SMFS Member Publishing News: Elizabeth Zelvin

SMFS list member Elizabeth Zelvin’s latest short story, “Roxelana’s Ring” now appears online at J.J. Outré Review. The story is free to read here.

SleuthSayers: Robbing Victor to Pay Shanks by Robert Lopresti

SleuthSayers: Robbing Victor to Pay Shanks: As I mentioned  here not too long ago, I think one of my writing strengths is premises and one of my weaknesses is plots.  A result of ...

SMFS Members Published in Death in the Drowned Lands: An Anthology for the World

Several SMFS members have short stories in the new book, Death in the Drowned Lands: An Anthology for the World. The read is available in eBook format at Amazon. The SMFS list members in the book are:


J. F. Benedetto with "Death is a Matter of Faith."

Kaye George with “Going Home.”

James L’Etoile with “Moldy Cash and a Getaway."

Kate Thornton with “Treasured Memory.”

Synopsis:

This is an anthology of stories inspired by the terrifying prospect of climate change and what that means—not just now, but for all the coming generations.

Fourteen bestselling and prize-winning authors have joined forces to produce this collection, contributing tales based on their original and inventive interpretation of the theme “Death in the Drowned Lands.” On these pages you’ll find stories of deaths intentional and accidental, events both comic and tragic, and settings ranging from the ancient past to the far future.
This book is a labor of love, a gift from the writers to the planet we inhabit. One hundred percent of the royalties earned will be donated to an organization at the forefront of the battle to stop global warming.

Remember—there is no Planet B.

With works by: R. C. Barnes, J.F. Benedetto, Kimmy Dee, Kaye George, Mark Hauer, Berkeley Hunt, E. E. King, Katia Kozar, James L’Etoile, Kat Parrish, Mark Rogers, Kate Thornton, Max Tomlinson, and Albert Tucher.

SMFS Member Publishing News: James Blakey

SMFS list member James Blakey’s latest short story, “How to Become a Successful 21^st Century Cybercriminal in Five Easy Steps” appears in The Dark City Crime and Mystery Magazine: Volume 5, Issue 3. The issue can be purchased at Amazon and at Magzter.

Synopsis:

The Dark City is a quarterly magazine featuring crime and mystery stories with an emphasis on stories that illuminate character and setting. In this issue we feature a wannabe cybercriminal who finds that success on the dark web is an illusive target, a guy seeking a girl in a bar who finds himself a prisoner and participant in the darkest of games, a film memorabilia collector who seeks the remains of a film femme fatale, a debt collector who has to remind his client that green is the only color that matters, and an aging grandmother who applies a failing memory to solving the disappearance of her only grandson.

The First Two Pages: “Talk to Me” by Emily Hockaday and Jackie Sherbow

The First Two Pages: “Talk to Me” by Emily Hockaday and Jackie Sherbow

SMFS Member Publishing News: June Lorraine Roberts

SMFS list member June Lorraine Roberts’ latest flash fiction story, “Winter Day” appears at Punk Noir Magazine. You can read it for free here.

A Short Walk Down A Dark Street: Issue 101

As posted by Peter DiChellis to our list…

This week’s blog lauds short mystery and crime fiction with links to a crime-infested crush of reviews, releases, free reads, and more.

Includes: The Dark City Crime & Mystery Magazine posted all five stories from its April 2020 issue, free to read.

Also free to read: the anthology 101 Great Thriller Short Stories is free on Kindle.

Plus: Occult Detective Magazine is open for submissions until June 5. Check out the details. (And for the editor’s views on submissions, writing, and rejections you can click back to Short walk #62.)

And—a review of a “very entertaining” private eye anthology without a “weak tale” anywhere in it.

Also, a thoughtful essay— what will happen to public libraries, even after the pandemic?

A short walk down a dark street (#101). Celebrating short mystery and crime fiction.

https://shortwalkdarkstreet.wordpress.com/2020/04/26/short-walk-101/

Little Big Crimes Review: One Flu Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Kathy Krevat

Little Big Crimes: One Flu Over the Cuckoo's Nest, by Kathy Krevat: "One Flu Over the Cuckoo's Nest," by Kathy Krevat, in Crossing Borders, edited by Lia Brackmann and Matt Coyle, Down and Ou...

