Sunday, May 31, 2020
Little Big Crimes Review: Honor Guard by Tom Barlow
Little Big Crimes: Honor Guard, by Tom Barlow: "Honor Guard," by Tom Barlow, in Columbus Noir, edited by Andrew Welsh-Huggins, Akashic Press, 2020. The publisher sent me an...
A Short Walk Down A Dark Street: Issue 106
As posted by Peter DiChellis to our list…
This week’s blog applauds short mystery and
crime fiction with links to a trouble-making troupe of reviews, releases, free
reads, and more.
Includes: About a gazillion free reads from the
short story archives of the Crime Readers’ Association, all written
by members of the prestigious Crime Writers’ Association (which
sponsors the CWA Dagger Awards).
Plus—Tricks of the Trade: Two essays for mystery
writers on hiding clues. With two more from previous Short Walk posts.
And five reviews (count ‘em) by Short
Mystery Fiction Society Prez Kevin Tipple.
A short walk down a dark street (#106). Celebrating short mystery and
crime fiction.
Best wishes,
Peter
SleuthSayers: How It All Came Together by R.T. Lawton
SleuthSayers: How It All Came Together: At the time, I had eleven short stories in my Holiday Burglars series. That's my humor series, at least as far as I'm concerned. Al...
Saturday, May 30, 2020
SleuthSayers: Do's and Don'ts, Wills and Won'ts, Part 1 by John Floyd
SleuthSayers: Do's and Don'ts, Wills and Won'ts, Part 1: I had planned a different column for today, but some things I've seen over the past two weeks have steered me in another direction. (...
Friday, May 29, 2020
Wednesday, May 27, 2020
SMFS Member Publishing News: Christine Poulson
SMFS list member Christine Poulson’s short story, “Cold
for May” appears online at the Crime Reader’s Association, a sister
organization to the UK Crime Writers Association. The short story is free to
read here.
SMFS Member Publishing News: John Weagly
SMFS list member John Weagly’s short story, “Something
To Talk About” appears online at Every Day Fiction. The short story is free to
read here.
SMFS Member Publishing News: Annie Reed
SMFS list member Annie Reed’s short story, “Blame It
On The Ghosts” appears in the new anthology, The Year of the Cat: A Cat
of a Different Color. Published by WMG Publishing, the book was edited
by Kristine Kathryn Rusch and Dean Wesley Smith. Per the publisher,
the print version is “coming soon” and the eBook is available at Amazon.
Synopsis:
In A Cat of a Different Color, the
first volume of WMG’s The Year of the Cat series, editors Dean Wesley Smith and
Kristine Kathryn Rusch worked to find stories that featured cats that were just
a little surprising (an impressive feat for cats, anyone would have to admit).
Just
a little weird. A little different.
Which
makes these stories amazingly fun to read. After all, for cat people, reading
about cats equals the fun of being with one.
Almost.
Just don’t tell the cats.
Includes:
“Familiar Territory: A Winston and Ruby Story” by Kristine Kathryn Rusch
“The Conscientious Cat” by Agnes A. Sandham
“The Mouth that Walked” by Dean Wesley Smith
“Do Not Resuscitate” by Dory Crowe
“Myrtle’s Boxes” by Louisa Swann
“Ornamental Animals” by Ray Vukcevich
“Christmas, Interrupted” by Lisa Silverthorne
“Blame it on the Ghosts” by Annie Reed
Tuesday, May 26, 2020
SMFS Member Publication News: John M. Floyd
SMFS list member John M. Floyd has another mystery short
story appearing in Woman’s World Magazine. His latest mystery short story, “The
Real McCoy” is in the current issue (June 1, 2020) of Woman’s World Magazine.
The publication is available on some newsstands and by subscription.
Members are reminded that Mr. Floyd shared in his
piece at SleuthSayers
Blog how he goes about writing short stories for this
market. Well worth reading, especially if you are looking to break into this
market.
SleuthSayers: AloneStarCon by Michael Bracken
SleuthSayers: AloneStarCon: Though our friends are saddened by the cancellation of this year’s many mystery conferences and conventions, Temple and I spent Memorial Day...
Sunday, May 24, 2020
A Short Walk Down A Dark Street: Issue 105
News of the latest issue as posted by SMFS
list member Peter DicChellis to our list….
This week’s blog cheers short mystery and crime
fiction with links to deviously delightful reviews, releases, free reads, and
more.
Includes: Three free-to-read Father
Brown mysteries by G.K. Chesterton.
Plus, Tricks of the Trade—A Science-Fiction editor
and author (who also writes occasional crime stories) offers a three-stage
approach to revising stories before submitting them.
