The Short Mystery Fiction Society will honor excellence in mystery and crime fiction with our Derringer Awards in 2025.
Best Flash Story (Up to 1,000 words)
Best Short Story (1,001 to 4,000 words)
Best Long Story (4,001 to 8,000 words)
Best Novelette (8,001 to 20,000 words)
and
Best Anthology
Join before year end to participate.
SMFS list members are published in the new anthology, Santa
Rage: A Killer Claus Compendium. Edited by fellow SMFS list member Jay
Hartman, the book is currently available from the publisher, White City Press,
and will be available at other vendors soon. The SMFS list members that
reported being in the read are:
KM Rockwood with “Burn, Baby, Burn.”
Kevin R. Tipple with “First Contact.”
Publisher Description:
Inspired by a suggestion from legendary book reviewer, author
and multi-term Short Mystery Fiction Society President Kevin R. Tipple, here’s
the holiday anthology that’s definitely not filled with Christmas cheer. It will,
however, be sure to entertain the darker side of your imagination.
Christmastime is a season full of
stress. Cooking, decorations, trying to find the perfect gift for people you
barely know. It’s enough to make anyone snap. Now, imagine you’re Santa Claus
and you’ve got the entire world to take care of.
Yeah, cookies and milk isn’t
going to make that kind of pressure go down any easier. Add in flippant
reindeer, elves who slack and Mrs. Claus nagging that you never spend enough
time with her during the holidays and it’s enough to make your Kris wanna Kringle,
if you know what we mean.
Welcome to Santa Rage: A Killer Claus Compendium in
which Mr. North Pole himself finally snaps and gets his just desserts…and we’re
not talking gingerbread. Within these ten stories Claus dishes out his own
brand of justice to nonbelievers, kidnappers, meth and other drug dealers while
protecting strippers and doling out some of the best doses of karma Santa ever
dealt that did not involve coal.
These ten stories of
grindhouse-level revenge, horror, and action come courtesy of Kevin R. Tipple,
Alexander Bayliss, KM Rockwood, Dante Bilec, Kurtis Rupé, MJ McClymont, E.
Catherine Tobler, Erica Barnes, Justin Hunter and Leon Peter Blanda.
Today is publication day for the new book, Lost and Loaded: a Gun's Tale (the 509 Crime Anthologies). The anthology from High Speed Creative, LLC, includes short stories by SMFS list members. The read is available from Amazon and other vendors. The SMFS list members that reported being in the read are:
James D.F. Hannah with “Do You See the Light?”
Curtis Ippolito with “8-Hour Detour.”
Robert Lopresti with “The Book Deal.”
Amazon Description:
Taking the revolver was their
first mistake. Using it was their second.
Marlin Hattenburg has no
idea of the mayhem he’s about to unleash when he discovers an ugly gun while at
work. Holding the snub-nose revolver fills him with hope that his marital
problems will soon melt away.
He’s dead wrong.
The same pistol soon winds
up in the hands of a junkie, followed by a mother, a spy, and even a failed
clown. Each of them believes a found revolver to be good fortune or a solution
to their problems. They, too, are wrong.
How does one discarded
revolver lead to so much trouble? Follow the gun through one Pacific Northwest
summer and find out.
Lost and Loaded: a Gun’s Tale is a collection of fourteen stories from crime fiction’s freshest voices. Get your copy today and experience a summer of broken dreams and murder.
SMFS list members are published in the Ellery
Queen’s Mystery Magazine: January/February 2025 issue. The issue is
available at the publisher
and other vendors. The SMFS members that reported being in the issue are:
David Bart with “Going the Distance.”
Marcelle Dubé with “No Title, No Clout.”
Paul Ryan O'Connor with “As You See The World.”
Josh Pachter with a translation of François Bloemhof’s
“The Wages of Sin.”
Manon Wogahn with “Kanab Noon.”
SMFS list members are published in the Alfred
Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine: January/February 2025 issue. The issue is
available at the publisher
and other vendors. Those list members that reported being published in the
issue are:
Joslyn Chase with “Santa's Eyes.”
Marcelle Dubé with “King of the Visigoths.”
Kevin Egan with “The Guardianship of Willie Musslburgh.”
John M. Floyd with “The Cado Devil.”