2019 EQMM Readers Award

Picture courtesy of Art Taylor on Facebook

The Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine: May/June 2020 issue not only features stories from several SMFS members as previously announced, it also contains the announcement of the 2019 EQMM Readers Award. This year, ten of the eleven recognized authors are SMFS list members. Our SMFS list members and their placement in the 2019 Ellery Queen Readers Award poll are as follows:

1^st Place---David Dean with “The Duelist” in the May/June 2019 issue.

2^nd Place---Paul D. Marks with “Fadeout on Bunker Hill” in the March/April 2019 issue.

3^rd Place---G. M. Malliet with “Whiteout” in the January/February 2019 issue (tie with nonmember).

4rth Place---David Dean with “Snow Boy” in the January/February 2019 issue.

6^th Place---Art Taylor with “Better Days”  in the the May/June 2019 issue and Trey Dowell with "Heat"  in the July/August  2019 issue (tie).

7^th Place---Michael Bracken with “Wishing Tree” in the January/February 2019 and O’Neil De Noux” with “Sac-a-lait Man” in the September/October 2019 issue (tie).

8^th Place---Richard Helms with “The Cripplegate Apprehension” in the July/August  2019 issue.

9^th Place---Stacy Woodson with “The Retirement Plan” in the in the September/October 2019 issue.

10^th Place---Christine Poulson with “Fiction Addiction” in the November/December 2019 issue.


More information can be found in the May/June 2020 issue available now.

One Writer's World: What's in an Ending? by Susan Oleksiw

One Writer's World: What's in an Ending?: After writing every day for three months I'm coming up to the final scenes in a new stand-alone. This is usually an exciting time fo...

SMFS Member Publication News: C. W. Blackwell

SMFS list member C.W. Blackwell’s short story, “We Take Care Of Our Own” is now online at Shotgun Honey. The story is online and is free to read here.

SMFS Member Podcast: Frank Zafiro Interviews James L’Etoile

SMFS list member Frank Zafiro has a long running podcast titled “Wrong Place, Write Crime.” One of the things he does on that is interview folks. This week he interviews SMFS list member James L’Etoile. This episode can be heard here.

SMFS Members Published in Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine: May/June 2020

Several SMFS list members are published in the Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine: May/June  2020 issue. The issue is available from Dell Magazines as well as at Amazon and other vendors. The SMFS list members published in this issue are:

Michael Bracken with “Sleepy River.”

Eve Fisher with “Brother’s Keeper.”

Robert Lopresti with “Shanks Saves The World.”

Joseph S. Walker with “Etta at the End of the World.”

Elizabeth Zelvin with “Reunion.”

SMFS Members Published in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine: May/June 2020

Several SMFS list members are published in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine: May/June 2020 issue. The issues is available at the publisher website, Amazon, and other vendors. The published SMFS list members in this issue are:

Shelly Dickson Carr with “Nantucket Undertow.”

Richard Helms with “Noble Rot.”

Toni L. P. Kelner with “Rage Warehouse-Ire Proof.”

Josh Pachter translates “Traveler’s Rest” by Michael Berg.

SMFS Members Published in The Faking Of The President: Nineteen Stories of White House Noir

Several SMFS list members have stories in the new anthology published today, The Faking Of The President: Nineteen Stories of White House Noir. Published by Three Rooms Press, the book is available in print and eBook formats from the publisher, Amazon, and other vendors. The SMFS list members in this book are:

Sarah M. Chen with “In Mother We Trust.”

Nikki Dolson with “Services Rendered.”

Danny Gardner with “Old Pharaoh.”

Gary Phillips with “Y2 Effin’ K.”

Travis Richardson with “The Event That Never Happened.”

Synopsis:

A literary coup d'etat, that ponders "What would the White House be like if U.S. Presidents of the past were not restricted by the time-honored hallmarks and traditional behavior of the office, leaving them free to do whatever they wanted, anytime and anywhere?" THE FAKING OF THE PRESIDENT: Nineteen Stories of White House Noir pulls back the curtain on the “new norm” for America’s highest office, with a collection of bizarre new stories by a diverse group of renowned authors that take readers across the chasm of reality into an alternate universe—where Nixon takes a wacky psychedelic trip with Elvis Presley; where a time-traveling renegade targets members of the George Bush administration with disastrous results; where a spy seizes a sudden opportunity for power after Woodrow Wilson’s stroke. The stories are outlandish but—when it comes to the White House of today—no longer implausible.