And reviews of a Joe R. Lansdale Hap and
Leonard collection about the duo’s early years as well as two
collections of classic Agatha Christie mystery stories.
A short walk down a dark street (#105). Celebrating short mystery and
crime fiction.
Best wishes,
Peter
Little Big Crimes Review: All Big Men Are Dreamers by Mary Anna Evans
Little Big Crimes: All Big Men Are Dreamers, by Mary Anna Evans: "All Big Men Are Dreamers," by Mary Anna Evans, in The Faking of the President, edited by Peter Carlaftes, Three Rooms Press, 2...
Saturday, May 23, 2020
SMFS Member Publishing News: John M. Floyd
SMFS list member John M.
Floyd’s short story, “Saving Mrs. Hapwell” appears today online at Kings River
Life Magazine. The story is free to read and can be read here.
Tuesday, May 19, 2020
Mystery Fanfare: REVENGE IS SWEET, COZY, AND FATAL: Guest Post by K...
Mystery Fanfare: REVENGE IS SWEET, COZY, AND FATAL: Guest Post by K...: Kaye George: Revenge is Sweet, Cozy, and Fatal Thanks so much for having me on Mystery Fanfare , Janet! You’re such a good friend to so...
SleuthSayers: Where To Start? by Barb Goffman
SleuthSayers: Where To Start?: "You're starting in the wrong place" is something I've told many an editing client. Sometimes authors start their books ...
Sunday, May 17, 2020
A Short Walk Down A Dark Street: Issue 104
As posted by Peter DiChellis to our list…
Looking for trouble? This week’s blog delivers
plenty, with links to a wicked mix of reviews, releases, free reads, and
more—all about short mystery and crime fiction.
Includes: Tricks of the Trade—One of the editors
at All Due Respect riffs about writing short crime stories,
with notes on characters, plot, action, and focus. (ADR is open for
submissions too. Check out the details.)
Plus, Free-to-read crime stories from ADR and Tough.
As well as a bad-ass bunch of anthology reviews.
A short walk down a dark street (#104). Celebrating short mystery and
crime fiction.
Best wishes,
Peter
Little Big Crimes Review: Borrowed Brains by Alaric Hunt
Little Big Crimes: Borrowed Brains, by Alaric Hunt: "Borrowed Brains," by Alaric Hunt, in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, May/June 2020. Funny thing: last month I was listening t...
Saturday, May 16, 2020
Mystery Fanfare: NOTES FROM THE GIMLET LOUNGE: Guest post by M.A. Monnin
Mystery Fanfare: NOTES FROM THE GIMLET LOUNGE: Guest post by M.A. M...: M.A. MONNIN: NOTES FROM THE GIMLET LOUNGE—MAY 2020 Music has a way of reaching deep into our hearts and souls. The mournful notes of t...
SMFS Member Publishing News: Gary Hoffman
Gary Hoffman was a member of the SMFS list up until
his passing earlier this year. His short story, “No Secret Ever Stays Hidden” appears
today at Kings River Life Magazine. As noted by Lorie Ham on her KRL site, “Sadly Gary Hoffman passed away earlier
this year, but his family asked if we would help them fulfill his goal of
having 500 stories published so we will be publishing several of his stories
over the next few months. This story has never before been published .”
The story is free to read here.
Friday, May 15, 2020
SMFS Member Publishing News: Jacqueline Seewald
SMFS list member Jaqueline Seewald’s new book, Blood
Family: A Kim Reynolds Mystery was published today by Encircle
Publications. The book is her fifth mystery in the series. It is available at
the publisher, Amazon,
and other vendors. You can learn more about the new mystery and read a short
excerpt from the first chapter at Jacqueline Seewald’s blog.
Publisher Synopsis:
In Jacqueline Seewald’s
fifth Kim Reynolds Mystery, Kim, an academic librarian, is intent on locating
her biological father, James Shaw. Unfortunately after finding him, he dies
unexpectedly. It is up to Kim to connect with the family she has never known. In
doing so, she discovers a half-sister who is in need of her help. Kim is
concerned that Claire Shaw is being exploited, and Kim wants to help her
however she can. Kim then learns that Claire’s stepmother also died under
mysterious circumstances, and her stepbrother disappeared. Once Kim becomes
involved, she quickly realizes her own life is now in danger. With Kim’s
fiancé, Lieutenant Mike Gardner, Wilson Township homicide detective,
investigating along with Sergeant Bert St. Croix, the race is on to catch a
killer that is now intent on adding Kim to the list of deceased.