James A. Hearn with “The Nine Lives of Dr. Impossible.”
Jillian Grant Shoichet with “The Toll.”
SMFS list member Elizabeth Zelvin reported that her
short story, Scorched Earth, was published in Black Cat Weekly #171. Published
by Wildside Press, the issue is available here in digital format.
Publisher Description:
This time, we have holiday-themed
stories from Ron Miller (a great new tale featuring
burlesque-queen-turned-private detective Velda), Nina Kiriki Hoffman (who
remains one of my favorite fantasists active today), and Lillian M. Roberts
(thanks to Acquiring Editor Barb Goffman).
Plus,
we have great originals by Elizabeth Zelvin (courtesy of Acquiring Editor
Michael Bracken), Hala Dika, Joshua David Bellin, and Edmund Glasby (concluding
his two-part novel serial from last issue). Our classic reprints are by John S.
Glasby and Philip E. High.
Here’s
the complete lineup—
Cover
Art: Ron Miller
SERIAL
NOVEL
The Battle of Mageddo, by
Edmund Glasby [Part 2 of 2]
The
Third Apocalypse of Brother Santiago concludes!
NOVELET
“Ho, Ho, Ho, Velda!” by Ron
Miller [Velda series]
Velda’s
holiday turns chaotic when a cryptic clue leads to a baffling mystery. Can she
solve it before Christmas is ruined?
SOLVE-IT-YOURSELF
MYSTERY
“An Uncharitable Tournament,” by
Hal Charles
Can
you solve the mystery before the detective? All the clues are there!
SHORT
STORIES
“Scorched Earth,” by Elizabeth
Zelvin [Michael Bracken Presents short story]
Family
tensions simmer as ambition and secrets collide. A gripping tale of loyalty and
betrayal!
“The Reunion,” by Lillian M.
Roberts [Barb Goffman Presents short story]
A
stray dog leads Andi to a mystery that shakes up her holiday.
“The Best Farnsworth,” by Hala
Dika
Detective
Margot Cabot infiltrates a glittering world of wealth to uncover a deadly
secret. Can she outwit the powerful Farnsworth family?
“Company for the Holidays,” by
Nina Kiriki Hoffman
Aunt
Phyllida’s Christmas guest is a boy with a mysterious past—and her house is
hosting a party of shadows….
“The Troop,” by Joshua David
Bellin
A
girl raised among apes warns of a threat to their sanctuary. As two worlds
collide, survival means navigating trust, betrayal, and primal instincts.
“The Method,” by Philip E. High
In
a galaxy where ancient instincts clash with advanced technologies, can Marsin
ignite a rebellion and restore humanity’s place among the stars?
“Where
Dead Men Dream,” by John S. Glasby
In Haiti, a reporter uncovers a sinister ritual. The drums call, the dead rise—and terror awaits!
SMFS list members reported being published in Dark
Yonder: Issue 8. Billed as the Holiday Issue 2024, the print
version came out back on November 13th with the digital version
released on December 1st. Published by Thalia Press, the read is
available at
Amazon. The SMFS list members that reported being in the
read are:
Recita Clemons with “Have Turkey, Will Travel.”
Zakariah Johnson with “Residents and Renters.”
Ed Teja for “Toys for Thugs.”
Amazon Description:
Bah, Humbug!
Yeah, yeah, we know. Peace on earth and all that. We’re
fans. But we also recognize that all the eggnog in the world can’t stop reality
from eventually crashing down on us amidst the revelry. Check out ten great
stories of holiday mayhem and mystery by these outstanding neo noir authors:
Starter Home by Jedidiah Ayres
Have Turkey, Will Travel by
Recita Clemons
Isaiah
by Bradley Harper
Residents and Renters by Zakariah
Johnson
Merry Christmas, You Son of a Bitch by
Charlie Kondek
All I Want for Christmas by Meagan Lucas
A Lot in Common by Stanton
McCaffery
Silver Cord by Sarah Smith
Go Elf Yourself by Casey Stegman
Toys for Thugs by Ed Teja
Issue
8 also features the Drunk Uncle, a special holiday cocktail recipe that honors
everyone’s favorite holiday dinner guest, along with commentary by editors Katy
Munger and Eryk Pruitt.