The line-up of award-winning authors includes Eric Beetner, Peter Carlaftes, Sarah M. Chen, Angel Luis Colón, S. A. Cosby, Nikki Dolson, Mary Anna Evans, Adam Lance Garcia, Danny Gardner, Alison Gaylin, Christopher Chambers, Kate Flora, Greg Herren, Gary Phillips, Alex Segura, Travis Richardson, S. J. Rozan, Abby Vandiver, and Erica Wright.

TOUGH: Dirty Laundry, fiction by MIchael Bracken

TOUGH: Dirty Laundry, fiction by MIchael Bracken: Julia Calloway Poe sat at a table outside Starbucks and stared at her cellphone, much like the coffee drinkers occupying the surrounding tab...

A Short Walk Down A Dark Street: Issue 100

As posted by SMFS list member Peter DiChellis to our list…

This week’s blog hits the century mark with a bunch of links to bad-ass reviews, releases, free reads, and more—all of them about short mystery & crime tales.

Includes: More free stories from the Akashic Books anthologies Kansas City Noir and Staten Island Noir.

Plus: Switchblade Magazine editor Scotch Rutherford’s views on what crime fiction editors want (and don’t want) and differences between submitting to established mystery magazines and indie crime ‘zines. Reminder: Switchblade is open for submissions until April 25. Check out the details.

A short walk down a dark street (#100). Celebrating short mystery and crime fiction.

https://shortwalkdarkstreet.wordpress.com/2020/04/19/short-walk-100/

Best wishes,

Peter

Little Big Crimes Review: Free Man in Paris by Brendan DuBois

Little Big Crimes: Free Man in Paris, by Brendan DuBois: "Free Man in Paris," by Brendan DuBois, in The Beat of Black Wings, edited by Josh Pachter, Untreed Reads, 2020. On occasion I ...

Gerald So Interviews: Lissa Marie Redmond, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Gerald So Interviews: Lissa Marie Redmond, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Gerald So Interviews: Chris Chan, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Gerald So Interviews: Chris Chan, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Gerald So Interviews: Kaye George, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Gerald So Interviews: Kaye George, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Jacqueline Seewald: How to Create Fiction That Readers Can’t Put Down

Jacqueline Seewald: How to Create Fiction That Readers Can’t Put Down:   Readers need both emotional and intellectual connection to fiction or they won’t continue reading. If this connection isn’t created, re...

2020 Thriller Award Finalist: Tara Laskowski

SMFS list member Tara Laskowski is a 2020 Thriller Award Finalist. Her short story, “The Long-Term Tenant” published in the Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine: July/August 2019 issue, is a finalist nominee in the “Best Short Story Category.” While ThrillerFest XV from July 7-11, 2020, in New York City has been cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the Thriller Awards will be presented on Saturday, July 11, 2020 as part of the virtual presentation. For more information, including the full list of all the finalists this year, go to the International Thriller Writers website.

While part of her finalist nominee story can be read here on the EQMM website, you can listen to Tara Laskowski read her entire story on Episode 119 of their podcast here.

Writers Who Kill: An Interview with Art Taylor by E. B. Davis

Writers Who Kill: An Interview with Art Taylor by E. B. Davis: “’Influence is the definition of leverage,’ my father said.” Art Taylor, “A Necessary Ingredient,” Kindle Loc. Page 533 The Boy Det...

SMFS Member Podcast: Frank Zafiro Interviews Paul D. Marks

SMFS list member Frank Zafiro has a long running podcast titled “Wrong Place, Write Crime.” One of the things he does on that is interview folks. This week he interviews SMFS list member Paul D. Marks. This episode can be heard here.

SMFS Member Publication News: M. A. Monnin

SMFS list member M. A Monnin’s short story, “Siren Song” appears in the new anthology, All That Weird Jazz. Published by Pro Se Productions, the book is available in eBook and print formats at Amazon.

