth Moose), “Ellery Queen Magazine Turns 75” (Art Taylor), “Why
Write Short Stories” (Debra H. Goldstein and Mary Jane Maffini), “Success With
Short Stories” (Dale T. Phillips), “Short Story Mystery Anthologies” (Debra H.
Goldstein), and “Short Mystery Fiction Society” (Jan Christensen).
Materials were shared with local
SinC chapters suggesting programs or activities that could be done to
demonstrate “We Love Short Stories.” For example, the Atlanta Sisters in Crime
Chapter recently sponsored a community-wide one day day short story workshop
taught by four recognized short story writers. In addition to general topics
related to craft, skill, and markets, attendees were introduced to the
existence of groups, including the Short Mystery Fiction Society.
Sisters in Crime hopes that
promoting short stories through varied opportunities, including workshops,
articles, and discounts, will engage readers and writers to take an active role
in supporting the short story. Why? – because “We Love Short Stories.”
Debra H. Goldstein ©2016
Judge Debra H. Goldstein is
the author of Should Have Played Poker: a Carrie Martin and the Mah Jongg
Players Mystery (Five Star Publishing – April 2016) and the 2012 IPPY Award
winning Maze in Blue, a mystery set on the University of Michigan’s
campus. Her short stories and essays have been published in anthologies
including Mardi Gras Murder and The Killer Wore Cranberry: a Fourth
Meal of Mayhem as well as in The Birmingham Arts Journal, More
Magazine Online, Bethlehem Writers Roundtable, Alalit.com, Kings
River Life Magazine, Over My Dead Body! and Mysterical-E. . Debra
serves on the national Sisters in Crime and Guppy Chapter boards and is an MWA
member. She lives in Birmingham, Alabama with her husband, Joel, whose blood
runs crimson.
https://www.amazon.com/Should-Played-Carrie-Players-Mystery/dp/1432831593