Thursday, May 14, 2020
SMFS Members Published in Shotgun Honey Presents Volume 4: RECOIL
Several SMFS list members are published in the recently released, Shotgun Honey Presents Volume 4: RECOIL. Edited by Ron Earl Phillips and published by Shotgun Honey, an imprint of Down & Out Books, the read is available in print and eBook from the publisher, Amazon, and other vendors. The SMFS members in the book are:
Rusty Barnes with “Tell The Man About Love.”
Sarah M. Chen with “Hotelin.”
Jen Conley with “Victory In The Spring, 1987.”
Synopsis:
- "Tell the Man About Love" by Rusty Barnes
- "The Ghost Road" by Susan Benson
- "Hotelin'" by Sarah M. Chen
- "The Wrong Affair" by Kristie Claxton
- "Victory in the Spring, 1987" by Jen Conley
- "Avenues" by Brandon Daily
- "Noise" by Barbara DeMarco-Barrett
- "After the Bombs" by Hector Duarte Jr.
- "Missing Persons Day" by Danny Gardner
- "The Art of Negotiation" by Tia Ja'nae
- "Dirty Devil Dance" by Carmen Jaramillo
- "Beer Run" by Nick Kolakowski
- "Turner's Bar" by JJ Landry
- "Johnny Still Goes to Atlantic City" by Bethany Maines
- "Jericho" by Tess Makovesky
- "Detour" by Alexander Nachaj
- "Toothpaste" by David Nemeth
Wednesday, May 13, 2020
Tuesday, May 12, 2020
SleuthSayers: Location Location Location – In “The Blues Don’t Care” by Paul D. Marks
SleuthSayers: Location Location Location – In “The Blues Don’t C...: by Paul D. Marks In front of Club Alabam Every time I have a novel come out I do a post about some of the locations in it. I try to ...
SMFS Member Publishing News: Stephen D. Rodgers
SMFS list member Stephen D. Rodgers’ short story, “Maryland
Crab Cakes, Balmer Style” appears online at Punk Noir Magazine. The story is
free to read here.
Monday, May 11, 2020
SMFS Member Publishing News: John M. Floyd
SMFS list member John M. Floyd’s short story, “Flu
Season” appears online at Shotgun Honey. The story is free to read here.
Sunday, May 10, 2020
A Short Walk Down A Dark Street: Issue 103
As posted by Peter DiChellis to our list…
Instead of flowers or chocolates, this week’s
blog brings moms (and everyone else) links about short mystery and crime
fiction: reviews, releases, free reads, and more.
Includes all the latest free-to-read flash
fiction from Mystery Tribune.
Plus, Tricks of the Trade: A third generation
cop offers real-world tips on avoiding glaring procedural mistakes in crime
fiction.
And two fresh reviews from SMFS Prez Kevin
Tipple, as well as reviews of over four-dozen Edward D. Hoch impossible crime
shorts.
A short walk down a dark street (#103). Celebrating short mystery and
crime fiction.
Best wishes,
Peter
Little Big Crimes Review: Noble Rot by Richard Helms
Little Big Crimes: Noble Rot, by Richard Helms: "Noble Rot," by Richard Helms, in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, May/June 2020. This is the fifth appearance in this slot by...
Saturday, May 9, 2020
SleuthSayers: You Know More Than You Think You Do by Jan Christensen
SleuthSayers: You Know More Than You Think You Do: Pixabay I’m taking a break from the Coronavirus news and trying to write more than I usually do every day. I live in Corpus Christi, Tex...
SMFS Member Publishing News: Bruce Harris
The recently released Flash Bang Mysteries: Spring 2020 (Issue19) features SMFS list member Bruce Harris with his short story “Sweet Spot.” His tale is the “Editor’s Choice” for the issue.
Friday, May 8, 2020
Mystery Fanfare: Closing the Great Divide: When Journalism and Mystery Writing Meet: Guest Post by Andrew Welsh-Huggins
Mystery Fanfare: Closing the Great Divide: When Journalism and Myst...: Andrew Welsh-Huggins: Closing The Great Divide: When Journalism And Mystery Writing Meet One of the most frequent questions I receiv...
Criminal Minds: Butcher, Baker, Troublemaker by Paul D. Marks
Criminal Minds: Butcher, Baker, Troublemaker: Most of us - most writers everywhere - do something else first, or do something else alongside. What bits of your other career(s) have you f...
Jacqueline Seewald: How to Create a Strong Narrative Hook
Jacqueline Seewald: How to Create a Strong Narrative Hook: Spring is a time for creation, of coming alive again. And so it is for authors. Every writer knows that a narrative hook is needed in any...