Synopsis:

Jazz. A music of improvisation, of passion, of its very own kind of magic. Considered by many to be the only truly original American form of music, it has since its birth in a smoky room somewhere also been tied to the strange, wrapped up in the supernatural, associated with the occult, at least in hints and shadows. Pro Se Productions now brings together several of the most innovative writers in genre fiction today in ALL THAT WEIRD JAZZ, telling the tales of the unusual between the notes, the magic behind the music.From straight up pulp action to ghostly noir to a dragon who digs Jazz more than anyone else, ALL THAT WEIRD JAZZ takes love for this unique musical styling to an all new level, complete with adventure, thrills, and even a chill or two

SMFS Member Publishing News: Cheryl Marceau

SMFS list member Cheryl Marceau’s short story, “Smoked” appears in the new book, Getting Through: Tales of Corona and Community. Published in paperback form, the read is available at Amazon.

Synopsis:

GETTING THROUGH is the fruit of a grassroots effort to grow community through story-telling during this unprecedented period of coronavirus physical isolation. By donating ALL of our profits from book sales to the Red Cross, reaching out to help those who are in desperate need during these harrowing times, we extend that sense of community. The stories, essays, and poems contributed to this collection were mostly written within the first few weeks of confinement by some old friends and many from new friends whose faces I’ve never seen; from aspiring writers to established authors; from every corner of the US and from around the globe; from scientists, musicians, birders, high school students…you name it. Some pieces are deadly serious, others a touch bizarre, and some I hope will give you a chuckle in these difficult times.`In GETTING THROUGH, you'll find fiction, nonfiction, poetry, dystopia, essay, memoir, humor, science fiction, children’s stories. Stories of faith and hope. Stories of biting satire and of empathy. Love letters from parents to children. It’s all good. People are creative in many ways. The collaborative effort has given us, the authors, direction and hope and spirit as we face the harsh realities of the COVID-19 pandemic. By sharing the fruits of our labor with you, the reader, we hope you will join us in our community-building aspirations so that when it's finally safe to go outside again--as it will be--we will enter an even better world hand in hand.Here's the honor roll of contributors to GETTING THROUGH: Robert Baldwin, Riccardo Betti, Johanna Fridrich, Dan Blum, Ann Chamberlin, David Cowley, Mi a Bella D'Augelli, Robert Debbaut, Victoria Dougherty, Gerald Elias (author and editor), Katherine Fast, Priscilla Halberg, John Harrison, Jesse Hercules, Rosalind Horton, Stephen Hughes, Tana Hunter, Julie R. Ingelfinger, Janet K. Linder, Cheryl Marceau, Julia Moser, Kim Nagy, Laura Osborne, Steven Sedley, Sam Shames, Cami Shaskin.

SleuthSayers: My Misadventure on West Thirty-Fifth Street by Robert Lopresti

SleuthSayers: My Misadventure on West Thirty-Fifth Street: Yesterday the mysterious Press published The Misadventures of Nero Wolfe,  which Publishers Weekly described as, ahem, "superb.&quo...

Gerald So Interviews: Frank Zafiro, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Gerald So Interviews: Frank Zafiro, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Gerald So Interviews: S.E. Greco, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Gerald So Interviews: S.E. Greco, 2020 Derringer Finalist

SleuthSayers: Byte Me by Michael Bracken

SleuthSayers: Byte Me: Back up your files! So many stories are no longer accessible. I’ve been hearing this since the advent of personal computers, and I’ve ...

SMFS Member Publication News: JR Lindermuth

SMFS list member  J. R.  Lindermuth’s latest short story, “Brandt’s Secret” is now online at The Raven Review.  The story is free to read online here.

SMFS Members Published in The Misadventures of Nero Wolfe: Parodies and Pastiches Featuring the Great Detective of West 35th Street

Several SMFS list members have short stories in the new book, The Misadventures of Nero Wolfe: Parodies and Pastiches Featuring the Great Detective of West 35th Street. Edited by SMFS list member Josh Pachter, the book is published by the Mysterious Press. This read is available in print and eBook format from the publisher, Amazon, and other vendors.

Michael Bracken with “The Possibly Last Case of Tiberius Dingo.”

