Mystery Writers of America announced that Lois Duncan and James Ellroy have been chosen as the 2015 Grand Masters. The award represents the pinnacle of achievement in mystery writing and was established to acknowledge important contributions to this genre and a body of work that is significant and of consistently high quality. The Raven Award, which recognizes outstanding achievement in the mystery field outside the realm of creative writing, is being bestowed upon Jon and Ruth Jordan and Kathryn Kennison. In addition, Hard Case Crime editor Charles Ardai won the MWA’s 2015 Ellery Queen Award, honoring "outstanding writing teams and outstanding people in the mystery-publishing industry.” Well-deserved congrats to all!
The Crime Writers Association announced the third annual Margery Allingham Short Story Competition to celebrate the short story and Margery Allingham's contribution to crime writing. The competition is open to both published and unpublished authors, with stories of up to 3,500 words due by March 16, 2015. (Note there is a submission fee.)
Mystery Scene's holiday issue features a profile of Japanese crime fiction author Fuminori Nakamura, who recently received the David L. Goodis Award for Noir Fiction at the NoirCon convention in Philadelphia. Other highlights include Ed Gorman making an interesting connection by proposing we look at Charlotte Armstrong as a purveyor of suburban noir instead of traditional mysteries; the annual gift guide; and an introduction to Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries, the TV show based on Kerry Greenwood's novels.
The latest edition of Pulp Modern is available for the Kindle and focuses on "stories about America's third favorite activity—drugs. From the Middle East to Middle America, these ten stories deal with all manner of dope and addiction. Some are dark, some are light, all of them make unique statements about drugs and the people who use and sell them."
Lee Lofland announced that there will be a new site for the 2015 Writers' Police Academy: it's the National Criminal Justice Training Center at Fox Valley Technical College in Appleton, Wisconsin. The facility includes 75 acres of indoor and outdoor tactical training space filled with innovative props and simulation experiences, a 30-foot "ant hill" for confined space drills, a 6-story burn tower for fire training, four firearms ranges for police training, a simulated training village, a fully functional forensics lab, and a full-size Boeing 727 aircraft, and full-size train cars for crisis scenarios and investigations. Registration details will be forthcoming sometime in the new year.
Author and blogger Martin Edwards profiled his top ten favorite books about crime, including such titles as Whodunit?, edited by H.R.F. Keating, and A Catalogue of Crime by Barzun and Taylor. If you're a fan of all things crime fiction, his list is a good guide to find new insights and reviews of the greats in the genre.
Author Mary Kennedy, author of Nightmares Can Be Murder, tells USA Today why we love married couples in romance and mystery fiction.
The new crime poem up at the 5-2 is "The Late Show" by Bill Baber.
Looks like we have to say goodbye to another crime fiction ezine, although the reasons are understandable. Thrills, Chills, and Chaos editor David Barber is going to concentrate on his own writing pursuits, and we wish him all the best.
The Q&A roundup includes Ominimystery News welcoming mystery author J.J. Hensley to chat about his new novel, Measure Twice, and thriller author Roderick Vincent about his first book in the Minutemen series about a dystopian America; Maxim Simmler talks about his new crime novellas as he takes on Paul D. Brazill's "Short, Sharp Interview" challenge; Jasper Fforde fielded some zany questions from the Seattle Mystery Bookshop; and Craig Sisterson's Kiki Crime blog featured a "9mm interview" with Gold Dagger winner Wiley Cash.
Great posting . . . so much browsing that I can now enjoy . . . Bravo!
Posted by: R. T. | December 17, 2014 at 03:37 PM
Thanks so much for including me in this wonderful list!! I signed up for your newsletter, I don't want to miss a single article.
Posted by: mary kennedy | December 25, 2014 at 10:42 AM
Glad you enjoyed the latest roundup, R.T.! More news next week, same time, same place. :-)
Posted by: BV Lawson | December 25, 2014 at 10:33 PM
You're welcome, Mary, and I enjoyed your article!
Posted by: BV Lawson | December 25, 2014 at 10:34 PM