Tuesday, May 5, 2020
Criminal Minds: How Much Is True? by Frank Zafiro
Criminal Minds: How Much Is True?: Most of us - most writers everywhere - do something else first, or do something else alongside. What bits of your other career(s) have you f...
SleuthSayers: A River Runs Through It by Michael Bracken
SleuthSayers: A River Runs Through It: Although I’ve written and sold short stories in a variety of genres, my crime fiction primarily fits within the subgenres of private eye, ha...
Monday, May 4, 2020
SleuthSayers: Crime Writers, Give Me Magic—And Don't Explain It Away by Elizabeth Zelvin
SleuthSayers: Crime Writers, Give Me Magic—And Don't Explain It ...: When I shared the good news of the acceptance of a hard-to-place cross-genre short story on the Short Mystery e-list, I said: "I didn...
Sunday, May 3, 2020
Little Big Crimes Review: Dirty Laundry by Michael Bracken
Little Big Crimes: Dirty Laundry, by Michael Bracken: "Dirty Laundry," by Michael Bracken, in Tough, April 20, 2020. This is the sixth appearance here by my friend and fellow Sle...
A Short Walk Down A Dark Street: Issue 102
As posted by SMFS list member Peter DiChellis:
This week’s blog is dodging a home internet
outage to juice short mystery and crime fiction with links to reviews,
releases, free reads, and more.
Includes: Four free-to-read stories in the new issue of Flash Bang Mysteries.
Includes: Four free-to-read stories in the new issue of Flash Bang Mysteries.
Plus, Tricks of the Trade: Hank Phillippi Ryan
on making every word count.
And one of this week's reviews covers a new
collection of six Don Winslow novellas.
A short walk down a dark street (#102). Celebrating short mystery and
crime fiction.
Best wishes,
Peter
2019 Agatha Award SMFS Winners
Established in
1989, Malice Domestic™ is an annual fan convention
in the metropolitan Washington D.C. area that celebrates the traditional
mystery, best typified by the works of Agatha Christie, containing no explicit
sex, excessive gore, or violence. With the cancellation of Malice Domestic this
year due to the pandemic, the awards were presented last night virtually by way
of zoom.
Two SMFS list members
were honored with Agatha Awards last night. The members are:
Tara Laskowski won an
Agatha Award for the “Best First Mystery Novel” category for her book, for One
Night Gone (Graydon House).
Edith Maxwell won an Agatha
Award in the “Best Historical Novel” category for Charity’s Burden:
A Quaker Midwife Mystery (Midnight Ink).
SMFS salutes our list members
on this honor. The winners this year will be honored next year at
the planned in person event. Those details and more can be found at the can be
found at the Malice Domestic website.
Saturday, May 2, 2020
Friday, May 1, 2020
SMFS Official Announcement: 2020 Derringer Award Winners
Since
1998, the Short Mystery Fiction Society has awarded the annual Derringers—after
the popular pocket pistol—to outstanding published stories. The awards
recognize outstanding stories published during 2020.
As posted
late last night to our list by 2020 Derringer Awards Coordinator Tony Rudzki,
these are the official 2020 Derringer Award Winners:
FLASH (ranges up to 1,000 words)
Josh Pachter, The Two-Body Problem, Mystery Weekly Magazine: October 2019.
SHORT (ranges from 1,0001 to 4,000 words)
John Floyd, On the Road with Mary Jo, Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine: Jan/February 2019
LONG (ranges from 4,001 to 8,000 words)
Sandra Murphy, Lucy’s Tree, The
Eyes of Texas: Private Eyes from the Panhandle to the Piney Woods Editor Michael Bracken
NOVELETTE (ranges from 8,001 to 20,000 words)
Brendan Dubois ,with His Sister’s Secrets, Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine: July/August 2019
The full list of the finalist for this year, as
posted by the Derringer Coordinator, can be found here.
The Edward D. Hoch Memorial Golden Derringer for
Lifetime Achievement is annually awarded to an outstanding living writer of
short mysteries, selected by a five-member panel of the SMFS President, Vice
President, and Awards Coordinator, and two regular members. This year's
recipient:
Josh Pachter
As Bouchercon in Sacramento this fall has been cancelled, it is unknown at this time that there will be a virtual presentation made. Scheduling remains very fluid. Winners are able to receive their medals by mail.
Josh Pachter
As Bouchercon in Sacramento this fall has been cancelled, it is unknown at this time that there will be a virtual presentation made. Scheduling remains very fluid. Winners are able to receive their medals by mail.