Joseph Goodrich with an excerpt of the first scene of his stage adaptation of Rex Stout’s Might As Well Be Dead.

Robert Lopresti with “The Damned Doorbell Rang.”

Josh Pachter with “Sam Buried Caesar” along with the introduction, “Plot It Yourselves.”

Synopsis on Publisher Website:

Stories that pay tribute to Rex Stout’s legendary private detective by Lawrence Block, Loren D. Estleman, John Lescroart, Robert Goldsborough, and more.
 
If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, then Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin have been widely flattered almost from the moment Rex Stout first wrote about them in 1934. The Misadventures of Nero Wolfe collects two dozen literary tributes to one of crime fiction’s best-loved private detectives and his Man Friday. Included are:

·         A 1947 pastiche by award-winning crime writer Thomas Narcejac

·         Rollicking new stories written especially for this collection by Michael Bracken and Robert Lopresti

·         Stories by bestselling authors including Lawrence Block and Loren D. Estleman

·         Chapters from Robert Goldsborough’s authorized continuation of the Wolfe series; Marion Mainwaring’s 1955 tour de force Murder in Pastiche; and John Lescroart’s Rasputin’s Revenge, which reimagines a young Wolfe as the son of Sherlock Holmes

Also featuring a reminiscence from Rex Stout’s daughter, this is a treasury of witty and suspenseful crime writing for every fan of the portly private detective.

Gerald So Interviews: Sandra Murphy, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Gerald So Interviews: Sandra Murphy, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Gerald So interviews: Sylvia Maultash Warsh, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Gerald So interviews: Sylvia Maultash Warsh, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Little Big Crimes Review: Mixed Identities by Martin Hill Ortiz

Little Big Crimes: Mixed Identities, by Martin Hill Ortiz: "Mixed Identities," by Martin Hill Ortiz, in Mystery Weekly Magazine, April 2020. I'm glad I am not on the committee who ...

Trace Evidence: Three Uses of Suspense in “Night Train for Berlin” by William Burton McCormick

Trace Evidence: Three Uses of Suspense in “Night Train for Berlin” by William Burton McCormick

Gerald So Interviews: C.C. Guthrie, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Gerald So Interviews: C.C. Guthrie, 2020 Derringer Finalist

SleuthSayers: Spare Time and Spare Parts by Steve Liskow

SleuthSayers: Spare Time and Spare Parts: by Steve Liskow We all need to fill much too much spare time right now, but social distancing is easier for a writer because it's part...

Gerald So Interviews Trey Dowell, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Gerald So Interviews Trey Dowell, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Gerald So Interviews: Richard Helms, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Gerald So Interviews: Richard Helms, 2020 Derringer Finalist

A Short Walk Down A Dark Street: Issue 99

As posted by Peter DiChellis to our SMFS list…

This week’s blog skipped the Easter egg hunt to ferret out links to reviews, releases, free reads, and more—all of them about short mystery & crime tales.

Includes: submission call—All Due Respect ‘zine is open for submissions (pays $25). Check out the details.

Plus: four free stories that All Due Respect published in 2020, so writers can see what the ADR editors are looking for.

A short walk down a dark street (#99). Celebrating short mystery and crime fiction.

https://shortwalkdarkstreet.wordpress.com/2020/04/12/short-walk-99/

Best wishes,

Peter

Gerald So Interviews: Peter W.J. Hayes, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Gerald So Interviews: Peter W.J. Hayes, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Gerald So Interviews: Josh Pachter, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Gerald So Interviews: Josh Pachter, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Gerald So Interviews: John M. Floyd, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Gerald So Interviews: John M. Floyd, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Gerald So Interviews: Michael Bracken, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Gerald So Interviews: Michael Bracken, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Gerald So Interviews: Leslie Budewitz, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Gerald So Interviews: Leslie Budewitz, 2020 Derringer Finalist 

Gerald So Interviews: C.J. Verburg, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Gerald So Interviews: C.J. Verburg, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Gerald So Interviews: Debra H. Goldstein, 2020 Derringer Finalist

Gerald So Interviews: Debra H. Goldstein, 2020 Derringer Finalist

SleuthSayers: First Thoughts about Writing a Story by Jan S. Christensen

SleuthSayers: First Thoughts about Writing a Story: Last Saturday, John Floyd talked about how he starts writing a new story. A very interesting post. Check it out if you missed it . John s...

Jungle Red Writers: The Beat of Black Wings

Jungle Red Writers: The Beat of Black Wings: Today the Reds welcome Edith and friends to celebrate the amazing music of Joni Mitchell! EDITH MAXWELL: Thank you, Lucy/Roberta, for h...

Criminal Minds: A Tip of the Fedora by Paul D. Marks

Criminal Minds: A Tip of the Fedora: The next book you write will be published, under whatever name you choose (yours, or a nom de plume). What will you write? Why? by Paul D....

Chicks on the Case: Agatha Best Short Story Nominees

Chicks on the Case: Agatha Best Short Story Nominees

Savvy Authors: Speaking of Germs by Kaye George

Savvy Authors: Speaking of Germs by Kaye George

SMFS Member Podcast: Frank Zafiro interviews Hilary Davidson

SMFS member Frank Zafiro has a long running podcast titled “Wrong Place, Write Crime.” One of the things he does on that is interview folks. This week he interviews SMFS member Hilary Davidson. This episode can be heard here.

The First Two Pages: “None Shall Sleep” by Sylvia Maultash Warsh

The First Two Pages: “None Shall Sleep” by Sylvia Maultash Warsh

SleuthSayers: The Beat of Black Wings: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Songs of Joni Mitchell by Josh Pachter

SleuthSayers: The Beat of Black Wings: Crime Fiction Inspired by...: I'm delighted to turn my column over today to author and editor Josh Pachter, who has something special to share. Take it away, Josh! ...

SMFS Members Published in The Beat of Black Wings: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Songs of Joni Mitchell

Edited by SMFS list member Josh Pachter, numerous SMFS members are published in the new anthology releasing today titled The Beat of Black Wings: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Songs of Joni Mitchell. Published by Untreed Reads, the book is available in both print and eBook versions at the publisher, Amazon and other vendors. The SMFS members who have reported to the SMFS list their presence in the book are: 

Michael Bracken with “Ray’s Dad’s Cadillac.”

Barb Goffman with “Man To Man.”

John M. Floyd with “Bad Dreams.”

Tara Laskowski and Art Taylor with “Both Sides, Now.”

Edith Maxwell with “Blue Motel Room.”

Alison McMahan with “Harlem in Havanna.”

Adam Meyer with “The Shades of Scarlett Conquering.”

Alan Orloff with “Sex Kills.”

Josh Pachter with “The Beat of Black Wings.”

Christine Poulson with “The Gallery.”

Art Taylor with Tara Laskowski with “Both Sides, Now.”

Stacy Woodson with “River.”

Amazon Synopsis:

1/3 of the author royalties will be donated to the Brain Aneurysm Foundation in Joni Mitchell's name.

With nine Grammys, multiple lifetime achievement awards, inductions into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame, and a Top Ten ranking on Rolling Stone’s “100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time,” Joni Mitchell has established herself as one of the most important singer/songwriters, not only of her generation, but in the history of popular music.

In this collection, 28 crime writers pay tribute to Joni’s musical legacy with short stories inspired by her lyrics, representing each of her seventeen studio albums from 1968’s Song to a Seagull to 2007’s Shine.

Many of the classics are represented here, including “Both Sides, Now” (in the first literary collaboration between Art Taylor and Tara Laskowski, who have each won major awards for their fiction), “Big Yellow Taxi” (by Kathryn O’Sullivan, author of the Colleen McCabe series), and “River” (by Stacy Woodson, winner of the 2019 Readers Choice Award from Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine), plus such equally fascinating titles as “Cold Blue Steel and Sweet Fire” (by Donna Andrews, author of the award-winning Meg Lanslow series), “The Dry Cleaner From Des Moines” (by Amber Sparks), and “Ray’s Dad’s Cadillac” (by Michael Bracken).

The Wickeds: The Beat of Black Wings — an Interview with Josh Pachter

The Wickeds: The Beat of Black Wings — an Interview with Josh Pachter

SMFS Members Published in The Swamp Killers: A Novel in Stories

Numerous SMFS list members have been published in the new book, The Swamp Killers: A Novel in Stories. Edited by SMFS list members E. A. Aymar and Sara M. Chen, the book is published by Down & Out Books. The read is available in both print and eBook formats at the publisher, Amazon, and other vendors. The SMFS list members published in the book are:

E. A. Aymar with “Sunset Eyes.”

Sarah. M. Chen with “The Path to Enlightenment Ends in Jacksonville.”

Hilary Davidson with “Cockroach.”

Tara Laskowski with “Birthday.”

Alan S. Orloff  with “Settle Up.”

Art Taylor with “A Close Shave.”

Synopsis:

Here’s what we know is true.

Timmy Milici, a low-level hitter with the infamous Atlanta-based Duplass crime family, ran off with Melody Duplass to Jacksonville, Florida. Olivia Duplass, her mother and head of the Duplass family, was incensed, and put a price on Timmy—a hundred thousand for his corpse, but with explicit instructions that her daughter not be harmed.

We know that’s true.

Or, at least, we think we do.

Sixteen writers tell their versions of what happened those fateful days in this gripping novel-in-stories, brought to you from the team behind The Night of the Flood.

Contributors: E.A. Aymar, Sarah M. Chen, Hilary Davidson, Alex Dolan, Rebecca Drake, Gwen Florio, Elizabeth Heiter, J.J. Hensley, Susi Holliday, Shannon Kirk, Tara Laskowski, Jenny Milchman, Alan Orloff, Tom Sweterlitsch, Art Taylor, and Wendy Tyson.

SMFS Members Published in Mystery Weekly Magazine: April 2020

Two SMFS list members have works appearing in Mystery Weekly Magazine: April 2020 issue. The read is available from the publisher in both print and digital formats as well as Amazon and other vendors. The two SMFS members in this issue are:

Martin Roy Hill with “The Last Mission.”

Josh Pachter with “The Pig Is Committed.”

Synopsis:

At the cutting edge of crime fiction, Mystery Weekly Magazine presents original short stories by the world’s best-known and emerging mystery writers.
The stories we feature in our monthly issues span every imaginable subgenre, including cozy, police procedural, noir, whodunit, supernatural, hardboiled, humor, and historical mysteries. Evocative writing and a compelling story are the only certainty.
Get ready to be surprised, challenged, and entertained--whether you enjoy the style of the Golden Age of mystery (e.g., Agatha Christie, Arthur Conan Doyle), the glorious pulp digests of the early twentieth century (e.g., Dashiell Hammett, Raymond Chandler), or contemporary masters of mystery.

In this issue:

“The Roaring Twenties Revisited” by John H. Dromey: can a mature amateur sleuth go undercover and match wits with an alleged criminal kingpin, or will she only be fooling herself?
“The Mystery Of The Egyptian Biscuit” by Jeffery Scott Sims: wheat from an eons old Egyptian Tomb? It was found by the curiously damaged mummy of the sorcerer Artocris. Professor Vorchek seeks the link between the ancient food, the fate of Artocris, and more recent deaths.
“Mixed Identities” by Martin Hill Ortiz: when a bleeding stranger breaks into a cabin after midnight, the house-sitter is mistaken for a private eye. No one is who they say they are.
“Flashgun” by Bruce W. Most: 1930s tabloid crime photographer Weegee prides himself at being first on a murder scene. But when a big-time gangster is gunned down, he’s shocked to find photographers already there. Discovering why leads to more than a front-page photo.
“The Case Of The Disappearing Diamonds” by Benjamin Mark: diamonds have been mysteriously disappearing from their parcels. Blunt and Sharpe have been assigned to discover the methodology use to steal those diamonds. How they do that is the story behind the case.
“The Pig Is Committed” by Josh Pachter: to produce a bacon-and-eggs breakfast, the chicken is involved, but the pig is committed …
“One Night At Clancy's” by Chris Wheatley: PI Joe Larrone thinks he's got the goods on crime boss Harry Ruddock, but is there another rat in the city smarter than them both?
“The Last Mission” by Martin Roy Hill: sometimes what you do in war comes back to haunt you, no matter that you did it for good reasons.